World News Roundup: Taliban fighters enter provincial capital, clash with Afghan forces; Four killed as wildfires sweep Turkey, villages evacuated and more

With U.S.-led foreign forces nearing a complete withdrawal of troops, the Taliban have made swift territorial gains over the last two months but have not yet captured any provincial capitals. Four killed as wildfires sweep Turkey, villages evacuated The death toll from wildfires on Turkey's southern coast has risen to four and firefighters were battling blazes for a third day on Friday after the evacuation of dozens of villages and some hotels.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Taliban fighters enter provincial capital, clash with Afghan forces

Afghan security forces and Taliban fighters have been locked in heavy clashes for the last two days after the insurgents entered the capital of the southern province of Helmand, officials said on Friday, as civilians rushed to evacuate the city. With U.S.-led foreign forces nearing a complete withdrawal of troops, the Taliban have made swift territorial gains over the last two months but have not yet captured any provincial capitals.

Four killed as wildfires sweep Turkey, villages evacuated

The death toll from wildfires on Turkey's southern coast has risen to four and firefighters were battling blazes for a third day on Friday after the evacuation of dozens of villages and some hotels. More than 70 wildfires have broken out this week in provinces on Turkey's Aegean and Mediterranean coasts as well as inland areas, President Tayyip Erdogan said, adding that 14 were still burning.

Olympics-EU envoys back Frenchman on hunger strike over Japan child custody

Ten European diplomats expressed support on Friday for a Frenchman who has been on hunger strike for three weeks during the Tokyo Olympics to protest what he calls the legally sanctioned abduction of his two children by his Japanese wife. The European Union ambassadors to Japan met with Vincent Fichot, 39, who is camped out at a train station near the National Stadium, a focus of the ongoing Games, where temperatures regularly top 30 degrees Celsius (85 degrees Fahrenheit) amid sweltering humidity.

More than 100,000 children in Ethiopia's Tigray could die of hunger- UNICEF

The United Nations children's agency said on Friday that more than 100,000 children in Ethiopia's northern region of Tigray could suffer life-threatening malnutrition in the next 12 months, a 10-fold increase to normal numbers. UNICEF spokesperson Marixie Mercado said that one-in-two pregnant and breastfeeding women screened in Tigray were acutely malnourished.

Lebanon president ready to answer questions on Beirut blast

Lebanon's President Michel Aoun told the country's public prosecutor on Friday he was ready to give a statement about last year's port blast in the capital Beirut if needed. "No one is above the law no matter how high up, and justice can only be achieved through the specialised judicial branches that provide guarantees," Aoun told prosecutor Ghassan Ouidat during a meeting, according to a statement released by the president's office.

Belarus leader would 'not hesitate' to invite Russian troops if needed

Belarus would not hesitate to invite Russian troops if needed, President Alexander Lukashenko said on Friday, although he said there was no need for them now. Russia has maintained close military and economic ties with its ally Belarus, even as Western countries have ostracised the country since Lukashenko cracked down on mass protests following a contested presidential election last year.

'David vs Goliath' - Venice ban may not end cruise ship battle

When the first cruise ship since the start of the pandemic sailed through the Venice lagoon last month, hundreds of people rallied on land and small boats in protest. A few weeks later, the government seemed to listen, announcing that to defend Venice's ecosystem and heritage, cruise liners would be banned from the lagoon from Aug. 1. The move ended years of political hesitation, apparently putting the demands of residents and culture bodies above those of port workers and the tourist industry.

Hong Kong man jailed for 9 years in first national security case

The first person convicted under Hong Kong's national security law was jailed for nine years on Friday for terrorist activities and inciting secession, judges said, in a watershed ruling with long-term implications for the city's judicial landscape. Former waiter Tong Ying-kit, 24, was accused of driving his motorcycle into three riot police last year while carrying a flag with the protest slogan "Liberate Hong Kong. Revolution of our times."

Hungarian election panel clears questions of LGBT referendum

Hungary's National Election Committee (NEC) approved on Friday the government's list of questions on LGBT issues it wants to put on a referendum as part of what Prime Minister Viktor Orban has called an "ideological war" with the European Union. Orban, a nationalist who has been in power since 2010, proposed a referendum on ruling party legislation that limits schools' teaching about homosexuality and transgender issues, stepping up a culture war with the EU.

Airlift begins for Afghans who worked for U.S. during its longest war

Some 200 Afghans were set to begin new lives in the United States on Friday as an airlift got under way for translators and others who risk Taliban retaliation because they worked for the United States during its 20-year war in Afghanistan, U.S. officials said. The operation to evacuate U.S.-affiliated Afghans and family members comes as the U.S. troop pullout nears completion and government forces struggle to repulse Taliban advances.

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