Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Heavy Rio de Janeiro rains kill at least 11 people

Heavy rains that buffeted Brazil's Rio de Janeiro state this weekend have killed at least 11 people, according to the state fire service. The rains flooded streets, the capital city's metro line and peoples' homes, bringing down trees and causing landslides.

Fierce fighting in Gaza as war hits 100 days

Israeli tanks and aircraft hit targets in southern and central Gaza on Sunday and there were fierce gun battles in some areas as the war reached 100 days since the Oct. 7 attack led by gunmen from the Islamist Hamas movement. Communications and internet services were down for the third day running, complicating the work of emergency and ambulance crews trying to help people in areas hit by fighting.

Tractors converge on Berlin for farmers' protest

Farmers and their tractors rumbled towards Berlin from every corner of Germany on Sunday ahead of a giant protest demanding a rethink of plans to tax farmers more. Some 3,000 tractors, 2,000 trucks and 10,000 people were expected to fill the streets around Berlin's Brandenburg Gate on Monday for a rally that will cap a week of protests against the government.

Taiwan's new president faces 'tough' time with China pressure, no parliament majority

Taiwan's president-elect Lai Ching-te could face a tough four years in office with no parliamentary majority, an opposition which wanted to re-start a vexed service trade deal with China and the ever present threat of military action from Beijing. Lai, from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), won on Saturday by a comfortable margin though with less than half the vote but his party lost control of parliament on which Lai will have to rely to pass legislation and spending.

Volcano erupts in Iceland, flowing lava reaches fishing town

A volcano erupted in southwest Iceland on Sunday, with molten lava flows reaching the outskirts of a small fishing town by midafternoon, setting some houses alight, although the town was evacuated earlier and no people were in danger, authorities said. Fountains of molten rock and smoke spewed from fissures in the ground across a wide area stretching to the town of Grindavik, where at least one house had caught fire, live video published by daily Morgunbladid showed.

Global community urges inauguration of Guatemala's Arevalo amid delay

Tensions were rising on Sunday as the inauguration of Guatemalan President-elect Bernardo Arevalo was delayed without explanation and delegations for countries present for the event and a U.S. official called for the process to be respected. Demonstrators pushed through barricades and were threatening to storm Guatemala's Congress after the unexplained delay to first induct Congressional lawmakers Sunday morning. By the time Arevalo's planned inauguration was due to begin at 3 p.m. local time, the first session still had not started.

Guided missile kills Israeli woman, son near Lebanon border

A guided missile launched from Lebanon killed a 76-year-old woman and her son in a village in northern Israel on Sunday, medical officials said, hours after the Israeli military said it killed four heavily armed militants trying to enter from Lebanon. Fighting between Israel and Lebanon's Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement has surged in parallel with Israel's more than three-month-old Gaza war against Palestinian Hamas, another ally of Tehran.

Nicaragua expels Catholic Bishop Alvarez, priests amid crackdown

Nicaragua said it expelled 19 clergymen to the Vatican on Sunday, including Catholic Bishop Rolando Alvarez, a prominent critic of President Daniel Ortega. Bishop Isidoro Mora, 15 priests and two seminarians who were detained in Nicaragua were also expelled.

Ukraine says China needed for peace process after Davos meeting

China needs to be involved in talks to end the war with Russia, Ukraine's top representative said after a high-level diplomatic meeting ahead of the World Economic Forum in Switzerland. Ukraine's presidential chief of staff Andriy Yermak said on Sunday it was important that Russian ally China was at the table when Kyiv convenes further meetings on its peace formula.

North Korea says it tested solid-fuel hypersonic missile

North Korea on Sunday tested a new solid-fuel hypersonic missile with intermediate range, state news agency KNCA reported on Monday, adding it did not pose a security threat to neighbouring countries. The launch was aimed at testing the reliability of new multi-stage, high-thrust solid-fuel engines and an intermediate-range hypersonic maneuverable controlled warhead, according to KCNA.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)