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Sentencing Hearing Today for Sean "Diddy" Combs; NATO Beefs Up Military Operations in Eastern Europe; Munich Airport Reopens After Drone Sightings Forced Shutdown; Trump Upgrades U.S. Security Commitment to Qatar; Trump Tells Hamas Accept Peace Deal by Sunday or Face "All Hell"; Taylor Swift's New Album Hits Stores, Streaming and Theaters; Survivor of Synagogue Attacks Speaks Out; Journalist Set to be Deported to El Salvador. Aired 10-11a ET

Aired October 03, 2025 - 10:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[10:00:46]

ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Abu Dhabi, this is CONNECT THE WORLD with Becky Anderson.

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome to the second hour of the show from our Middle East programing headquarters. I'm Becky Anderson in

Abu Dhabi, where the time is just after 6:00 in the evening.

At this hour, the disgraced hip hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs is appearing for his sentencing hearing in New York. We're going to get you that as it

happens.

Well, it is the third day of a U.S. government shutdown. The Senate will vote on a Republican funding bill today, but don't expect the stalemate to

end just yet.

And Manchester's Jewish community in the U.K. is reeling after Thursday's attack outside a synagogue, as police revealed tragic details about what

happened.

Well, as promised, we are keeping a close eye on New York this hour where a sentencing hearing for Sean "Diddy" Combs is set to begin. A jury convicted

Combs in July on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution, but cleared him of the more serious sex trafficking and racketeering

conspiracy charges. Now, Combs is expected to speak in court before he is sentenced.

Let's bring in attorney and legal affairs commentator Areva Martin.

Areva, Diddy will have his family with him today in court. And importantly, the defense is expected to show a video. Viewers can see a part of that

that CNN has obtained. It's almost sort of campaign style and shows Combs with his children and in the community.

It's easy, I think, to see the point that the defense is trying to make with this. But from your legal perspective, how do you expect it to land

with the judge and what are the risks?

AREVA MARTIN, LEGAL AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Well, Becky, I don't think this video presentation, as you said, this kind of campaign style video or the

letter that Combs has submitted to the court begging for leniency is going to change the reality that this judge has stated pretty clearly throughout

this proceeding, and definitely post-conviction, that there was tremendous evidence presented during this trial to support the convictions, as well as

to support the claims that we know victims like Cassie Ventura continue to make, which is that Sean Combs is dangerous, that he is violent.

The Federal Probation Department has already weighed in. They've made their recommendation that his sentencing land somewhere between five and seven

years. So I doubt that this video or anything that Combs does today will persuade the court to accept the recommendation from his team, which is to

sentence him to 14 months, give him 12 months served, and allow him to go home within the next month or so.

ANDERSON: Diddy, as you say, has written a lengthy letter to the judge and I just want our viewers to get a part of that. "I realize," he says in that

letter, "that this trial has received a tremendous amount of global press. And Your Honor may be inclined to make an example out of me," he said. "I

would ask Your Honor to make me an example of what a person can do if afforded a second chance."

What do you make of that?

MARTIN: Well, I think the judge is not going to take too kindly to the suggestion that the judge would be swayed by global media attention to a

trial, so I'm not sure why his lawyers thought that that was a appropriate statement to make to a federal judge. I think the judge is going to do what

judges do, which is weigh the evidence that was presented at trial, weigh the recommendations made by the Federal Probation Department, the victim

impact statements.

We know that Cassie Ventura has written a lengthy letter to the court stating that she continues to fear for her life and fear that if Combs is

released that he will seek retribution against her. So, again, an odd and I would say rather offensive statement to make to a federal court judge.

ANDERSON: Court sources, as I understand it, telling CNN that the sentencing of Sean "Diddy" Combs could last all day and potentially

continue into Monday.

Does that surprise you?

[10:05:04]

MARTIN: Not at all. Given what's at stake, given the repeated motions that have been made by the defense team, given the 70 plus letters that have

been presented by the defense team, this 15 minute video, this is going to be a lengthy proceeding. Each side is going to be given ample opportunity

by the court to make their respective cases. And I don't expect that we'll get a decision from this judge, you know, within an hour or two.

I think we will be waiting through the afternoon and possibly until Monday because I anticipate both sides making very, very rigorous and vigorous

arguments to the court.

ANDERSON: We've talked about the defense posture through the campaign style video, as we're describing it, and the letter written by Sean Combs himself

for the prosecution. His former girlfriend testified in trial of course, and Cassie Ventura also wrote a letter to the judge saying in part, "I know

that who he was to me, the manipulator, the aggressor, the abuser, the trafficker is who he is as a human. I hope that your decision considers the

truths at hand that the jury failed to see."

