Friday, October 16, 2026

The gunman who killed three children and a teacher at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon on Thursday was identified by police as 16-year-old John Griffin, who used a pump-action shotgun registered to his mother. The bystander who killed him was identified by his brother as Kaylub Giamanco, 36, a carpenter and father of two girls who attend the school. His brother said Giamanco was driving home for lunch, armed with a concealed weapon, when he heard gunshots and entered the school.

Alexandros Paporakis, 19, of Palatine, Illinois, remains held without bond after being charged with making a terrorist threat and unlawfully possessing a weapon. Police said he was found in the temple's parking lot in Aurora on Sunday with a modified rifle, about 300 rounds and body armor, and told a coworker his gun had jammed. A Cook County judge ordered jail officials to continue his hormone treatment and care for ADHD, depression and anxiety.

Katie Zacharia is leaving her role as White House press secretary, officials said Friday, after a tenure sources variously put at four, five or seven days. President Trump told reporters he urged her to "reconsider" the job, citing harsh media coverage, following scrutiny over her legal credentials and a brief, rocky first press briefing on Oct. 13. Officials said she is "transitioning out"; her next role has not been announced.

The League of Women Voters, Electronic Privacy Information Center and League of United Latin American Citizens filed a lawsuit in federal court in Washington, D.C., on Thursday alleging the Department of Homeland Security unlawfully collected voter files from at least 47 states and combined them with commercial data, violating federal privacy safeguards. The suit is the latest challenge to the Trump administration's efforts to address noncitizen voting, which studies have found rare.

The White House asserted executive privilege to withhold certain records of President Trump's communications in a lawsuit by Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), an ex officio Kennedy Center board member challenging plans to close the performing arts center for two years and add Trump's name to it. A White House lawyer said information about Trump's management of the center, including efforts to rename it, and his conversations with outside advisers should be off-limits.

The U.S. federal budget deficit for fiscal 2026 came in near $2 trillion, the largest gap in five years, according to Treasury figures. Higher interest rates increased borrowing costs, while spending included outlays tied to the Iran war and tariff refunds. The figure marks the first full fiscal year under President Trump's current term.

The Justice Department sued California, alleging the state failed to review about 20,000 voters it suspects are noncitizens registered ahead of November's election. The DOJ said it sent election officials a USB drive with names from the Department of Homeland Security on Tuesday, demanding a comparison within 48 hours, before filing suit Thursday when the state did not comply.

U.S. District Judge Ramon Reyes in Brooklyn dismissed a lawsuit the Trump administration filed to block New York City laws limiting local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. The judge said the government lacked a valid basis to sue, ruling the administration could not challenge a city law restricting police from detaining immigrants on behalf of federal authorities.

A federal judge in Washington, Jia Cobb, dismissed former CIA Director John Brennan's lawsuit seeking to force the Justice Department to preserve records, ruling his fears of evidence destruction were too speculative. Brennan faces investigations into alleged violations of Trump's civil rights during the 2016 Russia probe and into whether he gave false 2023 congressional testimony about the Steele dossier. Cobb called Brennan's claims that the administration targeted him for opposing Trump "deeply concerning."

Elon Musk agreed to settle two lawsuits filed in the Western District of Texas over his America PAC's $1 million giveaways to battleground-state voters who signed a petition ahead of the 2024 presidential election. The suits had accused Musk of defrauding voters by predetermining winners of the giveaway. Court filings disclosing the settlements were published Thursday.

A bus, including its driver, crashed into a freight train stopped at the French end of the Channel Tunnel, injuring 19 occupants. Two people were airlifted to hospital, though officials said no one's life appeared to be in danger. The collision halted tunnel service.

Attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi group have disrupted sports tournaments and threatened business events that Saudi Arabia has used to attract investment and raise its international profile.

More than 1 million people have voted early in Alberta's Monday referendum on whether to begin a legal process toward separation from Canada, with pollsters saying turnout may favor the "remain" side. Prime Minister Mark Carney spent two days campaigning in Alberta ahead of the vote, warning the stakes are high and saying the United States is trying to break Canada.

Philippine officials said the Chinese ambassador appeared to suggest Beijing could easily defeat the Philippines if it used military force, calling the remark a "thinly veiled threat." President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. may summon the envoy in response. The Philippines has formally protested the comments, which relate to ongoing tensions in the South China Sea.

Indonesian stocks suffered their steepest one-day drop since the 1998 Asian financial crisis after MSCI, an index provider, warned the country risked being removed from its indexes. The warning added to investor concerns over economic policies under President Prabowo Subianto.

President Trump said Friday that neither he nor Elon Musk caused this week's disruption to Ukraine's access to SpaceX's Starshield satellite service. The denial came amid his dispute with President Zelensky over Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries. Some reports have said the order to limit access came from the White House, following Trump's call for an "energy ceasefire" in the war.

President Donald Trump called Ukraine's resumption of strikes on Russian oil refineries a "disgrace." NBC News described the remark as part of Trump's effort to pressure Ukraine over rising U.S. gas prices ahead of next month's midterm elections. Trump also said he is not a fan of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Masked Israeli settlers attacked Palestinians harvesting olives in the occupied West Bank on Friday, injuring several people including a Washington Post photojournalist, reportedly identified as Heidi Levine, who was hospitalized. Washington Post executive editor Matt Murray said she was wearing visible markings identifying her as a journalist. Settlers also torched cars and trees in West Bank villages, part of a wider surge of attacks during the olive harvest season.

The Vatican released photos Friday of Pope Leo XIV, 71, celebrating Mass in a makeshift chapel at Rome's Gemelli Hospital, where he distributed Communion to hospital staff. He is recovering after surgeons removed the lower lobe of his right lung Tuesday, with tissue examination confirming lung adenocarcinoma. His physician said blood tests and a chest X-ray showed steady improvement; the operating surgeon said he can now carry out daily activities independently.

Protests in Tirana escalated this week into violence, part of months of anti-government demonstrations by a movement known as "Flamingo." Thousands marched in the capital as unrest spread. Prime Minister Edi Rama accused the opposition and unnamed "foreign forces" of stoking the violence, saying the demonstrations were an attempt to derail Albania's efforts to join the European Union.