Daily Briefing: Nuclear 'Armageddon' at highest risk, Biden says

Nicole Fallert, USA TODAY
·6 min read

President Joe Biden warned the potential of using nuclear weapons is the greatest it's been since 1962. Thailand mourns the loss of at least 36 people in the nation's deadliest rampage ever. Our reporters spoke with protestors in Iran about the ongoing unrest.

🙋🏼‍♀️ I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author.

Before you head into the weekend, here's one last dive into the news this week. 

🌅 Up first: Prime Day is COMING BACK. Check out the best early Black Friday deals at Amazon ahead of October Prime Day.

Biden's warning of nuclear threats

The risk of nuclear "Armageddon" is at the highest level since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, President Joe Biden said during a fundraiser Thursday amid the threat Russian President Vladimir Putin will deploy nuclear weapons to ward off Ukraine’s attempt to reclaim control of Moscow-occupied areas. Biden's warning follows talks among Russian officials about the possibility of using tactical nuclear weapons after suffering massive setbacks in the eight-month invasion of Ukraine. "We have not faced the prospect of Armageddon since (President John F.) Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis," Biden said, adding that Putin's threat is real because his army is "underperforming." Read more

  • Energy in Europe: On Friday, European Union leaders met in Prague to try to bridge significant differences over a natural gas price cap as winter approaches and Russia's war on Ukraine fuels the energy crisis.

Lithuania's President Gitanas Nauseda, right, arrives for a European Union summit in Prague, Czech Republic, on Friday, Oct 7, 2022.
Lithuania's President Gitanas Nauseda, right, arrives for a European Union summit in Prague, Czech Republic, on Friday, Oct 7, 2022.

Suspect had been fired from police force, faced drug charges

Deputy national police chief Gen. Torsak Sukwimol told the Bangkok Post that the suspect in a massacre at a child care center in Thailand was apparently under the influence of drugs at the time of the attack. The Post reported the suspect was expelled from the police force in June and that he faced charges related to possession of methamphetamine pills. The suspect took his own life after he killed over 30 people Thursday. The victims mostly were children and included his wife and child. Read more

Families of victims mourn while waiting for blessings from Buddhist monks on October 7, 2022 in Nong Bua Lamphu, Thailand.
Families of victims mourn while waiting for blessings from Buddhist monks on October 7, 2022 in Nong Bua Lamphu, Thailand.

📷 Photo of the day: Thailand mourns the nation's deadliest rampage ever 📷

The Thai government announced that flags would fly at half staff Friday to mourn a shooting and slashing rampage at a day care center Thursday that killed dozens of people, most of them children. Click here to see more photos.

Coffins are seen outside a child care center on Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022 in Nong Bua Lamphu, Thailand.
Coffins are seen outside a child care center on Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022 in Nong Bua Lamphu, Thailand.

More news to know now

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Nobel Peace Prize awarded to activists from Belarus, Russia, Ukraine

This year's Nobel Peace Prize is going to jailed Belarus rights activist Ales Bialiatski, the Russian group Memorial and the Ukrainian organization Center for Civil Liberties, the award's judges said Friday. Berit Reiss-Andersen, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said the judges wanted to honor "three outstanding champions of human rights, democracy and peaceful coexistence in the neighbor countries Belarus, Russia and Ukraine." Read more

Belarusian human rights advocate Ales Bialiatski, right, is greeted by his wife Natalya Pinchuk, at a railway terminal in Minsk, Belarus, on Saturday, June 21, 2014.
Belarusian human rights advocate Ales Bialiatski, right, is greeted by his wife Natalya Pinchuk, at a railway terminal in Minsk, Belarus, on Saturday, June 21, 2014.

'Woman, life, liberty': Iranians on why they'll risk beatings and death for change

Three weeks into nationwide protests triggered by the killing of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman who died in custody after being arrested by Iran's "morality police," authorities continue to violently crack down on anti-regime demonstrators. There have been mass arrests and human rights and opposition groups estimate hundreds of people have been killed in the unrest. Many analysts and participants say these protests feel different; that dissenters have appeared more willing to brave beatings, arrest and even death as they demand justice. USA TODAY conducted interviews with protesters on an encrypted communications channel to hear directly about their demands and to understand how they have experienced the protests. Here are their stories

  • Women worldwide cut their hair to protest death of Iranian woman who violated dress code.

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A brutal week for Herschel Walker's campaign, explained

Herschel Walker has stuck to his story. The Republican Georgia senate candidate and former NFL player said at a rally Thursday that reports he paid for an ex-girlfriend's abortion are nothing more than a Democratic distraction, whatever the evidence. Read more

The background: Earlier this week, The Daily Beast reported Walker, who has backed a national abortion ban with no exceptions, paid for a former girlfriend's abortion.

  • Undercutting Walker's claims: A after the initial report, a woman said Walker paid for her 2009 abortion and she is the mother of one of his children. The Daily Beast said it reviewed a receipt showing her payment for the procedure, along with a get-well card from Walker and her bank deposit records showing the image of a $700 personal check from Walker dated five days after the abortion receipt.

  • More stories about Walker: Walker has been accused of repeatedly threatening his ex-wife's life and exaggerating claims of financial success, among other allegations.

  • Regardless, the Walker fiasco ensures that abortion will continue to be a central issue in the Georgia race, one of the most competitive Senate contests in the country.

Georgia GOP Senate nominee Herschel Walker speaks with reporters following a recent campaign stop.
Georgia GOP Senate nominee Herschel Walker speaks with reporters following a recent campaign stop.

📝 What happened this week? Test how well you paid attention to the news.

A little less heavy

Crew-5 member Nicole Mann says goodbye as she and the other astronauts head for the launch pad for their trip to the International Space Station Wednesday, October 5, 2022.
Crew-5 member Nicole Mann says goodbye as she and the other astronauts head for the launch pad for their trip to the International Space Station Wednesday, October 5, 2022.

Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com or follow along with her musings on Twitter. Sign up for the email here. Support journalism like this by subscribing to USA TODAY here.

Contributing: The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Russia, Thailand, Iranian protests, Nobel Peace Prize: Daily Briefing

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