Reuters World News - Synagogue attack, Chevron fire, Putin’s Tomahawk warning and Taylor’s album drop

Episode Date: October 3, 2025

Britain says it will redouble efforts to tackle antisemitism after a deadly attack at a Manchester synagogue on Yom Kippur.  A fire has broken out at Chevron's El Segundo refinery in California. Russian President Vladimir Putin warns of a “new stage of escalation” if the U.S. supplies Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine. And, Taylor Swift’s latest album drops to global fanfare. Sign up for the Reuters Econ World newsletter here. Listen to the Reuters Econ World podcast here. Find the Recommended Read here. Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit megaphone.fm/adchoices to opt out of targeted advertising. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hi, I'm Carmel Crimmons. It's Friday, October 3rd. Today, the UK is reeling after a fatal attack at a synagogue on Yom Kippur. No end in sight as the US wakes up to yet another day of shutdown. The US is upping the intel it's giving Ukraine, this time for strikes deep inside Russia. And, The Life of a Showgirl, it's Taylor Swift's latest album and it drops today. This is Reuters World News, bringing you everything you need to know from the front lines in 10 minutes, seven days a week. I'm Carmel Crimmons in Dublin. We start in California, where a large fire erupted in a jet fuel production unit at a Chevron refinery near Los Angeles. No injuries were reported, and it's not clear what caused the explosion.

The fire disrupted supply in California's energy market. The refinery in the suburb of El Segundo supplies jet fuel for Los Angeles International Airport. The English city of Manchester is in mourning after an attack on a synagogue left two men dead. The incident happened as worshippers remarking Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar. Kate Hulton is our UK bureau chief. A man drove into the synagogue. He tried to hit people with his car on his way in and then he stabbed at least one person. Two people died. Immediately, others managed to barricade themselves in.

Three people are said to be seriously ill and fighting for their lives. On Friday, authorities said one of the victims killed was accidentally shot by police during their attempts to bring the attacker under control. The suspect, who was not carrying a gun, was shot dead at the scene. I asked Kate what this attack said about anti-Semitism in the UK. They are saying he is a British citizen of three. Syrian descent who moved to Britain when he was a child and was granted British citizenship when he was a minor. There is a scheme in Britain if someone is deemed to be radicalised called

prevent and often the question when something like this happens is whether this person has been on the radar of prevent and the government have said that he was not. You know, at every synagogue you see clear signs of security. But the Jewish community have been saying for some time that the rhetoric around the Gaza war has tipped over from being critical of the conduct of the Israeli military to being out and out hatred towards Jews and that this has made them question really whether they are as safe in Britain as they always thought they were. It's day three of the US government shutdown. Amid the political standoff, US President Donald Trump says he's looking at more cuts to what he calls Democrat-AIDS.

agencies to punish his political foes. Trump has already frozen federal transit and green energy funding for democratic-leaning states. Republicans control both chambers of Congress, but Senate rules mean they'll need the votes of at least seven Democrats to end the stalemate when senators meet later today. And as Trump threatens mass layoffs, our latest episode of On-Assignment will examine the effect the President's purge has had on federal workers. It felt like I had been blacklisted. Like I was a wanted criminal or something. It made me fearful for my future. The podcast hears from government employees

who were harassed and intimidated by a Trump-aligned group trying to root out liberal ideologies from government. Make sure to tune in tomorrow. When it comes to major U.S. universities, the Trump administration is shifting tactics, offering them financial incentives to comply with its ideological mandates. In a memo sent to nine major universities, the White House details the policies they would need to implement in return for more favorable access to federal money. They include capping international enrollment and defining genders based on biology.

