As the Middle East remains on edge in anticipation of a possible retaliatory attack by Israel on Iran, the Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, arrived in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday as part of a diplomatic tour aimed at shoring up relations with Iran’s Arab neighbors.

In Riyadh, the Saudi capital, Mr. Araghchi met with the Saudi foreign minister, Faisal bin Farhan, and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

“I hope that these consultations can lead to better conditions for Palestine and Lebanon and establish peace in the region,” Mr. Araghchi told Iranian state television upon his arrival.

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Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, a hard-line champion of “illiberal democracy,” has for years taken swipes at the European Union and its officials.

On Wednesday, some in the European Parliament fired back — in song. After Mr. Orban finished his speech at the assembly in Strasbourg, France, progressive members started singing “Bella Ciao,” an Italian antifascist resistance song from the World War II era.

Their singing, which lasted for less than a minute, was shut down by the president of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, as conservative members more politically in tune with Mr. Orban chanted slogans supporting him.

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The race to lead Britain’s vanquished Conservative Party took a dramatic turn on Wednesday when it narrowed to a clash between two right-wing candidates, a twist that provoked audible gasps of surprise when the result was announced.

After four knockout rounds of voting, the party’s lawmakers left two finalists standing: Kemi Badenoch, a favorite of the right who has said the party needs to fight against “nasty identity politics,” and Robert Jenrick, a rival hard-liner who has promised to slash annual immigration numbers.

The choice of two candidates from the right was unexpected, defying the pattern set by the previous round of voting. It set off a whirlwind of theories about how Tory lawmakers, renowned for their Machiavellian instincts, managed to produce an outcome that almost none of them had predicted.

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The new baby was supposed to come in early October, when things were still normal. Najia Malaka and her husband, Hammam, had been counting the days. But when the war came to Gaza, they said, they were still waiting.

As Israeli bombs thundered down on Gaza City, Israel’s military ordered everyone in the north to evacuate. The Malakas made a decision. He packed up their two older children to go south. She stayed back with their two toddlers to give birth.

She went into labor that day, Oct. 13. But he had already left. They have not seen each other, barring a few early visits, ever since.

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Last month, 12 American students flew across the Atlantic to begin the prestigious George J. Mitchell scholarship program in Ireland and Northern Ireland. They are living in cities and towns including Cork, Belfast and Dublin, studying subjects like biotechnology, history and engineering.

But they could be the last cohort in the program, as organizers announced earlier this year that they had paused selection for coming years because of funding difficulties.

The program sent its first students to the island in 2000, in the wake of the Good Friday Agreement, which forged peace after decades of sectarian violence in Northern Ireland known as the Troubles. Named for then-Senator George J. Mitchell, who led the talks, it has brought nearly 300 students to Ireland since its inception. The scholarship covers the full cost of tuition for a year, accommodation and a stipend for living expenses and travel.

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Apple stuck her trunk out of the swollen river like a snorkel, paddling desperately to stay afloat. But the two ton, 15-year-old elephant was no match for the flooding that inundated Chiang Mai, Thailand’s second-largest city, last week. By the time a team of rescuers saw her, she had been swept more than a mile downriver.

“It was heartbreaking to see an animal so strong struggling to stay afloat,” said Pasit Insamran, one of the rescuers, describing the incident Friday. “We kept shouting at her, hoping she would follow the sound and have the strength to swim closer to the shore so we could rescue her.”

Apple was a resident of the Elephant Nature Park, a sanctuary that is a hot spot for tourists. Flash floods quickly submerged the park. Mahouts, or elephant handlers, like Mr. Pasit, from other camps gathered and rushed to the scene by boats. They were able to rescue Apple, but two elephants from the sanctuary died.

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A meeting of Western leaders who support Ukraine’s war effort against Russia has been postponed after President Biden canceled his participation to deal with the impact of Hurricane Milton.

The delay is a setback for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who had hoped to use the gathering to rally Western allies around his so-called “victory plan,” a strategy aimed at strengthening Ukraine’s position on the battlefield enough to force Russia to the negotiating table.

The meeting of what is formally known as the Ukraine Defense Contact Group was originally planned for Saturday at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. It was intended to give Ukraine high-level encouragement and further support, and also demonstrate President Biden’s strong backing for Ukraine and its Western aspirations a month before Americans choose his successor.

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Oct. 9, 2024

In Japan, same-sex unions remain outlawed, and children who don’t conform to traditional gender norms are routinely bullied. Japanese who are gay, transgender or nonbinary must stake out their own distinctive paths.

In these interviews, L.G.B.T.Q. Japanese — some of whom spoke despite fears of being ostracized — talked about their daily rhythms and routines. While some are politically active, others prefer to let their personal lives speak for their desire to be accepted.

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