Reuters World News Summary

In a small hamlet west of Soledar, a town to the north of Bakhmut now under Russian control, troops from an anti-aircraft unit in Ukraine's 10th Mountain Assault Brigade were planning to use drones to attack Russian positions. Argentina court jails two in landmark femicide retrial An Argentina court on Thursday convicted two men for the rape and murder of 16-year-old Lucia Perez in 2016, a case that has become emblematic of a movement to fight back against violence against women and girls in the region.


Reuters | Updated: 24-03-2023 05:23 IST | Created: 24-03-2023 05:23 IST
Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Ukrainians say Russian drones pose growing threat, more Stingers needed

Russian forces are increasingly using drones in aerial battles over the fiercely contested city of Bakhmut, but the threat of fighter jets and helicopters remains and more Western weapons are needed to counter them, Ukrainian soldiers said. In a small hamlet west of Soledar, a town to the north of Bakhmut now under Russian control, troops from an anti-aircraft unit in Ukraine's 10th Mountain Assault Brigade were planning to use drones to attack Russian positions.

Argentina court jails two in landmark femicide retrial

An Argentina court on Thursday convicted two men for the rape and murder of 16-year-old Lucia Perez in 2016, a case that has become emblematic of a movement to fight back against violence against women and girls in the region. Perez's murder in Mar del Plata ignited widespread anger in Argentina, becoming a symbol of the Ni Una Menos (Not One Less) movement to demand action on femicide. The movement began in Argentina in 2015 and has spread through Latin America, where at least 4,473 women were murdered in 2021, according to the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean.

U.S. aims for over $7 billion in aid for 20-year Pacific islands compacts

President Joe Biden's administration is seeking more than $7 billion over the next two decades for economic assistance to three Pacific island countries, a State Department official said on Thursday, funds seen as key to insulating the U.S. allies from growing Chinese government influence. Washington said earlier this year it had reached consensus with the Marshall Islands, Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) on terms of U.S. economic assistance in talks to renew Compacts of Free Association, or COFAs, but had not provided details.

Violence hits France in day of anger over Macron's pension changes

Police fired tear gas and fought with violent black-clad anarchists in Paris and across France on Thursday as hundreds of thousands of protesters marched against President Emmanuel Macron's plan to raise the pension age. The ninth day of nationwide protests, mostly peaceful, disrupted train and air travel. Teachers were among many professions to walk off the job, days after the government pushed through legislation to raise the retirement age by two years to 64.

North Korea says it has tested new nuclear-capable underwater attack drone

North Korea has tested a new nuclear-capable underwater attack drone that can generate a radioactive tsunami, state media reported on Friday, as it blamed joint military drills by South Korea and the U.S. for raising tensions in the region. During the drill, the new North Korean drone cruised underwater at a depth of 80 to 150 metres (260-500 feet) for over 59 hours and detonated in waters off its east coast on Thursday, North Korean state news agency KCNA said.

Current funding for Ukraine should last for much of the year - Blinken

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reassured members of Congress on Thursday that the billions of dollars already approved for Ukraine should last for much of the year, and insisted that measures were in place to ensure it is well spent.

"I have 45 people at our embassy in Ukraine whose job is to oversee the expenditure of these monies," Blinken told a House of Representatives Appropriations subcommittee at a hearing focused on the State Department budget request.

Netanyahu summons Israeli defence minister as judicial overhaul strains coalition

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu summoned his defence chief on Thursday after reports the minister wanted to halt the government's judicial overhaul plans, as cracks opened in the ruling coalition over the bitterly disputed project. A planned statement by Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, whom Israeli media said wanted to call for a stop to the plans in the name of maintaining order in military ranks, was shelved after he was summoned by the prime minister's office.

Manhattan DA: Trump created false expectation of arrest, Republicans interfered

Manhattan prosecutors on Thursday said Donald Trump misled people to expect he would be arrested this week and prompted fellow Republicans in Congress to interfere with a probe under way into his hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels. On Saturday, the former president said he would be arrested on Tuesday in the probe by the Manhattan District Attorney's office.

Ukraine says Russia's Bakhmut assault loses steam, counterstrike coming soon

Ukrainian troops, on the defensive for four months, will launch a long-awaited counterassault "very soon" now that Russia's huge winter offensive is losing steam without taking Bakhmut, Ukraine's top ground forces commander said on Thursday.

The remarks were the strongest indication yet from Kyiv that it is close to shifting tactics, having absorbed Russia's onslaught through a brutal winter.

TikTok attacked for China ties as US lawmakers push for ban

U.S. lawmakers on Thursday battered TikTok's chief executive about potential Chinese influence over the platform and said its short videos were damaging children's mental health, reflecting bipartisan concerns over the app's power over Americans. CEO Shou Zi Chew's testimony before Congress did little to assuage U.S. worries over TikTok's China-based parent company ByteDance and added fresh momentum to lawmakers' calls to ban the platform nationwide.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Give Feedback