Reuters World News Summary

The Czech Republic said it had informed NATO and European Union allies about suspected Russian involvement in the blast, which killed two people, and the matter would be addressed at an EU foreign ministers' meeting on Monday. Daughter of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny says he needs a doctor The daughter of hunger-striking Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny called on Russian authorities on Sunday to allow a doctor to treat her father in prison, a day after a group of medical professionals warned he is at risk of kidney failure.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Syria to hold presidential election, slammed by opposition, on May 26

Syria will hold a presidential election on May 26 that is virtually certain to return President Bashar al-Assad for a third term - an event that Washington and the opposition say is a farce designed to cement his autocratic rule. Assad's family and his Baath party have ruled Syria for five decades with the help of the security forces and the army, where his Alawite minority dominate.

Myanmar unity government says it must be part of any ASEAN bid to end crisis

Myanmar's neighbours have to negotiate with a newly formed government of national unity if they want to help resolve the turmoil triggered a by a Feb. 1 military coup and they should not recognise the junta, a unity government official said. The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has been trying to find a way out of the bloody crisis that has racked member Myanmar since the military ousted an elected government led by democracy champion Aung San Suu Kyi.

Germany will not abandon Afghan staff, minister says

Germany will not let down its Afghan staff as the international military mission in the country winds down after nearly two decades of war, Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer pledged on Sunday. "I feel it is Germany's sincere duty to not leave these people without protection now that we will permanently withdraw," the defence ministry in Berlin said on Twitter, quoting extracts from an interview with German news agency DPA.

'Dire need of beds, oxygen': India's capital under siege from COVID-19

India's capital New Delhi recorded 25,500 coronavirus cases in a 24-hour period, with about one in three people tested returning a positive result, its chief minister said, urging the federal government to provide more hospital beds to tackle the crisis. Less than 100 critical care beds were available in the city of more than 20 million people, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Sunday, as social media was flooded with people complaining about lack of beds, oxygen cylinders and drugs.

Russia says it will retaliate hard against Czechs over diplomat expulsions

Russia said on Sunday Czech accusations that Russian spy services were behind an explosion in an ammunition depot were unfounded and absurd and it would retaliate for Prague's expulsion of 18 Russian embassy staff. The Czech Republic said it had informed NATO and European Union allies about suspected Russian involvement in the blast, which killed two people, and the matter would be addressed at an EU foreign ministers' meeting on Monday.

Daughter of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny says he needs a doctor

The daughter of hunger-striking Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny called on Russian authorities on Sunday to allow a doctor to treat her father in prison, a day after a group of medical professionals warned he is at risk of kidney failure. Navalny, a fierce opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin, started refusing food on March 31 in protest at what he said was the refusal of prison authorities to provide him with proper medical care for acute back and leg pain.

AstraZeneca could have COVID-19 vaccine against variant by end-2021: Austrian newspaper

A modified version of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine tailored to combat a coronavirus variant first documented in South Africa could be ready by the end of 2021, an AstraZeneca official in Austria said in an interview published on Sunday. Sarah Walters, AstraZeneca's Austria country manager, told the Kurier newspaper that studies, so far, indicating the existing AstraZeneca vaccine was less effective against the more infectious variant first documented in South Africa were "too small to draw final conclusions".

Deadly clashes after Islamists take police hostage in Pakistan's Lahore

Police in Pakistan said a hardline Islamist group had taken six security personnel hostage at its headquarters in Lahore on Sunday after a week of violent clashes following the arrest of the group's leader. The Tehrik-i-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) group had given the government an April 20 deadline to expel the French ambassador over the publication of cartoons in France depicting the Prophet Mohammad. The authorities responded by arresting its leader, prompting supporters to hold protests and sit-ins across Pakistan. At least four people were killed, hundreds injured, and thousands arrested. Pakistan banned the group after the violence.

UK government doubles down on lobbying defence

Britain's government doubled down on its defence against accusations of cronyism on Sunday, arguing that former leader David Cameron' failure to get support for finance firm Greensill Capital showed its lobbying rules were "pretty good". Questions over whether former ministers and civil servants are granted easy access to the Conservative government have been raised by the behaviour of Cameron and other officials.

Cuba's Raul Castro leaves the political stage, his legacy yet to be written

Raul Castro, who is retiring from high public office, for most of his life toiled in the shadow of his older brother, Fidel Castro. Yet he also played a key role in Cuba's 1959 leftist revolution and the preservation of Cuban socialism. While Fidel was the charismatic leader who rallied Cubans to defend the revolution and defy the United States, Raul, 89, built the military into a formidable fighting force that saw off enemies including a U.S.-backed invasion at the Bay of Pigs.