World News Roundup: Palestinian Authority pulls employees from Egypt-Gaza crossing; Syrian oppn urges countries not to reconcile with Assad

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

France's Macron reeling as tough stance against 'yellow vests' backfires

Emmanuel Macron intended to start the new year on the offensive against the 'yellow vest' protesters. Instead, the French president is reeling from more violent street demonstrations. What began as a grassroots rebellion against diesel taxes and the high cost of living has morphed into something more perilous for Macron - an assault on his presidency and French institutions.

Cardinal's trial puts French Church in glare of Catholic abuse scandal

The Roman Catholic archbishop of Lyon goes on trial on Monday charged with failing to act on historical allegations of sexual abuse of boy scouts by a priest in his diocese. Cardinal Philippe Barbarin is the highest-profile cleric to be caught up in the pedophile scandal inside the Catholic Church in France, and will stand trial alongside five others from his diocese.

Bolton says Turkey must not attack Kurdish fighters once U.S. leaves Syria

White House national security adviser John Bolton added a new condition on Sunday to the U.S. withdrawal from Syria, saying Turkey must agree to protect the United States' Kurdish allies. President Donald Trump's abrupt decision to announce a U.S. pullout from Syria left many questions open, chiefly whether Kurdish fighters who had been operating in northern Syria alongside U.S. forces would now be attacked by their long-time enemy, Turkey.

WikiLeaks tells reporters 140 things not to say about Julian Assange

WikiLeaks on Sunday advised journalists not to report 140 different "false and defamatory" statements about its founder Julian Assange, who has been holed up in the Ecuadorean embassy in London since June 2012. It was not immediately clear what prompted the advice to media organizations, but WikiLeaks singled out Britain's Guardian newspaper for publishing what it said was a false report about Assange. The Guardian did not immediately respond late on Sunday to a Reuters request for comment.

Palestinian Authority pulls employees from Egypt-Gaza crossing

The Palestinian Authority said on Sunday it had ordered its employees to pull out from the Gaza-Egypt border crossing, effectively closing the main exit point from the impoverished Gaza Strip. The dispute over the border stems from a rift between the PA, based in the occupied West Bank and headed by Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and the Islamist militant group Hamas, which took control of Gaza more than a decade ago in a civil war.

U.S. says suspected USS Cole bombing planner killed in Yemen strike

Jamal al-Badawi, wanted by the United States for his suspected role in the attack on the USS Cole 18 years ago, was killed in a precision strike in Yemen on Jan. 1, U.S. Central Command said on Sunday. Badawi was indicted by a federal grand jury in 2003 over his role in the October 2000 deadly bombing of the USS Cole, a Navy guided-missile destroyer. He escaped from prison in Yemen twice, once in 2003 and again in 2006.

Syrian opposition urges countries not to reconcile with Assad

Syria's chief opposition negotiator said on Sunday he was surprised by countries rebuilding ties with the Syrian government and urged them to reverse their decision. Arab states, including some that once backed rebels against President Bashar al-Assad, are seeking to reconcile with him after decisive gains by his forces in the war, aiming to expand their influence in Syria at the expense of non-Arab Turkey and Iran.

Former Venezuela Supreme Court judge flees to U.S., denounces Maduro

Former Venezuelan Supreme Court Justice Christian Zerpa has fled to the United States to protest President Nicolas Maduro's second term that will begin with his inauguration this week, the onetime Maduro backer told a Miami broadcaster on Sunday. The latest defection from the crisis-stricken OPEC nation's government comes amid growing international pressure on Maduro over his new term, which resulted from a broadly boycotted 2018 vote dismissed by countries around the world as a sham.

PM May says if Brexit deal is rejected, UK will be in uncharted territory

Prime Minister Theresa May said on Sunday that Britain would be in uncharted territory if her Brexit deal is rejected by parliament later this month, denying reports that should could seek to delay the lawmakers' vote for a second time. "If the deal is not voted on at this vote that's coming up, then actually we're going to be in uncharted territory. I don't think anybody can say exactly what will happen in terms of the reaction we'll see in parliament," May told the BBC.

Egypt's Sisi opens mega-mosque and Middle East's largest cathedral in New Capital

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi inaugurated Egypt's largest church and mosque in the New Administrative Capital on Sunday, the eve of Coptic Christmas, in a message of tolerance in the predominantly Muslim country. Copts, the largest Christian minority in the Middle East, were due hold a midnight mass in the Cathedral of the Nativity, billed by the government as the Middle East's largest church, a few hours after the inauguration.