2 November 2026
The head of the World Health Organization has asked for greater protection for civilians caught in the fighting in northern Ethiopia.
Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said attacks on civilians in the Amhara and Tigray regions were deeply disturbing and that children were among those killed at a displacement camp in Amhara.
Fighting between Ethiopian government forces and rebel groups resumed in Amhara and Tigray in September, nearly four years after a peace deal ended the earlier war.
He said drone attacks and civilian casualties have become frequent across the country.
Hospitals are short of health workers, medicines and equipment, ambulance services are badly limited and insecurity is blocking the delivery of medical supplies to some areas.
The organisation said it is working with partners to move additional medical supplies into all the affected regions.
More people are likely to lose access to emergency care, maternal and child health services and treatment for disease if the fighting continues.
Regions affected:
Amhara, Tigray and Afar
Fighting resumed:
September 2026
Why it matters for exams: Amhara, Tigray and Afar are the Ethiopian regions where fighting resumed, and the World Health Organization is the UN agency reporting on the collapse of health services there.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
WHO World Health Organization — The United Nations agency for international public health, headquartered at Geneva.
2 November 2026
The United Nations Development Programme and Ukraine's Ministry of Energy are appealing for 500 million dollars through a new Ukraine Energy Installation Facility.
The facility is meant to install and commission energy equipment that is already inside the country, so that power can be restored before winter.
The programme says it helped keep electricity, heating and water running for 6.6 million people last year, and its Goodwill Ambassador met families in Kyiv living on only a few rationed hours of power a day.
Separately, the World Food Programme is giving emergency food to more than 400 people who left the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky in the Kherson region during a brief local ceasefire.
The evacuees reached medical facilities in Kyiv at the end of October after months of severe shortages, and the agency serves hot meals on arrival with a Ukrainian partner organisation for an initial two weeks.
The evacuation window closed on 1 November, and the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator said it showed what is possible when the parties put civilians first.
The food agency reaches more than half a million people every month across Ukraine with food and cash assistance, mainly near the front line.
It has recorded 134 security incidents affecting its staff, vehicles, warehouses and distribution points since 2023, 57 of them this year.
Appeal size:
500 million dollars
People helped with power last year:
6.6 million
Monthly reach of food aid:
More than 500,000 people
Why it matters for exams: The Ukraine Energy Installation Facility is a new 500 million dollar appeal by UNDP with Ukraine's energy ministry, and the World Food Programme is the UN agency feeding evacuees from Kherson region.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
UNDP United Nations Development Programme — The UN body that works on development, governance and recovery in member countries.
WFP World Food Programme — The UN food assistance agency, headquartered at Rome, which won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2020.
2 November 2026
NASA has said its two ESCAPADE spacecraft will swing past Earth this month on their way to Mars.
ESCAPADE stands for Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers, and the pair was launched in November 2025.
Each spacecraft will make a powered flyby, combining Earth's gravity with an engine burn of about nine minutes that raises its speed from roughly 6.3 to 6.7 miles a second.
The first flyby is set for 7 November and the second for 9 November, with the spacecraft passing between 600 and 1,100 miles above the surface.
The first spacecraft is due to reach Mars on 7 September 2027 and the second two days later.
ESCAPADE will be the first mission to fly more than one spacecraft in formation around Mars.
The two will study how the solar wind interacts with the Martian environment and how that drives the loss of the planet's atmosphere.
The mission belongs to NASA's Heliophysics Division.
Spacecraft:
Two
Mars arrival:
7 and 9 September 2027
Flyby altitude:
600 to 1,100 miles
Why it matters for exams: ESCAPADE is NASA's twin-spacecraft Mars mission that will be the first to fly more than one spacecraft in formation around the planet.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
ESCAPADE Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers — A NASA mission of two small spacecraft that will study how Mars loses its atmosphere.
Gravity assist Powered flyby — A manoeuvre in which a spacecraft uses a planet's gravity, with an engine burn, to gain speed.
2 November 2026
A study using the Hubble Space Telescope has found that much of the oxygen expected in 37 nearby dwarf galaxies is simply not there.
