World News Roundup: EU tells members to cut gas usage amid new Putin warning; Madrid street-sweepers death prompts curbs on heatwave working hours and more

Uncertainty swirled meanwhile over the planned restart on Thursday of a huge Russian gas pipeline to Europe, as Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that its capacity could be further reduced due to slow progress in equipment maintenance. Wildfires rage across Europe as climate alarm sounded Emergency services battled wildfires across swathes of southern Europe amid mass evacuations on Wednesday, as warnings sounded in London after Britain's hottest day that the fight against climate change needed to be stepped up.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

EU tells members to cut gas usage amid new Putin warning

The European Union told member states on Wednesday to cut gas usage by 15% until March as part of an emergency plan after President Vladimir Putin warned that Russian supplies sent via the biggest pipeline to Europe could be reduced further. Deliveries via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which accounts for more than a third of Russian gas exports to the EU, are due to resume on Thursday after a 10-day halt for annual maintenance.

Madrid street-sweepers death prompts curbs on heatwave working hours

The death of a Madrid street-sweeper from heat stroke has prompted companies providing the service in the Spanish capital to adopt measures including halting work during heatwaves, the Madrid mayor announced. José Antonio Gonzalez, 60, died on Saturday after collapsing at work the previous day. Emergency services said his body temperature was close to 42 degrees Celsius and he died from heat stroke in hospital.

Sri Lanka gets new president in Wickremesinghe, protests muted

Sri Lankan lawmakers voted in acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe as the new president on Wednesday, hoping his long experience in government would help pull the country out of a crippling economic and political crisis. The six-time prime minister garnered 134 votes in the 225-member parliament, despite public anger with the ruling elite after months of severe shortages of fuel, food and medicines.

Russia pounds Ukraine as uncertainty swirls over gas pipeline restart

Russian forces shelled eastern and southern Ukraine on Wednesday after Washington said it saw signs Moscow was preparing to formally annex territory it has seized during nearly five months of war. Uncertainty swirled meanwhile over the planned restart on Thursday of a huge Russian gas pipeline to Europe, as Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that its capacity could be further reduced due to slow progress in equipment maintenance.

Wildfires rage across Europe as climate alarm sounded

Emergency services battled wildfires across swathes of southern Europe amid mass evacuations on Wednesday, as warnings sounded in London after Britain's hottest day that the fight against climate change needed to be stepped up. A blaze fuelled by gale-force winds raged in mountains north of Athens, forcing hundreds including hospital patients to evacuate, and similar numbers fled in central Italy as gas tanks caught in a forest fire near the Tuscan town of Lucca exploded.

UN report highlights hundreds of rights violations in Afghanistan

The United Nations mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said on Wednesday that the ruling Taliban were responsible for extrajudicial killings, torture, arbitrary arrests, and inhumane punishments in the 10 months since they seized power. A UNAMA report said the violations were targeted at a number of groups, including those associated with the ousted government, human rights defenders and journalists. Women's rights had also been eroded, it said.

Britain's divisive leadership race to reach final two

The final two in the race to replace British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will be selected on Wednesday, the penultimate chapter in a divisive battle that is too close to call between the three remaining candidates. The former finance minister Rishi Sunak, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and junior trade minister Penny Mordaunt remain in the contest with the field to be narrowed down to two at 4 p.m. (1500 GMT) following a vote by Conservative Party lawmakers.

Lavrov says Russia's aims in Ukraine now go beyond Donbas

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that Moscow's military "tasks" in Ukraine now went beyond the eastern Donbas region, in the clearest acknowledgment yet that its war goals have expanded in the past five months. In an interview with state news agency RIA Novosti, Lavrov said geographical realities had changed since Russian and Ukrainian negotiators held peace talks in Turkey in late March that failed to produce any breakthrough.

India court orders release on bail of journalist over 'provocative' tweet

India's Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered the release on bail of a prominent journalist arrested last month over what police said was a "highly provocative" 2018 tweet aimed at straining ties between majority Hindus and minority Muslims. Mohammed Zubair, a co-founder of fact-checking website Alt News and vocal critic of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was arrested after an anonymous Twitter user lodged a complaint over the four-year-old post.

Draghi demands party unity as a condition for staying on as Italian pm

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi on Wednesday demanded unity among his coalition partners if they wanted him to stay in office, leaving his resignation threat hanging over parliament. Draghi set out a series of issues facing Italy ranging from the war in Ukraine to social inequality and rising prices, and said political parties needed to get behind him if he was to steer the country to elections due in the first half of 2023.