Reuters World News Summary

While Japan is a relatively small player in the space race, the nation's rocket developers are scrambling to build cheaper vehicles to capture booming demand for satellite launches from its government and global clients. Exclusive-US, allies eye commercial maritime option for Gaza aid The U.S. may urge partners and allies to fund a privately run operation to send aid by sea to Gaza that could begin before a much larger U.S. military effort, said three people familiar with the planning and a U.S. official.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

After prime minister pledges to step down, uneasy quiet in Haiti capital

Uncertainty hung over Haiti's political future on Tuesday after its prime minister said he would step down, a move welcomed by many Haitians exhausted by months of escalating gang violence, but with questions over security still to be settled. Prime Minister Ariel Henry, stranded in Puerto Rico, released a recorded video late on Monday night pledging to resign as soon as a transition council and temporary leader could be chosen.

Poland's Tusk says US Republicans may cost 'thousands of lives' over Ukraine vote

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk warned U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday that "the fate of millions of people" and "thousands of lives" depends on whether the Republican allows a vote on $60 billion in military aid to Ukraine. "This is not some political skirmish that (only) matters on the American political scene. Mr Johnson's failure to make a positive decision will cost thousands of lives. He takes personal responsibility for that," Tusk told reporters.

Biden clinches nomination, bruising presidential rematch with Trump looms

President Joe Biden won enough delegates on Tuesday to seal the Democratic Party's nomination, with a face-off against former President Donald Trump looming in what would be the first U.S. presidential election rematch in nearly 70 years. Biden needed 1,968 delegates to win the nomination and Edison Research said he passed that number on Tuesday night as results began to come in from the primary contest in Georgia, ahead of expected results from Mississippi, Washington state, the Northern Mariana Islands and Democrats living abroad.

US to send new weapons package worth $300 million for Ukraine

The United States will send a new military aid package for Ukraine worth $300 million, President Joe Biden's administration said on Tuesday, the first such move in months as additional funds for Kyiv remain blocked by Republican leaders in Congress. The White House has been scrambling to find ways to send more military assistance given the situation on the battlefield and the resistance to the funding from Republican hardliners.

Navalny aide Volkov attacked with hammer in Lithuania

Late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny's long-time aide Leonid Volkov was assaulted with a hammer in the Lithuanian capitol Vilnius on Tuesday, former Navalny spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said. "Volkov has just been attacked outside his house. Someone broke a car window and sprayed tear gas in his eyes, after which the attacker started hitting Leonid with a hammer," she wrote on social media website X.

Analysis-Biden-Netanyahu rift raises questions about US weapons to Israel

A deepening rift between President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Gaza red lines has set up a potential showdown between the two leaders and raised questions about whether the U.S. might restrict military aid if Israel goes ahead with a ground offensive in the south of the enclave. Strains between Biden and Netanyahu have added momentum to discussions within the U.S. administration about how it could use its leverage to convince Israel to do more to facilitate humanitarian relief to Gaza and avoid further heavy Palestinian civilian casualties in its war against Hamas, U.S. officials say.

First Gaza aid ship leaves Cyprus with Palestinians on brink of famine

A ship carrying 200 tonnes of aid for Gaza left Cyprus on Tuesday in a pilot project to open a sea corridor to deliver supplies to a population that aid agencies say is on the verge of famine after five months of war. While welcoming the project, however, senior U.N. officials said it could not replace the delivery of humanitarian aid by land from Egypt and Jordan. Separately, the World Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday it had managed to get the first aid convoy into Gaza City in the north of the Gaza Strip since Feb. 20.

Japan's Space One counts down to inaugural Kairos rocket launch

Japan's Space One will launch its Kairos small rocket on its inaugural trip on Wednesday, in a bid to become the first private firm in the country to put a satellite in orbit. While Japan is a relatively small player in the space race, the nation's rocket developers are scrambling to build cheaper vehicles to capture booming demand for satellite launches from its government and global clients.

Exclusive-US, allies eye commercial maritime option for Gaza aid

The U.S. may urge partners and allies to fund a privately run operation to send aid by sea to Gaza that could begin before a much larger U.S. military effort, said three people familiar with the planning and a U.S. official. If funding is secured, the plan could bring ashore large amounts of aid in a matter of weeks and could be faster than U.S. military's floating pier system that the Pentagon says could take up 60 days to become operational.

Netanyahu says he will press forward with military campaign in Rafah

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that Israel would press forward with its military campaign into Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, amid rising international pressure. A growing chorus of voices have joined in calls for Israel not to enter Rafah, one of the last relatively safe areas, where 1.5 million people have sought shelter.

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