World News Roundup: UK PM Johnson loses London strongholds as scandals bite in local elections; Ukraine says new Mariupol evacuation has begun, despite reports of fighting and more

As early results suggested Johnson, a former London mayor, was losing support in southeastern England, his supporters moved in quickly on Friday to say it was not time to oust a leader they said could still "get things done" to help the economy. Ukraine says new Mariupol evacuation has begun, despite reports of fighting Ukraine said a new attempt had begun on Friday to evacuate scores of civilians trapped in a ruined steel works in the city of Mariupol, after bloody fighting with Russian forces thwarted efforts to bring them to safety the previous day.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

UK PM Johnson loses London strongholds as scandals bite in local elections

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Conservative Party lost control of traditional strongholds in London and suffered setbacks elsewhere in local elections, with voters punishing his government over a series of scandals. As early results suggested Johnson, a former London mayor, was losing support in southeastern England, his supporters moved in quickly on Friday to say it was not time to oust a leader they said could still "get things done" to help the economy.

Ukraine says new Mariupol evacuation has begun, despite reports of fighting

Ukraine said a new attempt had begun on Friday to evacuate scores of civilians trapped in ruined steelworks in the city of Mariupol after bloody fighting with Russian forces thwarted efforts to bring them to safety the previous day. Mariupol, a strategic southern port on the Azov Sea, has endured the most destructive siege of the 10-week-old war, and the sprawling Soviet-era Azovstal steel plant is the last part of the city still in the hands of holdout Ukrainian fighters.

Sinn Fein eyes historic Northern Ireland election win

Sinn Fein, the former political wing of the IRA, sought to claim top spot in elections in British-controlled Northern Ireland for the first time on Friday, a historic power shift that could bring the once-remote prospect of a united Ireland closer. Pre-election polls indicated Sinn Fein was set to become the first Irish nationalist party to win the most seats in an election to the regional assembly since the state's creation in 1921. Final results were not expected until late Friday or early Saturday.

French left-wing parties seal coalition deal to take on Macron

France's Socialist Party sealed a deal on Friday to join the French left's first broad coalition pact in 20 years, in a bid to deprive newly re-elected President Emmanuel Macron of a majority in June's parliamentary elections. The pact, which the Greens and Communists already approved earlier this week, sees the eurosceptic, hard-left La France Insoumise (LFI) in the driving seat for the first time, in a deal that is shaking up French politics.

Ukraine's Zelenskiy: Russia thinks it can escape war crime prosecutions because of the nuclear threat

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Friday that Russia thought it could escape prosecutions for war crimes because of the threat of a nuclear attack. "They do not believe that they can be made responsible for the war crimes because they have the power of the nuclear state", Zelenskiy, speaking through a translator, told Britain's Chatham House think tank.

Amnesty says evidence shows Russian troops committed war crimes near Kyiv

Amnesty International said on Friday there was compelling evidence that Russian troops had committed war crimes, including extrajudicial executions of civilians, when they occupied an area outside Ukraine's capital in February and March. Civilians also suffered abuses such as "reckless shootings and torture" at the hands of Russian forces during their failed onslaught on Kyiv in the early stages of the invasion launched by the Kremlin on Feb. 24, the rights group said in a report.

For children who lost a parent, the pandemic pain will never end

Aidan Garza often talks about his dad in the present tense, as if David Garza were still right across the living room, sitting in his favorite chair, calling the 12-year-old over to watch a Star Wars series. As if he had never collapsed while out running errands on Dec. 30, 2020, in Converse, Texas. As if he had never died of COVID, one of the now 1 million Americans to succumb to the pandemic.

Taiwan jets scramble as China's air force enters air defense zone

Taiwan's air force scrambled on Friday to warn away 18 Chinese aircraft that entered its air defense zone, Taiwan's defense ministry said, part of what is a regular pattern of incursions that has angered the government in Taipei. Taiwan, claimed by China as its own territory, has complained of repeated such missions by Chinese aircraft, which have become a common occurrence over the past two years or so.

As Beijing battles outbreak, China warns 'zero COVID' doubters

Beijing residents fretted on Friday about over-tightening COVID curbs in its biggest district and dozens of new cases were reported daily as China's leaders reiterated their resolve to battle the virus and threatened action against critics of their strict measures. Incurring a heavy economic cost and facing rare public criticism on its tightly-policed internet, China is increasingly out of step with the rest of the world where COVID restrictions are being abandoned and vaccines relied on to protect people.

Israel searches for Palestinians suspected of killing 3 in attack

Israeli security forces launched a massive manhunt on Friday for two Palestinians suspected of killing three people in an attack in a central Israeli city, police said. The attack on Thursday night, Israel's Independence Day, is the latest in a recent upsurge of Israeli-Palestinian violence that has raised fears of a slide back to wider conflict.

(With inputs from agencies.)