Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Ukrainian capital Kyiv under missile attack, mayor says

Ukraine's capital Kyiv came under attack from Russian missiles on Friday, but there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage. Mayor Vitali Klitschko, writing on the messaging app Telegram, said air defence units were in action against Russian missiles. Reuters witnesses heard explosions in the capital.

Putin says Ukraine interfering in Russian parliamentary election

Russian President Vladimir Putin ​said on Friday that Ukraine was deliberately hindering talks aimed at ending the 4 1/2-year-old war and accused Kyiv of interfering in Russia's parliamentary election. Putin, in comments to Russia's Military-Industrial commission, also reasserted Moscow's main defence aim of relying on its "nuclear triad" of weapons and said Moscow also ​had to move towards improving its anti-missile defences.

Exclusive-Putin envoy and far-right AfD prepare talks to get Russian gas back for Germany, sources say

Russian President Vladimir Putin's top economic envoy and Germany's ‌far-right AfD leadership have begun ​preparations to meet next year to discuss restarting gas supplies to Europe's biggest economy, two people familiar with the plan said. The discussions for a meeting as early as March underline the close relations between Moscow and the AfD, which, although blocked from power by a coalition of its rivals, is Germany's most popular party with voters.

UN appoints Trump nominee Lindberg to head World Food Programme

The UN's World Food Programme, the world's biggest humanitarian agency, on Friday named U.S. President Donald Trump's nominee, Luke Lindberg, as its next executive director, a statement said. Lindberg, currently a senior U.S. agricultural official, was appointed by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and Qu Dongyu, head of the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization, after consultation with the WFP board.

Top NATO commander joins briefing on review of US defence engagement in Europe

NATO's top commander, US Air Force General Alexus Grynkewich, took part in a virtual briefing on Friday for Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby on ‌potential approaches to a review of US troop deployments in Europe. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced a review in June of America's troop deployments in Europe and threatened to withhold some US dues to NATO if "free riding" allies did not meet their defence spending commitments.

Putin says Ukraine interfering in Russian parliamentary election

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Ukraine was deliberately hindering talks aimed at ending the 4 1/2-year-old war and accused Kyiv of interfering in Russia's parliamentary election. Putin, in comments to Russia's Military-Industrial commission, also reasserted Moscow's main defence aim of relying on its "nuclear triad" of weapons and said Moscow also had to move towards improving its anti-missile defences.

In a Nepal town, flood survivors find little trace of former lives

Anusa Thapa Magar rushed home from her job in the Maldives after hearing about Nepal's devastating floods, hoping that her beloved grandmother was one of those who survived. She headed for the family's two-storey house in the small town of Betrawati.

Cuba energy grid suffers nationwide collapse

Cuba's energy grid suffered a total collapse on Friday, the energy ministry said in a post to social media, causing a nationwide blackout on the island of about 9 million people. Cuba's aging power generation system has been under severe strain from fuel shortages, deteriorating infrastructure and a U.S.-imposed oil blockade. Even when the national grid is online, the ‌island frequently experiences rolling blackouts that leave millions without power.

US appeals court rejects Trump policy allowing swift deportations to third countries

A US federal appeals court rejected on Friday a policy adopted by President Donald Trump's administration that allows authorities to rapidly deport migrants to countries other than their own without giving them a chance to raise safety concerns. Ruling in a case that is likely headed to the Supreme Court, a three-judge panel of the Boston-based 1st US Circuit Court of Appeals largely upheld a February decision by a lower-court judge that declared the Department of Homeland Security's policy unlawful.

Saudis and Houthis ‌exchange strikes, Yemenis flee by boat as Middle East war spreads

Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis exchanged fresh strikes across their border on Thursday and Yemenis took to boats in the Red Sea to escape fighting, as the spreading Middle East war created new threats to global oil supplies. Houthi-controlled television reported Saudi airstrikes in Hajjah province close to the Saudi border near the Red Sea coast, and the vicinity of Taiz further inland to the south.

US and Denmark reach deal on Greenland, Trump says

The United States, Denmark and Greenland have entered into an agreement for the US to develop a significant military presence on Greenland, while prohibiting US adversaries from building their own bases on the island, Donald Trump said on Friday. In a Truth Social post, the US president wrote that no US enemies would be able to make sensitive investments on the island without the approval of the United States and that the agreement had no expiry date.

Exclusive-US gives UN more time to end support for Somalia peacekeepers

The United States has agreed to give the UN another year to wind down its support for African peacekeepers in Somalia, a document showed - a move that gives some breathing space to a force that was fearing quicker cuts, but still leaves its future in peril. Reuters reported in July that Washington - increasingly frustrated with the fragile administration in Mogadishu - said it would block the UN from supporting the African Union force which props up the government and helps it fight al Qaeda-linked militants.

Widespread sexual violence in Ukraine war, most cases tied to Russia, ⁠says UN report

Russian forces committed widespread ​sexual violence against civilians and prisoners of war in Ukraine, including gang rape and electric shocks to the genitals, while Ukrainian authorities were also responsible for a smaller number of ⁠violations, the UN human rights office said in a report on Friday. The report documented 1,004 verified cases of conflict-related sexual violence between February 2022, when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and July 2026.

