Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Building fire kills 14 in China's northern city of Taiyuan

A fire on Sunday at a high-rise building in Taiyuan, the capital of China's northern province of Shanxi, killed at least 14 people, the official Xinhua news agency said on Monday. State media said 25 people were still in hospital, nine with serious injuries, citing authorities after the fire broke out on Sunday evening in the ​building on a busy downtown main road.

Analysis-South African voters rebuff ANC, accelerating shift to coalition politics

South Africans' sweeping rebuke of the African National Congress in local elections was a vote for performance over loyalty, analysts said, marking a political shift in which the former liberation movement can no ​longer call the shots. The ANC, widely criticised for corruption scandals and failing to deliver core public services, won less than a third of votes in the November 4 poll. It was ‌by far the worst result ​in history for the party that led the country out of apartheid under Nelson Mandela three decades ago.

Lights go out at Russia's Novaya Gazeta, after years of defiant reporting

Russian investigative newspaper Novaya Gazeta wound up its operations on Monday and quit its central Moscow office, bowing to what it said was a campaign of state pressure that had made it impossible to carry on reporting. Its co-founder Dmitry Muratov, addressing journalists who gathered to witness the newspaper's closure, issued an impassioned plea for free speech and human rights in wartime Russia.

Greece retrieves bodies of 13 migrants in boat found off Crete, coast guard says

Greece retrieved the bodies of 13 migrants along with 18 survivors from a boat that had been spotted by a container ship off the island of Crete early on Monday, its coast guard said. The Morocco-flagged container ship spotted the boat about 15 nautical miles (28 km) off the port of Kaloi Limenes on Crete. The coast guard said it had ‌taken the survivors and the dead to shore and that one of four people taken to hospital had later died there.

Climate talks should focus on implementation, not new targets, Singapore says

Global climate talks starting on Monday are unlikely to yield new targets on curbing greenhouse gases, but negotiators have plenty to do to implement measures already agreed, Singapore's environment minister said. "I think that we are not expecting a major upgrade in mitigation targets" at the annual UN talks in Turkey, Grace Fu told reporters. "But we have enough, even within the Paris Agreement, with what we have already agreed on. There is enough to work on."

Nvidia probes whether CEO Huang was target of foreign spying as he admits affair

Nvidia said on Sunday its board was probing whether CEO Jensen Huang had been the target of a foreign intelligence effort, after a media report alleged he had a close relationship with a Chinese businesswoman who passed information to Beijing. Huang said in a message to employees that he had been unfaithful to his wife and took "full responsibility" for his actions, while Nvidia said the CEO was committed to continuing to lead the company without interruption.

Steel plant blast kills 3, leaves 10 missing in western Turkey

A blast at a steel and iron manufacturing plant in western Turkey on Monday killed 3 people and left 10 missing and 14 others were injured, the ‌local governor's office said. An explosion occurred at around noon (0900 GMT) at the Habas iron and steel manufacturing plant in the Aliaga district of the coastal Izmir province, the governor's office said in a statement

Trump to meet Iran war mediator Qatar, no imminent deal seen to end the war

US President Donald Trump will meet the prime minister of key mediator Qatar on Monday as efforts to end the Iran war ramp up following last week's midterm elections, though senior US and Gulf officials cast doubt on the chances of an imminent deal. With no victory in sight more than eight months into the conflict ‌he launched alongside Israel on February 28, Trump has played down the likelihood of major warfare restarting soon, but remains unwilling to accept an existing Iranian truce plan.

Exclusive-Covert Russian network exploited French riots on social media, EU report says

A covert Russian network sought to exploit last month's riots in France by using social media to blame the unrest on uncontrolled immigration and portray the government as having lost control, according to an internal EU assessment seen by Reuters. A separate internal assessment, compiled by France's foreign ministry and also seen by Reuters, found that social media accounts linked to Israel and to the US MAGA movement also pushed "hostile narratives" around the riots, linking them to radical Islamism and migration.

This year set to be one of four hottest on record, UN report says

This year is on track to be one of the four hottest on record, driven by a powerful El Niño and perpetuating a warming streak of more than a decade, a UN report showed on Monday. Countries are preparing to meet in Turkey from November 9 to 20 for the next round of climate talks and the World Meteorological Organization "State of the Climate" report provides the latest available data to inform their discussions.

Spain's right well ahead in polls for November 29 election

Spain's conservative People's Party (PP) would beat Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's Socialists but require the right-wing Vox to secure a parliamentary majority, according to the latest polls in the run-up to a general election on November 29. The electoral campaign starting in four days is expected to be dominated by issues such as housing, immigration and corruption, and reverberations of last month's deadly ⁠train crash that triggered the resignation of ​Transport Minister Oscar Puente.

Lawyers for Philippine VP Duterte open defence in high-stakes trial

Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte's lawyers on Monday sought to counter allegations she had accumulated unexplained wealth, opening ⁠their defence in a high-profile impeachment trial where a conviction would kill off her hopes of becoming president. The daughter of firebrand former leader Rodrigo Duterte has consistently been the frontrunner in opinion polls to win the presidency in 2028 and her defence must win over one-third of senators in the impeachment court to guarantee her political survival.

