World News Roundup: Iran will block Strait of Hormuz publicly; Johnson gets boost to become PM

Iran says if it decides to block Strait of Hormuz, it will do it 'publicly': Fars

Iran's military denied on Monday being behind attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman last week and said if it decided to block Strait of Hormuz, a vital gateway in the Gulf for the oil industry, it will do it publicly. Iran’s Armed Forces Chief of Staff, Major General Mohammad Baqeri was quoted as saying by Fars news agency: "Regarding the new incidents in the Persian Gulf... if the Islamic Republic of Iran decides to block exports of oil through the Strait of Hormuz, it is militarily strong enough to do that fully and publicly."

Boris Johnson gets boost in race to become Britain's new PM

Boris Johnson got a boost in his campaign to replace British Prime Minister Theresa May on Monday when one of his former rivals and EU supporter Matt Hancock backed him saying he was almost certain to win the contest. Johnson, a former London mayor and foreign minister, is way out in front in the race to become the leader of the Conservative Party and despite so far deciding to steer clear of debates with his rivals, his popularity has yet to be dented.

Iran says it will breach nuclear deal enrichment limit, drawing Western concern

Iran said on Monday it would breach internationally agreed curbs on its stock of low-enriched uranium in 10 days -- a move likely to worsen already high tensions with Washington -- but it added European nations still had time to save a landmark nuclear deal. In a sign of concern at Iran's announcement, Germany urged Tehran to meet all its obligations under the 2015 accord. Britain said if Iran breached limits agreed under the deal then London would look at "all options".

In historic shift, Vatican to consider married priests for Amazon region

A Vatican document on Monday said the Church should consider ordaining older married men as priests in remote areas of the Amazon, a historic shift which some say could pave the way for their use in other areas where clergy are scarce. The recommendation, contained in a working document prepared by the Vatican for a synod of bishops from the Amazon scheduled for October, also called for some kind of "official ministry" for women in the area, although it did not elaborate.

Kremlin says report on alleged U.S. power grid incursion is worrying

The Kremlin said on Monday that a report in the New York Times newspaper citing sources as saying the United States had inserted potentially disruptive implants into Russia's power grid showed a cyber war was, in theory, possible. The New York Times on Saturday published an article citing current and former unnamed U.S. government officials talking about the deployment of American computer code inside Russia’s grid and other targets as a classified companion to more publicly discussed action directed at Moscow’s disinformation and hacking units around the 2018 midterm elections.

Nationalist group condemns Myanmar sedition case against Buddhist monk

Myanmar's most prominent group of nationalist Buddhist monks on Monday condemned sedition charges against one of its leading members, Wirathu, ahead of a hearing in the fugitive monk's case expected on Tuesday. Police issued an arrest warrant for Wirathu last month, but he has evaded arrest.

China stands by Hong Kong leader after days of street protests

China doubled down on its support for Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam on Monday after days of protests in the Chinese-ruled city over a planned extradition bill, and a source close to Lam said Beijing was unlikely to let her go even if she tried to resign. Lam's attempts to pass a bill that would allow people in Hong Kong to be extradited to China to stand trial triggered the biggest and most violent protests in the former British colony in decades.

Austria's Kurz says email hoax tried to link him to Ibiza video scandal

Austrian conservative leader Sebastian Kurz said on Monday that an email hoax had attempted to implicate him in a video sting scandal that felled the leader of the far-right Freedom Party (FPO) and blew up their coalition government. FPO leader Heinz-Christian Strache resigned last month after German media published secretly filmed footage from a 2017 dinner party in Ibiza at which he met a woman posing as a Russian oligarch's niece and appeared to offer to fix state contracts. He denies doing anything illegal.

Chinese raids hit North Korean defectors' 'Underground Railroad'

A decade after leaving her family behind to flee North Korea, the defector was overwhelmed with excitement when she spoke to her 22-year-old son on the phone for the first time in May after he too escaped into China. While speaking to him again on the phone days later, however, she listened in horror as the safe house where her son and four other North Korean escapees were hiding was raided by Chinese authorities.

China's President Xi to visit North Korea this week

Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit North Korea on Thursday for two days, state media in both countries reported on Monday, making him the first Chinese leader to visit the reclusive country in 14 years. Neighboring China is North Korea's lone major ally, and the visit comes amid renewed tensions between the United States and North Korea over efforts to persuade Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)