Oct 4, 2026
5 min read
Welcome to your Sunday brief from Bilig. Here is what we are watching today: fighting between Yemen's Houthis and Saudi-backed forces has spread to Riyadh and Sanaa, while Washington and Tehran dig in over the Strait of Hormuz. Ukraine has promised to hit Russian refineries after strikes on Kyiv's bridges. And Brazil votes today in a presidential race that final polls show is nearly level.
Houthis claim strike on Aramco site in Riyadh
Yemen's Houthi movement said on Saturday it had hit a Saudi Aramco facility in Riyadh with ballistic missiles and drones. Military spokesman Yahya Saree said the strikes caused fires, and an AFP journalist saw flames and smoke at a facility south of the capital. Saudi-led coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki called the claims "misleading", Saudi media reported. Yemeni government forces said on Sunday they had struck Houthi targets in Sanaa and Saada. Fighting has intensified since a 2022 truce collapsed in July.
Hegseth calls Hormuz blockade ironclad, Iran holds firm
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Saturday that the US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz was "ironclad". "They don't control it. We do," he told reporters at Marine Corps Base Quantico, adding that Iran would never have a nuclear weapon. Iran's chief negotiator, parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said on Sunday the strait would stay closed until seven conditions in the Islamabad memorandum were met. OPEC+ is expected to keep November output targets unchanged at a meeting on Sunday, three sources told Reuters.
Zelenskiy vows refinery strikes after Kyiv bridge attacks
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told Reuters on Saturday that Ukraine would step up attacks on Russian oil refineries in response to what he called a new Russian doctrine of striking civilian infrastructure. A Russian strike damaged Kyiv's Northern Bridge early on Saturday, the second bridge hit in two days. Mayor Vitalii Klitschko said the road surface was damaged and reported no casualties. Russia's defence ministry said the bridges facilitate troop movements and military logistics.
Brazil votes with Lula and Bolsonaro nearly level
Brazilians vote on Sunday in a presidential election that final polls show is close between President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Senator Flavio Bolsonaro. A Datafolha survey published on Saturday gave Lula 45% of valid votes and Bolsonaro 42%. Quaest put them at 46% and 45%. Both polls have a margin of error of two percentage points. Polling stations are open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Brasilia time. A runoff is scheduled for 25 October if no candidate wins more than half.
Trump predicts midterm surprise at Ohio rally
US President Donald Trump told supporters in Vandalia, Ohio, on Saturday that the 3 November midterm elections would bring a "big surprise". "We're going to win, and we're going to win big," he said. Trump was campaigning for Republican Senator Jon Husted and gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy. Al Jazeera reported that his approval ratings have fallen amid higher petrol prices and the war with Iran.
Tens of thousands march in Spain over housing
Tens of thousands of people marched in Madrid and about 50 other Spanish cities on Saturday to demand action on housing, a day after parliament rejected two government decrees. The government put the Madrid crowd at about 70,000. Organisers said 500,000 took part. Police in Valencia used rubber bullets and tear gas, Reuters reported. Spanish media said Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez was considering a snap election. His office declined to comment. Tenants' unions have called for a general strike.
Israel says Gaza strike targeted senior Hamas figure
Israel's military said on Saturday that an air strike on a Gaza City apartment had targeted Ali al-Amoudi, whom it described as the most senior Hamas figure in the Gaza Strip. The strike in the Rimal district killed five people, four of them women, according to Palestinian sources. The military said the results were under review and did not say whether al-Amoudi was killed. It accused him of helping to plan the 7 October 2023 attack. A ceasefire took effect last year.
Two Iranians in UK court over Manchester plot
Two Iranian men appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London on Saturday, charged with preparing an attack on Manchester's Jewish community. Prosecutors said Rahman Salehi, 34, and Salam Ahmadyan, 36, carried out surveillance of Jewish sites and planned to use a homemade device made with chlorine. Police said the men were in contact with a third party who may be in Iran. They entered no pleas and were remanded in custody until a hearing at the Old Bailey on 23 October.
Latvian prime minister's party wins record 42 seats
Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs's United List won Saturday's parliamentary election, taking 42 of 100 seats with almost all votes counted, public broadcaster LSM reported on Sunday. The populist Latvia First party won 17 seats and Sovereign Power 15. "It's remarkably good. I was not expecting such a result," Kulbergs said after exit polls were published, according to Reuters. Kulbergs, who took office in May, campaigned on stronger anti-drone defences and defence spending of 5% of gross domestic product.
Ethiopian federal forces enter Tigray's capital
Ethiopian federal forces entered Mekelle, the capital of the Tigray region, on Saturday after fighters of the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) withdrew, AFP reported. The army also retook the city's airport, which rebels seized on 23 September, according to Al Jazeera. Residents told news agencies they feared looting. TPLF leader Debretsion Gebremichael said his forces would strike "wherever we choose". The African Union says the 2020 to 2022 Tigray war killed more than 600,000 people.
The week ahead
Nobel Prize announcements begin on Monday 5 October with medicine, followed by physics on Tuesday, chemistry on Wednesday, literature on Thursday and the Peace Prize on Friday 9 October. The US ISM services index for September is published on Monday. The Federal Reserve releases minutes of its 15 to 16 September meeting on Wednesday 7 October, the day Britain's Conservative Party conference closes in Birmingham. European Union Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic meets Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao on Thursday 8 October, days after Beijing opened an anti-dumping probe into an EU chemical. Delta Air Lines reports quarterly results on Friday.