Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs. Exclusive: U.S. preparing criminal indictment against wife of Venezuela's Maduro - sources

The United States is preparing to charge the wife of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in coming months with crimes that could include drug trafficking and corruption, four people familiar with the case told Reuters. If Washington goes ahead with an indictment of first lady Cilia Flores, these people said, the charges are expected to stem, at least in part, from a thwarted cocaine transaction that has already landed two of her nephews in a Florida penitentiary. Legendary Mexican beach resort Acapulco upended by coronavirus

Intensive care units in the Mexican beach resort of Acapulco are close to capacity as the coronavirus threatens to overwhelm hospitals and leaves local authorities scrambling to dig more graves. Best known for its beaches, sunshine, and cliff divers, Acapulco is fast becoming a hotspot for Mexico's escalating COVID-19 outbreak. Special Report: U.S. takes aim at the power behind Venezuela's Maduro - his first lady

Four years ago, a bit player in the Venezuelan leadership was arrested in Colombia and extradited to the United States to face drug charges. He proved to be an important catch. The man, Yazenky Lamas, worked as a bodyguard for the person widely considered the power behind President Nicolas Maduro's throne: first lady Cilia Flores. UK PM Johnson to go to Brussels next month for Brexit talks: The Times

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will resume Brexit talks in Brussels next month, the Times newspaper reported on Thursday. Brazil coronavirus death toll above 25,000, more than 410,000 cases

Brazil's death toll from COVID-19 surpassed 25,000 people on Wednesday, at 25,598, the Health Ministry said. Deaths from the disease caused by the coronavirus over the last 24 hours were 1,086. The number of cases rose by 20,599, reaching 411,821 confirmed cases of infection by the novel coronavirus, according to the ministry. U.S. to end sanctions waivers allowing some work at Iran nuclear sites

The United States said on Wednesday it will terminate sanctions waivers that had allowed Russian, Chinese and European companies to carry out work originally designed to make it harder for Iranian nuclear sites to be used for weapons development. The waivers, which officials said expire on July 27, covered the conversion of Iran's Arak heavy water research reactor, the provision of enriched uranium for its Tehran Research Reactor and the transfer of spent and scrap reactor fuel abroad. U.S. weighs options 'across the spectrum' to punish China over Hong Kong

The Trump administration is crafting a range of options to punish China over its tightening grip on Hong Kong, including targeted sanctions, new tariffs and further restrictions on Chinese companies, according to U.S. officials and people familiar with the discussions. Such moves could mark the opening salvoes of the U.S. response as President Donald Trump weighs how far he is prepared to go after the State Department’s assessment on Wednesday that Hong Kong is no longer autonomous enough from Beijing to deserve special treatment https://www.reuters.com/article/us-hongkong-protests/pompeo-says-hong-kong-no-longer-warrants-special-u-s-treatment-idUSKBN233053 under U.S. law that helped make it a global financial hub. Hong Kong no longer deserves special U.S. status, Pompeo says

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Congress on Wednesday that Hong Kong no longer qualifies for its special status under U.S. law, potentially dealing a crushing blow to its status as a major financial hub. China had undermined Hong Kong's autonomy so fundamentally, Pompeo said, that he could not support its recertification for its special pre-1997 trading status. Huawei CFO Meng loses key court fight against extradition to United States

Huawei Technologies Co's Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou was dealt a setback by a Canadian court on Wednesday as she tries to avoid extradition to the United States to face bank fraud charges, dashing hopes for an end to her 18-month house arrest in Vancouver. The ruling, which could further deteriorate relations between Ottawa and Beijing, elicited immediate strong reaction from China's embassy in Canada, which said Canada is "accomplice to United States efforts to bring down Huawei and Chinese high-tech companies." U.S. House backs bill to pressure China over Uighur rights

The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday backed legislation calling on President Donald Trump's administration to impose sanctions on Chinese officials responsible for the oppression of the country's Uighur Muslim minority. The tally was 413 in favor, and just one opposed. Since the legislation has passed the Senate, approval sent the bill to the White House where congressional aides said they expected Trump would sign it into law.