Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Factbox-Airlines cancel flights to Saudi Arabia after Riyadh airport attacks

Airlines are canceling flights to Saudi Arabia and neighbouring countries following the deadly weekend attacks on Riyadh airport by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis, adding to wider disruption in the region since the Iran conflict started. The airport has been closed since an attack on Saturday that killed 13 people.

India ​opposition parties march to Supreme Court against election chief

Hundreds of opposition party demonstrators marched to India's Supreme Court on Monday to protest the removal of millions of names from voter lists that has sparked days of unrest in the Indian capital and challenged ​Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Opposition parties and supporters of the "cockroach" youth movement have taken to the streets almost daily this month to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh ‌Kumar over the revision ​that critics say benefits Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Riyadh attacks hit core of Saudi's economic pivot

Deadly attacks on Riyadh’s international airport over the weekend will have serious far-reaching consequences. The most pressing question is whether the barrage of missiles which killed 14 people and wounded hundreds more will prompt Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to escalate a new war with Iran-aligned Houthi rebels, further complicating the Middle East conflict. By comparison, the prospect of fewer western financiers attending the Future Investment Initiative in the Saudi capital later this month is more prosaic. But it could pose a similarly large economic headache. The annual conflab widely known as "Davos in the desert" is no stranger to geopolitical upheaval. In 2018, American and European bankers and investors boycotted the FII in droves after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents. This year's dilemma is more practical ‌than moral. The repeated failure of Saudi's well-resourced defences to intercept incoming strikes over several days is a shock to financiers who have become frequent visitors to Riyadh. The lack of security pushes against the idea that the kingdom has become a secure investment destination, and that FII is a natural fixture of the international conference calendar.

Germany's fragile coalition hit by further turmoil as labour minister quits

Germany's labour minister and co-head of the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) quit unexpectedly on Monday, adding to uncertainty around Chancellor Friedrich Merz's struggling coalition after bruising state election defeats last month. Baerbel Bas said she was resigning from both positions to deal with grief over the recent death of her stepdaughter.

Israeli strike kills two people in Gaza, medics say

An Israeli strike killed at least two Palestinians in the southern Gaza Strip on Monday, health officials said. The Israeli military said it targeted a militant in the area, without giving further information.

UN refugee agency's funding shortfall is impacting refugees worldwide, its chief says

Deep funding shortfalls are forcing the UN refugee agency to make painful cuts across its humanitarian operations worldwide, and there are limits to how much restructuring can offset shrinking donor support, its chief said on Monday. UNHCR ‌has secured only $3 billion, or 35% of the $8.5 billion in funding it requires for 2026, High Commissioner Barham Salih told the agency's executive committee at a meeting in Geneva.

NATO commander Grynkewich warns Russia attack would be 'utterly futile'

NATO's top commander bluntly warned Russia on Monday that his forces would destroy "anything and everything" involved in any attack if Moscow was "foolish enough" to launch an assault on alliance territory. Outlining his "theory of victory" at a security conference in Warsaw, U.S. Air Force General Alexus Grynkewich said NATO was a defensive alliance but it would block, blunt and ‌break any attack against any of its members to ensure the assault proved "utterly futile".

Pakistan province leaders of ex-PM Imran Khan's party detained, minister says

Politicians from the party of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan were detained after the suspension of a provincial government now under emergency rule, the federal government said on Monday. Pakistan's president declared a state of emergency and suspended the government in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, led by Khan aide Sohail Afridi, on Sunday.

Cuba denies involvement with island-bound fuel shipments seized by US

Cuba's top energy official denied any link between the nation's communist-run government and shipments of Cuba-bound biodiesel seized in September by US authorities, rejecting US claims that the island nation was involved in those deals. The US said last week that it had seized 90 separate shipments of biodiesel worth nearly $3 million under contracts involving a sanctioned Cuban state energy trader known as ENETEC, part of a crackdown on what the US alleges are illegal shipments of fuel to the island.

Patriot interceptor deliveries to Poland will be delayed, top general says

Deliveries of some US weapons systems to Poland are set to be delayed, including interceptors for the Patriot air defence system, Polish army operational commander General Ireneusz Nowak said on Monday. Reuters reported in April that US officials had informed some European counterparts that some previously contracted weapons deliveries were likely to be delayed as the Iran war draws on weapons stocks.

Turkey, Pakistan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia condemn Houthi attacks on ⁠Riyadh airport

Turkey, Pakistan, Egypt and Saudi ​Arabia condemned attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militants on Riyadh's international airport, saying they were a "dangerous escalation that cannot be justified or accepted under any pretext". One person ⁠was killed and nearly a dozen hurt in a new attack on Riyadh's international airport on Sunday, Saudi authorities reported, a day after a strike claimed by the Houthis that killed 13 people and wounded more than 300.

Libya seizes nearly $1 million of hashish in east

Libya's eastern-based authorities have seized about 400 kg of hashish worth around 6 million dinars ($934,000) and arrested some suspects near the coastal city of Tobruk, officials said. Libya has become a major drug transit route as gangs exploit the turmoil and conflict since 2011 when former ruler Muammar Gaddafi was toppled in a NATO-backed uprising.

