World News Today, 8 October 2026: Kramatorsk bus strike, Houthi attacks on Saudi airports, Nobel for Anne Carson

Key takeaways

• Ukraine: At least 30 people were killed and 18 wounded when a Russian glide bomb hit two passenger buses in Kramatorsk.
• Saudi Arabia / Yemen: Houthi missile and drone attacks on Abha and Riyadh airports killed three civilians and injured 36.
• Israel / UK: Israel said Britain's consulate in occupied East Jerusalem has stopped operating; the UK says a reduced mission stays open.
• France: Student protests over school funding continue for a third week, with police using tear gas in Paris.
• Nobel Prize: Canadian poet Anne Carson won the 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature.
• Climate: The UN weather agency says El Niño will keep strengthening until it peaks in December.
• India: Veteran actor Nana Patekar has died at 75.

Ukraine: Russian strike on buses in Kramatorsk

A Russian glide bomb struck two passenger buses in Kramatorsk, in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, on Thursday morning. The Donetsk regional prosecutor's office put the death toll at 30, while rescue officials quoted by the BBC said 33 people had died. Eighteen people were wounded and public transport in the city was suspended.

Kramatorsk is one of the largest cities in Donetsk still under Ukrainian control and sits close to the front line. The attack came a day after a missile strike on an apartment block in the north of the country killed 22 people, including five children.

Sources: BBC News, France 24

Saudi Arabia: Houthi attacks on two airports

Saudi Arabia's civil aviation authority said attacks on two airports on 6 and 7 October killed three civilians and wounded 36. Two women were killed at Abha International Airport, near the Yemen border, and one man was killed at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh. Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi group said it fired ballistic missiles and drones at both airports.

Explosions were reported in Riyadh on Thursday as fighting between the kingdom and the Houthis continued. Yemen's internationally recognised government says its own counteroffensive against the Houthis is ongoing.

Sources: BBC News, France 24, Al Jazeera

Israel and the UK: dispute over the East Jerusalem consulate

Israel's foreign minister Gideon Saar said Britain's consulate in occupied East Jerusalem had ended its operations and that most of its diplomats would leave, with a small team allowed to stay. Israel announced the step in September in response to UK sanctions on Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said some staff had been temporarily withdrawn for security reasons, but that the building would stay open as a UK mission serving Palestinians. He said Britain does not accept that Israel has the authority to close it. The consulate, first set up in 1838, is separate from the UK embassy in Tel Aviv.

Sources: BBC News, Al Jazeera

France: student protests over school funding

Secondary school and university students across France have been protesting since late September over staff shortages, run-down buildings and long school days. Police fired tear gas at students outside a high school in Paris on Thursday morning, ahead of larger marches planned around the country.

The government said it would stop using stun grenades against protesters after a 15-year-old lost his hand during a clash with police. Thousands of people have been arrested since the protests began.

Sources: BBC News, France 24

Nobel Prize in Literature goes to Anne Carson

The Swedish Academy awarded the 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature to Canadian poet, essayist and translator Anne Carson, praising her inventive work that draws on classical literature to create new forms of writing. The prize is worth 12 million Swedish kronor (about $1.2 million). The Nobel Peace Prize will be announced on Friday.

Sources: NobelPrize.org (official), France 24

Climate: El Niño to peak in December

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) says El Niño will keep intensifying until it peaks in December and could be among the strongest since at least 1950. The naturally occurring pattern is expected to push temperatures higher across much of the world, adding to the effects of climate change.

Sources: World Meteorological Organization, France 24

India: actor Nana Patekar dies at 75

Veteran actor Nana Patekar has died in Goa at the age of 75. Doctors said he was found unconscious at home early on Thursday and could not be revived. Known for his intense performances in Hindi and Marathi films, he won three National Film Awards. The Maharashtra government said he will be cremated with full state honours in Pune, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to him.

Sources: BBC News, The Hindu, Indian Express, Akashvani (All India Radio)