World News Roundup: New national lockdown for England; fresh accusations of Karabakh attacks and more

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

UK's Johnson considering new national lockdown for England: media

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is considering imposing a new month-long national lockdown in England next week after scientists warned the coronavirus was spreading faster than their worst predictions, local media reported. The pandemic is spreading in most parts of Britain, where the official death toll of 46,299 is the highest in Europe.

Armenia, Azerbaijan trade fresh accusations of Karabakh attacks

Armenia and Azerbaijan once more accused each other of bombing residential areas on Saturday, in defiance of a pact to avoid the deliberate targeting of civilians in and around the mountain enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh. Shelling was reported by both sides within hours of the latest agreement to defuse the conflict, reached after talks in Geneva between the two countries' foreign ministers and envoys from France, Russia and the United States.

Slovakia mobilizes as a bid to COVID-test most of country in two days begins

Long queues formed outside coronavirus testing centers in Slovakia on Saturday, as the country embarked on a bid to test most of the country's 5.5 million inhabitants over a single weekend. Up to 20,000 medics plus support teams including soldiers staffed around 5,000 sites to administer the antigen swab tests.

Mother, children rescued from Turkey quake rubble; death toll at 28

A mother and three of her children were pulled to safety on Saturday after being trapped for almost 18 hours under a building in the western Turkish city of Izmir that was flattened in a powerful earthquake. Rescuers were continuing efforts to free the woman's fourth child, as the Aegean port city's major said around 180 people remained trapped.

Exclusive: Russian hackers targeted California, Indiana Democratic parties

The group of Russian hackers accused of meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election earlier this year targeted the email accounts of Democratic state parties in California and Indiana, and influential think tanks in Washington and New York, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The attempted intrusions, many of which were internally flagged by Microsoft Corp over the summer, were carried out by a group often nicknamed "Fancy Bear." The hackers' activity provides insight into how Russian intelligence is targeting the United States in the run-up to the Nov. 3 election.

Philippines evacuates nearly 1 million as world's strongest 2020 typhoon approaches

Officials have evacuated almost a million residents in the southern part of the Philippines' main island of Luzon as a category 5 storm - the world's strongest this year - makes landfall on Sunday. Typhoon Goni, with 215 kph (133 miles) sustained winds and gusts of up to 265 kph (164 mph), will bring violent winds and strong rains, state weather and disaster officials said.

Austria readies new COVID curbs as daily infections stay above 5,000

Austria's daily tally of new coronavirus cases stood at 5,349, data from the government showed on Saturday, as it prepares to announce new measures aimed at slowing the spread of the virus. Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, who has said hospitals would be stretched beyond capacity at around 6,000 daily infections, has said an economically damaging second lockdown would be the last resort, but Austrian media reported tough measures were in the works.

Three in custody in France following Nice attack

A third person was taken into custody in France in connection with a knife attack which left three dead in Nice on Thursday, a police source said on Saturday, as the government ramps up security efforts against possible militant attacks. An assailant shouting "Allahu Akbar" (God is Greatest) beheaded a woman and killed two other people in a church in Nice, in France's second deadly knife attack in two weeks.

More than 150 evacuated from Russian coronavirus hospital after fire

More than 150 patients were evacuated on Saturday from a makeshift coronavirus hospital in the Russian city of Chelyabinsk in the southern Urals following an oxygen explosion and fire, the Emergency Ministry said. The ministry said the fire broke out following an explosion in an "oxygen booth" in a dormitory that was being used as a temporary hospital. It said 158 people had been evacuated and admitted to other hospitals in the city.

Iran imposes new restrictions to stem coronavirus spread: Rouhani

Weddings, wakes, and conferences will be banned in the Iranian capital until further notice as the Middle East’s hardest-hit nation battles a third wave of COVID-19, police said on Saturday. President Hassan Rouhani meanwhile announced new restrictions that will take effect on Wednesday in 25 of Iran’s 31 provinces for 10 days.

(With inputs from agencies.)