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[Interview] Ousting Netanyahu won't curb right-wing Israeli nationalism, says expert ahead of Tuesday's Knesset elections Beth Oppenheim, fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, explains how a shift in Israeli society will shape voting on 27 October. Her analysis groups Israeli political forces into liberal Zionists, nationalists, religious nationalists, and ultra-Orthodox factions.

Moscow elites pleased with US envoy Witkoff and far from agreeing to peace (Ukraine Battlefield update, Day 1,702) Starshield, the defense version of Starlink, seems to remain slow despite US assurances that it was fully back. And journalists from Russia reveal what is being discussed by Kremlin and US officials as they seek a deal on Ukraine.

New EU-wide asylum law ends up in court in Italy An Egyptian national who sought protection in Italy after arriving on the island of Lampedusa in August may end up dealing a constitutional blow to the EU's asylum laws after seeking legal counsel.

Jewish groups clash over whether EU antisemitism envoy should influence Israel policy, as controversial von Schnurbein goes back to Berlin Katharina von Schnurbein caused controversy in May 2025 when she briefed EU ambassadors in Tel Aviv that proposed EU trade sanctions on Israel were based on "rumours about Jews, as opposed to facts".

Big fish hooked in Hungary, as Orbán's ex-bank chief placed in custody (Day 163 of the Tisza government) Prosecutors are circling Orbán's ex‑bank chief, as Magyar rewrites Hungary's budget.

Putting the clocks back this Sunday – yet millions of Europeans don't want to On Sunday, Europeans will once again turn their clocks back by one hour. The familiar ritual will again raise the same question: did the European Union not decide years ago to end seasonal clock changes?

[Interview] 'If stress in France ends up contaminating the rest of the eurozone, the ECB will have to do something,' says French economist France needs spending cuts, but its politics can't deliver them. Former Macron adviser and economist Shahin Vallée on the protests, Le Pen and Mélenchon's debt plans, and the dilemma holding back ECB intervention.

[EXCLUSIVE] Leaked WhatsApps between ex-EU commissioner Reynders and senior Belgian spy reveal attempts to bury allegations of his possible Russia ties The messages, seen by EUobserver and published here in full, now form evidence in a Belgian police investigation into Reynders on money-laundering charges, which paints them in a potentially criminal light.

The EU media connects Europe's connectors – allow us to help Outlets such as EUobserver do more than report on European affairs. They provide a space where different perspectives meet, complex policy debates become accessible and stakeholders can better understand the choices shaping the continent. In doing so, they can help connect the communities that make the European project work. This is also the thinking behind our initiative to develop a media product dedicated to the business community.

EU's Arctic oil-and-gas pledge leaves a Norway-sized loophole If there is no offtake market in continental Europe, no-ne is going to take the risk. The thing is, EU buyers already buy plenty of gas (and oil) from the Arctic.

EU Parliament defies frugal capitals by seeking €7bn more for the EU's popular Erasmus+ student scheme The parliament overwhelmingly supported an increased budget and scope for the Erasmus+ programme under the new EU budget on Thursday.

Drones buzz overhead and enemy wi-fi everywhere: Ukrainian veterans describe how they survived in Russia's 'kill zone' (Ukraine Battlefield update, Day 1,701) The kill zone's constant drone buzz, mined roads and invisible Russian networks are making basic things, such as a phone call, into life-or-death gambles for exhausted Ukrainian troops.

A bigger EU border force Frontex is set to be unveiled with emphasis on deportations The EU's border force Frontex is getting overhauled next Tuesday by a European Commission determined to give the Warsaw-based agency a larger role in deportations, more resources, and more agility to deploy.

MEPs back three-year methane delay, triple what the EU Commission wanted The European Parliament has voted to delay EU methane rules for oil and gas importers by three years, two more than the commission proposed. The vote also extends the delay to European producers and opens the door to reopening the law in 2029.

International Criminal Court wins EU's top human rights prize in defiance of Trump's sanctions The ICC has received the EU's Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. The court's president judge thanked lawmakers for the recognition and said "there is no peace without justice and no security without law".

Italian MEP on hunger strike over humanitarian crisis in Russian-occupied Oleshky An Italian MEP has gone on hunger strike over the besieged Ukrainian town's lack of access to food, medicine, clean water and basic care. The only route to escape is tapped with mines and rife with attack drones.