Gunmen kill 11 relatives of security volunteer in northwest Nigeria, abduct 13

Gunmen killed a local security volunteer and 10 of his relatives, burned their bodies, torched their home and abducted 13 others in a weekend attack on a village in northwestern Nigeria's Zamfara state, police said on Monday. Many northwestern states in Nigeria have groups of volunteers who help defend villages and towns from armed gangs, as the security forces are stretched fighting Islamist militants and the gangs, known as ⁠bandits.

Four killed in Gaza after sand embankment collapses on to tents

Torrential rain in Gaza caused a sand embankment to collapse on to tents, killing a woman and three small children in an incident that highlighted the danger facing hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians as the rainy winter season sets in. Medics said heavy rain late on Sunday washed away a rocky sand bank abutting a camp for displaced families south of Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza. A woman and two of her children, aged 8 and 6, were killed. A fourth child, aged 4, was also killed, and six others were injured.

How the US was left exposed to the flesh-eating screwworm, years into the outbreak

For decades, planes dropped billions of factory-bred sterile flies to ​keep the flesh-eating New World screwworm out of North America’s cattle. That controls the pest because sterile males mate with wild females – whose eggs then fail to hatch. But the strategy works only if the supply of flies never runs short.

Analysis-New Zealand’s Luxon on course for second term, but weaker hand in coalition

New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is on course to hang on to power as the head of a coalition government with a razor-thin majority following Saturday's election, but his National Party could lose control of key government ministries to right-wing coalition partners. Centre-right National and the ⁠main opposition Labour Party both polled below 30% for the first time ever, losing votes to minor parties on the left, right and centre – a trend that analysts said mirrored a global shift away from the political establishment.

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia investors launch fund to boost trade, investment

A joint council of Saudi Arabian and Pakistani investors launched a private equity fund on Monday as part of the countries' wider push to deepen two-way private sector trade and investment. The Saudi-Pakistan Joint Business Council, formed by the governments of both countries, said the fund's initial size is "multi-hundred million", which is expected to expand based on opportunities across sectors.

Explainer-Where does Philippine VP Sara Duterte's impeachment trial stand?

Lawyers for Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte have started their defence against allegations she accumulated unexplained wealth, entering a crucial stage in an impeachment trial that could end her hopes of ⁠becoming president ​in 2028. WHAT'S THE LATEST IN THE TRIAL?

Huge crowds gather in Buenos Aires for Pope Leo's outdoor Mass

Throngs of people were gathering on Monday on one of the main boulevards in Buenos Aires as Pope Leo was due to arrive for an outdoor Mass that city officials said could attract more than 1.5 million people. Tens of thousands began streaming down the Avenida del Libertador in the early hours of the morning for the event, likely to be one of the largest gatherings of Leo's 12-day tour across South America and of his 18-month papacy.

IMF launches Ukraine loan review that could unlock $1.67 billion

The International Monetary Fund began a review of Ukraine's lending programme on Monday that could unlock $1.67 billion in fresh financing for Kyiv as it struggles to shore up its war-hit economy and plug a looming funding gap. Cooperation with the IMF, Ukraine's key international lender, is critical to ensure funding from other partners and help maintain economic stability as the conflict with Russia grinds on and Kyiv faces a multi-billion financing shortfall for next year.

Paraguay's president names Schreiner to head central bank

Paraguayan President Pedro Alliana on Monday nominated economist Jorge Schreiner to head the central bank, following the crisis triggered by the intervention in digital bank ueno. Schreiner served on the central bank's board for two years until 1999 and led ⁠the securities commission for a decade until 2013. His appointment requires congressional approval.

Exclusive-Sheikh Hasina seeks new passport to return to Bangladesh, government denies request

Ousted Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina requested on Monday a new passport and identity card so she can return from self-imposed exile in India, according to a letter seen by Reuters, her first such communication since fleeing in 2024, but the government swiftly rejected her request. The request marks the clearest step by Hasina to act on her plan to return to Bangladesh in December, more than two years after a deadly uprising ended her long rule, raising the ⁠prospect of fresh political and legal tensions in a country where her party is now banned.

Iran defends two-day proposal for peace talks after US rejects conditions

Iran defended a proposal on Monday to ⁠restart peace talks in as few as two days as the most reasonable offer on the table, after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called some of Iran's conditions "outrageous and ridiculous". "Is it unreasonable that Iran demands that US illegal sanctions and its naval blockade must be lifted before negotiations start and that the war should end on all fronts?" Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei told a weekly press conference in response to Rubio's remarks.

UK's Russell Brand a 'sexual predator', victims tell his sentencing for rape and sexual assault

The victims of comedian Russell Brand, once one of Britain's most high-profile broadcasters and star of Hollywood movies, said at his sentencing for rape and sexual assault on Monday that he was a "sexual predator" who had caused them lasting harm. Brand – the former husband of US pop singer Katy Perry who in recent years moved away from the mainstream and became an anti-establishment commentator – was convicted on Thursday of raping one woman and sexually assaulting three more.

Canada ‌announces fresh Russia-related sanctions

Canada is expanding its Russia-related sanctions to target another 38 entities and 24 individuals, including actors involved ‌in ballistic missile technology development and cyber activities, its government said in a statement on Monday.

French PM Lecornu holds talks over protesters' cost-of-living concerns

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu met representatives of employers' organisations and private-sector unions on Monday to try to address cost-of-living concerns that have sparked some of France's worst civil unrest in years. Lecornu will present ​measures to address the concerns at a press conference later on Monday and they are expected to include a small increase in the minimum wage.