Of course, the jury found him not guilty of trafficking and coercion. Again, you know, to your point, you've -- you believe the judge will

already have made his decision, but could that, when the judge reads that request from Ventura, be seen as running counter to justice since it's so

plainly disagrees with the jury's ruling?

MARTIN: Well, I don't think the judge has to consider the evidence that was presented relevant to the claims for which he was found not guilty. There

is a Supreme Court case law and well-established precedent that courts should not consider those acts, those pieces of evidence that were

presented during a trial that resulted in a not guilty verdict. But I don't think the judge needs to reach, I don't think the judge needs to even

contemplate that evidence.

I think there's sufficient evidence tied to the two charges for which he was found guilty that will give the judge ample room to make a decision. I

think more consistent with the Federal Probation decision.

ANDERSON: So this is interesting because there are no cameras in the courts, but CNN is just learning that prosecutors and Combs' defense teams

have hours long presentations, hours long presentations. So if your analysis is that any further evidence from either side -- not evidence, but

any further presentations from either side, be that in videos or in letters or whatnot, are not likely to sway the judge at this point, why would the

defense and the prosecutions present this further material today, these hour long or hours long presentations in court?

MARTIN: Well, let me be clear. I don't want to suggest that the judge is not going to take into consideration the presentations made by both sides

today. I think the judge comes into this hearing with an open mind. He's had an opportunity to review the Federal Probation recommendation of five

to seven years. He's had an opportunity to review the legal briefs that have been filed by both sides.

And I do think the judge will continue to be open to the arguments made by both sides today. My point earlier was that there has been indications from

this judge relevant to how he's thinking about this case. He just recently denied motions for an acquittal, motions for a new trial, and in doing so

stated that the evidence was sufficient for the convictions in the case. So I think that gives us a little window into how the judge is thinking,

although I do believe the judge is going to be fair, and he's going to take into consideration everything that is presented during the hearing today.

ANDERSON: Understood, understood. We are getting a little bit more information as you and I speak, and I'll give our viewers that because it

wouldn't be fair for you to be trying to keep up with what is coming out of court as you are speaking to me. So we've just learned that the prosecution

team is expected to speak first.

Before I let you go, and I will come back to you later this hour so thank you for being with us, just remind our viewers on the range of

possibilities that the judge has in front of him, to your mind, when it comes to sentencing today.

[10:10:00]

MARTIN: Yes. So what we know is that Sean Combs was found guilty on two counts of transportation with the intent to engage in commercial sex or

prostitution, and each of those charges carries a sentence up to 10 years. If they were to run back to back, in theory, there could be a sentence up

to 20 years. Unlikely, though, given what the federal sentencing guidelines are and given, again, the recommendations from Federal Probation.

The prosecution has asked for a sentence around 11 years with a couple of extra months, maybe 11 years, four months. The defense has asked for a

sentence of 14 months and 12 months for time served. And again, probation department has recommended five to seven. So I think the range of what

we're looking at is the 14 months on the low side from the defense team, the 11 years plus being requested by the prosecution.

And then the judge has complete discretion. He can follow the recommendations and the request, or he can come up with a completely

different sentence.

ANDERSON: It's good to have you as we continue to monitor this story. Back to you as we get more. Thank you.

Well, Munich airport is reopened after suspending operations for about seven hours overnight due to unexplained drone sightings. Now, the closure

impacted dozens of flights and thousands of passengers and followed similar incidents in Denmark earlier this week.

European governments suspect that Russia is behind the incursions, but President Vladimir Putin denies Russian involvement, joking at a forum

today in Sochi that hysteria is building up in Europe. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Vladimir Vladimirovich, why are you sending so many drones to Denmark?

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): I won't anymore, not to France. Not to Denmark, not to Copenhagen. Where else are they

flying to? To Lisbon? You know, they're the people that are amusing themselves, are the ones that used to get amused by UFOs. There's so many

weirdos out there. But if we speak seriously, we do not have drones that can reach Lisbon. We do have some long-range drones, but we do not have any

targets there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, the suspected Russian drone incursions into Poland and Romania, and an alleged violation of Estonian airspace by Russian jets, all

help explain why NATO is on high alert in Eastern Europe.

