Friday 30th October 2026. ECB Lagarde resigns. Bulgaria drone attack. Ukraine drone strikes. Uganda Russia recruits. Libya ban...

0:00 Good morning, this is Send7 World News in 7 minutes. I'm Juliette Martin and today is Friday the 30th of October 2026. Starting in Europe today, the.

0:17 President of the European Central.

0:20 Bank Christine Lagarde, has resigned from her position. She was due to remain in the post until October next year, but will now leave in February. She said that the position meant she wasn't free to speak out on issues in Europe and elsewhere.

0:51 I have just informed my fellow policy makers that and staff at the European Central Bank that I will be stepping down with effect on February 7th, 2027, after Monetary Policy Governing Council. It has been a great pride and a huge privilege to serve this institution. And I want to thank all those who have contributed, supported and delivered on the mission that we have in Europe. Be a rock, be solid, deliver price stability, financial stability, And I think that I leave this institution with a sense of good work done and an ECB that is fit for the future.

1:37 A Greek container ship has sunk after being hit by drones near Bulgaria, according to the Bulgarian government. It was not immediately known which country is responsible for the attack. At least six ships have been attacked by drones in the Black Sea this month. In Ukraine, 14 people were killed on a rail platform yesterday in a Russian drone strike, and five more were killed in Russian strikes in two other cities, according to officials. Meanwhile, Russia and Ukraine have praised United States First Lady Melania Trump for her help in securing a truce for the town of Oleshki. Africa Uganda's foreign ministry says that 27 Ugandans who were enlisted to fight for Russia in Ukraine have been killed or

2:49 are presumed dead. According to reports, African men have been lured to Russia hoping for jobs and ended up fighting in the war with Ukraine. Ukraine has said that more than 1,400 African citizens were fighting with the Russian army. Russia has denied illegally recruiting African citizens. Libya's eastern government has banned the entry of all Iranian and Afghan nationals.

3:26 In June, the eastern government also banned nationals from Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia. Asia In Hong Kong, leader John Lee has apologised for a fire that killed 168 people last year and Housing Secretary Winnie Ho has resigned. In a report, four government departments were found partially responsible for the fire.

4:03 The report said no government department took effective ownership of various fire safety issues and complaints about fire hazards fell into a vacuum. Lee has promised reforms to the building industry and regulatory system. South Korea is considering options for deployment to the Strait of Hormuz. According to National Security Advisor Wee Sung-lak, Options could include maritime patrol aircraft. In Pakistan, an anti-terrorism court has jailed a human rights lawyer and her husband for 10 years, according to reports. Iman Mazari and Hadi Ali Shata have been sentenced in a security breach case and separate charges of obstructing and assaulting government servants.

5:10 The Americas El Salvador will send more than 2,000 soldiers to Haiti to rescue missing personnel and support anti-gang security, according to the Foreign Ministry. Haiti has postponed its planned presidential elections to 2027, having not held elections since 2016. The United States has imposed sanctions on Rwanda's defence ministry due to conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Treasury Secretary Scott Besant said, Rwanda must halt its support for M23 and withdraw its troops from Eastern DRC. Rwanda has denied backing the rebel group. And in France, a painting by Claude Monet has become the most expensive work of art to be sold at auction. Iris was sold for 50 million euros, after 45 minutes of bidding between six people.

6:31 The previous record was 43.2 million euros for a painting by Amedeo Modigliani. That's your world news in seven minutes. If you enjoy this podcast, please tell your friends about us. You can get in touch with us in a voice message at send7. org or by sending an email to podcast at sen7. org. I'm Juliet Martin. We will be back on Monday.

7:04 Have a great weekend.