Brussels is moving to ban street advertising by fossil-fuel firms – the EU officials who live there should take note Five Brussels municipalities, home to nearly one-in-three of the city's residents, have now voted to drive fossil-fuel advertising off their streets. In the city where Europe's climate laws are written, the industry's grip on billboards and on lawmakers has to be broken together.

Serbia's election: can a student-led movement of hope overcome Vučić's hollowed-out political system? Sunday's vote could reshape the country's political future. But even a breakthrough for the student movement would leave a deeper question: can democratic change take root in institutions that protesters say have been hollowed out?

Polish parliament liberalises abortion law – but conservative president likely to veto changes The Polish governing coalition voted in parliament to loosen abortion law on Tuesday - but conservative president is expected to block the change.

EU prosecutors raid far-right Patriots for Europe offices in Brussels and Strasbourg over alleged misuse of parliament funds The European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) raided the offices of Patriots for Europe in Strasbourg and Brussels.

'Project Fear' didn't work, so why do we keep demonising far-right and left voters? My beef with both far-right and far-left populists is that they're false prophets. In Europe, at least, the squeezes on public services, high taxes, debt burdens and crippling costs of living are legacies of the Covid pandemic, wars in Ukraine and Iran and a eurozone crisis that was never fully resolved. These can't be wished away, and they won't be cured with caps on immigration, higher taxes on the rich or the promise of earlier retirement.

EU looks to UK, Canada, and Japan to plug €70bn hole in funding for Ukraine's 2027 war effort The EU is pressing allies, such as the UK, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and Norway to help close a €70bn shortfall in Ukraine's funding for next year.

[Interview] 'I hear MEPs say Muslims are a threat, with no consequences. I say Free Palestine and I'll be arrested'. MEP Benedetta Scuderi warns protest repression is being normalised in Europe Defending human and environmental rights could get you in prison, or at least detained - as happened to Italian MEP Benedetta Scuderi. She talks to EUobserver about the double-standard in policing of left and rightwing demos, and the housing crisis sparking much of the youth unrest.

Human cost of Putin's war emerging in 'death fields' of Russian soldiers in Dobropillia (Ukraine Battlefield update, day 1,700) Moscow has concentrated its biggest force near Pokrovsk and faked new front lines on paper. Meanwwhile, the real battle around Dobropillia is reshaping how Europe must think about any ceasefire, which could lock in Russian gains

[Interview] 'I hear MEPs says Muslims are a threat, with no consequences. I say Free Palestine and I'll be arrested'. MEP Benedetta Scuderi warns protest repression is being normalised in Europe Defending human and environmental rights could get you in prison, or at least detained - as happened to Italian MEP Benedetta Scuderi. She talks to EUobserver about the double-standard in policing of left and rightwing demos, and the housing crisis sparking much of the youth unrest.

Europe's youth asked for hope – but politicians just offer fear and hate As Europe pours billions into defence and talks up 'strategic autonomy', it is quietly undermining its own power by ignoring the students who say they can't afford the education, housing or stability needed to keep the continent running.

'I'm 42 and I've spent my entire adult life held captive by Bibi' – can Israel finally break free of Netanyahu, as Hungary did of Orbán? Benjamin Netanyahu has not been Israel's prime minister for every one of those years. Yet even out of office, Israeli politics rarely escaped his gravitational pull. Hungarians know something about that feeling.

The US is no longer an ally. It's over. Even an eventual change of American leadership doesn't mean the US's bizarre glorification of violence goes away. It is a persistent stain, constantly eroding away at the values of an open and free society. Both are worth defending here in Europe. The US has chosen its on path. Let it walk it alone.

EU unlikely to send Black Sea naval mission to repel Russian drone attacks on Ukrainian grain ships, despite Kallas' support The EU's top diplomat has backed the idea of a Black Sea naval mission to protect grain ships from Russian drones - but this would require much more than Brussels' existing Red Sea mission, while air policing might be more effective.

MEPs push to use EU regional funds for affordable housing and climate‑proofing cities The European Parliament called on more spending to build affordable houses, using funds for regional development that currently comprise up to a third of the present EU budget.