Reuters World News Summary

Medical experts believe actual numbers may be five to 10 times greater than the official tally, however. Beckham and Dench help to launch Captain Tom fundraising drive The family of Britain's Captain Tom Moore, the World War Two veteran who lifted a nation's spirits during the pandemic, joined forces with David Beckham and Judi Dench to kick off a long weekend of fundraising events on Friday.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Jailed Thai protest leader hospitalized after 46-day hunger strike

Thai protest leader, Parit "Penguin" Chiwarak, who has been in jail for pre-trial detention over allegations he insulted the king, has been hospitalised following a 46-day hunger strike, the country's corrections department said on Friday. Parit began his hunger strike on March 16 and his weight had dropped more than 12 kg (26.5 lb) to 94.5 kg, the statement said, adding he had been sent to hospital over concerns he could go into shock if his condition worsened.

Record number of Chinese to travel over Labour Day break, but stick close to home

A record-breaking wave of Chinese tourists will hit the road for the Labour Day break, and with borders still shut many will be travelling domestically, to more remote locations and for longer, giving China's economy a powerful short-term boost.

The holiday will be China's first long break in largely COVID-free conditions, and will unleash months of pent-up yearning for travel. Millions had missed the chance to go out earlier this year during the long Lunar New Year break due to a domestic coronavirus outbreak.

Russia adds Navalny's regional campaign offices to 'extremism' list

Russia's financial monitoring agency said on Friday it had added jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny's network of regional campaign offices to a list of organisations involved in "terrorism and extremism". Allies of Navalny said on Thursday they were disbanding the network as the authorities sought to ban them.

Canada's parliamentary backlog may serve as trigger for early election

Canada's first budget in two years looks set to join a pile of stalled bills in a Parliament besieged by partisan squabbling, a logjam that could be the trigger Prime Minister Justin Trudeau uses to call an early election. Trudeau's Liberals have a minority of seats in the House of Commons and must rely on other parties to govern. They complain that the Conservatives, the largest opposition party, are blocking key bills as the COVID-19 pandemic still rages.

Scotland's Sturgeon says wouldn't propose independence referendum immediately

Scotland's first minister Nicola Sturgeon said she wouldn't propose a referendum on Scottish independence immediately, as she wants to make sure the country is clear of the coronavirus pandemic first. "I don't believe we should propose a referendum right at this moment," Sturgeon told BBC Radio.

Exclusive-As U.S. prepared exit, Taliban protected foreign bases, but killed Afghans

Taliban fighters have protected western military bases in Afghanistan from attacks by rival, or rogue Islamist groups for over a year under a secret annex to a pact for the withdrawal of all U.S. forces by May 1, three Western officials with knowledge of the agreement told Reuters. The U.S. State Department gave no immediate response to Reuters over the existence of any such document. Nor did it have any immediate comment on what the three officials described as a "Taliban ring of protection".

Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong pleads guilty over June 4 'illegal assembly'

Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong was among four people who pleaded guilty on Friday of participating in an illegal assembly on June 4 last year to commemorate the 1989 crackdown on protesters in and around Beijing's Tiananmen Square. It was the first time the vigil had been banned in the global financial hub, with police citing, as it did for all demonstrations last year, coronavirus restrictions on group gatherings. It is expected to face a similar fate this year.

Crush at Israeli religious festival kills 45

At least 45 people were crushed to death overnight on Friday at an overcrowded religious festival in Israel, with some asphyxiated or trampled victims going unnoticed until the PA system sounded an appeal to disperse. Tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews had thronged to the Galilee tomb of 2nd-century sage Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai for annual Lag B'Omer commemorations that include all-night prayer, mystical songs and dance.

Indian states run out of COVID-19 vaccines, nationwide inoculation delayed

Several Indian states have run out of coronavirus vaccines a day before a planned widening of a nationwide inoculation drive, authorities said on Friday, as new infections surged to another daily record. New cases in the past 24 hours stood at 386,452, while deaths jumped by 3,498, health ministry data show. Medical experts believe actual numbers may be five to 10 times greater than the official tally, however.

Beckham and Dench help to launch Captain Tom fundraising drive

The family of Britain's Captain Tom Moore, the World War Two veteran who lifted a nation's spirits during the pandemic, joined forces with David Beckham and Judi Dench to kick off a long weekend of fundraising events on Friday. Moore, who made headlines around the world by raising nearly 40 million pounds ($56 million) for the National Health Service by walking around his garden with the help of a frame, died in February.