5 Big News Stories Overnight - Sunday, May 17, 2026

French judge to probe complaint against Saudi’s MBS over journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s killing

France 24 reports:

A Paris magistrate will investigate the 2018 assassination of Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi after rights groups filed a complaint against Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, French sources told AFP on Saturday.

Both Mohammed Bin Salman and the kingdom faced intense international uproar over the killing in Saudi Arabia's consulate in Istanbul, which the US intelligence services believe the crown prince was directly responsible for. 

A US resident who wrote critically about the oil-rich kingdom in The Washington Post, Khashoggi was strangled and then dismembered inside the Saudi consulate.

Khashoggi's employer, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), and the rights group Trial International had petitioned the French courts on the matter during Mohammed Bin Salman's visit to France in July 2022.

PHOTO: Khashoggi  PHOTO: April Brady CC: 2.0
 

"Israel Kills Hamas’s ‘Ghost’ After Years of Failed Attempts"

WSJ:

Israel killed Hamas’s military leader in Gaza, eliminating a long-sought target as it continues to hunt down militants linked to the Oct. 7, 2023, attack despite a continuing cease-fire.

Ezzedin al-Haddad, a Hamas veteran who took over as military commander after his predecessor was killed, died Friday evening in an airstrike in Gaza City, Israel said. He had helped plan the Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel that left 1,200 dead and around 250 as hostages in Gaza, and Israel said he was working to rebuild the group’s military capabilities when he was killed.

Israel said it sent warplanes to strike Haddad shortly after turning up intelligence on his location. Witnesses in Gaza City said they heard loud explosions in Al-Rimal neighborhood around 8 p.m. local time.

Italy: "Driver rams car into pedestrians and stabs passer-by in Italy"

The Telegraph reports:

Several people were injured when a car drove into pedestrians in the Italian city of Modena, police say.

The driver, a man in his 30s, crashed into a shop window on the historic Via Emilia Centro road before getting out and attacking with a knife a passer-by who tried to stop him, local media reported.

The suspect was subdued by bystanders and arrested by police.

At least eight people were injured, with at least four left in critical condition, the authorities said. A woman was reported to have had her legs amputated after they were crushed in the car ramming.

PHOTO: File GoLocal

Amgen's Drug Linked to 20 Deaths in Japan

Reuters reports:

About 20 deaths linked to serious liver dysfunction have been reported in Japan in patients treated with ​Amgen's rare disease drug Tavneos, according to a safety notice ‌issued by partner Kissei Pharmaceutical on Friday.

Kissei has asked, doctors to stop prescribing Tavneos to new patients and to review ongoing treatment due to the risk of liver ​damage.

The company also said some of the deaths as of ​April 27 were tied to a severe liver condition that ⁠destroys bile ducts, though a direct link to the drug had ​not been confirmed in all cases.

Louisiana: Trump Target Sen. Bill Cassidy Loses Reelection Bid in GOP Primary

CNN reports:

Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican, has lost his bid for a third term in a remarkable defeat, after two primary challengers — including one backed by President Donald Trump — finished ahead of him in Saturday’s primary and headed to a runoff for his seat.

Rep. Julia Letlow, who won Trump’s endorsement, and a second opponent, Louisiana State Treasurer John Fleming, will advance to the June 27 runoff, CNN’s Decision Desk projects. No candidate will receive a majority of the vote Saturday night, though Letlow was well ahead of both Fleming and Cassidy.

Cassidy’s defeat is the latest demonstration of Trump’s ability to exact revenge against Republicans who cross him, five years after Cassidy voted to convict Trump during the president’s second impeachment. Cassidy will become the first Republican senator to lose reelection in a primary since Alabama Sen. Luther Strange lost his seat in a 2017 primary runoff.