Oct. 9, 2026 — The Securities and Exchange Commission proposed amending its cross-trading rule, Rule 17a-7, to let registered funds again trade most fixed-income securities with affiliates, which the SEC said its 2020 fund valuation rule had effectively restricted. The changes would update pricing and oversight conditions and require aggregated reporting of cross trades, the SEC said. Chairman Paul Atkins said cross trades let funds avoid open-market costs and pass the savings to investors. Comments are open for 60 days after Federal Register publication.
Oct. 8, 2026 — Taliban authorities arrested or detained at least 52 women and one girl in Herat and Kabul between July and September over alleged violations of their dress code, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said, adding that the true number could be far higher. The women were released after several hours, it said. Separately, the International Organization for Migration said nearly 6.5 million Afghans have returned from Iran and Pakistan since 2023, many without work or shelter.
Oct. 9, 2026 — Navi Pillay, the South African jurist who served as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights from 2008 to 2014, won the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize "for her efforts to promote peace and international law," the Norwegian Nobel Committee said, according to UN News. Pillay defended anti-apartheid activists as a lawyer and served as a judge at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the International Criminal Court. She later chaired the UN commission of inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
Oct. 8, 2026 — This updates our Oct. 7 report on strikes in Ukraine. At least 85 civilians have been killed and 346 injured in Russian strikes since Oct. 5, UN human rights chief Volker Türk said, calling the attacks "reprehensible." They include a strike on two buses in Kramatorsk on Oct. 8 that killed at least 30, according to local authorities. Türk said he was also deeply concerned by reports of Ukrainian attacks that killed and wounded civilians in occupied territory and in Russia.
Oct. 8, 2026 — The UN Security Council unanimously renewed its Sudan sanctions regime, an arms embargo and targeted sanctions rooted in the 2004 Darfur conflict, for two months to Dec. 11, UN News reported. The United States had sought to extend the embargo to all of Sudan and all parties to the current war, but that effort did not win consensus, UN News said, citing news reports. WHO said more than 700,000 displaced people in Tawila, Darfur, face severe shortages of health care, food and water, and its 2026 appeal is 23% funded.
Oct. 9, 2026 — A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck southern Panama at 17:56 UTC, about 12 km west-southwest of Pitaloza Arriba, at a depth of about 13 km, the U.S. Geological Survey said, revising an initial magnitude of 7.6. Its automated impact estimate gave the quake a red alert, its highest level. Aftershocks of magnitude 5.5, 5.8 and 6.6 followed within three hours. The U.S. Tsunami Warning System said hazardous waves were possible along parts of the coasts of Panama, Colombia, Costa Rica and other countries from Mexico to Peru, ABC News (Australia) reported.
Oct. 9, 2026 — Every undergraduate enrolled in a degree program at a California community college, a California State University campus or the University of California now meets CalFresh's initial application requirements, Gov. Gavin Newsom's office said. Financially eligible students enrolled at least half-time can receive up to $306 a month for groceries. The change creates no new benefits, the office said; it expects more than 200,000 additional eligible students to enroll.
Oct. 9, 2026 — California has stockpiled 4.4 million sandbags, more than 52,000 feet of portable flood barriers and 400,000 tons of rock at 68 sites, and is inspecting 1,600 miles of state levees ahead of El Niño storms, Gov. Gavin Newsom's office said. Under his Sept. 21 emergency proclamation, the Coastal Commission can act on qualifying emergency permits within 24 hours. The office said Kelvin waves have raised sea levels this year, and that scientists attribute recent coastal flooding to El Niño.
Oct. 9, 2026 — San Diego County is seeing an unusually early rise in flu, with test positivity at 8.0%, 58 hospitalizations and eight deaths reported, the County said. Its weekly respiratory virus report, which resumed Oct. 9, now includes two-week forecasts of COVID-19, flu and RSV hospitalizations, built with UC San Diego researchers under a CDC-funded project. Public Health Officer Dr. Sayone Thihalolipavan urged residents to get a flu shot, saying the vaccine looks highly effective against the circulating strain.