CNN's Frederik Pleitgen rode aboard a surveillance plane taking part in NATO's Operation Eastern Sentry, and he filed this report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A quick takeoff from an airbase in Western Germany. We're on a NATO E-3

Sentry surveillance plane on a mission deterring Russian incursions into NATO airspace.

And the reason why these flights are so important is that this plane has a massive radar on top, and it can see really far in all directions, about

650 kilometers for higher flying objects, a little less for lower flying objects. But that means that it can see planes and other aircraft coming

towards NATO airspace long before they get there.

(Voice-over): While Moscow is praising what they say are improved relations between Russian leader Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump, it's

also been testing NATO's readiness. NATO jets recently scrambling to shoot down several Russian combat drones that crossed into member state Poland's

airspace.

And in late September, NATO says Russian MiG-31 fighters flew over Estonia's airspace for 12 minutes, while alliance interceptors were rushed

to escort them back out, even though Russia denies its planes ever crossed into NATO territory.

This is part of the U.S. and its allies' answer. More surveillance flights, the operation named Eastern Sentry. Captain Jacob Anderson says if Russian

jets come close, they'll see them.

CAPT. JACOB ANDERSON, U.S. AIR FORCE: At that point, we've probably been watching them for a while. So we're pushing them over to the military

tactical data links. So it's not just us that are aware of it. It's the whole theater is aware that this track is approaching the airspace.

PLEITGEN: If we go back and look at the map, we can see that we're cruising around Eastern Europe right now. This is Kaliningrad, that part of Russia.

You have Belarus down here. So the plane is situated here but can still look very far into territory, even beyond the borders of NATO.

(Voice-over): And the E-3 needs to stay in this area for hours, only possible thanks to U.S. Air Force tankers providing gas to extend the

mission.

Air-to-air refueling a plane the size of a commercial jetliner is extremely challenging, the pilots tell me.

[10:15:02]

MAJ. JASON SANCHEZ, U.S. AIR FORCE: Essentially the power management, the lateral management, ensuring that you feel nice and comfortable in your

closure to and from a certain position.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Crew members come from various NATO member states, all of them with the same stake in the mission success, Lieutenant Colonel

Stephen Wahnon tells me.

LT. COL. STEPHEN WAHNON, U.S. AIR FORCE: It's not one nation. It's all of NATO that's represented on this -- on this aircraft right now. So when we

are patrolling these borders, they're our borders, right? So it means a lot for us to be here to defend our borders.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): And NATO says surveillance, seeing possible threats before they get close, is key to keeping those borders safe.

Fred Pleitgen CNN, Geilenkirchen, Germany.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: I want to bring in Kirsten Fontenrose now, who is president of Red Six Solutions. Her company provides U.S. government approved technical

expertise to partner nations on defeating drones. Couldn't be a better guest to have today.

It's always good to have you. Thank you very much indeed for joining us.

Look, there's been an uptick in these drone sightings across Europe. German defense minister saying earlier this week, "We are not at war, but we are

also no longer at complete peace." And that was a statement that really shocked people.

First, what is your take on these drone incidents?

KIRSTEN FONTENROSE, PRESIDENT, RED SIX SOLUTIONS: Great question, Becky. So we're watching these drone incidents, as you mentioned, across NATO

countries. We're seeing them sightings over military bases and naval shipyard energy infrastructure, parliament buildings. Now the Munich

airport. Russia is denying responsibility. But what it's done is had these NATO nations invoke Article Four of their agreement, which immediately

convenes them.

And so they're starting to talk about things like better cooperation on air defense, on the interoperability or lack thereof, of their current drone

defenses, on things like creating an E.U. drone wall across that eastern border and altering current policing mandates they may have to work

together to shift their focus to things like air defense.

So it's really causing NATO to kind of be inward looking, which if you are Russia and granted Russia has denied responsibility for these, but if you

are Russia, this is one of your objectives. I think there are about four. One of them is keep NATO distracted. They'll pay less attention to the

battlefield if they're focused on their own security and consultations with each other about how to make sure that they are less vulnerable.

They're also obviously focusing on intelligence gathering. If you are Russia potentially flying these over NATO critical infrastructure, you're

looking at those vulnerabilities. And one thing to point out is when the drones were sighted over the Belgian base that was mentioned, they were

sighted during a drone, a counter drone exercise. So an exercise intended to test the counter drone systems.

We don't know how many other times intelligence collection drones have flown over that same base perhaps when those systems weren't being

practiced. So these sightings that we're seeing could just be the tip of an iceberg. We also assume that Russia is testing the detection capabilities

of NATO countries' drone defenses. How far out? How widely can they pick up the Russian drones in their airspace? How accurately can they determine the

speed, the size? What models, what is Russia flying? What can they see?

