Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

News photographer killed in Tripoli clashes

A freelance photographer who had contributed to the Associated Press among other news organizations was killed in clashes between rival militias in the Libyan capital Tripoli, a government official and relatives said. Mohamed Ben Khalifa died of a random shell in the Libyan capital while covering the clashes.

Trump says U.S. 'made a lot of progress' with North Korea

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday he had a very good meeting with North Korea's nuclear envoy Kim Yong Chol and the two sides had made "a lot of progress." The White House announced after Friday's talks that Trump would hold a second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in late February but will maintain economic sanctions onPyongyang.

Mexico fuel pipeline blast kills 71, witnesses describe horror

At least 71 people were killed after a pipeline ruptured by suspected fuel thieves exploded in central Mexico, authorities said on Saturday, as President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador defended the army despite its failure to clear the site before the blast. Forensic experts filled body bags with charred human remains in the field where the explosion occurred on Friday evening by the town of Tlahuelilpan in the state of Hidalgo, in one of the deadliest incidents to hit Mexico's troubled oil infrastructure in years.

Clashes break out in France as 'yellow vests' stage latest protest

Clashes broke out throughout France on Saturday, as an estimated 84,000 "yellow vests" demonstrators took to the streets in a 10th consecutive weekend of protests against President Emmanuel Macron's government. The demonstrations passed off relatively peacefully in Paris where 7,000 turned up, although Reuters Television reporters saw scuffles briefly break out between police and demonstrators, some wearing masks, in the capital's Invalides district.

Iran denies ties to Afghan held in Germany for spying

Iran on Saturday denied having any link to an Afghan-German man suspected of spying for Tehran, suggesting his arrest in Germany was part of efforts to mar EU-Iran relations, the state news agency IRNA reported. Germany's federal prosecutor's office said on Tuesday that a 50-year-old Afghan-German dual national who worked for the German military had been detained on suspicion of passing data to an Iranian intelligence agency.

Murdered Polish mayor's funeral draws crowd of 45,000 in Gdansk

Murdered Gdansk mayor Pawel Adamowicz's funeral drew tens of thousands of people in the Polish Baltic coast city on Saturday amid outrage over his murder six days ago. Banners with black and white pictures of Adamowicz were draped over buildings as Polish politicians including former president Lech Walesa, who helped to overturn communism in Eastern Europe, joined a mass at St Mary's Basilica.

Cuba, Colombia face standoff over extradition request for ELN rebels

Cuba has sidestepped the Colombian government's request for it to extradite 10 Marxist rebel commanders on the island for peace talks after Bogota blamed their National Liberation Army (ELN) for a car bomb on Thursday that killed 21 people. Cuba's foreign minister said in a tweet late on Friday the country would respect the protocols of the negotiations it had been hosting and was consulting with both parties and the guarantors of the talks.

Northern Irish police report suspected car bomb in Londonderry

Police in Northern Ireland reported a suspected car bombing in Londonderry on Saturday that local politicians said had caused no apparent injuries as people were urged to stay away from the area. An image released by police on Twitter showed what appeared to be a burning vehicle in Bishop Street in the center of the city. Two local politicians said the suspected blast occurred outside the city's courthouse.

U.S. says its air strike kills 52 militants who attacked Somali base

The U.S. military launched an air strike in Somalia on Saturday, killing 52 Islamists who had attacked a Somali military base earlier in the day, it said. The air strike targeted al Shabaab fighters who had rammed into the military base near Jilib, 370 km (230 miles) southwest of the capital Mogadishu using a suicide car bomb, military officials in the state of Jubbaland told Reuters.

UK's May wants Irish treaty to break Brexit impasse: paper

British Prime Minister Theresa May plans to seek a bilateral treaty with the Irish government as a way to remove the contentious backstop arrangement from Britain's divorce deal with the European Union, a newspaper reported. The Sunday Times said aides to May thought a deal with Ireland would remove the opposition to her Brexit plan from the Democratic Unionist Party that supports May's minority government and from pro-Brexit rebels in her Conservative Party.