The memo also urges colleges to screen out foreign students who oppose, quote, American and Western values. Rights groups say this threatens free speech and academic freedom. Russian President Vladimir Putin, warning that if the U.S. sends Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine, it will spark a major escalation with Washington. And he says if the weapons are used, there's nothing stopping Russia from retaliating. Vice President J.D. Vance has said the U.S. is considering Ukraine's request for Tomahawks. Two officials tell Reuters the U.S. is already sharing intelligence on Russian energy targets with Ukraine. It's the first known policy change the President Trump has signed off on since taking a harder stance towards Moscow.

Mike Collett White reports on the Ukraine war. This is an escalation and an interesting signal that the Americans may be hardening against the Russians. There are buts. One but is, is this in view of the Americans supplying Ukraine with long-range cruise missiles, like the Tomahawks? If the two are linked and the Americans are serious about delivering these new weapons to Ukraine, which they haven't done so far, then we are talking about a major escalation. But that's a big if. And in Ukraine, there's a lot of skepticism as to whether the Americans will supply these long-range cruise

or medium-to-long-range cruise missiles for these attacks on the energy system. And Mike says this intel sharing could have an impact on Russia's oil-dependent economy. Trump has goaded President Volodymy Zelensky, the Ukrainian president before by saying, you haven't got the cards, you've got nothing on Russia. Well, the one card that Ukraine has on Russia are long-range strikes against its energy system. Russia's oil and gas exports are what is funding the war. If Ukraine can continue to hit them, it really could hurt the Russian economy. Apple has removed ICE tracking apps from the App Store after being contacted by the Trump administration.

Before it was taken down, ice block, the most popular ice tracking app, allowed users to anonymously report the location of officials who were carrying out immigration raids. In a statement, Apple said it had taken down ice block and other similar apps after being contacted by law enforcement. The Justice Department says the app could increase the risk of assault on US agents. President Trump says the US is at war with drug cartels. That's according to a document sent to Congress.

laying out a legal argument for deadly US strikes on boats off Venezuela. Experts question the legality of killing suspected drug traffickers at sea instead of apprehending them and their cargo. The US military has blown up at least three suspected drug boats in the last month and killed at least 17 people. Taylor Swift's new album, The Life of a Showgirl, drops today and the rollout is massive. Target stores opened at midnight

and movie theatres around the globe are hosting release parties where fans can watch an 89-minute film featuring the first music video from the album. But it doesn't end there. Pop-up experiences have been live before the album even dropped in New York and L.A. Entertainment business reporter Don Chomaleski says the buzz around the album is unlike anything we've seen in recent years. This album has been building momentum since Taylor Swift started teasing its release in August on her website. She started a countdown where she was telling her fans, she would release information at 12, 12 on August 12th for her 12th album,

which is, da-da, the life of a showgirl. She knows how to play social media. The following day, she appeared on the New Heights podcast hosted by her now fiancé, Travis Kelsey, and his brother, the retired Philadelphia Eagles lineman, Jason Kelsey. This is a top 10 rated podcast. It appeals to sports fans and it speaks to pop culture. That recording has now reached 23 plus million viewers on YouTube.

So that was quite a way to tout an album that's already hotly anticipated. Dawn says there's more to the hype than just good marketing. Swift's loyal fan base make her a star that few others can rival. She's able to deliver massive hit after massive hit. She has over 200 million followers on Instagram alone. And she is not only a musical force, but she's also this cultural phenomenon. Her era's tour set an all-time touring record. It grossed $2 billion in ticket sales.

And those are tickets and not the scalping sales. Who knows how much the scalper's brought in. She's also had the kind of cultural impact we haven't seen since, say Elvis or Michael Jackson. I mean, this is a phenomenon we haven't seen in quite some time. And for today's recommended read, more upheaval on US college campuses. International student enrollment is down. Fewer foreign students mean fewer dollars. And colleges are feeling the pinch.

We'll drop a link to that story in the podcast description. For more on any of the stories from today, check out reuters.com or the Reuters app. Don't forget to follow us on your favorite podcast player. If you're listening on a smart speaker, just ask for the latest, news from Reuters seven days a week. We'll be back tomorrow with our daily headline show.