ANDERSON: This is fascinating, Kirsten. Russian President Vladimir Putin has been speaking about this. Look, he's been joking about whether Russia

is behind the drones. Of course, the Kremlin has not, as you rightly point out, confirmed this. What is, if any, Russia's involvement in this to your

mind?

FONTENROSE: It looks pretty obviously Russian only because you can't think of other countries that would necessarily have a motive right now to do

what they're doing. They're -- for instance, when they flew drones into Polish airspace, they came from the same part of the border where they

routinely fly drones around that corner of the border, just skirting the border, just to make the Poles a little bit nervous. And then this one

incursion was the first time they cut right and, you know, came inward.

So it looks very much like it is Russian. And they have a lot of reasons to want to do this, as I've just discussed. And then also, if you're Russia

and you're testing the limits of NATO countries' commitment to one another, we have this analogy you've probably heard in the States. It's this

metaphor about boiling a frog in a pot where the frog doesn't jump out to save itself because the water is boiling so slowly it doesn't know it's

being boiled.

And so this is like Russia slowly increasing the heat on NATO countries. How far can it push? So it seems like there are a lot of sort of planning

and hybrid warfare type benefits to this if you are Russia and you are operating these.

[10:20:00]

You're also testing your own drones. How much can I get away with? What can they pick up? What can they detect? What can they see? How far can I get

before these run out of battery or run out of fuel and come to the ground? What are the U.S. air bases in the region, for instance, the base in

Poland? How far out from that base can I see? So what are American capabilities there as well? So they get a lot of small benefits for

planning these.

ANDERSON: I mean, the recent introduction of drones in the theater is clearly impactful. And having you just sort of, you know, walk us through

this is really important.

Kirsten, stay with me just for the time being.

So I want to update our viewers on another very important, significant story this week that we continue to monitor. In an unprecedented move for

the region where I am, of course this is the Abu Dhabi bureau for CNN and we're in the Gulf region, U.S. President Donald Trump announced an Article

Five like security guarantee for Qatar.

This is a significant moment to a non-NATO Arab ally. Just this year, Qatar has been attacked twice, once in June by Iran as retaliation for U.S.

strikes on its nuclear facilities and last month as Israel targeted senior Hamas leadership of course in Doha. This security guarantee is significant

because Qatar hosts the largest U.S. run military base in the region. Since 2003 Qatar has contributed more than $8 billion in developing the Al Udeid

Air Base for use by the U.S.

The base also hosts the regional headquarters for the U.S. Central Command, also known as CENTCOM. The U.S. has more than $26 billion in active

government-to-government military sales to the Gulf kingdom of Qatar. Some of the weapons the U.S. has supplied and that are based in the region are

integrated air and missile defense systems, including Patriot missiles and F-15 aircraft, including some of the most advanced versions of the F-15.

Now, this is a significant base for the U.S., and it occupies a strategically important location. Some key U.S. Military commands operate

out of it, including operations in Syria and in Iraq. It was also the central evacuation point for tens of thousands of Afghans and Americans who

fled Afghanistan in 2021, when the U.S. Military withdrew.

Kirsten, first, what do you make of this commitment from the U.S. to Qatar?

FONTENROSE: This commitment is the strongest commitment the U.S. has made to a Gulf or Arab partner. Not the strongest commitment in the Middle East

that is Israel. And I think an important point is that this is not quite an Article Five. It is not quite the same level of agreement the U.S. has with

NATO or with other partners like Japan, where we also are a treaty ally.

So this is an executive order. It's a presidential order signed by President Trump. It does not require Senate confirmation. So it is not

American law. And so it is also not a treaty like NATO Article Five is a part of. It does pledge the U.S. to treat an attack on Qatar like an attack

to U.S. security, like a threat to U.S. security, and to take what it calls all lawful and appropriate measures, to quote that executive order

directly, which means that you would conduct joint contingency planning.

This could include military operations, but it doesn't necessitate military operation. So this agreement is stronger than a NATO Article Four, which

just calls for immediate consultations between the members of the agreement if one is attacked but it doesn't quite replicate a NATO Article Five

because it's not a binding treaty obligation, doesn't have a ratification by the Senate so it's not law, and it doesn't say that it's an attack on --

ANDERSON: Right.

FONTENROSE: Is an attack on the other and we must militarily respond.

