World News Roundup: UK PM Johnson "really pleased" with work done to reopen schools; Gaza in lockdown to try to contain its first COVID-19 outbreak and more

The "Royalist Marketplace" group, which had over 1 million members, was blocked within Thailand late on Monday after the digital ministry threatened legal action against Facebook under the country's Computer Crime Act. UK PM Johnson "really pleased" with work done to reopen schools British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday he was "really pleased" by the work done to get ready to reopen schools from next week, a test of his government after it failed to return all children to schools earlier this year.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Iran says talks with IAEA chief in Tehran were 'constructive': ISNA

Talks with the U.N. nuclear watchdog's chief were constructive, Iran's top nuclear official Ali Akbar Salehi was quoted as saying on Tuesday, after meeting Rafael Grossi during a visit to seek access for inspectors to two suspected former atomic sites. Grossi, who heads the International Atomic Energy Agency, wants Iran to let his inspectors into the sites because the agency suspects they could still host undeclared nuclear material, or traces of it.

Three killed, 41 wounded in Taliban truck bomb in Afghanistan

Taliban insurgents set off a truck bomb on Tuesday in an attack on Afghan army commandos, killing three people and wounding 41, the defence ministry said, despite steps towards peace talks with the U.S.-backed government. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the blast in the northern province of Balkh, saying on Twitter they had attacked the commandos.

After block, new Facebook group criticising Thai king gains 500,000 members

More than half a million Thai users flocked to join a new Facebook group created by a critic of the powerful king after the social media company blocked its predecessor under pressure from the government. The "Royalist Marketplace" group, which had over 1 million members, was blocked within Thailand late on Monday after the digital ministry threatened legal action against Facebook under the country's Computer Crime Act.

UK PM Johnson "really pleased" with work done to reopen schools

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday he was "really pleased" by the work done to get ready to reopen schools from next week, a test of his government after it failed to return all children to schools earlier this year. Johnson, whose Conservative government has come under fire for how it has tackled education during the coronavirus crisis, said it was "crucial" for all children to return to school and that he would look at medical evidence to see whether he should change the government's advice on wearing face coverings.

Gaza in lockdown to try to contain its first COVID-19 outbreak

A lockdown took hold in Gaza on Tuesday after confirmation of the first cases of COVID-19 in the general population of the Palestinian enclave, whose restricted borders have spared it from wide infection. Health authorities in the Hamas Islamist-run territory of two million people are concerned over the potentially disastrous combination of poverty, densely populated refugee camps and limited hospital facilities in dealing with an outbreak.

Daughter of NZ mosque victim tells gunman: consider 'beauty of diversity' while in prison

The daughter of a woman killed in the New Zealand mosque shootings challenged white supremacist Brenton Tarrant at his sentencing hearing to use his life in prison to consider the beauty of the diversity and freedom he sought to destroy. The daughter of Linda Armstrong sobbed as she addressed the court in Christchurch on Tuesday, the second day of the sentencing hearing.

Kremlin defies calls to probe Navalny illness, says poisoning not yet certain

The Kremlin said on Tuesday it saw no need for now to investigate the circumstances leading up to opposition politician Alexei Navalny's grave illness and that a German clinic's initial diagnosis of poisoning was not yet conclusive. German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday called on Russia to investigate the suspected poisoning and to hold the perpetrators accountable after German doctors found indications of a toxic substance in his body. Belarus opposition figures in court after night in jail

Two leaders of the opposition in Belarus appeared in court on Tuesday after a night in jail, as the government pursues a crackdown on the few figures still at large, with more mass demonstrations planned against President Alexander Lukashenko. Despite most major opposition figures being in jail or in exile, Lukashenko has so far failed to put down popular protests against his 26-year rule, more than two weeks after an election his opponents say was rigged.

Germany urges Greece and Turkey to talk, to avoid 'catastrophe'

Germany urged Greece and Turkey on Tuesday to solve their dispute over energy resources in the eastern Mediterranean Sea through dialogue, warning of the risk of a military confrontation. German Foreign Minister Heiko Mass, who visited Athens and is also expected to visit Ankara on Tuesday to help defuse rekindled tensions between the two NATO allies, said Germany and its EU partners stood alongside EU member Greece.

What happens if Japan's Abe is incapacitated, or resigns?

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's recent visits to hospital have raised concern whether he will be able to stay on as leader of the world's third-biggest economy until the Sept. 2021 end of his term as ruling party chief, and hence, premier. Abe plans to hold a news conference on his health as soon as this week, domestic media said on Tuesday. He has been expected to reshuffle his cabinet and top ruling party posts next month.

(With inputs from agencies.)