Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at the impact of Starlink limits on Ukraine’s defense, jail sentences for two leaders of India’s Cockroach movement, and Pope Leo XIV’s lung cancer diagnosis.
‘Badly Limited’
Ukraine on Wednesday said that Elon Musk’s SpaceX had abruptly limited the country’s access to its military-grade Starlink internet services without warning, undermining the country’s security. The Wall Street Journal reported that the new limits “restrict the speed at which some of Ukraine’s weapons can travel and still connect to the internet.” It is unclear why the restrictions were imposed now or when they might be lifted. However, the timing is likely to be damaging for Kyiv, which is preparing for a brutal winter defined by Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure.
Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at the impact of Starlink limits on Ukraine’s defense, jail sentences for two leaders of India’s Cockroach movement, and Pope Leo XIV’s lung cancer diagnosis.
‘Badly Limited’
Ukraine on Wednesday said that Elon Musk’s SpaceX had abruptly limited the country’s access to its military-grade Starlink internet services without warning, undermining the country’s security. The Wall Street Journal reported that the new limits “restrict the speed at which some of Ukraine’s weapons can travel and still connect to the internet.” It is unclear why the restrictions were imposed now or when they might be lifted. However, the timing is likely to be damaging for Kyiv, which is preparing for a brutal winter defined by Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure.
Just two days after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, SpaceX activated Starlink in Kyiv and shipped its first terminals to the country. Despite SpaceX periodically restricting Ukraine’s access to its services, Kyiv has since come to rely on Starshield, a military-grade version of Starlink paid for by the U.S. Defense Department, to intercept Russian drone strikes and launch midrange attacks on Moscow.
According to senior Ukrainian officials and military personnel, signal failures early Wednesday disrupted several ongoing missions. “Logistics at the frontline and middle strikes are badly limited,” one senior official told the Financial Times. Ukrainian defense ministry advisor Serhii Beskrestnov stressed that long-range drone operations were also impacted.
Experts suspect that Wednesday’s limitations may have been ordered by the Pentagon, not SpaceX—a notion that Musk appeared to confirm later in the day. “Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the US government. Any limits on speed or usage are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS,” Musk wrote on X, using an acronym for the U.S. president. His statement came in response to an X post from former Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, who stated that some connectivity had been restored and had asked Musk to remove the speed limit entirely.
Ahead of the U.S. midterm elections next month, Trump has faced growing pressure to tackle rising fuel prices inflamed by the wars in Iran and Ukraine. He has repeatedly urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to halt all strikes on Russian oil refineries, and last Friday, he suspended U.S. sanctions on Russian diesel exports—a move condemned by U.S. lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. “This deal is a gift to our adversary and a betrayal of our allies; it should be rescinded,” a dozen senators wrote to Trump on Tuesday.
Experts have previously suggested that the White House could cut off battlefield aid to Kyiv in an effort to force Zelensky to concede to some of Moscow’s demands and end the conflict. Whether the Trump administration would go so far as to make Starlink one of its bargaining chips, though, is unclear. The U.S. Defense Department, asked for comment on the restrictions before Musk’s X post, referred to Trump’s statement on Tuesday that the United States is continuing to share intelligence with Kyiv.
Meanwhile, Russia launched another devastating assault on critical Ukrainian infrastructure on Wednesday. Dozens of ballistic missiles targeted Kyiv’s energy facilities, plunging some 600,000 people across the capital into darkness. Repeated attacks on Ukraine’s power grid echo past Russian efforts to deprive Ukrainians of heat and water as the country prepares for its fifth winter at war.
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What We’re Following
Behind bars. An Indian court ordered on Wednesday that two leaders of the so-called Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) be imprisoned for five days. They were arrested for trying to enter Jantar Mantar, a historic protest site that New Delhi has recently barred demonstrators from. The detentions risk further antagonizing anti-government protesters.
For months, the youth-led Cockroach movement has denounced lackluster job creation and poor education policy, including leaked medical exam results. However, protesters have recently shifted their attention to an election commission scandal, prompting some of New Delhi’s most heavy-handed crackdowns yet.
That has not stopped thousands of CJP supporters from taking to the streets in recent days, including Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, the two arrested CJP leaders who tried to “reclaim” Jantar Mantar from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s control. “Why is Narendra Modi scared of Jantar Mantar?” Das wrote on X prior to his arrest. “Jantar Mantar belongs to THE PEOPLE OF INDIA.”
CJP leader Ajinkya Shinde, who was arrested with Das and Ranka but released on a personal bond, maintained that the movement would not be “frightened” by the sentencing. “We will put an end to this dictatorial government,” Shinde said. CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke similarly denounced the court’s decision, accusing Modi of hiding behind “cowardly tactics.”
Cancer treatment. Pope Leo XIV underwent a successful surgery on Tuesday to remove part of his right lung following a cancer diagnosis. According to a Vatican spokesperson on Wednesday, the pope is expected to remain hospitalized for a week but has already begun respiratory physiotherapy, resumed his regular diet, and started walking around his room. “His recovery is proceeding as expected,” said the doctors in charge of Leo’s care at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital.
Leo was diagnosed with the early stages of lung adenocarcinoma, a kind of lung cancer that grows more slowly and usually forms on the outer layers of the organ. The 71-year-old revealed his diagnosis during Sunday’s noon prayer, breaking taboo by revealing his private medical issues in a public setting. It is unclear if Leo will still attend a two-week trip to South America next month, during which he was scheduled to visit 10 cities in Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru.
The health revelations have cast concerns on the longevity of Leo’s papacy. The Chicago-born pope was appointed at age 69, relatively young by papal standards. However, his cancer diagnosis has worried some Vatican analysts that the Church may need to begin considering a successor years before they were expecting to have to. Still, Leo’s doctors say that his prognosis looks optimistic.
Sinking ships. A Singapore-flagged vessel was transiting what Iran called an “unauthorized and dangerous route” through the Strait of Hormuz this week when it was struck by an unknown projectile and sank. According to the Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) of Singapore, a fire ignited on the GFS Pride, but all 21 crew members were safely evacuated.
Maritime officials on Wednesday also confirmed a separate attack on the Antigua and Barbuda-flagged Cape Dao, during which a projectile reportedly hit the bulk carrier on Sept. 23 and sank after an “unsuccessful rescue attempt,” said Vanguard, a British maritime risk management group.
“Such attacks are unprovoked, unjustifiable, and a breach of international law,” Singapore’s MPA said on Wednesday, adding that it remains “deeply concerned” about continued targeted strikes on commercial shipping. Iran has repeatedly warned commercial vessels to steer clear of the Strait of Hormuz unless they have explicit approval from Tehran. U.S. forces have tried to guide ships through an alternative route that hugs Oman’s coast, but Iran has denounced such actions as circumventing its authority.
Odds and Ends
Hong Kong displayed a painting by Vincent van Gogh on Tuesday that has not been publicly exhibited in more than 60 years. Chestnut Trees in Blossom, completed in May 1890, is considered one of the most important works from the Dutch artist’s final days; van Gogh died two months later at age 37. Hundreds of people attended the unveiling ahead of its auction at New York’s Sotheby’s on Nov. 18. The painting is expected to bring in $180 million, exceeding van Gogh’s previous auction record of $117.2 million for Orchard with Cypresses.