World News Roundup: Afghan government to release Taliban prisoners; U.S. senator calls for action on forced labor in China and more

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Afghan government to release Taliban prisoners as U.N. backs push to end war

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani is preparing to release 1,500 Taliban prisoners in the coming days, according to a decree viewed by Reuters on Tuesday, as the United Nations-backed a U.S.-led push to end Afghanistan's 18-year war. The two-page decree signed by Ghani, which requires all released Taliban prisoners to provide "a written guarantee to not return to the battlefield", is aimed at paving the way for direct talks with the hardline insurgent group.

Merkel's comment on virus infecting most people can cause panic: Czech PM quoted

German Chancellor Angela Merkel's comment that 60% of the population will be infected by the coronavirus may cause panic, Prime Minister Andrej Babis said, news agency CTK reported on Wednesday. Merkel said earlier on Wednesday that 60-70% of the population is likely to be infected with the coronavirus, adding that since there was currently no cure the focus had to be on slowing its spread.

Russian parliament backs changes allowing Putin to run again for president

Constitutional changes allowing Vladimir Putin to run for president again in 2024 sailed through Russia's lower house of parliament on Wednesday, opening the way for him to potentially stay in power until 2036. Putin, 67, who has dominated the Russian political landscape for two decades as either president or prime minister, made a dramatic appearance in the chamber a day earlier to argue that term limits were less important in times of crisis.

Some in Wuhan told to go back to work as new cases of coronavirus subside in China

Some vital industries in Wuhan, the Chinese city at the epicenter of the coronavirus epidemic, were told they can resume work on Wednesday, a day after President Xi Jinping visited there for the first time since the outbreak began. The city of 11 million has been in lockdown since late January but Xi's visit signaled the tide was turning in the government's favor as it fights to contain a virus that as of Tuesday had infected 80,778 people in China and killed 3,158.

Italy, Britain wield economic axes to try to slay coronavirus

Italy earmarked $28.3 billion to soften the economic impact of the world's second-biggest coronavirus outbreak on Wednesday as the Bank of England slashed interest rates just hours before announcing a budget designed to stave off recession. U.S. President Donald Trump, who for weeks played down the seriousness of the illness and blamed "fake news" for its spread, said on Tuesday he would ask Congress for a tax cut for workers and other "very major" stimulus moves to ease the economic impact, but the details were unclear.

U.S. senator calls for action on forced labor in China's Xinjiang

A senior U.S. senator on Tuesday accused U.S. firms of willfully ignoring "horrific" forced labor conditions in China's Xinjiang region and called on the Commerce Department to stop American companies and consumers buying goods produced by such labor. In a letter to Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, Democratic Senator Bob Menendez said recent reports indicated a wide array of U.S. companies, including Apple, Kraft Heinz, Coca-Cola, and the Gap, had sourced or continued to source, goods from Xinjiang.

Banned Thai opposition figure faces new criminal charges

Thailand's Election Commission (EC) on Wednesday said it would file criminal charges of breaching electoral law against Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, leader of the now-defunct Future Forward Party, in the latest action against the former anti-junta politician. "This is criminal case where the EC is the complainant. The legal process will be handled by the police," Sawang Boonmee, deputy secretary-general of Election Commission, told Reuters.

Turkey's Erdogan threatens retaliation if Syria truce is broken

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday his country will not shy away from even stronger military action in northwest Syria's Idlib region if last week's truce is broken. Turkey and Russia, which back opposing sides in Syria's war, agreed on a ceasefire to stop escalating clashes in Idlib that brought the two countries close to direct confrontation and displaced almost a million people.

Israeli soldiers kill Palestinian teen during West Bank protest, Palestinian ministry says

Israeli troops killed a Palestinian teenager in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday during a protest against feared Israeli land confiscation, the Palestinian Health Ministry said. A Reuters cameraman at the scene said protesters threw rocks at soldiers, who opened fire and shot tear gas canisters while trying to clear them from a hilltop near the Israeli settlement of Itamar.

Greece denies report of secret 'black site' for migrants near Turkish border

The Greek government dismissed on Wednesday a report in The New York Times newspaper that it was holding illegal migrants who cross the border from Turkey at a secret "black site" where they are denied access to lawyers and cannot file asylum claims. Tens of thousands of migrants have been trying to get into Greece, a European Union member state, since Turkey said on Feb. 28 it would no longer keep them on its territory as part of a 2016 deal with Brussels in return for EU aid for the refugees.