Reuters World News Summary

08/20/2016 8:56

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Taliban make further gains in Afghan north

The Afghan Taliban captured a strategic district in the northern province of Kunduz on Saturday, forcing troops to retreat to the provincial capital which fell briefly to the insurgents last year, officials said. Fighting has sharply escalated in Afghanistan since the insurgency started spreading from its traditional strongholds in the south and east of the country to the once peaceful north.

Exclusive: U.S. withdraws staff from Saudi Arabia dedicated to Yemen planning

The U.S. military has withdrawn from Saudi Arabia its personnel who were coordinating with the Saudi-led air campaign in Yemen, and sharply reduced the number of staff elsewhere who were assisting in that planning, U.S. officials told Reuters. Fewer than five U.S. service people are now assigned full-time to the "Joint Combined Planning Cell," which was established last year to coordinate U.S. support, including air-to-air refueling of coalition jets and limited intelligence-sharing, Lieutenant Ian McConnaughey, a U.S. Navy spokesman in Bahrain, told Reuters.

North Korea brands defector from UK embassy sex criminal 'scum'

North Korean state media on Saturday accused a diplomat who defected from Britain to South Korea of fleeing to escape punishment for a variety of crimes, including child rape, for which Pyongyang had sought to extradite him. A commentary by the KCNA news agency did not identify the diplomat by name, but on Wednesday South Korea announced that Thae Yong Ho, who was deputy ambassador at North Korea's embassy in London, had arrived in South Korea with his family.

Russian cruise missiles target Syria

Russian warships in the Mediterranean Sea fired cruise missiles at targets near Aleppo on Friday, a further sign of Moscow's broadening military effort in Syria days after it began to fly bombing missions from an airbase in Iran. Russian air power had helped Syrian President Bashar al-Assad make steady advances against rebels seeking to oust him since Moscow's intervention a year ago, but a recent insurgent advance in Aleppo has checked that momentum.

Taiwan President says unofficial communication channels remain with China

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said on Saturday that unofficial communication channels with China remain in place despite Beijing in June suspending contacts because the island's new leader would not endorse the concept of a "One China" principle. The Chinese government blamed the self-ruled island earlier this week for the breakdown of communications.

FBI probes possible U.S. ties to corruption by former Ukraine president: CNN

The FBI and U.S. Justice Department are investigating possible U.S. ties to alleged corruption involving the former president of Ukraine, including the work of firms headed by political operatives Paul Manafort and Tony Podesta, CNN reported on Friday, citing multiple U.S. law enforcement officials. The broad-based investigation was looking into whether U.S. companies and the financial system were used to enable corruption by the party of former pro-Russian Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych, CNN said.

German right-wing leader backs citizens' right to arm themselves

The leader of the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has spoken out in favor of people arming themselves with guns and self-defense devices following a series of violent attacks last month. The anti-immigrant AfD has won growing popular support in Germany due in part to Europe's migrant crisis, which has seen more than 1 million refugees arrive over the past year, and it now has seats in eight of Germany's 16 state assemblies.

Turkish parliament approves deal ending rift with Israel

Turkey's parliament approved a reconciliation agreement signed with Israel in June which has brought to an end a six-year rift between the two regional powers, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on Saturday. Relations between the two countries crumbled after Israeli marines stormed a Turkish ship in May 2010 to enforce a naval blockade of the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, killing 10 Turks on board.

Putin flies into Crimea amid war games and tension

Vladimir Putin flew into annexed Crimea on Friday a day after staging war games there, and said he hoped Ukraine would see "common sense" when it came to resolving a diplomatic crisis over the peninsula. Two years after Russian troops seized the peninsula, it is again the focus of international tension, after the Russian president accused Kiev last week of sending saboteurs who clashed with Russian troops.

Philippine government agrees new truce with Maoist-led rebels

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has agreed a new ceasefire with Maoist-led guerrillas, who declared a truce several hours before, ahead of fresh peace talks in Norway next week, a senior administration official said on Saturday. The ceasefire will come into effect from Sunday morning.

08/20/2016 8:56