ANDERSON: What I think is hugely significant is the timing of this, though, because there has been real concern around this region of the Gulf about

the reliance of the U.S. as a security guarantor. Regional stability in this region has become a shared strategic imperative, not just a strategic

imperative for Qatar or for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia or for the UAE, where I am. It is a shared strategic imperative as these countries push

towards, you know, the ambition that our -- these great big economic visions around here.

[10:25:00]

I just want you to explain the significance of this base within that context, and CENTCOM, which covers 21 nations in the Middle East, Central

and Southeast Asia, for our viewers and why it is that if Qatar gets this sort of deepened defense and security sort of commitment, why it would be

that others around this region are likely to want to push for the same.

FONTENROSE: Right. And we do expect them to. So the significance of Central Command is that being based in Qatar, it is the hub for all U.S. Military

cooperation in the Middle East. So it's in the same time zone. We have military articles based there and air wing so that should we ever need to

use them out there, they are in place. We simply put the pilots in and go. They can exercise and coordinate with our partners in the region quickly.

They can -- they're on a combined sort of air defense platform for a lot of coordination. So it's essentially just making us neighbors as well as

partners by putting the base there. And it is a base that does coordination, not just with Qatar, as you mentioned, but with the whole

region. The -- it should be pointed out and I, you know, I wag my finger a little bit at some of the nations in the region when we have these

conversations because the U.S. has offered on multiple occasions to establish integrated air and missile defense and even stronger military

coordination mechanisms.

Most recently was the offer of the Middle East strategic alliance under Trump's first term to bring all of the partners together with the U.S. but

it has always been, it's never been the U.S. saying no, it has always been the region's mistrust of one another that has prevented the kind of

information sharing and mutual cooperation that would be required to establish something like an umbrella security architecture they were all a

part of.

Now, after this recent strike by Israel on Doha, you've seen these Arab states come together and say, we need to do this for ourselves. And

certainly the U.S. encourages that. But right now, the reason an agreement like this is important is because even though it may not be a treaty, it's

fast. If you want to put a treaty to a vote in the U.S. Senate, you're talking forever months, a year, debate, blah, blah, blah. Who likes Qatar?

Who doesn't?

This could be invoked by the president immediately, which means we are likely to see less stress about a follow-on attack by Israel or by Iran

since, you know, you mentioned the one in June that Iran made on Al Udeid Base.

ANDERSON: Yes.

FONTENROSE: So this brings down the tension pretty quickly. It's de- escalatory. It's purely kind of defensive in that sense. And it, you know, provides this immediate protection during a tense time during which these

partners with us or just with themselves as the GCC or GCC Plus, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, whomever could talk about what kind of security

architecture they want to form.

Is it -- is it an air defense architecture? Is it simply consultation mechanisms? Do they want to combine capabilities and have one focus on

naval, one focus on ground, one focus on air per their strengths? How do they want this to look? But in the U.S., many of us who've worked with the

region for decades really appreciate that this has inspired them to finally have this conversation and perhaps get past some of their mistrust.

ANDERSON: That is fascinating. It's good to have you on. When next you're in the region, swing by and say hello to us. Thank you very much indeed.

FONTENROSE: Thank you.

ANDERSON: Right. It's day three of the U.S. government shutdown, and the White House is promising to use this event to permanently get rid of

thousands of federal employees. More on that is after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:30:47]

ANDERSON: Donald Trump has just posted a fiery statement to social media with a stark ultimatum to Hamas. Agree to his peace deal by Sunday evening

or else, and I quote him here, "all hell will break loose." He's also warning, quote, "all innocent Palestinians in Gaza to get out of harm's

way."

CNN's Alayna Treene following this story for us from the White House -- Alayna.

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Becky. I mean, we had been wondering what deadline the president would set for Hamas to respond

to the ceasefire proposal, the 20-point plan, as the White House is calling it, especially given of course we saw the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin

Netanyahu come to the White House on Monday and announced that he accepts the terms.

And so, really, a lot of eyes have been on, you know, what will Hamas do? I personally asked, Becky, the president on Tuesday that question, how long

are you going to give Hamas? He at that point had said he would give them three to four days to respond. Now those days are up and he is posting

online that he is now going to give them a new deadline of 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, or, as he put it, all hell will break loose.

