Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Flydubai co-pilot attacked pilot with axe in attempted 'terrorist attack', UAE says

The co-pilot of flydubai flight FZ1073, which was bound for Israel, attempted to carry out a "terrorist attack" with an axe during the flight, the United Arab Emirates prosecutor general said on Saturday. The co-pilot was identified as Hammam al-Hammami, ​an Omani national, a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. A second source briefed on the investigation confirmed the co-pilot’s name. UAE authorities did not immediately respond to a request for confirmation of his identity.

Portugal ​prosecutors probe legality of US use of Lajes base in Iran war

Portuguese prosecutors said on Saturday they had opened a probe into the legality ‌of the centre-right government's authorisation ​of the United States' use of the Lajes Air Base in the Azores during the Iran conflict, following a complaint by an opposition party. A longstanding agreement with the US allows Washington to use the base without prior authorisation during peacetime, but requires Portugal to give approval once hostilities begin.

Exiled Russian filmmaker Zvyagintsev takes aim at Putin's war in Oscar bid

Exiled Russian filmmaker Andrey Zvyagintsev takes on Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine in "Minotaur", a drama about conscription and moral compromise released nearly five years after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion. The film, which won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival this year and is an entry for the 2027 Oscar for best international film, is released as debate persists over Russia's ability to sustain troop numbers ‌in a conflict that has left hundreds of thousands dead or wounded.

North Korea says it conducted intermediate-range strategic missile drill

North Korea fired an intermediate-range missile in a test overseen by leader Kim Jong Un, state media KCNA reported on Sunday. KCNA said the missile was launched on Saturday from eastern North Korea and hit a target 1,000 km (621 miles) in the sea off the country's east coast. It said the drill was intended to train troops operating a hypersonic strategic weapon system and to assess the reliability, efficiency and mobility of the country's war deterrent.

Exclusive-ShinyHunters hacker in FBI data theft detained in Jordan, cooperating with bureau, sources say

A suspected member of the ShinyHunters hacking group, which says it stole data on every FBI employee, was detained in Jordan this week and is cooperating with the FBI, three people familiar with the matter told Reuters. Saif al-Din Khader was detained by Jordanian authorities, the three sources said. Two of them said he was brought into custody on Tuesday. Reuters could not immediately determine the circumstances of Khader’s detention or ‌where he is being held. Two sources said that he is helping the FBI and global law enforcement locate the other hackers in the group.

Brazil's Lula, Flavio Bolsonaro wrap up campaigns ahead of first-round vote

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Senator Flavio Bolsonaro wrapped up their campaigns on Saturday ahead of Sunday's first-round presidential election, each expressing confidence of victory despite polls pointing to a likely runoff.

Lula ended his re-election campaign with a march through Sao Paulo that ‌drew large crowds of supporters, while Bolsonaro took part in a motorcycle caravan through Santa Barbara d'Oeste and Americana in Sao Paulo state and later rallied in Rio de Janeiro.

Yemen's Houthis say they attacked Aramco facility in Riyadh with missiles, drones

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis said on Saturday they had targeted an Aramco facility in the Saudi capital Riyadh with ballistic missiles and drones, saying the attack was in retaliation for Saudi attacks on Yemen's Sanaa and other provinces. A large plume of smoke and fire was seen rising in the vicinity of an Aramco facility in Riyadh earlier on Saturday, a witness told Reuters.

Tennessee prison chief resigns after failed execution

The head of the Tennessee Department of Correction will step down this month, state officials said on Saturday, days after convicted murderer Christa Pike was left gravely ill from the state's failed attempt to execute her by lethal injection. The botched execution on Wednesday left Pike unconscious, intubated and hooked to a mechanical ventilator to breathe, her lawyers wrote in a Friday court filing. It is the state's second failed execution attempt this year, prompting Tennessee Governor Bill Lee to halt attempts to carry out the death penalty for the rest of 2026.

Indian police detain several people in Gen Z-led protests against voter roll ⁠changes

Indian police detained several people ​in the capital New Delhi on Saturday, disrupting a second day of protests backed by the Gen Z-led Cockroach Janta Party and ⁠other opposition groups against changes to voter rolls. The protesters say the changes benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi's governing party and are demanding the resignation of India's election chief.

High school students in Paris' deprived suburbs spark national protest movement

Maisa, a 17-year-old in a poor Paris suburb who aspires to be an English teacher, joined tens of thousands of other students and their supporters this week in protests that spread across France over dilapidated schools, classroom overcrowding and teacher shortages. At Lycee Le Corbusier school in Aubervilliers, a suburb north of Paris in the Seine-Saint-Denis department, protesters said schools in poor neighborhoods like theirs faced the worst ⁠conditions.