Computer models predict far more oxygen than the galaxies actually hold, and the researchers say dwarf galaxies keep only a small part of what their stars produce.
The likely explanation is galactic winds driven by exploding stars, which appear to strip oxygen out of low mass galaxies more effectively than current models allow.
The 37 galaxies were chosen because their masses fall in the range where models predict rising oxygen loss, and because they are close enough for the telescope to pick out individual stars.
The work is part of the Galaxies Losing Oxygen via Winds project, abbreviated GLOW, and has been published in The Astrophysical Journal.
Along with archival Hubble images the team used data from the retired Spitzer Space Telescope, the Very Large Array and the Australian Telescope Compact Array.
Oxygen matters because it is the most abundant element after hydrogen and helium and is easy to measure, so it traces how heavy elements spread through and out of galaxies.
It is still not clear whether the missing oxygen sits in the gas around these galaxies or has been thrown out altogether.
Galaxies studied:
37
Element traced:
Oxygen
Why it matters for exams: The GLOW project, which stands for Galaxies Losing Oxygen via Winds, used Hubble data on 37 dwarf galaxies and published its result in The Astrophysical Journal.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
GLOW Galaxies Losing Oxygen via Winds — The research project behind this study, funded by NASA and the National Science Foundation.
Dwarf galaxy Low mass galaxy — A small galaxy with far fewer stars than a spiral galaxy like our own.
2 November 2026
NASA has said its Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory will re-enter Earth's atmosphere after ending operations.
The satellite was launched in 2004 and carried three telescopes working at different wavelengths on one spacecraft.
It was designed for a prime mission of two years and was built to catch gamma-ray bursts, the most powerful explosions known in the universe.
Swift could turn quickly towards a short-lived outburst and send alerts to other observatories so they could follow it up.
Over its life it widened understanding of active galaxies powered by supermassive black holes, stars giving off X-ray flares, supernova explosions and comets and asteroids in the solar system.
Re-entry is expected on 4 November, with the United States Space Force predicting a time of about half past three in the morning Eastern Standard Time, within an uncertainty of eleven hours.
The spacecraft weighs about 3,200 pounds and NASA expects most of it to burn up, though some components may survive.
Any surviving pieces would fall between 20.6 degrees south and 20.6 degrees north latitude, and NASA puts the risk of harm to a person on Earth at about one in 2,100.
Launched:
2004
Telescopes carried:
Three
Weight:
About 3,200 pounds
Why it matters for exams: The Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, launched in 2004, was NASA's gamma-ray burst telescope and is now re-entering the atmosphere.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Gamma-ray burst Most powerful explosion known — A brief, extremely bright flash of gamma rays from a distant cosmic explosion.
3 November 2026
Two days of hearings on a challenge to Australia's social media ban for children have opened in the High Court of Australia.
A digital rights group, the Digital Freedom Project, argues that barring under-sixteens takes away children's right to free political communication, and a separate challenge by the platform Reddit is being heard along with it.
The ban took effect on 10 December 2025 and is part of a wider set of online safety measures.
Ten platforms are covered: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Reddit, Snapchat, X, Kick, Threads and Twitch, and each must take reasonable steps to keep anyone under sixteen off its service.
Breaches carry fines of up to 99 million Australian dollars, although no company has been fined since the ban began.
The eSafety Commissioner enforces the law and has opened several investigations into how well the platforms are complying.
WhatsApp, gaming sites such as Roblox and Discord, and educational services such as YouTube Kids and Google Classroom were left out of the ban.
In the first days after it started, one company that owns three of the listed platforms said it had closed about half a million accounts.
Minimum age:
16
Platforms covered:
10
Maximum fine:
99 million Australian dollars
Why it matters for exams: Australia's ban on social media for under-sixteens is enforced by the eSafety Commissioner and is now before the High Court of Australia, the country's apex court.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
eSafety Commissioner Australia's online safety regulator — The Australian authority that enforces online safety law, including the under-16 social media ban.
High Court of Australia Australia's highest court — The apex court of Australia, which also decides constitutional questions.
