World News Roundup: Haiti's schools re-open; Russia's 'Sputnik V' COVID-19 vaccine to be tested on 40,000 people and more

Belarus launches criminal case into opposition council: RIA The Belarusian general prosecutor's office said on Thursday it had opened a criminal case into a council launched by members of the opposition who disputed an Aug. 9 presidential election, the RIA news agency reported.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Russia's 'Sputnik V' COVID-19 vaccine to be tested on 40,000 people: TASS cites developer

Mass testing of Russia's first potential COVID-19 vaccine to get domestic regulatory approval will involve more than 40,000 people, the TASS news agency cited the vaccine's developer as saying on Thursday. The vaccine, called "Sputnik V" in homage to the world's first satellite launched by the Soviet Union, has been hailed as safe and effective by Russian authorities and scientists following two months of small-scale human trials, the results of which have not been made public yet.

Junta, Malian opposition close ranks against regional sanctions threat

Mali's opposition coalition on Thursday dismissed efforts by regional powers to block a coup-driven change of government, saying it would work with the junta that ousted the president to restore stability to the country. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which is convening over the crisis, suspended Mali, shut borders and halted financial flows in response to Tuesday's overthrow of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita.

Tokyo bar uses 'fish bowl' screens to lure back virus-wary clients

A bar in Tokyo's upscale Ginza district has installed fish bowl-like screens designed to protect against coronavirus transmission, aiming to lure back clients worried about the risks of COVID-19. The Jazz Lounge En Counter bar reopened in late June, having shut down for several weeks after the government declared a nationwide state of emergency in April.

North Korean leader's sister is 'de facto second-in-command', South Korean lawmaker says

South Korea's intelligence agency believes that Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, is serving as his "de facto second-in-command" but has not necessarily been designated his successor, a South Korean lawmaker said on Thursday. Believed to be in her early 30s, Kim Yo Jong is the leader's only close relative with a public role in politics, recently spearheading a new, tougher campaign to put pressure on South Korea.

Flood victims take to social media as rains cause chaos in India's Gurugram

Heavy rains flooded parts of Gurugram, an Indian city that plays host to some of the world's biggest tech companies, and residents took to social media to seek help by posting pictures of waterlogged roads and apartments. Gurugram, a satellite of New Delhi, is one of India's wealthiest cities and has offices of global corporations such as Google, Facebook and Uber.

Belarus launches criminal case into opposition council: RIA

The Belarusian general prosecutor's office said on Thursday it had opened a criminal case into a council launched by members of the opposition who disputed an Aug. 9 presidential election, the RIA news agency reported. The general prosecutor said the body was designed to seize power and undermine national security, RIA reported.

Haiti's schools re-open but many parents now can't afford them

Haiti's school children missed class this year first due to months of violent unrest, then the coronavirus pandemic. Now, as schools are finally reopening, many parents can no longer afford it, raising the prospect hard-won gains in education could be lost. "The deadline to pay is next Monday. Without paying, I won't be able to attend the class," said Nickerla Etienne, 16, through streams of tears, after being sent home from her private school in the capital, Port-au-Prince, for failing to pay up.

Hungary's Orban calls for central Europe to unite around Christian roots

Central European nations should unite to preserve their Christian roots as western Europe experiments with same-sex families, immigration and atheism, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Thursday. Orban, a nationalist who has been in power for more than a decade, was speaking at an event to inaugurate a monument commemorating the Treaty of Trianon, which was signed after World War One and led to Europe's maps being re-drawn.

Iran announces locally made ballistic and cruise missiles amid U.S. tensions

Iran displayed a surface-to-surface ballistic missile on Thursday that Defence Minister Amir Hatami said had a range of 1,400 kilometres and a new cruise missile, ignoring U.S. demands that Tehran halt its missile programme. "The surface-to-surface missile, called martyr Qassem Soleimani, has a range of 1,400 km and the cruise missile, called martyr Abu Mahdi, has a range of over 1,000 km," Hatami said in a televised speech.

Putin critic Navalny in coma, aides suspect poisoning

Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny was in a coma in a Siberian hospital on Thursday after drinking a cup of tea that his spokeswoman said she believed was laced with poison. A fierce critic of President Vladimir Putin, Navalny started feeling ill when returning to Moscow from Tomsk in Siberia by plane on Wednesday morning. He was carried off the plane on a stretcher after it made an emergency landing at Omsk.