World News Roundup: The U.S. bars Iranians from trade; World leaders gather in Jerusalem and more

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

The U.S. bars Iranians from trade and investment visas

The United States, locked in a tense confrontation with Iran in the Middle East, has barred Iranians from entering the country on trade and investment visas from Thursday. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services attributed the change to the termination in October 2018 of a treaty of amity with Iran, which is the target of U.S. sanctions over its nuclear and missile programs.

Extradition hearing for WikiLeaks' Assange to be split into two parts

The London hearing to decide whether WikiLeaks' founder Julian Assange can be extradited to the United States to face charges including spying will be split in two, with the second half delayed until May, a judge ruled on Thursday. Assange, 48, faces 18 counts in the United States including conspiring to hack government computers and violating an espionage law.

He could spend decades in prison if convicted. World leaders gather in Jerusalem for Auschwitz liberation anniversary

Dozens of world leaders gathered in Jerusalem on Thursday to mark the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, amid a backdrop of rising anti-Semitism in Europe and the United States. Israel has hailed the World Holocaust Forum at the Yad Vashem memorial center as the biggest international gathering in its history.

Turkish aid groups building houses in Syria for Idlib's displaced

Turkish aid groups have begun building more than 10,000 houses in Syria's northwestern province of Idlib to shelter growing numbers of people displaced by fighting, while Turkey seeks to prevent a new influx of migrants fleeing from Syria. The houses are being erected near a Syrian village next to the Turkish border, an area so far spared from the airstrikes and fighting which have uprooted hundreds of thousands of people.

Angola may seek international arrest warrant for Isabel dos Santos: reports

Angola could issue an international arrest warrant for billionaire Isabel dos Santos if she fails to cooperate with a fraud investigation in which she has been named as a suspect, its chief prosecutor was quoted as saying. Angola has named dos Santos, the daughter of former president Jose Eduardo dos Santos, as a suspect over alleged mismanagement and misappropriation of funds while she was chairwoman of state oil firm Sonangol in 2016-2017. She denies wrongdoing.

World Court orders Myanmar to protect Rohingya from acts of genocide

The International Court of Justice on Thursday ordered Myanmar to take urgent measures to protect its Rohingya population from atrocities, a ruling hailed as a "triumph of international justice" by the tiny African country that brought the case. A lawsuit, launched by the Gambia in November at the United Nations' highest body for disputes between states, accuses Myanmar of genocide against Rohingya in violation of a 1948 convention. Libya's neighbors meet in Algeria seeking a stronger truce

Algerian Foreign Minister Sabri Boukadoum told visiting envoys from other countries neighboring Libya on Thursday that he hoped their meeting would strengthen a fragile truce in the country and help avert more foreign influence there. "Libya's neighbors have the responsibility to facilitate a political solution," he added before the start of his meeting with foreign ministers or other officials from Egypt, Tunisia, Chad, Niger, Sudan, and Mali.

Canadian waterbomber plane crashes while fighting Australia bushfires, three dead

A Canadian-owned C-130 Hercules air tanker crashed while fighting bushfires in Australia's alpine region on Thursday, killing all three of its crew, authorities said. The victims were American residents, Australian authorities said, adding that they did not immediately know why the plane crashed while carrying a load of fire retardant.

Putin's political shake-up backed by the Russian parliament in the initial vote

Russia's lower house of parliament unanimously gave its initial backing on Thursday to sweeping constitutional changes proposed by President Vladimir Putin which are widely seen as an attempt to extend his influence after he steps down. The reforms, which Putin unveiled last week, were backed by all 432 lawmakers who took part in the vote in the State Duma, as the lower house of parliament is known. Nobody voted against or abstained. The Duma is controlled by the ruling pro-Putin United Russia party.

China orders 'unprecedented' lockdown of two cities at virus epicenter

China on Thursday locked down two cities at the epicenter of a coronavirus outbreak that has killed 17 people and infected nearly 600, as health authorities around the world took action to prevent a global pandemic. Health officials fear the transmission rate will accelerate as hundreds of millions of Chinese travel at home and abroad during week-long holidays for the Lunar New Year, which begins on Saturday.