Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Islamic State fighters kill five in attack near northern Iraqi village – sources

Islamic State militants killed four Peshmerga soldiers and a civilian, and wounded six other people in an attack near Qara Salem village in northern Iraq, security sources said on Sunday. The Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs said in a statement that the attack caused casualties, but did not confirm the toll.

Myanmar court to give first rulings in Suu Kyi trial

A court in Myanmar is due to deliver the first rulings on Monday in the trial of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, the popular former leader ousted by the military in a coup 10 months ago. Suu Kyi faces a dozen cases that include multiple corruption charges plus violations of a state secrets act, a telecoms law and COVID-19 regulations, which carry combined maximum sentences of more than a century in prison.

FARC dissident leader killed in Venezuela -local media

A top commander belonging to a group of former Colombian rebels who rearmed following a 2016 peace deal was killed in an ambush in Venezuela, Colombian media reported on Sunday. Hernan Dario Velasquez, known as El Paisa, is a former member of the now-demobilized Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas. He and several other well-known commanders said in 2019 they were rearming and forming a faction called Segunda Marquetalia.

Gambian President Barrow wins re-election; opposition cries foul

Gambian President Adama Barrow has comfortably won re-election, the electoral commission said on Sunday, though he may face a legal challenge from opposition candidates who rejected the results because of unspecified irregularities. The vote was the first in 27 years without disgraced former President Yahya Jammeh, who was forced into exile in Equatorial Guinea after refusing to accept defeat to Barrow in 2016.

Indonesia Semeru volcanic eruption kills 14; dozens injured

The eruption of Semeru volcano has killed at least 14 people and injured dozens on Java island, Indonesia’s disaster agency said on Sunday, as rescue teams searched for victims under layers of ash, sometimes digging with their bare hands.

Semeru, the tallest mountain on Java, threw up towers of ash and hot clouds on Saturday that blanketed nearby villages in East Java province and sent people fleeing in panic.

Far-right French presidential hopeful promises ‘reconquest’ at rally

French far-right presidential candidate Eric Zemmour promised on Sunday a “reconquest” against decades of decline at his first political rally, as scuffles with anti-racism protesters broke out on its fringes. “If I win this election, it won’t be another rotation of power but a reconquest of the greatest country in the world,” Zemmour said in a nearly hour-and-a-half-long speech.

U.S. reluctance to lift all Iran sanctions main hurdle to reviving 2015 pact- Iranian official

The reluctance of the United States to lift all sanctions on Iran is the main challenge to reviving a 2015 nuclear pact, a senior Iranian official said on Sunday, as Western powers questioned Tehran’s determination to salvage the agreement. Indirect talks between Washington and Tehran on reinstating their nuclear pact broke off https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iran-nuclear-talks-break-friday-with-formal-meeting-officials-2021-12-03 on Friday, with both sides saying they would resume the following week, as Western officials voiced dismay at sweeping demands by the Islamic Republic.

UK trade minister to seek closer ties on U.S. trip, deal remains distant

Britain will seek to strengthen its trading relationship with the United States this week when trade minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan visits New York and Washington, but a full free-trade agreement remains a distant prospect. Trevelyan will meet U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai and U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in Washington on Tuesday, and promote Britain at a meeting with investors in New York.

In new blow to Venezuelan opposition, major leader quits interim government

Julio Borges, who serves as foreign minister for Venezuela’s U.S.-backed interim government, said on Sunday he would leave his post, further weakening the opposition just weeks after it was routed in regional elections. The United States and dozens of other countries recognize the interim government, led by Juan Guaido and formed at the beginning of 2019, and consider the 2018 re-election of socialist President Nicolas Maduro to be fraudulent.

Protest against coronavirus restrictions turns violent in Brussels

Police fired teargas and used water cannons on Sunday to disperse protesters pelting officers with cobblestones and fireworks as a demonstration in Brussels over government-imposed COVID-19 restrictions turned violent. A few thousand protesters marched peacefully through the centre of the Belgian capital to the neighbourhood which hosts the headquarters of European Union institutions, where the demonstration reached its end point.

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