Now, also in this post I just wanted to get into some of the specifics he discussed. He called, as he has done repeatedly on Hamas, to release all of

the remaining Israeli hostages that are still being held in Gaza. That includes any hostages who have already been killed. He wants to release

their bodies back to their families. But we also had heard him say and part of his agreement when he was meeting with Netanyahu on Monday was that if

Hamas does not agree to this proposal, that the United States was willing to help them in an offensive way in this war, and essentially continue to

aid Israel, but really in a more aggressive way.

The president outlined some of that earlier this week. And so we have to see really what will happen now. A lot of people have been questioning, you

know, what will the response from Hamas be. We know that earlier this week on Wednesday, the president spoke with the emir of Qatar. Of course, Qatar

has played a very important negotiating role, kind of moderating some of the talks between Hamas and outside parties, including with the United

States.

So we're still trying to get more details on that side of these negotiations. But it does seem like the president's patience is wearing

thin. I know when I also spoke with Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, about this, she essentially argued that they believe that this

plan that the president has laid out is the best plan that either side, Israel or Hamas, are going to get from this administration. And so they

very much want this to come together.

And particularly, just noting, I mean, this 6:00 p.m. deadline on Sunday, Sunday is October 5th, October 7th is on Tuesday. That would be the two-

year anniversary of when this war began, of that attack in Israel. And so that is also kind of a date that is in the back of many people's minds here

at the White House for when they want this to be finalized.

ANDERSON: Yes. Alayna, good to have you on what is, I guess, call it a developing story. Go so far as to call that breaking news because that is a

deadline from the -- from the U.S. president for Hamas.

Well, the U.S. government is shut down and it has entered its third day, and there is no end in sight. In the hours ahead, we may get our first look

at just how severe the job cuts threatened by the White House might actually be, that Trump administration has said the number of federal

workers who will be fired is likely in the thousands, and that key programs popular with Democrats could also get slashed.

These jobs and programs frankly caught in the crosshairs of this government fight. More on that as we get it.

Taylor Swift's highly anticipated new album is now streaming on music platforms and in theaters. "The Official Release Party of a Showgirl" is

premiering on big screens around the world, and as you can imagine, the Swifties are out in force. The concept film was launched alongside Swift's

new album, "The Life of a Showgirl," which dropped just hours ago.

[10:35:04]

Well, CNN's Anna Cooban is in the middle of the action for us at a screening in London.

And just describe the atmosphere, if you will. How are fans reacting there to the new album?

ANNA COOBAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, fans will be stampeding into the cinema later today, Becky, for this screening. But, you know, the album is

already out and fans are in typical Swifty fashion, dissecting every song on this album, the 12th studio album from Taylor Swift, trying to work out

all the Easter eggs. There's rumors that one of the tracks might be taking a swipe at British artist Charli XCX, and that another one might be about

chronicling the demise, the rumored demise of one of Taylor Swift's friendships with actress Blake Lively.

We don't know if that's the case, but fans are pretty frenzied for this album. It's writing -- coming after the two-year record-breaking Eras Tour

for Taylor Swift.

ANDERSON: It is remarkable, Anna, isn't it? The bars, the merch, the album, the film. I mean, how would you describe Taylor Swift in this sort of

annals of business prowess at this point?

COOBAN: Well, Taylor Swift is nothing short of a complete phenomenon. She was touring for two years on the Eras Tour, and she somehow managed to,

while doing that, write a whole album, which is the one that we're seeing today. She was saying on British TV stations, radio stations, in the U.K.

to promote this album, that she managed to write it while doing the European leg of her Eras Tour, but was also doing it during a time of great

personal joy, like she's fallen madly in love with NFL player Travis Kelce.

They recently got engaged, and she's made the point that very rarely has she ever written an album and then there's a huge time lag between writing

it and promoting it. She said that very rarely does she find herself in the same emotional, personal place when she starts promoting the album. But she

said that this time around she is as happy, as in love, as feeling as successful as she was today, as when she started writing the album a few

months or a year ago.

ANDERSON: Yes. It's great. Well, listen, enjoy. All good stuff. And the Swifties out there, enjoy yourselves, too.

You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. There's more ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Welcome back. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson. The headlines for you this hour.

And it is sentencing day for Sean "Diddy" Combs. Combs, sorry. Sentencing hearing begins this hour for his conviction on two counts of transportation

to engage in prostitution.

[10:40:06]

Each count carries a possible prison sentence of up to 10 years. Combs was cleared of more serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering

conspiracy back in July.

U.S. lawmakers reconvened today on Capitol Hill, but no breakthrough is expected when it comes to ending the government shutdown. Democrats say

they will keep voting against a Republican short-term spending bill, even as the White House threatens to make deep cuts to the federal workforce.

