More suspicious letters sent to congressional offices in Illinois, officials say

Israeli forces detained U. S. Democratic congressional candidate Brad Lander on Wednesday as he helped Palestinian farmers harvest olives in the occupied West Bank, releasing him hours later while dozens of other volunteers, including a group of American rabbis, remained in custody. The incident was the latest in an annual olive harvest that has been marked by violence between Israeli settlers and Palestinian villagers attempting to gather their crops. The Israeli military said the farmers and volunteers had failed to seek prior approval for the harvest and were detained “due to the security risk posed by conducting an uncoordinated harvest near an Israeli community.” It later added that it viewed “the arrival of dozens of activists as an act intended solely to provoke, which undermines the harvesting process.”Lander is running in the U. S. elections on Nov. 3 to represent a heavily Democratic New York district in the U. S. House of Representatives. Get Starting PointA guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email“The occupation is a crime under international law,” Lander wrote on social media after he was detained.

KANKAKEE, Ill. (WLS) -- Illinois' 2nd Congressional District is diverse in many ways. It runs south from Chicago's South Side through the south suburbs to Kankakee and to Danville. It has been represented by Democrat Robin Kelly since 2012, but she left office for an unsuccessful run for Senate. ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watchAnd the district that hugs the Indiana border going south could be important as Republicans try to hold on to a thin majority in the midterms. Democrat Donna Miller won the primary, beating candidates including Jesse Jackson Jr., who previously represented the district. She is a Cook County commissioner and a former healthcare executive. "Experience matters and being able to get things done matter. I think knowing how government works is important," Miller said. Miller lives in the south suburbs and shares that her family history goes back to a small family farm in Champaign County. "We have a competitive farm industry here in Illinois, and they should be competing not only here within the United States, but even on a global level," Miller said. Republican Mike Noack lives in a small town, west of Kankakee.

What questions do you have about the 2026 elections? What major issues do you want candidates to address? Let us know. Of U. S. congressional incumbents in South Jersey, only one is scheduled to debate their opponent this year: Republican Jeff Van Drew of the 2nd District. Democratic incumbents Donald Norcross and Herb Conaway are opting to skip the debate stage.

Republican Ammie Akin is running for Alabama’s 7th Congressional District, a district that stretches from part of Birmingham, across portions of Tuscaloosa County to the state’s western Black Belt. Since 2011 it’s been represented by Democrat Terri Sewell, who is running for reelection. Property and voting records show, and Akin’s campaign confirmed, that she lives in the 6th Congressional District. Her home is in unincorporated Jefferson County near the intersection of Interstate 459 and U. S. Highway 280. It is not illegal to run outside of one’s congressional district. The U. S. Constitution requires members of the House to be inhabitants of the state they represent but not the specific district. Still, it is not typical. “District 7 is the only district I want to run in and the reason for that is because that's the district I'm most equipped to run in because of my background and my resume,” Akin said. Akin has spent her career in educational settings. According to her LinkedIn profile, she began her career as a teacher at Hoover High School before spending about eight years with the Trussville City Schools.

“You talk so much about my president, President Trump, being a humanitarian,” Witkoff told Putin, whom he was meeting to discuss another variant of plans to end the war. “You are a humanitarian also, sir, and I salute that.”The phrase hung in the air because Putin, who started a war of aggression against Ukraine that has led to the deaths of tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians, is wanted as a war criminal by the International Criminal Court. Trump, who has repeatedly expressed sympathies for strongmen and parroted Kremlin talking points, has long made clear his admiration for the Russian leader and earlier this month imposed sweeping sanctions on the ICC, seeking to cripple its work. His envoy’s public embrace of Putin on Wednesday capped a tumultuous 12 days in which Trump has repeatedly sided with Russia and sidelined Ukraine. Trump’s posture toward Russia is out of step with most Americans. The vast majority of them, 79 percent, have an unfavorable view toward Russia, according to polling from Gallup, a number that has been on the rise over the past 15 years.

Road ClosureHeads up Houston drivers, major closures tied to the I-45 expansion project will begin next week. Wednesday, October 21, 2026 9:39PMHOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Major closures tied to the I-45 expansion project will begin next week. Drivers heading into downtown Houston will need to take an alternate route starting on Monday, Oct. 26. Starting at 9 a.m. on Monday, the US-59 southbound entrance ramp at Webster Street will completely close. RELATED: Controversial $9B project to widen I-45 is set to start, TxDOT saysThe closure is expected to last until March 2027. Top StoriesABC13 has real-time traffic data to help you navigate Houston's roads and avoid traffic delays. Sign up for traffic alerts that are sent straight to your phone through our ABC13 app. Manage your notifications from the settings tab. Live traffic map Do you hate Houston traffic as much as we do? Join the club! Copyright © 2026 KTRK-TV. All Rights Reserved.