World News Roundup: Hardened Lebanese merchants battered by Beirut blast; Mass arrests in Ethiopia raise spectre of repressive past and more

Judicial sources confirmed the prosecutors had investigated the ministers following lawsuits filed in recent months in various cities on accusations including manslaughter, creating a pandemic and curbing Italians' political rights.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Italian prime minister probed over COVID-19, prosecutors urge case be dropped

Prosecutors have investigated Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and six members of his government over how they handled the coronavirus crisis, but have recommended the case be dropped, Conte's office said on Thursday. Judicial sources confirmed the prosecutors had investigated the ministers following lawsuits filed in recent months in various cities on accusations including manslaughter, creating a pandemic and curbing Italians' political rights.

Pompeo says 5G declaration protects Slovenia against authoritarian threats

The U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that by signing a 5G declaration on Thursday Slovenia has secured protection against "authoritarian threats" including China's effort "to control people and information." "The tide is turning against the Chinese Communist Party in its efforts to restrict freedom for all of us," Pompeo said in the town of Bled after a signing ceremony for the declaration on developing a secure 5G network.

EU eyes sanctions over disputed Belarus election 'as soon as end-August'

The European Union will likely impose new sanctions on Belarus as soon as later this month, diplomats and officials said, after President Alexander Lukashenko cracked down on protests triggered by a disputed election. Germany, Lithuania, Latvia and Sweden have spoken publicly in favour of sanctions and Austria was another hawk, according to the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of emergency talks between EU foreign ministers on Friday.

Hardened Lebanese merchants battered by Beirut blast

Sleep Comfort survived Lebanon's 15-year civil war. But nothing could have prepared the high-end family furniture business for the Beirut port blast that destroyed swathes of the capital. Employees barely escaped glass shards which flew across the showroom, located in one of the hardest-hit districts. In an instant, one-third of the furniture stock was lost and the factory gutted, incurring some $600,000 in losses.

Released tycoon Lai says Hong Kong needs patient, not radical, democracy campaign

Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai said on Thursday he was overwhelmed by the support he got after becoming the most high-profile person to be arrested under a new national security law and urged patience in a "long-term fight" for democracy. Lai, a staunch supporter of the city's democracy movement, was arrested on Monday on suspicion of collusion with foreign forces as police raided the offices of his Apple Daily tabloid.

Barcelona changes tourism tactics in the COVID era

The sight of local kids playing under the palm trees in an almost empty Plaça Reial square reminds Gloria Gomez of her childhood in the 1980s before tourism swamped the Barcelona landmark. "It's nice to see it but at the same time it's so sad," said Gomez, 53, a concierge at a building in the old-town square, a job she inherited from her mother.

Parliament speaker urges new Lebanese government after huge blast, U.S. envoy due in Beirut

Lebanon's parliament speaker called on Thursday for quickly forming a new government in the first legislative session since the catastrophic explosion that killed 172 people last week and pushed the cabinet to resign. Security forces were heavily deployed in the capital Beirut, stopping protesters from reaching a conference centre where MPs convened. Many Lebanese are furious at a long entrenched political class they blame for the blast, accusing them of endemic corruption, mismanagement and negligence.

North Korea nuclear reactor site threatened by recent flooding, U.S. think-tank says

Satellite imagery suggests recent flooding in North Korea may have damaged pump houses connected to the country's main nuclear facility, a U.S.-based think-tank said on Thursday. Analysts at 38 North, a website that monitors North Korea, said commercial satellite imagery from August 6-11 showed how vulnerable the Yongbyon Nuclear Scientific Research Center's nuclear reactor cooling systems are to extreme weather events.

Nearly 6% of people in England may have had COVID-19, researchers say

Nearly 6% of people in England were likely infected with COVID-19 during the peak of the pandemic, researchers studying the prevalence of infections said on Thursday, millions more people than have tested positive for the disease. A total of 313,798 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Britain, 270,971 of which have been in England, or just 0.5% of the English population.

Mass arrests in Ethiopia raise spectre of repressive past

Ethiopia has detained more than 9,000 people after deadly clashes last month, the state-run human rights commission told Reuters, raising fears that a government hailed for reforms is returning to the iron-fisted tactics of past administrations. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who came to power in 2018 promising democratic changes in one of Africa's most repressive nations, is struggling to rein in resurgent ethnic nationalism that sporadically explodes in bouts of violence.