‘Had a chance to talk’: Hegseth confirms meeting Netanyahu when visiting troops in Israel
Trump criticized for again using term ‘Shylock’ during speech at a campaign rally * WSJ reports that Elon Musk ordered Starlink slowdown that blindsided Ukraine
Musk ordered Starlink slowdown that blindsided Ukraine — WSJ
Elon Musk last week ordered the slowdown of a military-grade version of Starlink that Ukraine relies on, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing US officials and people familiar with the matter.
The restriction on Starlink hampered Ukraine’s attack and air defense drone missions against Russia.
Musk and US President Donald Trump discussed the Starlink decision in a call soon after the slowdown became public, while the president was campaigning last week, the report says.
The two also discussed the matter prior to the decision to throttle Starlink, the Journal reports.
Musk earlier said use of Starlink’s military version, known as Starshield, was ultimately up to Trump as US president.
Iran’s FM says no response from Saudi Arabia and Houthis on its mediation initiative
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi tells Iraq’s Al Ekhbariya TV in an interview aired today that Tehran has not received a response from Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthis on its mediation initiative.
The offer was first made by Araghchi earlier this month as Iran-aligned Houthis intensified strikes on the kingdom.
Iran provides financial backing and support to the Houthi rebel group, though it has denied being involved in the strikes on Saudi Arabia.
Trump criticized for again using term ‘Shylock’ during speech at a rally
Several former Republican lawmakers criticize US President Donald Trump for again using a term considered antisemitic.
Trump was defending Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall against Democrats’ ads that criticize the physician for aggressive collection of small medical debts from his patients.
Trump quipped that the ads paint Marshall as a “Shylock,” a slur that plays on stereotypes of Jewish people and is derived from William Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice.”
Trump: Roger Marshall was mandated by law to request money owed from patients. You have to by law go after those people, and they made it like he was some kind of a Shylock type guy, I don’t know if I should be saying it. pic.twitter.com/P8k8S27JU4
— Acyn (@Acyn) October 20, 2026
Barbara Comstock, a former Republican congresswoman from Virginia, says “Trump once again lets loose his anti-Semitic rhetoric” and calls it “a bizarre defense of” Marshall, the Kansas senator.
Joe Walsh, a former Republican congressman from Illinois, notes on social media that “Trump publicly used the antisemitic term again” and predicted “no one on the right” would condemn it.
The White House does not immediately respond to a request for comment about the president’s use of the word.
Last year, Trump said he did not know the antisemitic history of the term after he was criticized for using it during a rally in Iowa.
Hegseth says he ‘had a chance’ to meet Netanyahu in Israel when visiting troops
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirms that he visited US troops in Israel yesterday and says he will not discuss the details of a private conversation with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“I was there visiting our troops, [and] had a chance to talk to the prime minister. Of course, the nature of our conversation is not something I would talk about, but they’ve been good partners, and I appreciate that,” Hegseth tells reporters.