Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

No apology but King Charles will not shy away from slavery issue during Caribbean tour, Buckingham Palace says

King Charles will not shy away from Britain's involvement in the transatlantic slave trade when he tours the Caribbean later this month, but will not formally apologise for "the darkest days of our past", Buckingham Palace said ​on Friday. Charles and his wife Queen Camilla will visit the Bahamas and Guyana, before heading to Antigua and Barbuda where he will attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) which is being held from November 1-4 this year.

Polish city ​reopens Cold War shelter as Russian attacks in Ukraine intensify

The Polish city of Lublin has revived a Cold War-era air raid shelter as Russia steps up attacks ‌in Ukraine, with one symbolic ​change reflecting a shift in perceived threats: its emergency exit now faces west, not east. Poland, once part of the Soviet bloc and now a member of NATO, is on heightened alert after several Russian missile and drone incursions into its airspace. Residents of eastern regions have been issued warnings to seek shelter during Russian airstrikes on neighbouring western Ukraine.

Exclusive-Trump visa policies weigh on Columbia journalism program as admissions pause

The Trump administration's changing visa policies caused a sharp drop in international applications to Columbia University and contributed to the university pausing admissions to one of its journalism programs, four people familiar with the matter said. The journalism school announced on Thursday it was pausing admissions to its Master of Arts offering to conduct a "critical evaluation," without giving further details about the reasons.

Taiwan's first two F-16V fighter jets arrive ‌to bolster defences against China

The first two of a batch of 66 new F-16V Block 70 fighter jets ordered in 2019 arrived in Taiwan on Friday after months of delays, helping to strengthen an air force that has to scramble almost daily to shadow China's military. Taiwan faces a rising military threat from Beijing, which claims the democratically governed island as its own territory. Taipei has complained of repeated delays to weapons ordered from the United States, its most important international backer and arms supplier.

Russian airstrikes choke bridges across Dnipro River in Kyiv

Russia struck a bridge linking two sides of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv for the second successive day, officials said on Friday, part of an intensifying campaign of air attacks on infrastructure that is upending daily life. An evening drone strike on the closed Southern Bridge was the latest in a series of attacks since Thursday that forced the full or partial suspension of traffic across it and two other bridges spanning the vast Dnipro River.

Former US congressman sentenced to 10 years for secretly lobbying for Venezuela

Former US Congressman David Rivera was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Friday for illegally lobbying ‌US officials to ease pressure on ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government. Rivera, a Republican who represented southern Florida in the US House of Representatives from 2011 to 2013, was convicted at trial in May of lobbying US officials on Venezuela's behalf in 2017 without registering as a foreign lobbyist as required by the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).

Explainer-What do we know about flydubai flight 1073?

Here is what we know, and don't know, about the reported attempt by the copilot of flydubai flight 1073 to crash the plane on ‌September 30 before it landed safely in Saudi Arabia. WHAT HAPPENED TO THE PLANE?

Israeli officials to question co-pilot of flydubai flight, source says

Israeli officials are expected to question the co-pilot who allegedly attempted to crash a commercial passenger flight from Dubai bound for Tel Aviv, according to a source briefed on the investigation. Disaster was averted on flydubai flight FZ1073 on Wednesday after passengers and crew subdued the co-pilot, who had stabbed the captain in what Israeli officials have said was an apparent attempt to crash the plane carrying over 170 passengers and crew.

With a mixed scorecard, Trump poised to test his powers again at US Supreme Court

The US Supreme Court begins its new nine-month term on Monday much as it ended its last one, confronted with more cases involving President Donald Trump's far-reaching policies and aggressive uses of power that will keep testing how far the justices will let him expand his authority. The court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, wrapped up its last term in June, one dominated by legal battles centered on Trump's exertion of presidential powers. The justices gave the Republican president several major wins and a few big losses.

Two Iranians charged in UK over alleged terrorism plot targeting Jewish community

Two Iranian nationals were charged in Britain with preparing a terrorist attack against the Jewish community in northern England, police said on Friday, amid heightened tension ⁠over a separate suspected plot targeting a ​US-linked military base. Rahman Salehi, 35, and Salam Ahmadyan, 36, have been charged with preparing to commit or assisting another to commit an act of ⁠terrorism in Manchester on the eve of Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.

Crude oil tanker struck by unknown projectile off Oman, UKMTO says

The master of a crude oil tanker has reported being struck by an unknown projectile 4 nautical miles east of Oman, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said early on Saturday. UKMTO said all crew were reported safe and no environmental impact was currently reported.

