World News Roundup: White House attempting gambit to slow House impeachment push; EU rejects UK's request for weekend talks as Johnson insists on no Brexit delay

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Trump suspends entry of immigrants who cannot pay for healthcare

U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday signed a proclamation suspending entry of immigrants who will not be covered by health insurance within 30 days of entering the United States or do not have the means to pay for their healthcare costs themselves. The proclamation, issued by the White House, said it would not affect any individual's eligibility for asylum or refugee status. The measure will take effect on Nov. 3, it said.

Pompeo says a lot of work to be done at North Korean, U.S. nuclear talks

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said nuclear talks between U.S. and North Korean officials starting on Saturday near Stockholm to try to end months of stalemate needed to accomplish a lot of work, but added he was hopeful of progress. The meeting at an isolated conference center on the Swedish capital's outskirts will be the first formal working-level talks since U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met in June and agreed to restart negotiations that stalled after a failed summit in Vietnam in February.

White House attempting gambit to slow House impeachment push

President Donald Trump's bitter fight against an impeachment inquiry has not slowed down the Democrats' push to investigate whether he sought personal political gain by urging Ukraine to probe Democratic opponent Joe Biden. But in a new tactic, the White House plans to argue that U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi must have the full House vote to formally approve an impeachment inquiry, a source familiar with the effort said.

Iraqi authorities lift Baghdad curfew; death toll rises to 72 in days of unrest

Iraqi authorities lifted a days-long curfew in Baghdad on Saturday that anti-government protesters had defied, as the toll from four days of violent unrest rose to 72 killed and hundreds injured. Traffic ran as normal through the Iraqi capital and streets and main squares were otherwise quiet. Concrete barriers blocked off areas where protesters in their thousands clashed with police during the week.

Ethiopia's Oromo celebrate festival in Addis amid tight security

Hundreds of thousands of Ethiopia's largest ethnic group celebrated in Addis Ababa on Saturday at the start of an annual thanksgiving festival which was marred by violence in 2016. Security was high for Irreecha, which is celebrated by the Oromo people to mark the start of the harvest season.

Hong Kong metro system to remain shut as city reels from night of violent protests

Hong Kong's rail operator said the entire metro system would remain shut on Saturday in an unprecedented move as the city braced for more demonstrations after a night of chaos when police shot a teenage boy and pro-democracy protesters torched businesses and metro stations. Violent protests erupted across the Chinese-ruled city hours after its embattled leader Carrie Lam invoked colonial-era emergency powers last used more than 50 years ago.

Grenade attack in Kashmir injures 10 amid India clampdown

A grenade attack on Saturday in Kashmir's southern city of Anantnag injured 10 people, including a traffic policeman and a journalist, police said on Twitter, blaming "terrorists". Many people in Kashmir have been seething since India stripped its portion of the Muslim-majority region of autonomy on Aug. 5, shutting off phone networks and imposing curfew-like restrictions in some areas to dampen discontent.

Erdogan says Turkey to launch military operation in northeast Syria

Turkey will mount a military operation in northeast Syria, it said on Saturday, after accusing Washington of not doing enough to expel Syrian Kurdish fighters from its border. The air and ground operation east of the Euphrates river in Syria could start at any time, President Tayyip Erdogan said.

EU rejects UK's request for weekend talks as Johnson insists on no Brexit delay

The European Union has rejected a British request to hold Brexit talks this weekend, British media reported, as Prime Minister Boris Johnson reiterated his commitment to leaving the bloc on Oct. 31 despite the possibility of not reaching an exit deal. The European Commission said that Johnson's new Brexit proposals do not provide any basis for finalising a separation agreement, according to Sky News.

Greek PM asks Pompeo for U.S. help to calm Turkish offshore tensions

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis urged the United States on Saturday to use its influence to defuse tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean, where Cyprus and Turkey are locked in a dispute over offshore rights. Mitsotakis told visiting U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that Turkish moves south of the island in recent days were a "flagrant violation" of Cyprus' sovereign rights.