The Morning Briefing: October 24, 2026

Here are the developments that lead Saturday, October 24, 2026: a new warning from President Donald Trump about Iran, staffing cuts at four American embassies in the Middle East, a down day on Wall Street as oil prices jumped, a deadly shooting at a church funeral in Jordan, a World Series opener decided in the ninth inning, and a second Ebola death in Kenya.

Trump says U.S. may launch another operation against Iran

President Donald Trump said at a rally in Fort Myers, Florida, on Friday that the United States may carry out another operation against Iran if Tehran does not agree to a deal. “We may do another little Epic Fury,” Trump said. “If they are smart, they will just say, ‘Let’s get down to business.'” He gave no date, no targets, and no details about the size of such an operation. Epic Fury is the name the U.S. military uses for its war against Iran, which began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on February 28.

The remark came on the same day that U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack said a strike could come this weekend, and after Trump said earlier this month that the United States would not attack Iran before the midterm elections on November 3. Trump also said at the rally that the United States would “take care of Cuba” on its way back from Iran and would send Secretary of State Marco Rubio to finish a deal there. Related coverage on this site: U.S. envoy says Iran strike could come this weekend; Trump says he knows nothing of it.

U.S. cuts staffing at four Middle East embassies after Iran threat warning

The State Department is reducing staffing at the U.S. embassies in Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates after intelligence warned that Iran has stepped up efforts to target American personnel. The Associated Press reported that Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton wrote in a memo sent Friday to Secretary of State Marco Rubio that Iran has “substantially increased efforts to target U.S. personnel” and that lethal plotting efforts “have reached advanced stages in both the Middle East and certain other countries.”

The four embassies remain open under restricted operations, and staff there have not been ordered to leave. That differs from Saudi Arabia, where non-emergency personnel and their families were ordered to leave on Wednesday after Houthi attacks on airports and other sites. A U.S. official told CNN that the threat of Houthi attacks and Iranian plots against U.S. officials informed the staffing decisions.

Stocks fall Friday as oil jumps and the Fed decision nears

U.S. stocks closed lower on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 652.82 points, or 1.23 percent, to 52,215.16. The S&P 500 fell 39.75 points, or 0.52 percent, to 7,623.68. The Nasdaq Composite fell 53.52 points, or 0.21 percent, to 25,955.34. December Brent crude settled at $116.72 a barrel, up $3.55, and December West Texas Intermediate settled at $103.27, up $3.80. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 5.00 percent.

Technology shares steadied after a sharp drop on Thursday, Reuters reported, as investors weighed heavy spending on artificial intelligence ahead of earnings from Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon. The University of Michigan final consumer sentiment reading for October was 48.0, close to its lowest level on record. The Federal Reserve announces its next interest rate decision on Wednesday, October 28.

Gunmen kill seven at a church funeral in Jordan

Gunmen opened fire during a funeral at a church in Hmoud, in Jordan’s Karak governorate, on Friday, killing seven people and wounding 34, Jordanian officials said. Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya described the attackers as a group of extremists and said authorities were working to arrest them. King Abdullah II said the authorities would confront the attack with the harshest penalties. No group has claimed responsibility, and a manhunt was under way.

The attack drew attention because shootings of this kind are uncommon in Jordan, which has a longstanding Christian minority. In France, President Emmanuel Macron called a separate drive-by shooting in Trappes a racist terror attack. Related coverage on this site: Macron calls Trappes drive-by shooting a racist terror attack; anti-terror prosecutors take over.

Brewers take World Series opener 3-2 after ninth-inning escape

The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2 on Friday night in Game 1 of the World Series at American Family Field in Milwaukee. Jacob Misiorowski allowed one run over five innings for the win. Christian Yelich hit an RBI triple in a two-run first inning, and Jackson Chourio added an RBI single in the seventh for a 3-1 lead.

The Rays scored once in the ninth and had the tying run at third base after a replay review overturned an apparent game-ending double play. Closer Trevor Megill then struck out Jonny DeLuca to end the game. It was Milwaukee’s first World Series game since 1982, and both teams are chasing a first championship. Full story on this site: Brewers edge Rays 3-2 in World Series opener, take 1-0 series lead.

Kenya reports a second Ebola death as WHO starts a vaccine trial in Congo

A 65-year-old woman in Kenya, a close relative of the first Ebola victim there, has become the second person to die of Ebola in the country, authorities said. Officials said they have no evidence of community transmission. The World Health Organization announced the start of a clinical trial of vaccines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo against the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which no vaccine is approved. Full story on this site: Kenya reports second Ebola death as WHO starts vaccine trial in Congo.

Also overnight on this site: Israel launches a multi-day West Bank operation after an attack kills two soldiers in Hebron; Trump drops 50 percent tariffs on some Canadian goods four days before the midterms; and France deploys 70,000 officers as a protest wave returns.