Plus, Iran's dual reality.

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Daily Briefing

Daily Briefing

By Kate Turton

Hello. The US government opens back up, Epstein emails say Trump 'knew about the girls', and sources say US intel revealed Israeli officials discussing the use of human shields in Gaza.

Plus, scientists see the very early stages of a supernova for the first time.

 

Today's Top News

 

American flags flutter in front of the Capitol more than a month into the continuing government shutdown in Washington, D.C. REUTERS/Nathan Howard/File Photo

United States

  • The US government is due to lumber back to life after the longest shutdown in US history snarled air traffic, cut food assistance to low-income Americans and forced more than 1 million workers to go unpaid for more than a month. Meanwhile, Democrats appear more fired up than Republicans about voting in next year's congressional elections, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll.
  • House Democrats released emails that they said raised new questions about Trump's ties to Jeffrey Epstein and how much he knew about Epstein's abuse of underage girls.
  • Secretary of State Marco Rubio pushed back against criticism from some US allies over the legality of the US strikes in the Caribbean, saying Europeans don't get to dictate how Washington defends its national security.

In other news

  • The US gathered intelligence last year of Israeli officials discussing how their soldiers had sent Palestinians into Gaza tunnels the Israelis believed were potentially lined with explosives, according to two former US officials familiar with the matter.
  • A severe drought in Iran could mean taps run dry in as little as two weeks and force an evacuation of the capital. Parisa Hafezi tells the Reuters World News podcast that the water crisis could fuel political protests as well.  
  • For years, it was a common occurrence: Dutch bandits would drive to Germany and in the dead of night blow up ATMs, grab cash and speed back home on the Autobahn. Now, a crackdown is bearing fruit.
  • Chileans are heading into Sunday’s presidential election consumed by fear over crime, immigration and organized gangs that have taken root in a few short years, a far cry from the wave of left-wing optimism and hopes of drafting a new constitution that dominated the last election cycle.
  • More than half a million people in South Korea sat for the country's gruelling university entrance exam as police mobilized to ensure they made it to the test sites on time and all flights were halted for half an hour.
 

Business & Markets

 
  •  A surge in luxury stocks has piled pressure on fashion houses including LVMH and Gucci owner Kering to show that signs of recovery in the third quarter can translate into a sustained turnaround in the key holiday season.
  • Investors laid a record wager on Japan's yen rising to take advantage of a long-overdue economic revival that coincided with expectations for a US slowdown. Instead, what's unfolded is a cautionary tale of the Trump era.
  • Watch our daily rundown, for the latest on global markets.
  • Australia risks undermining efforts to establish itself as a leader in the green energy transition and letting down its vulnerable Pacific island neighbours if its bid to host next year's biggest climate summit fails, diplomats and analysts say.
  • Amazon.com was sued in a proposed class action saying the retailer subjects thousands of warehouse employees with disabilities to a "punitive" policy governing workplace absences.
  • Our columnists have seen and shaped the conversation about the biggest moments in finance. In this anniversary edition of Viewsroom, they reflect on continuity and change in a quarter-century of agenda-setting insight. Listen now.
 

Iran's dual reality: As veil restrictions ease, political crackdown deepens

 

An Iranian woman walks past an anti-US billboard on a street in Tehran, Iran, November 5, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS /File Photo

On Tehran's bustling streets, women walk unveiled in jeans and sneakers and couples stroll hand-in-hand. But beneath the surface, a darker reality is unfolding.

Read more
 

And Finally...

An artist's impression shows a star exploding at the end of its lifecycle. ESO/L. Calcada/Handout via REUTERS

The explosive death of a star - a supernova - is among the most violent cosmic events, but precisely how this cataclysm looks as it unfolds has remained mysterious. Scientists now have observed for the first time the very early stages of a supernova, with a massive star exploding in a distinctive olive-like shape.

The researchers used the European Southern Observatory's Chile-based Very Large Telescope, or VLT, to observe the supernova, which involved a star roughly 15 times the mass of our sun residing in a galaxy called NGC 3621 about 22 million light-years from Earth in the direction of the constellation Hydra. A light-year is the distance light travels in a year, 5.9 trillion miles.

Read more