Reuters World News Summary

Oman issues new laws on succession, parliament Oman's Sultan on Monday issued a new basic law for the country to organize power succession and the naming of a crown prince, and a new law for the parliament, state media said. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the change on Saturday, in the waning days of the Republican Trump administration before Democrat Joe Biden assumes the presidency on Jan. 20.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs. Not 'up to the job', Labour leader renews criticism of UK PM

British Labour leader Keir Starmer criticised Boris Johnson on Monday for repeatedly failing to take quick decisions to fight the novel coronavirus and called on the prime minister to do more to relieve the financial burden on people. With Britain suffering from one of the highest rates of COVID deaths in the world and struggling to reduce a spiralling increase in the number of cases, Starmer renewed his criticism of Johnson by saying he "simply isn't up to the job". Indonesian air crash investigator says crashed jet possibly ruptured when hitting waters

An investigator with Indonesia's National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT) said the Sriwijaya Air jet that crashed into the Java Sea with 62 people on board over the weekend possibly broke apart when it hit waters based on debris found so far. "We don't know for sure, but if we look at the debris, they're scattered in an area that is not too wide," Nurcahyo Utomo told Reuters on Monday. Facebook takes down Ugandan accounts ahead of election

Facebook has taken down a network in Uganda linked to the country's ministry of information for using fake and duplicate accounts to post ahead of this week's presidential election, the U.S. social media giant said on Monday. Ugandans vote on Thursday in a presidential election pitting long-time leader Yoweri Museveni against 10 candidates including opposition frontrunner Bobi Wine, a singer-turned-lawmaker whose star power has rattled the ruling party. Oman issues new laws on succession, parliament

Oman's Sultan on Monday issued a new basic law for the country to organize power succession and the naming of a crown prince, and a new law for the parliament, state media said. Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said took power a year ago after the death of his predecessor, who did not have a crown prince. The new basic law guarantees more rights and freedoms for citizens, state news agency ONA said. Netanyahu orders advancement of West Bank settler housing projects

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered on Monday that plans be advanced to construct some 800 homes for Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank, an official statement said. The announcement was widely expected ahead of the Jan. 20 inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden, who unlike outgoing President Donald Trump, has been critical of Israeli settlement policies in the past. U.S. plans to designate Yemen's Houthi movement as foreign terrorist group

The United States plans to designate Yemen's Houthi movement as a foreign terrorist organization, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, a move that diplomats and aid groups worry could threaten peace talks and complicate efforts to combat the world's largest humanitarian crisis. The decision to blacklist the Iran-aligned group, first reported by Reuters hours earlier, comes as the administration of President-elect Joe Biden prepares to take over from the Trump administration on Jan. 20. Pope, in new decree, allows more roles for women in Church

Pope Francis, in another step towards greater equality for women in the Roman Catholic Church, on Monday changed its law to formally allow them to serve as readers at liturgies, altar servers and distributors of communion. In a decree, the pope formalised what already has been happening in many developed countries for years. But by introducing the change in the Code of Canon Law, it will be impossible for conservative bishops to block women in their diocese from having those roles. Gorbachev expects Biden to extend last Cold War arms deal, but says more needed

Mikhail Gorbachev, the last Soviet leader, said he expects U.S. President-elect Joe Biden to extend the last major nuclear arms control treaty between Moscow and Washington when it expires next month, but that the two countries have much more to do. In an interview with Russia's RIA news agency published on Monday, Gorbachev, 89, said he was counting on Biden, whom he said he had met many times, to extend the New START treaty. China condemns U.S. as Taiwan welcomes lifting of curbs on ties

China condemned the United States on Monday for scrapping curbs on interactions with Taiwan officials, saying nobody could prevent the country's "re-unification", while Taiwan's foreign minister hailed the U.S. move as a sign of "global partnership". U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the change on Saturday, in the waning days of the Republican Trump administration before Democrat Joe Biden assumes the presidency on Jan. 20. Steinmetz trial on corruption charges opens in Geneva

Israeli billionaire Beny Steinmetz went on trial in a Geneva court on Monday on corruption and forgery charges linked to mining concessions in the West African nation of Guinea. Steinmetz was indicted in August 2019 by a Geneva prosecutor who accused him and two aides of paying or having $10 million in bribes paid to obtain exploration permits for some of the world's richest iron-ore deposits.