Reuters World News Summary

Berlusconi, 84, exited via a side entrance and was not seen by photographers and cameramen waiting outside the main doors. Israel destroys Gaza tower housing AP and Al Jazeera offices Israel destroyed a 12-storey tower block in Gaza housing the offices of the U.S.-based Associated Press and other news media on Saturday, saying the building was also used by the Islamist militant group Hamas.


Reuters | Updated: 16-05-2021 05:22 IST | Created: 16-05-2021 05:22 IST
Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Chileans head to polls to pick architects of new constitution

Chileans began to vote on Saturday in a mega-election in which they will pick mayors, governors, councillors and critically, the 155 men and women who will draft the country's next constitution. Changing the constitution was a central demand to emerge from fierce social protests that erupted over inequality and elitism in October 2019.

Ecuador indigenous protestors block access to Petroecuador oil field

An indigenous community in Ecuador's Amazon region is blocking access to one of state oil company Petroecuador's main fields in a protest over compensation, prompting the company to request help from the armed forces to deliver supplies. In a statement on Saturday, Petroecuador said the protest has left it unable to send supplies needed to maintain operations at Block 12 in Orellana province, with production of some 28,500 barrels per day (bpd). The zone is also home to processing plants for crude oil from two other key areas, Block 31 and 43-ITT.

Israel bombs Hamas Gaza chief's home as fighting enters seventh day

Israel bombed the home of Hamas's chief in Gaza early on Sunday and the Islamist group fired rocket barrages at Tel Aviv as hostilities stretched into a seventh day with no sign of abating. At least three Palestinians were killed in Israeli air strikes across the coastal enclave, health officials said, and many were injured as the sounds of heavy bombardment roared through the night.

Biden makes first call to Abbas amid Israel-Gaza fighting

U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday held his first phone call with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas since taking office, amid heavy fighting between Israel and Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip. Biden has dispatched an envoy to try to quell the violence that has killed dozens in Gaza and at least 10 in Israel, but U.S., regional and international efforts have yet to show any signs of progress.

Former Italian PM Berlusconi slips out of hospital unseen

Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has left Milan's San Raffaele hospital after a five-day stay, a spokesman for his Forza Italia (Go Italy!) party said on Saturday. Berlusconi, 84, exited via a side entrance and was not seen by photographers and cameramen waiting outside the main doors.

Israel destroys Gaza tower housing AP and Al Jazeera offices

Israel destroyed a 12-storey tower block in Gaza housing the offices of the U.S.-based Associated Press and other news media on Saturday, saying the building was also used by the Islamist militant group Hamas. The al-Jalaa building in Gaza City, which also houses the offices of Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera as well as other offices and apartments, had been evacuated after the owner received advanced warning of the strike.

U.S. envoy wants pope to attend climate conference, sway debate

Pope Francis has the moral authority to sway public opinion over global warming and might attend the United Nations' Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Scotland, U.S. President Joe Biden's climate envoy John Kerry said on Saturday. COP26 is being held in Glasgow in November and could accelerate measures by the world's biggest polluters to tackle climate change, a challenge which activists, scientists and world leaders say could ultimately endanger the planet.

Myanmar army battles anti-coup rebels as armed resistance grows

Myanmar's army battled local militia fighters in the northwestern town of Mindat on Saturday, residents said, to try to quell a rebellion that has sprung up to oppose the junta which seized power in the Southeast Asian country in February. The fighting is some of the heaviest since the coup and underlines the growing chaos as the junta struggles to impose order in the face of daily protests, strikes and sabotage attacks after it overthrew elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Bodies of COVID-19 victims among those dumped in India's Ganges -gov't document

Bodies of COVID-19 victims have been found dumped in some Indian rivers, a state government letter seen by Reuters says, in the first official acknowledgement of the alarming practice, which it said may stem from poverty and fear of the disease in remote areas. Images of corpses drifting down the Ganges river, which is considered holy in Hinduism, have shocked the country, reeling under the world's worst surge in COVID-19 cases.

Peru presidential candidate Castillo rejects claim of false declaration

Peruvian socialist presidential candidate Pedro Castillo on Saturday denied making a false declaration about his work status when he registered to run for high office. On Friday, Lima province prosecutor Elizabeth Figueroa Cortez said in a statement that she had requested an investigation into claims that Castillo had failed to declare a second job.

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

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