Quick Hits

• Omar investigation deepens: Federal authorities investigating Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar seized her phone and issued more than a dozen grand jury subpoenas, including to some of her relatives (MPR News). The centrist newsletter Tangle, which has covered the case in two pieces, described an earlier DHS search of her residence as "the latest example of the Trump administration's investigations into political opponents."
• Pope recovering: Pope Leo XIV has resumed eating, begun walking and celebrated Mass in the hospital after surgery to remove a cancerous mass from his lung, the Vatican said — though questions remain about an upcoming trip (MPR News).
• Platform purge ahead of midterms: X says it suspended 13,000 accounts it alleges were part of foreign influence networks targeting US political debate "across the spectrum" before the midterm elections (Al Jazeera).
• Iran war fallout reaches G20: Finance ministers and central bankers gathered in Thailand as the conflict drives energy prices higher and casts uncertainty over the global economy (Al Jazeera).
• Deadly Wisconsin crash: Six people, including one child, died after a plane crashed in Wisconsin; authorities say the pilot had reported ice building up on the wings while flying through a thunderstorm (MPR News).

Top Stories

• The Ilhan Omar case drew both local and national attention. MPR News reports that federal investigators seized the Democratic lawmaker's phone and issued more than a dozen grand jury subpoenas, some to relatives. Tangle devoted sustained coverage to the case, examining the DHS raid of her home within the context of the Trump administration's investigations of political opponents.
• Pope Leo XIV's post-surgical recovery is progressing, according to the Vatican: he resumed his regular diet, began walking and celebrated Mass on Wednesday, though the status of a planned trip remains uncertain (MPR News).
• X's suspension of 13,000 accounts, announced with allegations of foreign influence operations targeting US political debate ahead of the midterms, adds a new element to election-integrity concerns this cycle (Al Jazeera).
• G20 financial officials are meeting in Thailand with the Iran war's fallout — higher energy prices and global economic uncertainty — looming over the gathering (Al Jazeera).

Left Perspective

Coverage from MPR News (rated lean left) emphasized education funding and public safety debates in Minnesota:

• US Education Secretary Linda McMahon, the Trump administration's top education official, defended the budget cuts and layoffs she has carried out during a visit to Rochester (MPR News).
• Minneapolis Public Schools leaders abandoned a proposal, put forward last month, to close up to 16 schools; the board had been set to act before backing off (MPR News).
• Progressive Minneapolis City Council members are pushing to eliminate a public safety department created in the wake of George Floyd's murder, arguing it doesn't meaningfully oversee city police (MPR News).
• Ahead of the midterms, MPR News spotlighted suburban state Senate rematches — Judy Seeberger vs. Tom Dippel and Julia Coleman vs. Dan Kessler — that could decide chamber control, and profiled the US Senate race, where GOP nominee Michele Tafoya faces DFL nominee Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, plus Libertarian Rebecca Whiting, independent Marisa Simonetti and write-in Alycia Gruenhagen; MPR News hosts a Friday debate between the two major-party candidates.
• MPR News also published an explainer on Twin Cities gang activity amid law enforcement officials' calls to end shootings they say are primarily perpetrated by Somali American youth.

International View

• Israel's October 27 election is being watched closely across Africa, from Morocco to South Africa, with the vote seen as a potential test of whether Israel's ties with African countries withstand fallout from the war on Gaza (Al Jazeera).
• A report finds Israel has detained more than 2,000 Palestinian children since 2023, with at least 350 currently facing "harsh conditions" in Israeli prisons (Al Jazeera).
• Russia's Pacific Fleet test-fired cruise missiles from a nuclear-powered submarine, striking a target 1,200km away during drills (Al Jazeera).
• In Kashmir, political and religious critics accuse India's Modi government of curbing freedom of religion and expression over a proposal for uniform Friday sermons across mosques (Al Jazeera).
• Video shows containers and debris scattered around the Strait of Hormuz following recent attacks on vessels (Al Jazeera).
• Heavy rain caused a mass pileup in São Paulo's Anhangabaú tunnel, leaving vehicles piled up and people stranded (Al Jazeera).

Underreported

• The Minnesota State colleges and universities system's board of trustees approved a plan to redirect millions of dollars to struggling universities, including St. Cloud State and Bemidji State (MPR News).
• The St. Paul City Council joined Minneapolis in pushing to regulate driverless rideshare vehicles such as Waymo and Tesla Robotaxi, though with a different approach (MPR News).
• Police arrested a 19-year-old Illinois teen in an alleged plot to carry out a mass shooting at a Hindu temple after a coworker alerted authorities to disturbing messages (Al Jazeera).
• Luther Seminary announced its next home will be in downtown Minneapolis, following last year's plan to sell its longtime St. Paul campus in St. Anthony Park (MPR News).
• Timekeepers may change the long-standing practice of adding leap seconds to keep clocks aligned with Earth's rotation (Al Jazeera).

Sources

• MPR News: "Rep. Ilhan Omar's phone seized, relatives subpoenaed"; "Pope Leo is eating, celebrating Mass and walking after cancer surgery"; "Pilot reported ice building up on the wings before Wisconsin crash"; "Minneapolis Public Schools backs off school closure plan"; "Minneapolis council considers cutting safety office"; "Education Secretary McMahon defends cuts in Minn. visit"; "Minn. State approves shifting funds to universities"; "Suburban Senate races could flip majority"; "Non-major party candidates vie for U.S. Senate seat"; "What does gang activity look like in the Twin Cities?"; "St. Paul pushes for regulating driverless vehicles"; "Luther Seminary moving to new location in Minneapolis"; "Video: Tafoya on her shift from TV sports to politics."
• Tangle: "The Ilhan Omar investigation"; "The DHS searches Ilhan Omar's home."
• Al Jazeera: "X suspends 13,000 accounts, alleging foreign influence ahead of US midterms"; "G20 finance ministers, central bankers gather amid fallout from Iran war"; "Containers and debris captured floating around the Strait of Hormuz"; "From Morocco to South Africa, Israel election watched closely across Africa"; "Israel has detained more than 2,000 Palestinian children since 2023: report"; "Russian nuclear-powered submarine fires missiles during Pacific drills"; "Backlash in Kashmir over proposal for uniform Friday sermons across mosques"; "Heavy rain causes mass pileup in Brazil tunnel"; "US police arrest Illinois teen in alleged Hindu temple mass shooting plot"; "Clock ticking for leap second: Why timekeeping could change forever."