2 November 2026
The United States and Mexico have announced a memorandum of understanding on denial of rights concerns at the Industrias Tecnos factory at Cuernavaca in the Mexican state of Morelos.
The plant manufactures small arms ammunition.
The memorandum sets out a plan to remedy violations of Mexican law at the factory and to protect freedom of association and collective bargaining there in future.
Mexico is to ensure that the company verifies proper compensation for workers who were unlawfully dismissed, covering wages or benefits they did not receive.
The company must train all its personnel on a neutrality statement and guidelines on freedom of association and collective bargaining, with a zero tolerance policy for violations.
It must also install and publicise a complaint mechanism through which workers can report violations anonymously and confidentially.
The neutrality statement, training materials and information about complaint mechanisms must be kept on the company website and its internal platforms so that workers can reach them easily.
Mexico has agreed to review the determinations made about the dismissed workers and to monitor the factory going forward.
Factory:
Industrias Tecnos, Cuernavaca, Morelos
Product:
Small arms ammunition
Why it matters for exams: Freedom of association and collective bargaining are the labour rights at the centre of this United States and Mexico memorandum, and Cuernavaca is the capital of the Mexican state of Morelos.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Collective bargaining Negotiation between workers and an employer — The right of workers, usually through a union, to negotiate wages and conditions with an employer.
Freedom of association Right to form and join unions — The right of workers to form and join organisations of their own choosing without interference.
1 November 2026
A new police unit carrying long-arm rifles has begun patrolling the streets of Sydney, in a measure described as the first of its kind in Australia.
New South Wales police say the Armed Response Command will patrol busy tourist areas, major events, crowded public spaces, sporting venues and places of worship.
Its stated purpose is to prevent, deter and respond quickly to serious threats, including incidents involving an armed offender.
The unit is designed to be highly visible, using specialist vehicles, and will eventually consist of 250 officers.
A senior officer said the command is built on the simple principle of preserving life.
The measure follows a mass shooting at Bondi Beach in December in which fifteen people were killed at an event marking the Jewish festival of Hanukkah, which led to gun law reforms and action against hate speech.
Some residents have said the sight of heavily armed officers is unsettling, while others have said it makes them feel safer.
A human rights organisation has asked the State government for assurances that the new command will not be used against peaceful protest, and for clear public rules and independent oversight.
Unit:
Armed Response Command
Eventual strength:
250 officers
Why it matters for exams: The Armed Response Command of New South Wales police is Australia's first rifle-carrying street patrol unit and will grow to 250 officers.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
ARC Armed Response Command — A New South Wales police unit of specially trained officers carrying rifles on visible street patrols.
2 November 2026
UNESCO has brought out its biennial study of how journalists are killed and how rarely anyone is punished for it, published around 2 November, the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists.
For 2024-2025 it puts the share of journalist killings worldwide that go unpunished at 86 per cent, a point above the previous two years.
That is the first increase in over a decade; the agency has kept the series since 2012.
The study counts 189 journalists and media workers killed over the two years, a fifth more than before and the highest total since 2014-2015, of whom 127 died in conflict zones.
Drones killed 50 of them, roughly two in five of the conflict-zone deaths, and the report treats this as a threat of a new kind.
Where there is no war the unpunished share has come down from 94 per cent in 2012 to 77 per cent, and killings there are at an eighteen-year low.
The Arab States had the most verified killings at 97, ahead of Latin America and the Caribbean at 37 and Asia-Pacific at 34.
Khaled El-Enany, the Director-General of UNESCO, said reporters covering the front lines of war are paying for it with their lives more and more often.
Impunity rate:
86 per cent
Journalists killed:
189
Killed in conflict zones:
127
Why it matters for exams: UNESCO publishes the Director-General's Report on the Safety of Journalists every two years, and the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists falls on 2 November.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization — The UN agency for education, science and culture, which also monitors the safety of journalists.
Impunity Freedom from punishment — Here it means a killing of a journalist where nobody has been held responsible in law.
2 November 2026
The President of the United States has told Congress, and the governments concerned, that he intends to take Rwanda and South Africa out of the African Growth and Opportunity Act preference programme from 1 January 2027.
