WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal authorities are investigating letters with “suspicious substances” that have been mailed to congressional and election offices nationwide and are urging recipients to treat the mailings as “potentially hazardous.”
The investigation by the FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service and U.S. Capitol Police was first disclosed in a message from the Senate Sergeant at Arms obtained Thursday by The Associated Press. The notice, sent to Senate offices, said that law enforcement officials were working to intercept any additional letters, but “it is possible that some letters may reach their destinations.”
In Congress, the threat appeared limited to the Senate, though the House was monitoring the situation, according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to discuss the investigation publicly.
An FBI statement said the bureau and the Postal Inspection Service were "investigating a series of suspicious mailings sent to various addresses nationwide, including Secretary of State offices and their related election offices.”
"Some of the letters contained an unknown substance and we are working closely with our law enforcement partners to respond to each incident," the statement read. "We are also working with our partners to identify the individual or individuals responsible for the letters."
Mailed packages containing a powdery substance led to the evacuation this week of election offices in at least two states, Louisiana and Oklahoma. The Ohio secretary of state said the Postal Service intercepted a package containing a white powder intended for its office and noted that similar mailings had been sent to election officials in multiple states.
News of the letters comes just three weeks before Election Day and is reminiscent of a similar threat in 2023, when election offices in six states received mailings that contained a white powder. In some cases, the incidents disrupted work around local elections.
Some of those letters contained threats and traces of the powerful opioid fentanyl, leading some election offices to stock up on the overdose reversal medication naloxone.
The National Association of Secretaries of State and the National Association of State Election Directors issued a joint statement condemning what they said were threats against election staff.
“Those who administer our elections should never fear for their safety while carrying out their essential duties,” they said in their statement.
Deputy Postal Inspector Brendan Donahue told reporters Thursday that “any threat or attack on election officials is unacceptable” and that “we are also working with our partners on identifying the individual or individuals responsible for the letters.”
Associated Press writer Nicholas Riccardi in Denver contributed to this report.
The U.S. Capitol is seen Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)
FILE - An FBI seal is displayed on a podium before a news conference at the field office in Portland, Ore., Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)
ADEN, Yemen (AP) — At least six explosions struck Thursday near the palace used by Yemen's internationally recognized government in the port city of Aden, witnesses said. The government said people were killed in the attack, and Iran-backed Houthi rebels based in northern Yemen quickly claimed responsibility.
It was a rare attack on the palace area, as fighting has escalated between the rebels and a Saudi-led coalition in the latest front in the Iran war. The explosions caused panic among residents, who fled the area.
The government said the Houthis attacked with missiles and drones and that guards working at the site were killed. It didn't say how many, the Aden-based SABA news agency reported.
A security official said at least two explosions were on top of the hill near the Maashiq palace, and two others were near the security gate.
Many of Yemen's government leaders are living in exile, and those in Aden were safe, a government official said. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
The Houthis said they attacked a military operations headquarters with the “Saudi enemy," part of their strategy of attacking Saudi targets that has included a series of attacks on airports and oil infrastructure inside the kingdom.
The escalation has complicated efforts to end the wider Iran war and further rattled global markets as Saudi Arabia, one of the world's top oil exporters, faces repeated attacks. Regional aviation is affected, too, as the rebels have warned airlines about their use of Saudi airspace for attacks. Thousands of flights across the kingdom have been disrupted.
Earlier Thursday, the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis said it intercepted a cruise missile over the province of Medina. Flightradar 24, a tracking platform, said dozens of flights were cancelled or delayed at Jeddah airport.
The coalition statement did not assign blame for the attack. The Houthis’ military spokesperson, Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, denied the rebels carried it out. The group previously pledged not to attack airports in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia also said it destroyed a drone over the country's Eastern province, a major oil-producing region.
Inside Yemen, the fighting has revived a devastating civil war after four years of relative calm. One focus of alarm is the Houthi-besieged city of Taiz.
Residents of Yemen’s third-largest city are running short of basic necessities. Where goods can be found, prices have soared. Gas stations sit empty or out of service. The World Food Program said it can no longer reach more than 600,000 people in Taiz who depend on aid.
Fathiyya Mohamed al-Mugahed said she had gone looking for flour, cooking gas and fuel but found none.
“The Houthis have surrounded us from all sides,” she said. “Projectiles are all we have received from them.”
The International Committee of the Red Cross said Taiz has seen some of the “highest casualty burdens” in the country.
Saudi-led coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki al-Maliki speaks during a press conference in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer)
People crowd at a minibus station used by displaced to leave the city, in Taiz, Yemen, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Marzouq Al Jabri)
