World News Roundup: Japan PM Kishida's approval hits new low after ministers resign; Kremlin defends Russian-led security alliance after Armenia criticism and more

The wave of civil disobedience, which has included protests in cities including Beijing and Urumqi, where the fire occurred, is unprecedented in mainland China since Xi Jinping assumed power a decade ago. Niece of Iran's Supreme Leader urges world to cut ties with Tehran over unrest - online video Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's niece, a well known rights activist, has called on foreign governments to cut all ties with Tehran over its violent crackdown on popular unrest kindled by the death in police custody of a young woman.


Devdiscourse News Desk | Updated: 27-11-2022 18:47 IST | Created: 27-11-2022 18:28 IST
World News Roundup: Japan PM Kishida's approval hits new low after ministers resign; Kremlin defends Russian-led security alliance after Armenia criticism and more
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. (Photo Credit - Reuters) Image Credit: ANI

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Japan PM Kishida's approval hits new low after ministers resign

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's public support slipped to a new low in a poll published on Sunday, as a series of cabinet resignations has compounded anger over the ruling party's ties to a controversial religious group. Support for Kishida's cabinet fell to 33.1% from 37.6% a month ago in the Kyodo news poll, his lowest in the agency's surveys since he took office in October 2021. It found disapproval at 51.6%, exceeding 50% for the first time.

Kremlin defends Russian-led security alliance after Armenia criticism

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Sunday said attempts to break up a Russian-led security alliance had always existed and would continue to do so, but insisted that the alliance remained in high demand following criticism this week from Armenia. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan called into question the effectiveness of the six-nation Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) at a summit this week.

Protests in Shanghai and Beijing as anger over China's COVID curbs mounts

Crowds of demonstrators in Shanghai shouted and held up blank sheets of papers early on Sunday evening, as protests flared in China against heavy COVID-19 curbs following a deadly fire in the country's far west sparked widespread anger. The wave of civil disobedience, which has included protests in cities including Beijing and Urumqi, where the fire occurred, is unprecedented in mainland China since Xi Jinping assumed power a decade ago.

Niece of Iran's Supreme Leader urges world to cut ties with Tehran over unrest - online video

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's niece, a well-known rights activist, has called on foreign governments to cut all ties with Tehran over its violent crackdown on popular unrest kindled by the death in police custody of a young woman. A video of a statement by Farideh Moradkhani, an engineer whose late father was a prominent opposition figure married to Khamenei's sister, was being widely shared online after what activist news agency HRANA said was her arrest on Nov. 23.

Attention turns to the presidential poll after Taiwan ruling party thrashed

Attention is turning to Taiwan's next presidential election in 2024 after the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was thrashed at local elections on Saturday, with President Tsai Ing-wen's move to focus on China backfiring with voters. The main opposition party the Kuomintang, or KMT, romped to victory in the mayoral and county elections, winning 13 of the 21 seats up for grabs, including the wealthy and cosmopolitan capital Taipei, in line with expectations.

Blank sheets of paper become symbol of defiance in China protests

Chinese protesters have turned to blank sheets of paper to express their anger over COVID-19 restrictions in a rare, widespread outpouring of public dissent that has gone beyond social media to some of China's streets and top universities. Images and videos circulated online showed students at universities in cities including Nanjing and Beijing holding up blank sheets of paper in silent protest, a tactic used in part to evade censorship or arrest.

Israel's Ben-Gvir, in leaked audio, cautious on far-right agenda in government

A far-rightist on track to take a key post in Israel's incoming government has warned supporters not to try to move too quickly with his agenda, cautioning in a recording leaked on Sunday that some planned legislation could backfire against them. Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu last week promised Jewish Power leader Itamar Ben-Gvir a post as security minister with expanded powers over police in Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Snowy Kyiv grapples with power outages amid fears of new attacks

Snow fell in Kyiv and temperatures hovered around freezing on Sunday as millions in and around the Ukrainian capital struggled with disruptions to electricity supply and central heating caused by waves of Russian air strikes. The cold weather is gradually pushing up the energy needs of consumers even as repair workers race to fix wrecked power facilities, grid operator Ukrenergo said.

U.S. Supreme Court to weigh Cuomo-era New York corruption cases

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday will consider a pair of cases that could make it harder to pursue public corruption prosecutions - bids by an ex-aide to Democratic former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and a businessman to reverse bribery and fraud convictions. The justices are set to hear arguments in the appeals by Joseph Percoco and Louis Ciminelli, who were charged in related cases in 2016 as part of a corruption crackdown by federal prosecutors in Manhattan centered on the halls of the state capital of Albany.

Kim Jong Un says North Korea aims to have the world's strongest nuclear force

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his country's intends to have the world's most powerful nuclear force as he promoted dozens of military officers involved in the recent launch of a new ballistic missile, state media reported on Sunday. The announcement comes after Kim inspected a Nov. 18 test of the Hwasong-17, North Korea's largest intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and pledged to counter what he called U.S. nuclear threats.

(With inputs from agencies.)

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