Tennessee execution survivor Christa Pike unconscious on ventilator, lawyers say

Convicted killer Christa Pike was left gravely ill, unconscious and hospitalized on life support after Tennessee's failed attempt to execute her by lethal injection, her lawyers said on Friday, providing the first detailed account of the injuries she suffered. Hospital staff were working to save Pike's life and clear the drug pentobarbital from her system, her attorneys said in an emergency motion, which seeks a court order for Tennessee's Department of Correction to preserve evidence from Wednesday night's botched execution.

India, Pakistan summon top diplomats over border incident

India and ​Pakistan summoned each other's top diplomats on Saturday over a border incident on October 2, with New Delhi rejecting Islamabad's allegation that Indian forces had killed two unarmed Pakistani civilians and saying those involved had crossed illegally into Indian territory. Pakistan's foreign ministry said earlier on Saturday that personnel from India's Border Security Force had used "unprovoked lethal force" against two unarmed Pakistani civilians in the Bedian sector along the international border on Friday.

Lula's lead over Bolsonaro narrows ⁠ahead of Brazil vote, CNT/MDA poll shows

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's lead over Senator Flavio Bolsonaro narrowed ahead of Sunday's first-round vote, a CNT/MDA poll showed on Saturday, while also pointing to a tighter race in a likely runoff. In a first-round scenario, Lula would receive 43.1% of voter support, followed by Bolsonaro (38%), Augusto Cury (3.2%), Ronaldo Caiado (3%) and Renan Santos (1.5%), according to the poll.

Bridge across Dnipro river in Kyiv hit during Russian attack, mayor says

The Northern Bridge across the Dnipro river in Kyiv was hit during a Russian air attack on Saturday, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said, amid an escalation in strikes on infrastructure in the Ukrainian capital. Emergency services were ⁠deployed ​to the scene, the mayor said, and traffic across the bridge from the east to the west bank was suspended following damage to the road surface and the overhead trolleybus cables. There were no casualties reported.

Aboard the USS George Washington, young sailors adjust to war with Iran

An emergency alert blares from a loudspeaker, and Damon Dennard and other sailors on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS George Washington are scrambling. Dennard, 23, is readying bombs for loading onto aircraft as his crewmates race to their positions. "It has been eventful," says Dennard, an aviation ordnanceman airman apprentice. Once the alert ends, he takes a breath, sits on one of the bombs and jokes that he probably expected an easier deployment.

Women declare #IamJaneDoe in solidarity with Cornell University rape accuser

Women, some citing their own experiences of sexual assault, are posting on social media that they are Jane Doe, in solidarity with the woman using the pseudonym in accusing fraternity members of raping her at Cornell University in 2024. In a case that has ⁠drawn national attention, the woman is suing seven fraternity members and the Ivy League school in Ithaca, New York, among others.

Tens of thousands protest across Spain over housing crisis

Spanish police arrested three members of a far-right group and fired rubber bullets on Saturday night in Madrid after tens of thousands had marched across the country to demand action to tackle a housing crisis. Far-right activists, some of whom performed Nazi salutes, tried to reach demonstrators camped out in the ⁠Puerta del Sol, a central square in the Spanish capital, to protest the housing crisis, the Spanish government said.

Yemen's armed forces say it ⁠is conducting strikes against Houthis in Sanaa

Yemen's armed forces said early on Sunday it was conducting strikes against the Iran-aligned Houthis in the capital Sanaa and the group's stronghold Saada. A spokesperson for Yemen's armed forces, which are aligned with the internationally recognised government, said forces were targeting what he described as "vital targets", without providing further details.

Ten injured in Australia as car crashes into crowd north of Sydney

Ten people were injured when a man drove into a crowd in the Australian city of Newcastle on Saturday after appearing to lose control of the car, authorities said. The 18-year-old driver was arrested at the scene in the suburb of Wallsend about 110 km (70 miles) north of the New South Wales state capital, Sydney.

Exclusive-Ukraine will hit Russian refineries ‌in response to Moscow's 'new doctrine' of airstrikes, Zelenskiy says

Ukraine will double down on attacking Russian ‌oil refineries in response to a new policy of airstrikes by Moscow designed to force people to abandon Kyiv and other cities, but will not target civilians, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said. Ukraine's intelligence services has obtained documents showing that Russian leader Vladimir Putin had ​issued a "new doctrine" of military attacks on a much broader range of civilian targets ahead of this winter, Zelenskiy said.