World News Summary: U.S. embassy in Iraq condemns violence against protesters: statement

Following is a summary of current world news briefs. U.S. embassy in Iraq condemns violence against protesters: statement

The U.S embassy in Baghdad condemned on Wednesday the killing and kidnapping of unarmed demonstrators by security forces and urged Iraq's leaders to engage urgently with the thousands who have been protesting against the government. "We deplore the killing and kidnapping (of) unarmed protesters, threats to freedom of expression, and the cycle of violence taking place. Iraqis must be free to make their own choices about the future of the nation," it said in a statement. Nine Americans killed in Mexican ambush, Trump urges joint war on drug cartels

Gunmen killed nine women and children in the bloodiest attack on Americans in Mexico for years, prompting U.S. President Donald Trump to offer to help the neighboring country wipe out drug cartels believed to be behind the ambush. The nine people killed in Monday's daytime attack at the border of Chihuahua and Sonora states belonged to the Mexican-American LeBaron, Langford, Miller and Johnson families, members of breakaway Mormon communities that settled in northern Mexico's hills and plains decades ago. Iran moves further from the nuclear deal, alarming Russia, France

Iran has stepped up work at its underground Fordow nuclear facility, state TV reported on Wednesday, a move France said showed for the first time that Tehran explicitly planned to quit a deal with world powers that curbed its atomic work. Russia also voiced alarm at Iran's decision to start injecting uranium gas into centrifuges at Fordow, a move that further distances Iran from the accord. A central aim of the agreement was to extend the time Iran would need to build a nuclear weapon, if it chose to, to a year from about 2-3 months. Cyprus cabinet triggers the process to revoke citizenship from 26: official

Cyprus on Wednesday said it had initiated a process to strip 26 individuals of citizenship after reports by Reuters and other news outlets on the identity of beneficiaries, including Cambodian elite and a Malaysian fugitive from justice. The Reuters investigation published in October revealed that wealthy relatives and allies of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen received Cypriot passports under a secretive passports for investments scheme. Some Nigerians blame government, not religious leaders, for shocking school abuses

The first thing 15-year-old Burhani saw when he arrived at an Islamic reformatory school in October was rows of youths and young men sitting on a courtyard floor, naked, bleeding and in chains. His father had sent him to the school, famous across northern Nigeria for correcting bad behavior, because he had been getting into fights and stealing, he said. China backs bolder action to counter roots of Hong Kong unrest: official

Beijing supports bolder action to tackle the roots of unrest that has rocked Hong Kong for months, a senior Chinese official said on Wednesday, just hours after a knife-wielding man attacked a pro-Beijing lawmaker in the Chinese-ruled city. Han Zheng, a vice premier, said at a meeting with Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam in Beijing the anti-government protests were damaging the "one country, two systems" formula under which the former British colony has been governed since its handover to China in 1997. UK PM Johnson's party under fire for doctoring Brexit video clip of rival

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's election campaign launch got off to a poor start on Wednesday, when his party chairman was forced to defend distributing a doctored video clip of a rival Labour Party politician. As Britain heads towards a Dec. 12 election that could shape the fate of Brexit, some politicians have expressed concerns that misleading information - known as "fake news" - could spread swiftly across social media. Militants attack Tajik border post, 17 killed: security officials

Masked Islamic State militants attacked a border post on the Tajik-Uzbek border overnight, triggering a gunbattle that killed 15 of the militants, a guard, and a policeman, Tajik authorities said on Wednesday. There was no immediate announcement from the militant group, which has claimed responsibility for a series of assaults in Tajikistan in recent months. China urges re-elected Canadian government to free Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou

China's foreign ministry on Wednesday urged the re-elected Canadian government to immediately release detained Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou. Geng Shuang, a spokesman at the ministry, made the comment at a regular press briefing. Tourists stabbed in Jordanian city near Roman ruins: police

Several Spanish-speaking tourists were injured in a stabbing on Wednesday in Jerash, a Jordanian city popular with foreign visitors, along with a local guide and a security guard, police said, adding that a man had been arrested. A security source initially told Reuters the victims included three Spanish women, however, Spain said its citizens were not involved. Video of the incident that circulated on Jordanian media appeared to show victims speaking Spanish with Latin American accents.

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