Spanish police launch operation to clear Ceuta migrants off beach

Spanish riot police fired rubber bullets into the air and struck people with batons on Friday as they began an operation to clear thousands of migrants off beaches in the North African enclave of Ceuta and move some of them into temporary housing. Spain estimates 10,000 migrants remain in the tiny territory. More than 72,000 crossed into the enclave from Morocco at the end of July in an unprecedented border rush, although most later left.

Trump extends restrictions on H-1B non-immigrant visa program by another year

US President ⁠Donald Trump has extended restrictions imposed in September 2025 on the H-1B non-immigrant visa program by another year, the White House said in a proclamation released on Friday.

Trump plans to greet Xi at airport on arrival, officials say

US President Donald Trump plans to greet Chinese President Xi Jinping at Joint Base Andrews, at the airport of the military base just outside Washington, DC, on his arrival next week for a White House visit, a senior US official told reporters on Friday. It is rare for the US president to greet visiting foreign leaders at the airport.

Trump signs Russia sanctions bill into law

US President Donald Trump on Friday signed the sweeping Russia sanctions bill into law, the White House said ​in a statement, paving the way for increased economic pressure on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. The legislation targets Russia's energy and defense industries, as well as its "shadow fleet" of tankers that evade existing sanctions, in order to deprive Moscow of funds used to pay for its war with Ukraine.

Trump says US, Denmark, Greenland entered into agreement on US control over security

President Donald Trump said on Friday Washington has entered into an agreement with Denmark and Greenland that gives the US permanent control over security, and all other needs, in Greenland.

Philippine teen kills ⁠two students, then himself in school shooting

A 16-year-old student shot dead at least two fellow students and then killed himself at a school in the southern Philippines on Friday, provincial officials said. Eight others were injured, with four in critical condition, and all the victims were students aged 14 to 17, said Albert Palencia, mayor of Banga town in South Cotabato, where the shooting took place.

Curfew imposed in Nigerian city after protests over deaths of detained miners

Authorities imposed an overnight curfew in Nigeria's central city of Minna on Friday after security forces opened fire as hundreds of people took to the streets to protest against the deaths of 37 detainees in the custody of a paramilitary force. The victims - many of whom were children - were found dead on Thursday in the cells of the Nigeria Security and ⁠Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), ​which had raided suspected illegal gold mines and locked up dozens of miners in the city, the capital of Niger State.

North Korea says nuclear status 'irreversible' after UN atomic agency rebuke

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's powerful sister, Kim Yo Jong, accused the International Atomic Energy Agency on Saturday of double standards after it adopted a resolution criticising Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programme. The IAEA's "biased viewpoint and double standards" are "the fundamental factor causing the collapse of the international nuclear non-proliferation system", Kim Yo Jong said in a statement in state media KCNA.

Trump to meet with Venezuela's interim president Rodriguez in New York on Tuesday

US President Donald Trump will have a meeting with Venezuela's interim President Delcy Rodriguez in New York on Tuesday, a senior US official said on Friday, in what will be the first in-person meeting between the two leaders since Washington ousted former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in January. Trump's meeting with Rodriguez, Maduro's former deputy, will be on the sidelines of a reception that the Republican president will be hosting, US ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz told reporters in a briefing call.

Russian attack kills two in Balakliia in eastern Ukraine

Russian forces attacked the northeastern Ukrainian city of Balakliia on Friday, killing two people and wounding two, the head of the city's military administration ⁠said. Vitali Karabanov, writing on Telegram, said the attack had triggered a fire in one of the city's suburbs. Private homes had been damaged.

Republican China committee chair urges tough Trump line with Xi

The Republican chair of the US congressional committee on China on Friday urged President Donald Trump to take a tough line in his summit with Xi Jinping next week, warning against concessions and calling for tighter technology restrictions and consequences for China's alleged support for Iran. The outreach reflects concerns among China hawks in Washington that Trump could offer too many concessions in his summit with Xi, aimed at stabilizing ⁠US-China relations.

Suicide attack kills 16 near mosque in northwest Pakistan police compound

At least 16 people were killed and 57 wounded after a suicide attacker rammed an explosives-laden car into ⁠a police facility in northwest Pakistan on Friday as officers and their families were praying in a mosque inside, officials said. Five police officers were among the dead after the vehicle smashed into the outer wall and gunmen who accompanied it opened fire in the city of Kohat, provincial police chief Zulfikar Hameed said.

Ceuta border crisis fuels EU's far right despite fall in migrant arrivals, commissioner says

Images of migrants crossing into Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta have fuelled support for far-right parties despite a sharp decline in irregular arrivals in Europe following tougher migration policies, EU Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner said on Friday. More than 72,000 people surged into the enclave from Morocco at the end of July, although most later left. Spain estimates 12,000 migrants remain in the tiny territory, including minors.

Russian glide bomb hits apartment in Ukraine's Sumy, two dead, seven injured

A Russian glide bomb hit an apartment building in the northern Ukrainian city of ‌Sumy on Friday, killing two people and injuring seven, leaving three of them in serious condition, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy ‌and other officials said. Zelenskiy, writing on the Telegram messaging app, denounced the "absolutely inhuman strike". He said emergency crews had rescued four people after the attack and said others could still be trapped under rubble.

US troop deaths during Iran war exceed Pentagon count by at least four, Washington Post reports

More US troops ​have died during the US-Israeli war with Iran than the Pentagon has publicly disclosed, the Washington Post reported on Friday. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth denied the report.