World News Roundup: Russia, US fail to save INF treaty, Washington to pull out; Kenyan hotel attack claims 21 lives

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

United States signals it may toughen stance on Cuban lawsuits provision

The Trump administration on Wednesday shortened the U.S. government's customary waiver of legislation that would allow Cuban Americans to sue foreign companies in Cuba, indicating it could allow the 23-year-old law to take effect for the first time. The legislation, which allows Cuban Americans to sue foreign companies in Cuba using properties seized from them by the Cuban government after the 1959 revolution, was suspended for just 45 days, instead of the customary six months.

Iran says it will be ready for new satellite launch in a few months

Iran will be ready for a new satellite launch in a few months' time after a failed attempt this week, President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday, ignoring U.S. and European warnings to avoid such activity. Western officials say the missile technology used in such launches could be applied to delivering a nuclear weapon.

Gunmen kill more than 30 Tuaregs in ongoing Mali violence

Gunmen on motorbikes have killed more than 30 Tuareg civilians this week in northern Mali, where clashes over land and scarce water are common, an official said on Wednesday. The violence compounds an already dire security situation in the desert region used by jihadist groups to launch attacks in Mali and across West Africa.

UK PM May faces confidence vote as Brexit ticks down to the line

Prime Minister Theresa May's government faces a no confidence vote on Wednesday after the crushing defeat of her Brexit divorce deal by parliament left Britain's exit from the European Union in disarray just 10 weeks before it is due to leave. British lawmakers voted 432-202 against her deal, the worst defeat in modern British history, triggering political chaos that could lead to a disorderly exit from the EU or even to a reversal of the 2016 decision to leave.

Russia, U.S. fail to save missile treaty, Washington to pull out

The United States on Wednesday rejected a Russian offer to save a landmark treaty that keeps nuclear missiles out of Europe because it could not be properly verified, setting the stage for Washington to withdraw from the pact next month. After a meeting in Geneva between Russian and U.S. officials, U.S. Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security Andrea Thompson said Moscow was refusing to allow proper inspection of a new Russian missile system that Washington says breaks the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF).

EU envoys agree sanctions on Russians accused of poisoning ex-spy: diplomats

European Union ambassadors agreed on Wednesday to impose sanctions on nine individuals and one entity accused of chemical weapons attacks, including two Russian men blamed for poisoning a former Russian double agent in Britain, two diplomats said. The travel bans and asset freezes, which will also hit two other Russians and five Syrians, are set to be approved by EU foreign ministers at their regular monthly meeting in Brussels on Monday.

Hours after U.S. troops killed in Syria, Pence says Islamic State defeated

Islamic State has been defeated in Syria, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said on Wednesday, hours after Americans were killed in a northern Syria bomb attack claimed by the militant group. Pence did not mention the attack in his address to 184 chiefs of U.S. diplomatic missions who gather annually in Washington from around the world to discuss foreign policy strategy.

Migrants depart from El Salvador as new U.S.-bound caravan forms

At least 150 Salvadoran migrants departed in a group for the United States on Wednesday, the latest in a string of such 'caravans' that U.S. President Donald Trump has used to build his case for a wall along the U.S.-Mexican border. The group, organized through social media, is following in the wake of a larger caravan that departed from Honduras this week.

Kenya hotel siege over, militants and at least 21 victims dead

Kenyan security forces have killed all the Somali militants who stormed an upscale Nairobi hotel compound, taking at least 21 lives and forcing hundreds of people into terrifying escapes, the government said on Wednesday. Fifty people believed to have been in the complex remained unaccounted for on Wednesday afternoon, the Kenya Red Cross said, raising the possibility of a much higher final death toll.

U.S. sees Palestinian state on most of West Bank, some of East Jerusalem: Israeli TV

Israeli television said on Wednesday that U.S. President Donald Trump's Middle East peace plan would propose a Palestinian state on as much as 90 percent of the occupied West Bank, with a capital in East Jerusalem - but not including its holy sites. The White House, which has kept details of the plan under wraps and said its release could still be months away, dismissed the report by Israel's Reshet 13 TV as inaccurate speculation.

(With inputs from agencies.)