Assassination on the Table?

Hi Global Recap readers,

Thanks to everyone who supported our Spotify channel by upvoting after the overnight downvote attack. Also, thank you for voicing your opinions on yesterday's poll.

• On the channel: Huge thanks to those who already helped. If you haven’t yet, please upvote to keep our coverage visible and counter the bot-driven attempts to bury it—really appreciate it.

• On the poll: The majority backed maintaining link access. Even most of the "no" votes said they support open access, even if they personally prefer not to view them.

Going forward, any sensitive links will include the usual ALL CAPS WARNING and a separate "click for video" link, with images disabled from being clickable to prevent accidental access.

Thanks for your input—I wanted to check before making such a consequential change, to ensure access is still an option, but completely out of reach.

🌐 WORLD
Fast Scroll News

🇻🇪 Trump on Assassinating Maduro

The Trump administration just authorized the CIA to run covert operations in Venezuela, escalating its campaign to push Nicolás Maduro out of power.

• Authorization: President Trump confirmed today that he signed off on the CIA’s covert action.

• Target: US officials say the ultimate goal is to remove Maduro, who has ruled Venezuela since 2013 and consolidated power through disputed elections and repression.

• Military: The Pentagon is drafting strike options inside Venezuela, while US forces have already attacked boats off the Venezuelan coast, killing 27 people accused of drug trafficking.

• Timing: The decision comes after weeks of operations at sea and growing frustration in Washington over Maduro’s resilience despite years of sanctions.

• Admission: Trump publicly acknowledged the covert plan, saying the United States is also weighing direct strikes on Venezuelan territory. However, he refused to say if the CIA has the authority to assassinate Maduro. But realistically, if he did authorize an assassination, why would he openly announce it to the world?

🇮🇱 Israel Rejects Hostage Body

Israel disputed that one of the four bodies returned from Gaza matched any of the 21 hostages still unaccounted for, throwing the fragile ceasefire into turmoil.

• Identification: Families confirmed the remains of Uriel Baruch, Tamir Nimrodi, and Eitan Levy, but the fourth body did not correspond to any known hostage.

• Sequence: Hamas had already released 20 living hostages on Monday, then transferred more bodies via the Red Cross on Wednesday, insisting it had returned all it could recover without special equipment.

• Reaction: Israeli minister Itamar Ben Gvir accused Hamas of "lying, deceiving, and abusing families and bodies," while demanding harsher military action.

• Situation: Hamas is already showing troubling signs:

  • Instead of disarming, Hamas is now executing people they accuse of helping Israelis, after the IDF pulled back. In response, Trump warned that if the group refuses to disarm, "we will disarm them."

  • The group still has not returned all the bodies of dead hostages. The US, however, has indicated that it doesn't see this as a breach of the deal, arguing the 72-hour deadline was unrealistic from the start.

🇺🇸 Trump Pressures NATO

The majority of NATO states have signed on to Trump’s Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List, which swaps donations for purchases of US weapons to be sent to Ukraine. However, some are still pushing back.

• Shift: Unlike Joe Biden's donation model, Trump insists allies buy American weapons, with the US releasing its stockpiles only if Europe pays.

• Money: Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Canada, Germany, and the Netherlands have already pledged $2 billion across four packages, while Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovenia, and Finland are finalizing a fifth package.

• Tension: The UK and France remain holdouts, facing growing pressure from allies who argue that "fair burden sharing" is overdue.

• Warning: Ukraine's Defense Minister Denys Schmyhal said Kyiv's needs next year could hit between $12 billion and $20 billion.

• Fix: Some allies want to funnel seized Russian assets into the scheme, while EU leaders debate using €140 billion in frozen funds for reparations.

🇲🇬 Madagascar Army Seizes Power

Madagascar’s Colonel Michael Randrianirina declared he will soon be sworn in as president after a coup toppled Andry Rajoelina, prompting the African Union to suspend the country.

• Leader: Randrianirina, a commander in the elite CAPSAT unit, broke with Rajoelina last week and now claims authority with backing from the military, police, and gendarmerie.

• Flight: Rajoelina fled Madagascar on October 12 aboard a French military plane and is believed to be in Dubai, saying his life was at risk.

• Suspension: The African Union immediately suspended Madagascar, with Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf insisting that "the rule of law must prevail over the rule of force."

• Plan: Randrianirina announced a transitional government led by the military for up to two years before elections, keeping only the National Assembly intact.

• Protests: The coup followed youth-led demonstrations in Antananarivo over blackouts and water shortages, which drew mass defections from security forces.

🇦🇫🇵🇰 AFGHANISTAN / PAKISTAN
Ceasefire After
Border Bloodshed

After days of artillery, airstrikes, and finger-pointing, Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban suddenly agreed to a 48-hour ceasefire. Both sides insist the other begged for it, which tells you everything about how fragile this pause really is.

The Clashes Erupt

The week began with explosions in Kabul and Kandahar, and by Wednesday morning, the border was a war zone.

• Pakistan’s military claimed it killed 15–20 Afghan Taliban fighters in Spin Boldak, a key crossing point between Kandahar and Pakistan’s Balochistan province.

• Taliban officials countered that Pakistani soldiers were killed, though they gave no numbers.

• A doctor in Spin Boldak says that he counted seven bodies and 36 injured, including women and children, after five hours of heavy clashes. Hospitals in the border region are overwhelmed, treating both civilians and fighters.

Airstrikes and Smoke

Then came the escalation no one wanted to admit.

• Pakistani state media reported airstrikes on Kabul and Kandahar, though the military has not officially confirmed them.

• Taliban sources said that two airstrikes hit Kabul, with plumes of black smoke rising over the capital.

• Kabul’s Emergency Surgical Center said it received 40 casualties, five of whom were dead on arrival.

Propaganda

Just as important as firepower is, of course... propaganda.

• Over the weekend, the Taliban claimed to have killed 58 Pakistani soldiers, while Islamabad said it killed 200 Taliban and affiliated fighters.

• None of these figures can be independently verified, but both governments are pushing their own tallies on social media.

• Videos of alleged drone strikes and destroyed posts are circulating online, though none have been authenticated.

The Ceasefire Gamble

By Wednesday afternoon, Islamabad announced the truce. But the language from both capitals shows how shaky it is.

• Pakistan’s Foreign Office said both sides would make “sincere efforts” to find a solution through dialogue.

• The Taliban said their forces would respect the ceasefire “as long as no one commits aggression.”

• UN rapporteur Richard Bennett urged restraint, warning of civilian displacement and reminding both sides to abide by international law.

• Meanwhile, China, Russia, and even US President Donald Trump have floated offers to mediate, signaling how quickly this border fight could spiral into a regional crisis.