Under that law eligible countries in sub-Saharan Africa may send thousands of products into the American market without paying duty.
The finding came out of the yearly eligibility review, which the United States Trade Representative's office runs across departments.
Jamieson Greer, the Trade Representative, said both governments are following practices that do not fit the law's eligibility conditions.
In Rwanda's case the reasons given were barriers to trade and investment, the rule of law, political pluralism, internationally recognised worker rights, human rights, and risks to American security and foreign policy in the region.
In South Africa's case they were barriers to American trade and investment, corruption, and risks to security and foreign policy interests.
Greer said his administration wants African partners to take the steps the conditions require.
If it goes through, two of the programme's bigger participants lose their duty-free access.
Countries notified:
Rwanda and South Africa
Effective from:
1 January 2027
Why it matters for exams: The African Growth and Opportunity Act gives eligible sub-Saharan African countries duty-free access to the United States market, and Rwanda and South Africa have been notified for termination from 1 January 2027.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
AGOA African Growth and Opportunity Act — A United States law that gives eligible sub-Saharan African countries duty-free access for thousands of products.
USTR Office of the United States Trade Representative — The American agency that negotiates trade agreements and runs trade preference reviews.
2 November 2026
Fridges and freezers in dozens of supermarkets across seven European countries stopped cooling after the software that runs them was attacked.
Thermostats were raised from a distance and, in some shops, the air inside freezers reached 50 degrees Celsius, so stock had to be destroyed.
Around forty Delhaize stores in Belgium and Luxembourg were affected; a few shops were hit in Sweden, in Ireland, in the Netherlands, in Estonia and in Finland.
The Belgian manufacturer Sabcobel, which builds some of the units, said their evaporators had been put into defrost mode and so warmed up.
It said the same trick had been used on French supermarkets three weeks earlier, where food worth millions of euros was lost.
A software update is not enough, the firm said: the units need a physical change, and most of its customers have moved to running the appliances over a secure internet link.
The Belgian and Swedish cyber-security agencies said they were watching the incident, and the United Kingdom's National Cyber Security Centre said it was working with partners abroad and with industry.
Separately, American authorities are looking at refrigeration failures at several military bases in August to see whether they belong to the same pattern.
Countries affected:
Seven
Peak freezer temperature:
50 degrees Celsius
Stores of one chain hit:
About 40 in Belgium and Luxembourg
Why it matters for exams: This attack on internet-connected supermarket refrigeration in seven European countries shows how industrial control systems in the food supply chain can be targeted.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
NCSC National Cyber Security Centre — The United Kingdom's authority on cyber security, which advises government and industry.
Internet of Things Networked everyday devices — Everyday machines such as fridges and heating systems that are connected to the internet and can be controlled remotely.
Background
The James Webb Space Telescope is the great space observatory that follows Hubble, and it was built to look further back towards our origins than any instrument before it. Its science runs from how stars and planets take shape to the first galaxies that lit up the young universe, and it works in infrared light. It is not one country's project: it is a partnership between the American, European and Canadian space agencies. The telescope lifted off on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana on 25 December 2021. It does not circle the Earth. It works from Lagrange point 2, about 1.5 million kilometres away, where it can keep the Sun, the Earth and the Moon all behind it. Its main mirror is 6.5 metres across and is made of 18 separate segments that were folded for launch and unfolded in space. A sunshield of five layers keeps sunlight off the instruments so they stay cold enough to see infrared light, and the telescope carries four science instruments.
Main mirror:
6.5 m across, 18 segments
Station:
Lagrange point 2, about 1.5 million km from Earth
Partners:
NASA, ESA and CSA
Why it matters for exams: The three partner agencies, the launcher, the Lagrange point and the eighteen-segment mirror are the facts asked whenever the telescope returns an image.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Lagrange point Lagrange point — A spot where the pull of two bodies lets a spacecraft hold station with little fuel.
Infrared Infrared — Light of longer wavelength than red, which passes through dust and reveals cold, distant objects.
CSA Canadian Space Agency — Canada's space agency, the third partner in the telescope.