US halts consular services in Brazil ahead of election, increasing tensions

Citing security concerns, the United States suspended consular services on Friday, prompting Australia to also close its embassy two days before the country's presidential election, fueling an already uneasy environment ahead of the high-stakes vote. Brazil's ⁠Federal Police said on Friday afternoon they had carried out preventive searches in Sao Paulo and near Brasilia, but had so far found no evidence of a threat or identified any suspects linked to criminal organizations.

Syrian students get caught in rift between Druze leaders and Damascus

Young people in Syria's Sweida province are unable to progress through school and university due to a deepening rift between the post-Assad Islamist government and the Israel-aligned Druze leaders of the last area outside central control. Their dilemma reflects deep trauma and lingering instability in the province, where hundreds of Druze were killed last year in sectarian violence by government-linked ​forces and Israel struck Syria's military, saying it was defending the minority.

Spain faces more fury over housing after parliament rejects decree

Protesters said they would return to the streets across Spain and press on with their encampment in central Madrid after parliament on Friday rejected the government's attempt to answer their complaints about a mounting housing crisis. Crowds gathered outside the assembly chanted "your profits, our misery" as lawmakers voted down the minority government's decree that had been drawn up to address mass anger over the ⁠eviction of an 87-year-old woman.

Exclusive-Carney plans to visit Turkey this month, sources say

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney plans to visit Turkey this month to meet President Tayyip Erdogan in what would be the first dedicated bilateral visit to the country by a Canadian leader, four sources with knowledge of the visit said. One of the sources said Carney and Erdogan could discuss the free-trade talks they launched on the sidelines of a NATO summit in Ankara in July, as well as potential energy and defense cooperation. Canadian and Turkish trade ministers agreed this week to accelerate the talks ahead of the leaders' meeting, two sources said.

At Cornell, rape allegations spark outrage, soul-searching over campus culture

Cornell University student Sophia Riley Sim skipped ⁠classes this week, ​consumed by allegations in a lawsuit that several members of a fraternity raped a young woman in 2024 and troubled by how her university handled the case. "Cornell has failed our community through its lack of accountability, transparency, and failure to address the state of the Cornell student body at this time," Sim, a junior, said at a public hearing on sexual assault organized by Cornell's Student Assembly on Thursday.

Tennessee execution survivor Christa Pike on ventilator, attorneys say

Convicted murderer Christa Pike is unconscious, intubated and receiving breathing assistance from a ventilator after Tennessee's failed attempt to execute her, her attorneys said on Friday, providing the first detailed account of the extent of injuries she suffered during the lethal injection. Hospital staff are working to save Pike's life and clear the lethal drug pentobarbital from her system, her attorneys said in an emergency court filing seeking an order requiring Tennessee's Department of Correction to preserve evidence from Wednesday night's botched execution.

Explainer-Suspected plot to attack UK's Fairford airbase, used by US: What do we know?

British police investigating a suspected plot involving an airbase used by the US to target ⁠Iran have arrested a dual UK-Iranian national on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts, the latest twist in a largely unexplained incident. Below is what is known so far:

Saudis plan assault on Houthis to break Red Sea chokehold

Saudi Arabia is planning an offensive against Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen, with options being considered including a coastal push to secure the Red Sea shipping route or an assault on multiple fronts, regional and Western officials told Reuters. The operation, expected to be launched in the coming weeks, will by led ⁠by Yemeni forces on the ground, which are overseen by Riyadh, and supported by Saudi air strikes, according to six people with knowledge of the ⁠preparations.

Man accused of ex-minister murder charged with preparing terrorist acts against Reform UK's Nigel Farage

British police said on Friday that a man accused of murdering former minister Ann Widdecombe had now also been charged with preparing acts of terrorism, including against Nigel Farage, the leader of the populist Reform UK party. Police and prosecutors said Joshua Kerry, 28, had been charged with engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorist acts between May 2024 and July this year, saying that these related in part to Farage.

Israeli strike kills four people in Gaza, medics say

An Israeli airstrike killed at least four Palestinians in an apartment building in Gaza City early on Saturday, the territory’s health officials said. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.

US looks to expand use of canoe-sized drones to deter migrant crossings

The Pentagon may ‌expand its use of autonomous surveillance boats on the Rio Grande and in the Gulf of ‌Mexico after the canoe-sized vessels helped authorities detect and deter illegal border crossings and narcotics trafficking during a pilot program that began in January, a US official said. The unmanned surface vessels, built by San Diego-based startup Seasats, patrol the river for long periods without crews and are part ​of a growing push by the military and law enforcement agencies to use relatively inexpensive, autonomous systems for surveillance and security missions.