World News Roundup: Russia's Medvedev warns Moscow will scrap grain deal if G7 bans exports; Serbs in north Kosovo boycott local elections and more

Asked about his position on whether Crimea is part of Ukraine or not, Chinese ambassador Lu Shaye said in an interview aired on French television on Friday that historically it was part of Russia and had been offered to Ukraine by former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. Factbox-The status of foreign states' Sudan evacuation efforts Sudan's sudden slide into conflict between the army and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group has stranded thousands of foreigners, including diplomats and aid workers, and countries are working to evacuate their nationals.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Russia's Medvedev warns Moscow will scrap grain deal if G7 bans exports

Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said on Sunday that if the G7 moved to ban exports to Russia, Moscow would respond by terminating the Black Sea Grain deal that enables vital exports of grain from Ukraine. The Group of Seven (G7) countries are considering a near-total ban on exports to Russia, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported last week, citing Japanese government sources. Russia has repeatedly threatened to scrap its participation in the grain deal, which is due to expire on May 18.

Serbs in north Kosovo boycott local elections

Serbs in northern Kosovo boycotted local elections on Sunday in protest that their demands for more autonomy have not been met, in another sign that a peace deal signed between Kosovo and Serbia last month is not working. The main political party in Serb-dominated northern Kosovo, Serbian List, called on Friday on the Serb community not to vote on Sunday.

India home minister challenges account of 2019 deadly attack on military convoy

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has nothing to hide concerning a deadly attack on a military convoy in Kashmir in 2019, India's home minister said. Earlier this month, Satya Pal Malik, the then-Jammu and Kashmir governor, alleged that paramilitary personnel were denied air transport and were made to travel by road amid intelligence failures to detect a threat.

Foreign states rush to evacuate from Sudan, US and UK pull out diplomats

The United States and the United Kingdom said their armed forces helped staff from both embassies get out of Sudan, but evacuations by some other countries faced problems on Sunday as rival military factions battled in the capital Khartoum. The eruption of fighting eight days ago between the army and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group has triggered a humanitarian crisis, killed 400 people and trapped many thousands of civilians in their homes.

Son of Vladimir Putin's spokesman says he served with Wagner in Ukraine

The son of Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman said in an interview published on Saturday that he had served in Ukraine under an assumed name as an artilleryman in the Wagner mercenary force, the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper reported. Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine has triggered one of the deadliest European conflicts since World War Two and the biggest confrontation between Moscow and the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.

Israelis protest planned judicial overhaul ahead of 75th independence day

Tens of thousands of Israelis joined protests on Saturday against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plans to tighten controls on the Supreme Court, ahead of Israel's independence day marking 75 years since establishment of the Jewish state. The plans were paused last month in the face of a wave of strikes and mass demonstrations. The latest protests against them come as Israelis are set to mark both Israeli independence day and Israeli memorial day, which commemorates those killed in Israel's wars and in terror attacks.

Russia says it has gained more ground in battle for Bakhmut

Russia's defence ministry on Sunday said its forces had captured more territory in Bakhmut as they pursue their bid to seize full control of the city. The battle for Bakhmut has turned into one of the bloodiest of the 14-month war, with the Eastern Ukrainian city almost completely destroyed by artillery shelling and urban combat.

Indian police arrest Sikh separatist after month-long hunt

Indian police have arrested Sikh separatist Amritpal Singh after searching for him for more than a month, a state police official said on Sunday, a move against the revival of an independent homeland in the state of Punjab bordering Pakistan. The rise of Singh, a preacher in the northwestern state of Punjab where Sikhs are in the majority, has revived talk of an independent Sikh homeland and stoked fears of a return to violence that killed tens of thousands of people in the 1980s and early 1990s during a Sikh insurgency.

Paris, Kyiv, Baltic states dismayed after China envoy questions Ukraine sovereignty

France, Ukraine and the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania expressed dismay after China's ambassador in Paris questioned the sovereignty of former Soviet countries like Ukraine. Asked about his position on whether Crimea is part of Ukraine or not, Chinese ambassador Lu Shaye said in an interview aired on French television on Friday that historically it was part of Russia and had been offered to Ukraine by former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.

Factbox-The status of foreign states' Sudan evacuation efforts

Sudan's sudden slide into conflict between the army and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group has stranded thousands of foreigners, including diplomats and aid workers, and countries are working to evacuate their nationals. Several evacuation efforts appear to be via Port Sudan on the Red Sea, which is directly located about 650 km (400 miles) northeast of Khartoum, but is about 800 km (500 miles) by road.