World News Roundup: Russia says it has begun pulling out troops from Crimea; Israeli nationalists shout 'Death to Arabs" and more

Russia announced on Thursday it had completed a "snap inspection" of military drills in its south and west after weeks of tensions with the West over its concentration of tens of thousands of troops near Ukraine. Scores injured in Jerusalem clashes; Israeli nationalists shout 'Death to Arabs" After a night of violence in Jerusalem, Israeli police made over 50 arrests and Palestinian medics said 100 were injured during Ramadan clashes in the contested city at the core of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Russia says it has begun pulling out troops from Crimea after drills

Russia's defence ministry said on Friday it had begun returning troops and military units from annexed Crimea to their permanent bases following a huge build-up near Ukraine's border that had raised concerns in Kyiv and the West about the risk of war. Russia announced on Thursday it had completed a "snap inspection" of military drills in its south and west after weeks of tensions with the West over its concentration of tens of thousands of troops near Ukraine.

Scores injured in Jerusalem clashes; Israeli nationalists shout 'Death to Arabs"

After a night of violence in Jerusalem, Israeli police made over 50 arrests and Palestinian medics said 100 were injured during Ramadan clashes in the contested city at the core of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. From late Thursday night into early Friday, police in riot gear and on horseback fought to keep apart two groups of protesters - Palestinian youth hurling firecrackers and setting fire to garbage bins, and ultra-nationalist Israelis chanting anti-Arab slogans.

Rome homeless get free COVID-19 shots - and a visit from the Pope

Pope Francis visited homeless and needy people getting free COVID-19 vaccines from his Vatican charity on Friday as he celebrated his name day, the feast of St. George. About 600 of the 1,400 people who received a first dose several weeks ago got their second shot on Friday.

Time running out for missing Indonesian submarine as U.S. joins search

Rescue teams from several countries were battling against time on Friday to find a missing Indonesian Navy submarine lost in the Bali Sea with 53 crew, which would be rapidly running out of oxygen if not already crushed by water pressure. Search helicopters and more ships left Bali and a naval base in Java heading to the area where contact was lost with the 44-year-old KRI Nanggala-402 on Wednesday as it prepared to conduct a torpedo drill, with the head of the Indonesian submarine fleet aboard.

Biden's climate summit zeroes in on technology to help fight global warming

U.S. President Joe Biden's energy secretary told a climate summit clean technology is "our generation's moonshot" on Friday, the second and final day of an event that is seeking to rally world ambition to reduce global warming. Biden called the meeting with dozens of heads-of-state to declare the United States back at the climate leadership table after his predecessor, former President Donald Trump, withdrew from the Paris agreement to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

Thousands mourn Chad's Deby, rebels say their command hit by air strike

Thousands of people gathered in Chad's capital N'Djamena on Friday for the state funeral of President Idriss Deby, whose death while leading his troops against a rebel offensive has thrown the country into crisis. Mourners included President Emmanuel Macron of France, which counted on the long-ruling strongman as a lynchpin in the war against Islamist militants, and a host of African presidents and prime ministers.

SpaceX rocketship launches 4 astronauts on NASA mission to space station

NASA and Elon Musk's commercial rocket company SpaceX launched a new four-astronaut team on a flight to the International Space Station on Friday, the first crew ever propelled into orbit by a rocket booster recycled from a previous spaceflight. The company's Crew Dragon capsule, Endeavour, streaked into the darkened pre-dawn sky atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket as its nine Merlin engines roared to life at 5:49 a.m. (0949 GMT) from NASA's Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The blastoff was aired live on NASA TV.

Jailed Kremlin critic Navalny starts ending his hunger strike

Jailed Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny said on Friday he would begin gradually ending a hunger strike he had called to demand proper medical care, suggesting that support inside Russia and the West had got him much of what he needed. Navalny announced an end to his hunger strike on its 24th day after a medical trade union that supports him and which has treated him in the past appealed to him to start eating again or risk death.

Air Chernobyl? Tourists get chance to fly over nuclear disaster zone

Ukrainian nuclear agency worker Viktor Kozlov received an unusual birthday gift from his wife Maryna: tickets for a 90 minute flight over Chernobyl, site of the world's worst nuclear disaster. The trip gives passengers a bird's eye view of the abandoned buildings in the ghost town of Pripyat that once housed nuclear workers, and the massive domed structure now covering the reactor that exploded on April 26, 1986.

Indian coronavirus cases surge to new record as health system staggers

India reported the world's highest daily tally of coronavirus infections for a second day on Friday, surpassing 330,000 new cases, as it struggles with a health system overwhelmed by patients and plagued by accidents. Deaths in the past 24 hours also jumped to a record 2,263, the health ministry said, while officials across northern and western India, including the capital, New Delhi, warned most hospitals were full and running out of oxygen.