Well, Ukraine's national oil and gas company says Russia carried out the biggest attack on its infrastructure since the start of its full-scale

invasion in 2022. According to a statement by Naftogaz, Russia launched 35 missiles and 60 drones at its facility, some shot down, but others managed

to inflict significant damage.

Well, police in the U.K. say that one of the two people killed in Thursday's synagogue attack in Manchester seems to have been inadvertently

shot by armed officers. Police were responding after a man rammed his car into the gates of the synagogue and stabbed people gathering for a prayer

service on Yom Kippur, which is the holiest day of the Jewish calendar. Police say the suspect did not have a firearm. He was shot dead by police.

And CNN's Nic Robertson spoke with Gary Wernick, one of the survivors of the attack.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY WERNICK, SYNAGOGUE ATTACK SURVIVOR: And then I saw somebody, somebody I knew sitting in a chair or being put in a chair covered with blood. And I

realized that was not a place for me to be. And I went back. That point I knew it was a serious incident.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: And what do you think can happen at that moment?

WERNICK: You get killed.

ROBERTSON: You thought that could happen to you?

WERNICK: Yes. Yes.

ROBERTSON: You might die.

WERNICK: Yes.

ROBERTSON: And you've got the children in the synagogue at this time.

WERNICK: There were children. Not my children, but there were children. There were three or four young kids. And the father said to them, quickly,

get down under the pew, hide under the pews. The next thing that happened was we saw police coming around the side of the building and kicking

something.

ROBERTSON: Police with weapons?

WERNICK: With arms, yes. About three police. And they move us to the back of a -- back of a building. And then when we got moved to again to smaller

cul de sac. We started to try to continue our services because, as I said, what else can we do? Somebody brought out a load of chairs and a load of

prayer books, and we sat down.

ROBERTSON: I don't know if you've heard what the prime minister had to say this evening, but he said very explicitly this was an attack on Jews

because they are Jews.

WERNICK: I did see that.

ROBERTSON: Does that give you solace? Does it give the community strength?

WERNICK: No.

ROBERTSON: Because?

WERNICK: Both the words and actions are actions.

ROBERTSON: What actions does there need to be?

WERNICK: I think the main thing is to be a cooling down of the media coverage over Gaza.

ROBERTSON: Do you feel safe living in the U.K. now?

WERNICK: I've always -- I've never really felt safe. Britain, I think, has always been an unsafe place to live for Jew.

ROBERTSON: Do you want --

WERNICK: At the age of about 10, as a Jew, I had stones thrown at me.

ROBERTSON: It's a safe place to bring your girls up?

WERNICK: No.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: That was Nic Robertson reporting from Manchester. And more on this story as we get further updates of course.

And you're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson. Still to come, we are following Sean "Diddy" Combs' sentencing hearing this hour.

The latest lines on that are just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:46:20]

ANDERSON: Sean "Diddy" Combs' sentencing hearing is now underway. He waved to supporters after he entered the courtroom earlier and is expected to

speak in court before he is sentenced. In July a jury convicted Combs of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution.

Let's get you back to attorney and legal affairs commentator Areva Martin.

And we are, what, 45 minutes into this now. Prosecutor Christy Slavik said there was an irony in the defense previously objecting to mere speaking at

the hearing, but now trying to have several character witnesses speak. He said, quote, "It appears the defense is trying to drown out the voices of

the victims." This is, no cameras in court, of course, but we have reporters there.

What do you make of what you're hearing and of the tactics here?

MARTIN: I think we're going to see a lot of that throughout the day, Becky. Each side trying to position themselves with the best witnesses possible to

support the arguments that they are making. And we did see the defense team object to Mia. She was one of the witnesses in the trial. They said that

her testimony was incredible. In fact, they said she lied during her testimony. And they said that her testimony relates to or was related to

those charges for which he was not found guilty. So there was strenuous objections on the part of the defense.

And now the prosecution is making a similar argument apparently with respect to some of the witnesses that Diddy is trying or Combs is trying to

have testify on his behalf. But we're going to see this jockeying back and forth between the prosecutors and the defense team throughout this very,

very what we expect to be contentious hearing.

ANDERSON: And remind us what can we expect at the end of all of this.

MARTIN: Well, at the end, after all of the arguments have been made, all of the witness -- witnesses that are allowed to testify this hearing have

testified, the judge is going to make a decision. He's going to make a determination about sentencing. And if the judge's prior rulings are any

indication of what he's likely to do today, I'm not expecting him to sentence Combs on the lower end of the sentencing guidelines or the 14

months that has been proposed by his team.

