World News Roundup: China widens COVID curbs, iPhone factory unrest adds to economy worries; Seven killed, several wounded in Virginia Walmart shooting and more

"Our team represents our country and our diversity and we as government are of the view that sport can autonomously choose its own means to campaign for values like diversity and tolerance," the spokesperson said at a regular news conference in Berlin. Russia fires missiles across Ukraine to knock out heat as winter looms Russia rained down volleys of missiles across Ukraine on Wednesday, hitting infrastructure in the capital Kyiv and other cities as Moscow pursued its campaign to knock out Ukraine's power and heat ahead of the looming winter.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

China widens COVID curbs, iPhone factory unrest adds to economy worries

Chinese cities imposed more curbs on Wednesday to rein in rising coronavirus cases, adding to investor worries about the economy, as fresh unrest at the world's largest iPhone plant highlighted the social and industrial toll of China's strict COVID-19 measures. In Beijing, malls and parks were shut and once-bustling areas of the capital resembled ghost towns as authorities urged people to stay home.

Seven killed, several wounded in Virginia Walmart shooting

Seven people were killed and several wounded in a shooting at a Walmart in Chesapeake, Virginia, on Tuesday night, authorities said, just days after a gunman killed five and injured 17 at a Colorado LGBTQ nightclub. The city of Chesapeake confirmed the deaths in a tweet early on Wednesday, citing the city police.

Malaysian king calls council of sultans to resolve election crisis

Malaysia's king on Wednesday called a special meeting of his fellow hereditary sultans to discuss who should be prime minister as an unprecedented post-election crisis entered its fourth day. The king is due to pick a new prime minister after the leading contenders - opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim and former premier Muhyiddin Yassin - failed to secure enough support for a majority following a Saturday election that produced an unprecedented hung parliament.

German govt supports footballers' right to expression - spokesperson

The rights of sexual and gender minorities are non-negotiable for the German government, a spokesperson said on Wednesday, saying Berlin regretted that it has not been possible to express this at the World Cup in Qatar. "Our team represents our country and our diversity and we as government are of the view that sport can autonomously choose its own means to campaign for values like diversity and tolerance," the spokesperson said at a regular news conference in Berlin.

Russia fires missiles across Ukraine to knock out heat as winter looms

Russia rained down volleys of missiles across Ukraine on Wednesday, hitting infrastructure in the capital Kyiv and other cities as Moscow pursued its campaign to knock out Ukraine's power and heat ahead of the looming winter. Air raid sirens blared in a countrywide alert. Explosions could be heard on the outskirts of Kyiv, where the mayor said infrastructure had been hit, giving no immediate further details. Blasts were also reported in other cities. Information about casualties was not immediately available.

Some Russian commanders knew of sexual violence or encouraged it, says lawyer advising Kyiv

There is evidence that Russian commanders in several instances were aware of sexual violence by military personnel in Ukraine "and in some cases, encouraging it or even ordering it," according to an international criminal lawyer assisting Kyiv's war crimes investigations. British lawyer Wayne Jordash told Reuters that in some areas around the capital of Kyiv in the north, where the probes are most advanced, some of the sexual violence involved a level of organization by Russian armed forces that "speaks to planning on a more systematic level." He didn't identify specific individuals under scrutiny.

Huge Foxconn iPhone plant in China rocked by fresh worker unrest

Hundreds of workers joined protests at Foxconn's flagship iPhone plant in China, with some men smashing surveillance cameras and windows, footage uploaded on social media showed. The rare scenes of open dissent in China mark an escalation of unrest at the massive factory in Zhengzhou city that has come to symbolize a dangerous build-up in frustration with the country's ultra-harsh COVID rules as well as inept handling of the situation by the world's largest contract manufacturer.

Aftershocks, heavy rain hamper Indonesia earthquake rescuers

Driving rain and the danger of landslides disrupted work of Indonesian rescue workers searching on Wednesday for survivors of an earthquake that killed 271 people, with an official warning that time was running out for anyone trapped in the rubble. Monday's 5.6-magnitude quake caused extensive damage in the town of Cianjur, in mountains about 75 km (45 miles) south of the capital, Jakarta. 40 people remained missing.

European Parliament declares Russia a state sponsor of terrorism

The European Parliament on Wednesday designated Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism, arguing Moscow's military strikes on civilian targets such as energy infrastructure, hospitals, schools and shelters violated international law. European lawmakers voted in favour of a resolution calling Russia a state sponsor of terrorism.

Blow for Scottish nationalists as UK court rejects independence vote bid

The United Kingdom's top court ruled on Wednesday that the Scottish government cannot hold a second referendum on independence without approval from the British parliament, dealing a hammer blow to nationalists' hopes of holding a vote next year. In 2014, Scots rejected ending the more-than 300-year-old union with England by 55% to 45%, but independence campaigners have argued the vote two years later for Britain to leave the European Union, which the majority of Scottish voters opposed, has materially changed the circumstances.