Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs. Congo's new leader to meet Pompeo, senior officials in first U.S. visit: spokesman

Democratic Republic of Congo's new President Felix Tshisekedi will visit Washington in early April to discuss strengthening economic and security ties, the State Department said on Tuesday. Spokesman Robert Palladino said Tshisekedi will visit Washington from April 3 to 5 for meetings with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other senior cabinet officials in the Trump administration. Death toll from attack on Mali herders rises to 157

The death toll from Saturday's attack by unknown gunmen on villagers in central Mali has risen to 157, a government spokesman said on Tuesday, confirming it as one of the worst recent atrocities in a country beset by ethnic violence. The attack took place as a U.N. Security Council mission was visiting the West African gold-producing country to seek solutions to violence that has killed hundreds of civilians last year and is spreading across West Africa's Sahel region. Israel, Hamas trade blows as Gaza tensions simmer

Gaza militants fired rockets into southern Israel and Israeli aircraft carried out strikes in the Hamas-ruled territory overnight Tuesday, though the level of violence appeared to abate after Palestinians said a ceasefire had been reached. After a day of intense cross-border fighting, Palestinian officials said Egypt had mediated a truce late on Monday. The respite didn't last long, however. U.S. top court backs Sudan over American sailors in USS Cole bombing case

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday prevented American sailors injured in the deadly 2000 al Qaeda bombing of the Navy destroyer USS Cole from collecting $314.7 million in damages from the government of Sudan for its alleged role in the attack. In a 8-1 ruling, the justices overturned a lower court's decision that had allowed the sailors to collect the damages from certain banks that held Sudanese assets. The decision represented a major victory for Sudan, which denies that it provided any support to al Qaeda for the attack in Yemen. Myanmar's top court hears Reuters reporters' appeal in official secrets case

Myanmar's Supreme Court heard the appeal on Tuesday of two Reuters journalists imprisoned for breaking a colonial-era official secrets law, in a case that has raised questions about Myanmar's progress towards democracy. Reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo have spent more than 15 months in detention since they were arrested in December 2017, while investigating a massacre of Rohingya Muslim civilians involving Myanmar soldiers. U.S. lawmakers introduce bill to boost Taiwan ties, amid China tensions

Republican and Democratic U.S. lawmakers introduced legislation seeking to boost Washington's relations with Taiwan and raise the island's international profile on Tuesday, which could heighten tensions with China. Senator Bob Menendez, the top Democrat on the influential Foreign Relations Committee, along with Republican Senators Tom Cotton and Ted Cruz, and Democratic Senators Catherine Cortez Masto and Chris Coons offered the "Taiwan Assurance Act." Second major blackout leaves Venezuelans fearing power cuts will be the norm

Venezuela's government told workers and school children to stay home on Tuesday as the second major blackout this month left the streets of Caracas mostly empty and residents wondering how long power would be out amid a deepening economic crisis. President Nicolas Maduro's Socialist government, which had blamed sabotage by the United States and the opposition for the previous power cut, said an "attack" on its electrical system caused the blackout that first hit on Monday. The outage shuttered businesses, paralyzed the country's main oil export terminal, and stranded commuters. 'It's not about the Benjamins,' Netanyahu says of U.S. support for Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said "it's not about the Benjamins" as he hit back on Tuesday against any suggestion that U.S. politicians are paid to support Israel. A tweet in February by Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar, a freshman legislator from Minnesota, was widely seen as echoing an anti-Semitic slur that Jews influence governments through money. Russian deployment in Venezuela includes 'cybersecurity personnel': U.S. official

A Russian military contingent that arrived in Venezuela over the weekend, drawing U.S. condemnation, is believed by the U.S. government to be made up of special forces including "cybersecurity personnel," a U.S. official told Reuters on Tuesday. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the United States was still assessing the Russian deployment, which Washington has called a "reckless escalation" of the situation in Venezuela. UK lawmakers urge May to heed them on alternative Brexit plans

British lawmakers called on Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday to heed whatever alternative Brexit strategy they can settle on after they attempted to break the impasse by grabbing control of the process in parliament. The government insisted the deal May agreed with the European Union in November after more than two years of negotiation remained the only way forward for taking Britain out of the bloc. That deal has been voted down twice in parliament.