Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs. Ukraine says troops holding on to Sievierodonetsk, advance in south Ukraine said on Thursday its forces were holding their positions in intense fighting in the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk and had retaken ground in the south, targetting gains in the biggest swathe of territory seized by Russia since the invasion started.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Ukraine says troops holding on to Sievierodonetsk, advance in south

Ukraine said on Thursday its forces were holding their positions in intense fighting in the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk and had retaken ground in the south, targetting gains in the biggest swathe of territory seized by Russia since the invasion started. Russia has concentrated its invasion force around Sievierodonetsk, a small industry city now bombed to ruins. Ukraine says its only hope to turn the tide toward victory is more artillery to offset Russia's massive firepower.

Leaders at Americas summit eye plan to manage impact of migration

Leaders attending the Summit of the Americas are poised to issue a declaration pledging measures to curb illegal migration and help countries receiving large number of migrants to cope with them, according to a draft document seen by Reuters on Thursday. The document, which was dated both June 6 and June 7, included commitments to work on convening banks to review their financial instruments for migrant-hosting countries, as well as improving migrants' access to public and private services.

German investigators question driver after 'dark day' for Berlin

Authorities had yet to establish a motive on Thursday for a 29-year-old German-Armenian man who rammed his car into a group of schoolchildren in Berlin, killing a teacher and leaving another fighting for his life, but said he had no known link to terrorism. Investigators, with the help of a translator, were trying to make sense of the "at times confused statements he was making" during questioning, Berlin's mayor, Franziska Giffey, told RBB inforadio, describing a "dark day in the history of Berlin".

IAEA warns of 'fatal blow' to nuclear deal as Iran removes its cameras

Iran on Thursday dealt a near-fatal blow to chances of reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal as it began removing essentially all the International Atomic Energy Agency monitoring equipment installed under the deal, IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said. Iran had warned of retaliation if the IAEA's 35-nation Board of Governors passed a resolution drafted by the United States, France, Britain and Germany criticising Tehran for its continued failure to explain uranium traces found at undeclared sites. The resolution was passed by a crushing majority late on Wednesday.

Colombia presidential candidate Hernandez says his life is threatened

Colombian presidential candidate Rodolfo Hernandez said on Thursday he was canceling any remaining in-person appearances at campaign events because he is certain his life is in danger. The anti-establishment Hernandez, 77, is running neck and neck against leftist Gustavo Petro, who has also previously denounced threats on his life.

In Chile, indecision rules while voters are divided on new constitution -poll

Citizens planning to vote in favor of or against adopting Chile's new constitution are neck and neck while a larger percentage of the electorate remains undecided, according to a poll released on Thursday. In October 2020, nearly 80% of the electorate voted to draft a new constitution to replace the current 1980 constitution that dates back to the Augusto Pinochet dictatorship. But support has fallen as controversial proposals and political infighting have made some voters wary.

Portugal's parliament resumes battle to legalise euthanasia

After two presidential vetoes, Portugal's parliament delivered another strong vote on Thursday in favour of decriminalising euthanasia in the Catholic-majority country, although the bill still faces a bumpy road to become law. The country's debate on making medically assisted death legal under certain conditions started in 2018, when parliament rejected a bill that would have legalised it. But the debate carried on after the issue secured enough support.

Two Britons, one Moroccan sentenced to death by court of Russian proxy in Ukraine

Two Britons and a Moroccan who were captured while fighting for Ukraine were sentenced to death on Thursday by a court in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), one of Russia's proxies in eastern Ukraine, Russian news agencies reported. The court found the three men - Britons Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner and Moroccan Brahim Saadoun - guilty of "mercenary activities and committing actions aimed at seizing power and overthrowing the constitutional order of the DPR", the Interfax news agency quoted a court official as saying.

Shanghai faces unexpected round of COVID testing for most residents

China's commercial hub of Shanghai faces an unexpected round of mass COVID-19 testing for most residents this weekend - just 10 days after a city-wide lockdown was lifted - unsettling residents and raising concerns about the impact on business. Shanghai officials on Thursday said seven of the city's 16 districts would carry out PCR testing for all residents over the weekend due to the discovery of a few cases in the community, saying they wanted to prevent a renewed outbreak.

After veto on North Korea, China says 'let's see' on U.N. action over a nuclear test

China's U.N. envoy said on Thursday that Beijing does not want to see North Korea carry out a new nuclear test, which is partly why China vetoed a U.S.-led bid to impose new U.N. sanctions on Pyongyang over renewed ballistic missiles launches.

But Ambassador Zhang Jun warned against making presumptions on how Beijing might react at the United Nations if North Korea goes ahead with its first nuclear test since 2017. Washington has warned such a test could happen at "any time" and it would again push for more U.N. sanctions.