What Mattered This Week

RIYADH — Major General Turki Al-Maliki, spokesman for the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen, stated on October 25 that air defenses intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthi militia toward Riyadh.

The spokesman said that a drone was intercepted and destroyed in the Riyadh region. Saudi Civil Defense stated that the danger had passed in Riyadh City.

North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD): "Earlier today, Continental U.S. NORAD Region (CONR) fighter aircraft intercepted a general aviation aircraft that entered an active Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) area over Palm Beach, Fla. Pilots, always read your NOTAMs prior to take-off to avoid similar outcomes."

LATVIA — On October 24, Latvia’s National Armed Forces (NBS) said a foreign unmanned aerial vehicle was found in Liepna parish of Alūksne municipality, and that the vehicle likely entered Latvian airspace on October 18.

The NBS said it received a report of a sound resembling an explosion in the parish on October 18. In cooperation with the State Police, the forces began a search for the possible crash site. After two days the search was suspended because the information available was insufficient to confirm the actual circumstances of the incident.

CYBER — The PHP project shipped emergency updates on October 21, 2026, that fix two critical security flaws. These flaws can let an attacker run code on a web server that uses PHP, without needing a login or any credentials.

The updates cover the currently supported versions of PHP. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued an alert the same day urging organizations to apply the patches immediately and stated it had not observed any exploitation as of the time of publication.

FRANCE — On October 19 the U.S. Embassy in Paris issued a security alert stating that, following the October 17 protests that turned violent, partial curfews were introduced for Monday, October 19 and Tuesday, October 20 in several cities across France, including Lille.

The alert states that more curfews may follow for parts of Paris and in prefectures across the country, and that scattered protests could continue. U.S. citizens are advised to avoid the areas of the demonstrations.

KENYA — On October 19 the U.S. Department of State increased its travel advisory for Kenya from Level 2, Exercise Increased Caution, to Level 3, Reconsider Travel, due to the risk of health, crime, kidnapping, terrorism, unrest, and traffic safety. Some areas remain designated Do Not Travel.

The United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office advises against all travel to specified border and coastal areas and against all but essential travel to others, with the page still current as of early October and updated for Ebola detection information.

HAITI — On October 19 the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince reported continuous heavy fighting between gangs and security forces in the vicinity of Santo and Croix-des-Bouquets, with roads possibly blocked or impassable, and advised U.S. citizens to exercise caution and avoid the area.

The U.S. State Department maintains its Haiti advisory at Level 4, Do Not Travel, last updated July 10. The United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office advises against all travel to Haiti, last updated December 10, 2025.