UK's Farage pledges to suspend asylum claims for up to five years

Nigel Farage, leader of the populist Reform ⁠UK party, announced on Monday he would ban anyone being granted asylum for up to five years if his party wins the next national election as part of a crackdown on immigration to Britain. Farage, a leading figure in the Brexit campaign, said the roughly 90,000 pending asylum applications would be declared void, new claims would be automatically rejected, and failed applicants would be returned either to their home countries or a safe third country.

Pupil shoots and wounds teachers with hunting rifle in southern France

A French middle-school pupil shot and wounded a headteacher and a female staff member with a hunting rifle at a school near Marseille on Monday, causing panic ​as children ran for cover, the local mayor and a student said. A supervisor at Joseph Lakanal college disarmed the 14-year-old before police arrived, Aubagne mayor Jean-Pierre Squillari told reporters. Both victims were hospitalised but neither suffered life-threatening injuries, he added.

UK PM Burnham says Russia interfered in 2016 Brexit vote

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said Russia interfered in the 2016 Brexit vote, although his office later stated that Moscow failed to influence the result and the decision to leave the European Union was legitimate. Burnham, who took ⁠over as Britain's leader in July and said last month that Britain could consider rejoining the European Union in the future, is the first British prime minister to say openly there was evidence of Russian interference in the vote.

Hall, Woodford win Nobel prize for work on how to stabilise economies

US academics Robert Hall and Michael Woodford won the 2026 Nobel economics prize on Monday for decades of work developing ground-up models currently used by central banks and finance ministries across the world to stabilise economies. "With them, we are better equipped to deal with shocks in the economy, such as energy crises or sudden changes in how much households consume," John Hassler, Chair of the Committee for the Prize in Economic Sciences, said in a statement.

Analysis-Bardella ⁠antisemitism dispute ​tests French far right's decade-long makeover

Joseph Martin saw his hopes of becoming a far-right National Rally (RN) lawmaker derailed in 2024 after journalists unearthed a seemingly antisemitic post. It was RN president Jordan Bardella who initially withdrew support for Martin's candidacy, seeking to show zero tolerance for antisemitism as the party tried to convince voters it had shed its toxic past and was ready for top office.

Germany's Social Democrats to re-elect full leadership after labour minister's resignation

Germany's Social Democrats will re-elect their entire leadership at a party congress around the turn of the year after labour minister and co-chair Baerbel Bas resigned, co-leader Lars Klingbeil said at a press conference in Berlin on Monday. The decision forces the SPD, junior partner in Chancellor Friedrich Merz's coalition, into a leadership contest that will test Klingbeil's authority as he tries to steady a party hurt by recent state election losses while insisting it remains committed to Merz's government.

US launches immigration raid of Democratic congresswoman Ilhan Omar's home, Fox News reports

US authorities conducted a predawn raid Monday on the Washington-area home of Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar in a probe of the Somali-born lawmaker's immigration paperwork, Fox News Digital reported, citing a ⁠source familiar with the move. "Today in the Washington, D.C. area, Homeland Security Investigations executed a judicially authorized search warrant secured by the Department of Justice. This enforcement action is part of an ongoing federal investigation," a Department of Justice spokesperson told Fox News Digital.

Poland deploys over 20,000 police to schools after spate of stabbing attacks

A major police operation was underway in Poland on Monday to ensure security in schools after three recent stabbing attacks, as Prime Minister Donald Tusk vowed to confront what he described as a growing trend ⁠of youth violence. Authorities have dismissed rumours that the attacks were linked to an online challenge or organised group, but Tusk told a crisis meeting on Sunday that the ⁠glorification of violence in some corners of the internet was having a damaging effect on young people.

Ukraine expects EU clusters opening on Tuesday, foreign minister says

Ukraine expects a European Union decision to open the second and third accession clusters on Tuesday, foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said on Monday after meeting his Hungarian counterpart Anita Orban in Luxembourg. Sybiha said the two ministers met on the sidelines of the Foreign Affairs Council meeting, where they "congratulated each other on the successful fulfilment of our bilateral agreements".

Pope Leo to be hospitalised on Tuesday ahead of surgery, Vatican says

Pope Leo will be admitted to hospital on Tuesday ahead of surgery to remove a small growth found on one of his lungs, the Vatican said, as the pontiff kept up a busy schedule on Monday, holding seven previously planned meetings in the morning. Leo, 71, said on Sunday ‌that the growth, a small nodule, had been found on a recent check-up, was "well-contained" and had been spotted ‌early.

Germany faces 'shadow war' that goes beyond Cold War threats, minister warns

German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt warned on Monday that Germany faced a "shadow war" more far-reaching than the Cold War, and said the threat underscored the need to strengthen the country's BfV domestic intelligence agency. "The shadow war we are witnessing ​today has an objective that extends far beyond anything seen during the Cold War," Dobrindt said at a BfV press conference in Berlin.