Israel critic, Brazilian President Lula, wins election against Bolsonaro, who rejects results | LIVE BLOG
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defeated Bolsonaro by 51.75% to 48.25%, a margin of four million votes, securing a fourth presidential term
With just one day left until Israel's highly anticipated elections, the Yashar Party has issued an urgent appeal to the Central Elections Committee, claiming that fake campaign messages were sent to voters using their name and branding, pretending to be the party. The party claims that this is a "deliberate attempt to mislead the public and harm the party and the Change Bloc on the eve of the elections." Yashar also announced they were filing a police report asserting that these are deliberate attempts to influence the election.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned Iran and its proxies against trying to disrupt Israel’s elections with attacks. While speaking at an Arrow missile battery, Netanyahu said, “We have intelligence indications that our enemies, Iran and its proxies, might attempt to challenge us with attacks to disrupt the elections. I warn them: do not test us; you will suffer blows of disproportionate magnitude, far more severe than you can imagine. It will be a decisive blow. Do not misjudge us; do not test us.” READ MORE FROM SUNDAY
Saudi, Turkish and Pakistani officials to meet Iranian officials in Tehran; first high-level contact with all three since Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia escalated
Top officials from the Mecca Pact countries Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan are set to meet Iranian officials in Tehran on Monday to discuss regional coordination, two people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
Saudi Arabia will be represented by Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and Pakistan by army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, and the Turkish head of intelligence will also join, one of the people said.
The talks would be the first high-level contact between Iran and all three members of the bloc since Saudi Arabia came under escalating attacks from Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis.
Saudi Arabia intercepted another wave of missiles and drones on Sunday as fighting with the Houthis continued.
The three countries signed the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement in August, under which an armed attack on one member is considered an attack on all.
Brazilian President da Silva wins runoff election against Flavio Bolsonaro, who rejects the results
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was reelected Sunday, with Brazil’s electoral court announcing that he won 51.8% of the vote, a lead of nearly 4.4 million votes over opponent Flávio Bolsonaro, with 100% counted.
Bolsonaro refused to concede and asked for the results to be annulled after confusion at some polling places, where a Supreme Court justice ruled three minutes before the scheduled close to keep polls open two more hours at both candidates’ request.
“It’s impossible to recognize the results of the election in the context of these things that happened,” Bolsonaro said, criticizing the justice for “changing the rules of the game in the middle of the game.”
The electoral court’s president said the extension did not affect the results, and a law professor said there is little legal basis to annul the vote. Lula, who will begin a fourth non-consecutive term on Jan. 5, 2027, told supporters: “This country will not accept being anyone’s backyard.”