Reuters World News Summary

HK's top leader piles up cash at home after U.S. sanctions Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam says she has to pile up cash at home as she has been unable to open a bank account in the global financial centre since Washington sanctioned her shortly after Beijing imposed a national security law on the city.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs. Ethiopia says military operation in Tigray region is over, hunt for Tigray leaders begins

The Ethiopian government launched a manhunt on Sunday for leaders of a rebellious faction in the northern region of Tigray after announcing federal troops had taken over the regional capital and military operations were complete. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed government has been trying to quell a rebellion by the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), a powerful ethnically-based party that dominated the central government from 1991 until Abiy came to power in 2018. Afghanistan car bombing kills at least 30 security force personnel

A car bombing in the Afghanistan's central province of Ghazni killed at least 30 Afghan security force members on Sunday, officials said, and casualties could increase given the intensity and location of the blast. Baz Mohammad Hemat, director of the provincial hospital in Ghazni, said 30 bodies and 24 injured people had been transported there. "All of the victims are security personnel," he said. Elite runners brave Delhi race despite COVID-19 surge, pollution concerns

Some of the world's leading long-distance runners participated in a half-marathon in New Delhi on Sunday, even as India's capital grapples with a surge in COVID-19 cases and air pollution that has recently been among the world's worst. More than 60 professional runners participated in the race, while several hundred enthusiasts ran in other cities on routes of their choice, using a mobile app to post race timings, said the event organisers. HK's top leader piles up cash at home after U.S. sanctions

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam says she has to pile up cash at home as she has been unable to open a bank account in the global financial centre since Washington sanctioned her shortly after Beijing imposed a national security law on the city. Beijing circumvented Hong Kong's legislature and imposed a national security law on the former British colony on June 30, a move condemned by some foreign governments, business groups and rights groups. Thai protesters challenge king's military command

Thai anti-government protesters challenged on Sunday King Maha Vajiralongkorn's personal control over some army units to condemn the military's role in politics. It was the latest open defiance of the king by protesters, who have broken taboos by criticising the monarchy in a country where it is officially revered under the constitution and laws ban insulting it. Britain expects 'very significant' week for Brexit talks as clock ticks down

Britain and the European Union are heading into a "very significant" week, British foreign minister Dominic Raab said on Sunday, as talks over a trade deal enter their final days with serious differences yet to be resolved. EU negotiator Michel Barnier told reporters in London that "works continue, even on Sunday" on his way to a negotiating session, as both sides look for a deal to prevent disruption to almost $1 trillion of trade at the end of December. Opposition calls on Hungary's Orban to sack museum head for likening Soros to Hitler

A leading Hungarian opposition party joined calls on Sunday for Prime Minister Viktor Orban to sack the head of a state-funded museum for making extreme anti-Semitic comments likening U.S. financier George Soros to Adolf Hitler. Nationalist Orban has long vilified Soros, a Hungarian Jew who emigrated after World War Two, as part of a general campaign against immigration. Orban accuses Brussels of trying to force Hungary to accept migrants under the influence of Soros. Iran's leader promises retaliation for nuclear scientist's killing

Iran's supreme leader promised on Saturday to retaliate for the killing of the Islamic Republic's top nuclear scientist, raising the threat of a new confrontation with the West and Israel in the remaining weeks of Donald Trump's presidency. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei pledged to continue the work of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, who Western and Israeli governments believe was the architect of a secret Iranian nuclear weapons programme. UAE cabinet approves new cybersecurity body, climate change envoy

The United Arab Emirates on Sunday approved the establishment of a new national cybersecurity council, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Prime Minister and Vice-President and ruler of Dubai, said on Twitter. The cabinet of the UAE government also appointed minister of state and head of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) Sultan al-Jaber as a special envoy for climate change. Nigeria buries scores of farmers killed by militants, some beheaded

Villagers in northeast Nigeria's Borno state on Sunday buried 43 farmers killed in an attack by suspected Islamist militants while security forces searched for dozens of people who are still missing. Roughly 30 of the men killed were also beheaded in the attack, which began on Saturday morning in Zabarmari village in northeast Borno state. Residents said a total of 70 people are feared dead.