ANDERSON: The judge says the court may consider acquitted conduct among other factors when sentencing Combs. The defense has opposed this idea when

arguing for a lenient sentence for Combs. As we await further detail and we have been told that this could take all day, that there are hours long

presentations and this sentencing hearing could go into Monday.

But as we sort of, you know, work through what we're getting today and what we might expect, what do you make of all of this?

MARTIN: I'm not surprised that this is going to take all day. This is a high stakes hearing. And Diddy has a tremendous amount of resources,

financial resources, so he can mount the most comprehensive defense imaginable. This is what celebrity justice looks like. He has some of the

best criminal defense attorneys in the country representing him. And we know that at one point he offered $50 million as bail as a condition for

him being released.

So I'm not surprised that we're going to see video presentation. We've seen 70 plus letters presented on his behalf. So this is probably one of the

highest stakes sentencing hearings, particularly involving the MeToo era that we've seen.

[10:50:09]

ANDERSON: I think we've got the images of Sean "Diddy" Combs arriving at court today. Do we have those? I'm just asking my producer in my ear. If we

have, can we run them? We don't have those at present.

You know, I just wonder about the demeanor of Sean "Diddy" Combs today. What you would expect to see from him. There is some talk that he will

address the judge.

MARTIN: One of the things, Becky, that Combs has to do today, and in fact, he probably has only one job, and that is to convince this judge that he's

a changed man, that he's different than the person that was talked about, that was testified to, that was the subject of that 12-day trial. He's got

to convince this judge that he is remorseful, that he is contrite, that he's had an opportunity to think about the violence that he engaged in, the

criminal conduct that he engaged in, and that he is a changed person.

So I expect him to come in to the courtroom somewhat meek, somewhat humble, because this judge controls his fate. And if the judge senses that he's not

being authentic, that he's not being honest about the statements he made in the letter, where he's begging for leniency, or that any of the

presentation today is not authentic, the judge is not likely to take kindly to that and that could influence his decision with respect to sentencing.

ANDERSON: Well, this could take some time. CNN is on it. We've got reporters inside the courtroom. There are no cameras. You can get more of

this as this sentencing hearing continues on CNN Digital and of course on the app.

You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD.

Areva, thank you.

There is a lot more ahead before we close out this show about six or seven minutes from now so stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Journalist Mario Guevara, a native of El Salvador who has lived and worked for years in the Atlanta area, is due to be deported from the

United States today. He was arrested while covering a "No Kings" protest outside Atlanta in June. The ACLU says after more than 100 days in ICE

custody, he's to be flown directly to El Salvador with no opportunity to say goodbye to his family in the United States.

Gustavo Valdes joining me with more on this.

And Gustavo, criminal charges dropped against Guevara, as I understand it. But ICE kept him in custody, claiming he was in the country illegally. What

is the story?

GUSTAVO VALDES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, and let's remember, Becky, that those were not even criminal charges, were misdemeanor charges for walking

on the street when a police officer didn't like what he was doing and took him into custody. Those charges were dropped. But once he was detained by

immigration authorities, they reopened a case from 2012 when his request for asylum was denied.

Immigration authorities had administratively closed the case, which meant that at their discretion he could stay in the United States with a work

permit. He had done so, but they decided to cancel all of that. He exhausted all his options, and now he is going to be deported later today,

according to his family who say they prefer to see him free in his country than trying to fight a case detained.

[10:55:12]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OSCAR GUEVARA, SON OF MARIO GUEVARA: The fact that our family would be separated, it hurts. It hurts. It's good to know that in a few years that

he can come back for me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALDES: Now this is a case that has also raised First Amendment issues because he was working as a journalist. The ACLU and other media

organizations believe this is a way the Trump administration is trying to silence reporting on what they're doing on immigration.

Mario has hundreds of thousands of followers on social media. He set somewhat a standard on how to report with the community. His reporting was

part of teachings by some universities. He was the subject of a "New York Times" documentary, so his work was relevant. And that's why we are seeing

not only the example of another immigrant who had made his life in the United States, but somebody who left a mark in the journalism community.

ANDERSON: Yes.

VALDES: And now he has to start over in a country he hasn't been to in over 20 years.

ANDERSON: Understood. Good to have you, sir.

And that is it for CONNECT THE WORLD. Stay with CNN. "ONE WORLD" is up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

END