Reuters World News Summary

09/22/2016 19:52

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Palestinians' Abbas seeks British apology for 1917 Jewish homeland declaration

Britain should apologize for its 1917 declaration endorsing the founding of a Jewish homeland in Palestine and should recognize Palestine as a state, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Thursday. Speaking at the U.N. General Assembly, Abbas said that the Palestinian people had suffered greatly because of the Balfour Declaration in which Britain said it favored the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine but that this should not undermine the rights of others living there.

Iran's Rouhani at U.N. calls on rival Saudi to cease 'divisive policies'

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Thursday called on regional rival Saudi Arabia to "cease and desist" from "divisive policies" if it was serious about regional peace and security. Rouhani was addressing the United Nations General Assembly the day after Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef suggested Iran should be a better neighbor in the region and not interfere in the affairs of other countries.

Brazil police arrest former finance minister in Petrobras probe

Brazilian police arrested former Finance Minister Guido Mantega on Thursday as a sweeping corruption investigation further struck at the heart of the Workers Party (PT) that ran the country for 13 years. Police investigators told a news conference they took Mantega, long a confidant of recently impeached former President Dilma Rousseff and an early member of the PT, into custody at the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo. He was there accompanying his wife as she prepared for surgery.

Canada, China agree to tighten trade ties, mull extradition pact

Canada and China on Thursday settled a trade dispute and said they would start exploratory talks on a free trade pact, but gave few details about a possible extradition treaty for Chinese fugitives which has triggered criticism in Canada. Canada's Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, elected last year, is trying to improve ties and increase trade with the world's second-largest economy after a decade of rocky relations under his Conservative predecessor.

People wounded after rocket fire hits Turkish border town: CNN Turk

A rocket fired from Syria hit a market in a Turkish border town on Thursday, wounding people, CNN Turk reported, without elaborating on the casualties. The ammunition hit the town center of Kilis, which straddles the Syrian frontier, the private broadcaster said. The ordnance was fired from Islamic State-controlled territory in Syria, Dogan news agency said.

Iraq's Zebari accuses ex-PM Maliki of arranging dismissal as finance minister

Deposed Iraqi Finance Minister Hoshiyar Zebari on Thursday accused former Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki of orchestrating his removal from office, publicly exposing rifts within an increasingly unstable government. Parliament dismissed Zebari, the top Kurdish official in the Baghdad government, on Wednesday after questioning him last month over alleged corruption and mishandling of public funds, which he denies.

Jordan's Islamists gain foothold in parliament after long absence

Jordan's Muslim Brotherhood has gained a foothold in parliament after ending a decade-long boycott and returning to the fray as the mainstay of a broad civic alliance, according to preliminary results released on Thursday. The Islamists, easily Jordan's biggest organized political grouping, had shunned previous elections in protest at a system that skews representation toward thinly populated rural areas dominated by tribal politics, rather than the cities, where the Brotherhood is strong.

Iraqi army says it recaptured key town south of Mosul

Iraqi forces backed by air strikes from the U.S.-led coalition gained complete control of the northern district of Shirqat on Thursday, bringing the military a step closer to a main push on Mosul later this year. Brigadier-General Yahya Rasool, spokesman for the military's joint operations command, said in a statement broadcast on state television that the district had been liberated from "the desecration of terrorism."

Abe becomes first Japanese leader to visit Communist-ruled Cuba

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe became the first Japanese leader to visit Communist-ruled Cuba on Thursday, landing in Havana to hold talks with Cuban President Raul Castro on topics from boosting trade to curbing North Korea's nuclear program. Abe's visit to the Caribbean island is one of a slew by western leaders since it began normalizing ties with the United States nearly two years ago. U.S. President Barack Obama visited Cuba in March.

Warplanes hit Aleppo in heaviest attack in months, defy U.S.

Warplanes mounted the heaviest air strikes in months against rebel-held districts of the city of Aleppo overnight, as Russia and the Syrian government spurned a U.S. plea to halt flights, burying any hope for the revival of a doomed ceasefire. Rebel officials and rescue workers said incendiary bombs were among the weapons that rained from the sky on the city. Hamza al-Khatib, the director of a hospital in the rebel-held east, told Reuters the death toll was 45.

09/22/2016 19:52