Reuters World News Summary
Following is a summary of current world news briefs.
Pope backs Iraqi call for its sovereignty to be respected
Pope Francis met Iraq's president on Saturday and the two agreed that the country's sovereignty must be respected, following attacks on Iraqi territory this month by the United States and Iran. President Barham Salih held private talks for about 30 minutes with the pope and then met the Vatican's two top diplomats, Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Archbishop Paul Gallagher, its foreign minister.
U.S. says 34 troops diagnosed with traumatic brain injury after Iran strike
The Pentagon said on Friday that 34 service members had been diagnosed with traumatic brain injury following missile strikes by Iran on a base in Iraq earlier this month, a number higher than the military had previously announced. President Donald Trump and other top officials initially said Iran's attack had not killed or injured any U.S. service members.
Two Rohingya women killed as Myanmar army shells village: MP
Two women, one pregnant, were killed and seven other people injured after Myanmar troops shelled a Rohingya village on Saturday, according to a lawmaker and a villager, two days after the U.N.’s highest court ordered the country to protect the minority. Maung Kyaw Zan, a national member of parliament for Buthidaung township in northern Rakhine state, said shells fired from a nearby battalion hit Kin Taung village in the middle of the night. Government troops have been battling ethnic rebels in the state for more than a year.
Bodies of U.S. firefighters retrieved from Australian air crash site
The bodies of three U.S. firefighters who died in a plane crash earlier this week in Australia's remote bushland while battling a fierce wildfire have been recovered, the police said on Saturday as investigators started probe into the accident. A spokeswoman for Australia's New South Wales state police confirmed the recovery to Reuters in an e-mail.
Putin orders Prosecutor General to review protester's conviction
Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the Prosecutor General to investigate if a guilty verdict for Moscow protester Konstantin Kotov was lawful, the Kremlin said. A Moscow court sentenced Kotov, a 34-year-old programmer, to four years in prison in September for "repeated" participation in unauthorized rallies, under a widely criticized law that has made non-violent protests a criminal offence.
Turkey quake kills at least 22, rescuers dig for survivors
The death toll from a powerful earthquake in eastern Turkey reached 22 on Saturday, as rescuers searched for survivors trapped under the rubble of collapsed buildings. The magnitude 6.8 quake late Friday shook Elazig province, about 550 km (340 miles) east of the capital Ankara, and was followed by more than 390 aftershocks, 14 of which had magnitudes over 4.
China virus toll hits 41; Australia reports first four cases
The death toll from China's coronavirus outbreak jumped to 41 as the Lunar New Year got off to a gloomy start on Saturday, with Hong Kong declaring a virus emergency, scrapping celebrations, and restricting links to mainland China. Australia on Saturday confirmed its first four cases, Malaysia confirmed three and France reported Europe's first cases on Friday, as health authorities around the world scrambled to prevent a pandemic.
Limited internet to be restored in Kashmir, no access to social media
Limited mobile data services and internet will be temporarily restored in Jammu and Kashmir from Saturday, ending nearly a six month communications lockdown after Prime Minister Narendra Modi withdrew the Muslim majority region's autonomy. Access will be limited to about 300 "whitelisted" websites and internet speed would remain low, the local Jammu and Kashmir government said in a notice late on Friday.
Iraqi security forces raid Baghdad's main protest camp, shoot at demonstrators
Iraqi security forces raided Baghdad's main protest site at Tahrir Square on Saturday, firing live rounds and tear gas at anti-government demonstrators who have camped out there for months, Reuters reporters said. There were no immediate reports of casualties but at least seven people were wounded in clashes with police earlier in the day, medics and security sources said.
Virus anxieties cast shadow over Year of the Rat festivities
Chinese communities in Australia and New Zealand were among the first to greet the Year of the Rat on Saturday but Lunar New Year celebrations globally were marred by anxieties about the virus outbreak that has disrupted festivities in China. Sydney, home to a large and growing Chinese population, started its Lunar New Year festivities in subdued fashion after China canceled many large-scale celebrations of the holiday on concerns about the coronavirus, which has also reached Australia.
