The week in photos: October 24-30, 2026

MANILA, Philippines — On October 25, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva won an unprecedented fourth term . Lula, an icon of the global left and the most dominant force in Brazilian politics this century, defeated Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, the eldest son of former president Jair Bolsonaro. The senator had finished first in the election’s first round and hoped to revive his father’s far-right movement. In Serbia, tens of thousands of people took to the streets across the country to celebrate when longtime leader Aleksandar Vucic conceded defeat on October 25, in a historic poll that capped two years of peaceful anti-government protests. By unseating Vucic, Serbia’s student protest movement did what demonstrators in other European capitals can only dream of.

In Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu looked set to remain the country’s caretaker prime minister after unexpectedly strong backing among Jewish voters left his opponents little apparent prospect of unseating him. With nearly 86% of votes tallied on October 28, Netanyahu’s bloc of right-wing, far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties is projected win 53 seats in the 120-seat Knesset, well ahead of the 48 for rival Gadi Eisenkot’s opposition bloc. Meanwhile, during the ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) in Cebu on October 28, Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. emphasized the importance of unity among ASEAN members despite differing ties with China, advocating for peaceful resolution of disputes , particularly in the South China Sea. ADMM and the ADMM-Plus is an annual gathering of defense ministers from Southeast Asia and “plus countries” or ADMM dialogue partners Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia, and the United States. Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun skips the…