An electoral supercycle over the next year may redefine the continent’s future. But what’s happening on the streets is shaping it, too

France sneezed, and Europe has again caught the cold. The wave of unrest which began with teenagers at a high school soon drew in hundreds of thousands of people nationwide and then spread across the continent. Protests have filled the streets in Lisbon and Madrid, and have ignited into violence in Milan, Brussels and Tirana as well as in French cities.

French authorities say they are deploying 70,000 officers on Saturday and are allowing only marches organised by unions. They blame hard-left militants as well as opportunistic young perpetrators for last weekend’s destruction and looting, when a minority hijacked largely peaceful protests. But with fuel prices set to rise further over the winter, the demands and participants broadening, and President Macron utterly failing to meet the moment, there is no sign of an end to the wider discontent and no speedy resolution in sight.

Despite distraction and distortion, voters know what issues will be informing their votes in this election

• This was originally published in The Stakes 2026, a newsletter about the midterm elections. Sign up to get it in your inbox

Elections too often get pigeonholed. The hot take, or simplistic analysis, would have it that just one issue – often the issue the source so happens to be most animated about – will decide the entire result.

Tens of millions of Americans will go to the polls next month. Will they be galvanized by affordability? Maybe it’s Iran. Or healthcare? Taxes, perhaps. Or crime.

• Three-time Vezina winner leaves Winnipeg after 11 years

• Devils send four players and two draft picks to Jets

• Olympic gold medalist joins US teammate Jack Hughes

Connor Hellebuyck finally has a new home after the Winnipeg Jets granted the three-time Vezina Trophy-winning goaltender’s trade request in a deal that sent him to the New Jersey Devils on Friday.

The Devils sent center Dawson Mercer, goalie Nico Daws, prospect Alexander Command, forward Nick Bjugstad, a 2029 second-round pick and a 2027 seventh-rounder to Winnipeg for Hellebuyck.

Le gardien réclamait d'être échangé depuis des mois. Dawson Mercer et Nico Daws s'en vont à Winnipeg.

Hunter Foster fired at vehicle during a shoplifting call at a Walmart, killing one-year-old Kohen Wiley

Hunter Foster, the Mississippi police officer who shot into a vehicle and killed one-year-old Kohen Wiley, has resigned from the Senatobia police department. Earlier this week, Mississippi’s attorney general, Lynn Fitch, announced that the shooting was “justified”.

The Senatobia board of aldermen accepted Foster’s resignation on 21 October and the resignation took effect immediately. Foster was placed on leave on 16 June, days after the 14 June shooting. Yesterday, the Mississippi department of public safety released body-camera and surveillance footage from the shooting, at a Walmart in Senatobia, during which the toddler died in his mother’s arms after being shot.

We start this week with Jason’s article about how everyone is apparently reverse-engineering everything. After the break, Joseph tells us about a big AI shakeup at consulting giant Accenture. In the subscribers-only section, Sam and Jason discuss the Character[.]ai bankruptcy.

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• ⁠‘Reverse-Engineer Anything’ Is the New Wild West of AI⁠
• ⁠Accenture Tells Employees They Can Now Spend Only $29 on Claude Per Month⁠
• ⁠Character[.]ai Bankruptcy Is First AI Bubble Domino to Fall⁠

But the US constitution unequivocally states that he cannot, which the president also seemed to acknowledge

Donald Trump joked with rally-goers on Thursday evening that he had “the right to run again” for president, invoking a claim he has repeatedly made that he may seek a third term despite it being unconstitutional.

“I don’t know who is going to be your next president and I think the law said, I’m not 100% sure, but I think the law says I’m not allowed to run again,” Trump said in Sioux City, Iowa.

People in Russian-occupied city facing severe shortages of food, water and electricity, with some reportedly surviving on weeds

The White House has said that Russia and Ukraine have agreed to a ceasefire in the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky, where a deepening humanitarian crisis has left thousands of civilians struggling to survive.

In a statement on Friday, the White House said both sides had agreed to halt all military operations in the city from 29 October to allow humanitarian aid deliveries and preparations for the evacuation of civilians.

Ukraine has received more than 50,000 rounds of 20-mm ammunition from Denmark for the onboard cannons of its F-16 fighter jets, with Ukrainian pilots already using the rounds to intercept Russian jet-powered Geran attack drones, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said.

The accelerated delivery addresses a key need in Ukraine’s air defense as Russia increasingly deploys faster jet-powered drones that challenge conventional interceptors. Ukraine has also relied on F-16 cannons when stocks of air-to-air missiles are limited, making ammunition supplies important to keeping the aircraft effective against incoming aerial threats.

Denmark responds to ammunition request

The Defense Ministry thanked Denmark for responding quickly to Ukraine’s request for additional ammunition, saying the delivery directly strengthens the country’s air defenses and helps protect civilians from Russian aerial attacks.

The delivery follows a broader effort by Ukraine’s European partners to replenish F-16 cannon ammunition. On October 2, it was reported that Spain, Belgium, and Poland were also sending 20-mm rounds for Ukrainian F-16s to counter Russia’s jet-powered drones.

Belgium is also expanding its support for Ukraine’s F-16 fleet. On 16 October, Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever pledged to deliver 10 F-16s by the end of 2026, up from three previously planned, and discussed supplying additional ammunition, including 20-mm rounds produced by Belgian defense company FN Herstal.

Jet-powered drones pose a growing challenge

Russia’s faster attack drones are harder to intercept than older, propeller-driven Shahed-type models. Their speed gives air defenders less time to respond and makes them more difficult for many interceptor drones and conventional short-range weapons to catch.

Ukraine’s air-to-air missile shortages have also increased the importance of F-16 cannon ammunition. Ukrainian pilots have sometimes relied on their aircraft’s built-in 20-mm cannon when air-to-air missiles are scarce.

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Ukraine’s F-16s are so short of Western missiles that pilots fall back on jet’s built-in M61A1 Vulcan cannon, which risks killing civilians below

The threat from jet-powered drones is growing. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in late September that Ukraine was intercepting about 55% of Russia’s jet-powered drones, compared with more than 90% of older models.

Denmark’s ammunition delivery gives Ukrainian F-16 pilots more rounds to engage these faster targets, as Ukraine works to strengthen its defenses against Russia’s expanding drone campaign.

La Sud-Africaine assume son utilisation de l'intelligence artificielle malgré les critiques et les menaces.

Contents of laptop of Joe Biden’s son were part of a bizarre saga in the final weeks of 2020 presidential election

Two former FBI intelligence officials who specialized in foreign election interference were charged on Friday with making false statements about their roles in investigating the origins of Hunter Biden’s laptop in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election.

Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides surrendered on Friday and made their first appearance in federal court in Washington DC. Floris’s legal team expressed outrage at the development coming from the US Department of Justice, the parent agency of the FBI.