Iraq

Qatari mediators held more than 12 hours of talks with Iranian officials in Tehran on Friday, aiming to restart direct US-Iran negotiations and prevent renewed military action, according to Axios. Qatar is also pushing for UN inspectors to visit nuclear sites damaged in US and Israeli strikes. The US insists on nuclear concessions before talks continue, while Iran demands the lifting of a naval blockade, release of frozen funds and sanctions relief. Discussions are set to resume in Doha on Sunday. Meanwhile, Iran says six commercial vessels have struck sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz, and a supertanker carrying two million barrels of oil caught fire after hitting a mine.

Yemen's Houthis say they fired a ballistic missile at Riyadh's airport and struck oil pumping stations with drones on 26 Oct. The Saudi-led coalition says it intercepted the missile and destroyed two missile launchers in Sanaa. Saudi Arabia has not confirmed the attacks. Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport partially reopened on 25 Oct, after an earlier attack on 10 Oct killed 13 people. Between 8 and 25 Oct, more than 7,800 flights were cancelled, about 45% of scheduled departures from Saudi airports.

Barack Obama denounces President Donald Trump as chaotic and cruel during speeches in Ohio, Michigan and a Democratic campaign event, while Trump replies on Truth Social that Obama is incompetent, highlighting a sharp exchange between the two former presidents.