Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs. Oxygen packing plant in Brazil hit by explosion An industrial plant dedicated to oxygen packing in the city of Fortaleza, in Brazil's northeastern region, exploded on Saturday, leaving four people injured, local media reported.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Oxygen packing plant in Brazil hit by explosion

An industrial plant dedicated to oxygen packing in the city of Fortaleza, in Brazil's northeastern region, exploded on Saturday, leaving four people injured, local media reported. Industrial gas maker White Martins, owner of the plant, said in a statement that production of oxygen in the region has not been affected, as the unit was dedicated to packing the gas. The company, which is investigating the causes for the incident, said it is looking for alternative places to fill the oxygen cylinders.

At least 27 dead in fire at Baghdad hospital for COVID patients- medical sources

At least 27 people were killed and 46 injured in a fire on Saturday at a hospital in southeastern Baghdad that had been equipped to house COVID-19 patients, medical sources at three nearby hospitals said. The fire at the Ibn Khatib hospital in the Diyala Bridge area of the Iraqi capital occurred after an accident caused an oxygen tank to explode, the sources said.

SE Asian nations say consensus reached on ending Myanmar crisis

Southeast Asian leaders said they had agreed on a plan with Myanmar's junta chief on Saturday to end the crisis in the violence-hit nation, but he did not explicitly respond to demands to halt the killing of civilian protesters. "It's beyond our expectation," Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin told reporters after the leaders' meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) that was also attended by Myanmar's Senior General Min Aung Hlaing.

Anti-lockdown protesters defy restrictions in central London march

Several thousand anti-lockdown demonstrators marched through central London on Saturday despite restrictions on mass gatherings during the COVID-19 pandemic. The event was billed by organisers: "Unite for Freedom".

Ahead of Geneva talks, Cypriots march for peace

Thousands of Cypriots from both sides of a dividing line splitting their island marched for peace on Saturday, ahead of informal talks in Geneva next week on the future of negotiations. With some holding olive branches, people walked in the bright spring sunshine around the medieval walls circling the capital, Nicosia.

Indian hospitals turn away patients in COVID-19 'tsunami'

Overwhelmed hospitals in India begged for oxygen supplies on Saturday as the country's coronavirus infections soared again overnight in a "tsunami" of disease, setting a new world record for cases for the third consecutive day. Max Healthcare, which runs a network of hospitals in north India, tweeted that it had less than two hours of oxygen left while Fortis Healthcare, another big chain, said it was suspending new admissions in Delhi.

Rescuers find debris thought to be from sunken Indonesian submarine

A missing Indonesian submarine carrying 53 people is believed to have sunk in the Bali Sea after search teams found debris floating around the vessel's last location, a navy official said. "With the evidence we found believed to be from the submarine, we have now moved from the 'sub missing' phase to ‘sub sunk'", Indonesian Navy Chief of Staff Yudo Margono told reporters, according to Indonesian media Tempo.

In historic move, Biden says 1915 massacres of Armenians constitute genocide

U.S. President Joe Biden said on Saturday that the 1915 massacres of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire constituted genocide, a historic declaration that infuriated Turkey and further strained frayed ties between the two NATO allies. The largely symbolic move, breaking away from decades of carefully calibrated language from the White House, was welcomed by the Armenian diaspora in the United States, but comes at a time when Ankara and Washington grapple with deep policy disagreements over a host of issues.

Scuffles in Jerusalem after Israeli-Palestinian Ramadan night clashes

Israeli police and Palestinians scuffled outside Jerusalem's Old City walls overnight into Sunday as tensions flared during the Muslim holiday of Ramadan, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appealed for calm. Hundreds of police officers in riot gear deployed around the Old City after nightly clashes spilled into the Gaza Strip and occupied West Bank. Some Palestinians threw stones and bottles as police on horseback dispersed the crowds, though the violence appeared less intense than on previous nights.

India asks Twitter to take down some tweets critical of its COVID-19 handling

The Indian government asked social media platform Twitter to take down dozens of tweets, including some by local lawmakers, that were critical of India's handling of the coronavirus outbreak, as cases of COVID-19 again hit a world record. Twitter has withheld some of the tweets after the legal request by the Indian government, a company spokeswoman told Reuters on Saturday.