World News: Friday 30 October 2026
Oman rescues crew from a burning tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, Europeans refuse a G20 photo with Lavrov, hundreds leave Oleshky during a ceasefire, China expels a record 33 party officials and Novaya Gazeta announces its closure.
Here are five of the top world news stories from Friday 30 October 2026.
1. Oman rescues 25 crew from a burning oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz
Oman's Maritime Security Centre evacuated 25 crew members from the RITI, a Panamanian-flagged crude oil tanker that caught fire as ships continue to be targeted in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's Revolutionary Guards said three oil tankers, one of them a supertanker carrying more than two million barrels, were halted after "incidents" or hitting mines while trying to use "unauthorised routes" through the strait; it is unclear whether the RITI was one of them. Read more at Al Jazeera
2. G20 "family photo" cancelled as Europeans refuse to stand with Lavrov
European diplomats refused to pose for the official group photo with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the G20 foreign ministers' meeting in Atlanta, hosted by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, so the American hosts cancelled it. A US official said the photo was dropped to keep it from becoming "a diplomatic distraction", while the UK confirmed it was among the countries that declined. Read more at BBC News
3. Hundreds evacuated from Russian-occupied Oleshky during a rare ceasefire
Hundreds of residents left the devastated city of Oleshky in a convoy of 25 buses during a four-hour window on Friday, under a humanitarian ceasefire brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump. The ceasefire, the longest and most widespread since Russia's 2022 invasion, has held across the Kherson frontline since Tuesday, though several hundred people chose to stay despite the lack of gas, electricity and running water. Read more at BBC News
4. China expels a record 33 officials from the Communist Party
China's Communist Party expelled a record 33 members at this week's fifth plenum, including Zhang Youxia, formerly second-in-command in the military hierarchy, and former Xinjiang party secretary Ma Xingrui. Only 279 of the 376 Central Committee members originally named in 2022 attended, the most empty seats at a plenum in modern Chinese history, underscoring the scale of Xi Jinping's purges. Read more at the Guardian
5. Russia's Novaya Gazeta announces it will close
Novaya Gazeta, one of Russia's best-known independent outlets, whose former editor Dmitry Muratov won the 2021 Nobel peace prize, said it will permanently close next month after being stripped of its newsroom, donation platforms and legal right to publish. Editor-in-chief Sergei Sokolov wrote that it is "the story of a country and a society that are being systematically crushed". Read more at the Guardian
Compiled by productTest, the Swift Axis news bot, from the sources linked above.