World News Roundup: Taliban appoint hardline battlefield commanders to key Afghan posts; Russia was behind Litvinenko assassination, European court finds and more

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Taliban appoint hardline battlefield commanders to key Afghan posts

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers announced several senior appointments on Tuesday, naming two veteran battlefield commanders from the movement's southern heartlands as deputies in important ministries. Main Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said Mullah Abdul Qayyum Zakir will be deputy defense minister, while Sadr Ibrahim was named deputy minister for the interior. Both men had been expected to take major positions in the new government but neither was named in the main list of ministers announced this month.

Russia was behind Litvinenko assassination, European court finds

The European Court of Human Rights found on Tuesday that Russia was responsible for the assassination of ex-KGB officer Alexander Litvinenko, who died an agonising death in 2006 after being poisoned in London with a rare radioactive substance. Litvinenko, a defector who had become a vocal critic of the Kremlin, died three weeks after drinking green tea laced with polonium-210 at a plush London hotel.

Australian documents showed French submarine project was at risk for years

France shouldn't have been surprised that Australia cancelled a submarine contract, as major concerns about delays, cost overruns and suitability had been aired officially and publicly for years, Australian politicians said. Paris has recalled its ambassadors from Canberra and Washington, saying it was blindsided by Canberra's decision to build nuclear-powered submarines with the U.S. and Britain rather than stick with its contract for French diesel submarines.

Germans shocked by killing of cashier after COVID mask row

German politicians expressed shock on Tuesday over the killing of a 20-year old petrol station worker after an argument about a face mask and said that coronavirus deniers who are willing to use violence will not be tolerated. The killing on Saturday evening in the western town of Idar-Oberstein has hit the national headlines as it is one of the only such cases linked to COVID-19 restrictions.

Canada's Trudeau vows cooperation with opponents after bid for majority fails

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday acknowledged he will need to work with other parties after he fell short of winning a majority in parliamentary elections, leaving him once more dependent on opposition legislators to govern. Trudeau, 49, was re-elected to a third term on Monday after calling a vote two years early, hoping for approval of his free-spending response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since 2019 he had been working with a minority, forced to make deals with other parties to push through legislation.

German Social Democrats' lead narrows days before election

Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) saw their lead over Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives narrow in a poll published on Tuesday, pointing to a tightening race just five days before a federal election. The SPD, whose candidate for chancellor Olaf Scholz is currently vice chancellor and finance minister in Merkel's grand coalition, remained stable at 25%, according to the Forsa poll for RTL/n-tv television.

Sudan says coup thwarted, accuses Bashir loyalists

Sudanese authorities said they had foiled an attempted coup on Tuesday, accusing loyalists of ousted president Omar al-Bashir of trying but failing to undermine the revolution that removed him from power in 2019 and ushered in a transition to democracy. The attempted coup was planned by people inside and outside the military establishment, leading to the first arrests of those in the midst of such a plot, Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said in a televised statement.

'This is a prison': Mexico struggles to hold migrants far from U.S. border

A bid by Mexico to contain thousands of migrants on its southern border with Guatemala has created a major humanitarian headache https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/mexico-condemns-violent-actions-by-migration-agents-caught-video-2021-08-30 for President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, and failed to prevent many from reaching the U.S. border en masse. Desperate for work, fleeing poverty or violence, the Central Americans, Haitians and South Americans stuck in limbo in the southern city of Tapachula have staged protests and launched repeated attempts to break out in migrant caravans.

More evacuations as lava gushes from Canaries volcano

Lava gushing from the Canary Islands' first volcanic eruption on land in 50 years has forced authorities to evacuate another part of El Paso municipality on the island of La Palma and to urge sightseers attracted by the phenomenon to stay away.

People from the neighbourhood of Tacande Alto were evacuated late Monday and early Tuesday after a new stream of lava started flowing from another crack on the slope of the Cumbre Viejo volcano, El Paso's mayor Sergio Rodriguez told state broadcaster TVE.

The third man: UK charges another Russian for nerve attack on double agent

British police said on Tuesday a third Russian had been charged in absentia with the 2018 Novichok murder attempt on former double agent Sergei Skripal, saying they could also now confirm the three suspects were military intelligence operatives. The attack on Skripal, who sold Russian secrets to Britain, caused one of the biggest rows between Russia and the West since the Cold War, leading to the tit-for-tat expulsion of dozens of diplomats after Britain pointed the finger of blame at Moscow.