Reuters World News Summary

China, which claims Taiwan as its territory, carried out its largest-ever military exercises around the self-governed island after a visit earlier this month by Pelosi, who was followed this week by five more U.S. lawmakers. Huge explosion hits Kabul mosque, many casualties feared A huge explosion struck a mosque in Kabul during evening prayers on Wednesday, witnesses and police said, with many feared dead or injured.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Taiwan envoy to U.S. says China bullying spurs foreign interest in visits to island

China's aggressive military response to U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan has increased interest from other countries' parliaments in similar trips, the island's de facto ambassador to the United States said on Wednesday. China, which claims Taiwan as its territory, carried out its largest-ever military exercises around the self-governed island after a visit earlier this month by Pelosi, who was followed this week by five more U.S. lawmakers.

Huge explosion hits Kabul mosque, many casualties feared

A huge explosion struck a mosque in Kabul during evening prayers on Wednesday, witnesses and police said, with many feared dead or injured. Police said there were multiple casualties but did not say how many. One Taliban intelligence official told Reuters that as many as 35 people may have been wounded or killed, and the toll could rise further. Al Jazeera quoted an unidentified official as giving a death toll of 20.

Russia replaces Black Sea fleet chief after Crimea blasts

Russia has replaced the commander of its Crimea-based Black Sea Fleet after a series of explosions rocked the peninsula it annexed in 2014 and had previously seen as a secure rear base for its war in Ukraine. Moscow blamed saboteurs for blasts that engulfed an ammunition depot in northern Crimea on Tuesday. Plumes of smoke were later seen rising at a second Russian military base in central Crimea, Russia's Kommersant newspaper said.

China to send troops to Russia for 'Vostok' exercise

Chinese troops will travel to Russia to take part in joint military exercises led by the host and including India, Belarus, Mongolia, Tajikistan and other countries, China's defence ministry said on Wednesday. China's participation in the joint exercises was "unrelated to the current international and regional situation", the ministry said in a statement.

Ukraine carries out emergency drills near nuclear plant on frontline

Ukrainian authorities performed disaster response drills on Wednesday following repeated shelling at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest of its kind in Europe. Both sides accuse the other of attacks in the vicinity of the facility in recent days and engaging in what they call "nuclear terrorism".

Rushdie attack suspect says he admires Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini

The man accused of stabbing Salman Rushdie said he respected Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini but would not say if he was inspired by a fatwa issued by the former Iranian leader, according to a New York Post interview published on Wednesday. Hadi Matar also told the Post he had only "read a couple pages" of Rushdie's novel "The Satanic Verses" and that a tweet in the winter announcing the author's visit to the Chautauqua Institution gave him the idea of going there.

Nepali woman's quest to learn takes her back to school with son

A Nepali mother of two, Parwati Sunar finds herself attending the same school as her son after returning to an education system she fled at the age of 15, when she eloped with a man seven years her senior. "I enjoy learning and am proud to attend with classmates who are like my own children," Sunar told Reuters from her village of Punarbas on the southwestern edge of the Himalayan nation, where she studies in seventh grade.

Canadian lawmakers plan Taiwan trip amid rising China tensions

A delegation of Canadian lawmakers plans to visit Taiwan in October to seek economic opportunities in the Asia Pacific region, Liberal Member of Parliament Judy Sgro said on Wednesday, a move that could further stoke tensions between China and the West. The relationship between China and the West has worsened since U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan earlier this month against Beijing's wishes. China claims Taiwan as its territory and is against foreign politicians visiting the island. Democratically governed Taiwan rejects China's claims.

Argentine official visits neighbors to bolster Falklands claim

The global geopolitical situation shaped by the war in Ukraine is an opportunity for Argentina to continue adding support for its sovereignty claim over British-run Falkland Islands, an Argentine official told Reuters. Secretary for Falklands (Malvinas) Affairs Guillermo Carmona begun a tour of neighboring countries on Wednesday to bolster support for his country's claim over the South Atlantic islands where Britain and Argentina fought a brief war 40 years ago.

Attacks on Brazil's indigenous people rose sharply in 2021, report says

Attacks on Brazil's indigenous people and invasions of their lands by illegal miners and loggers, mainly in the Amazon, increased dramatically in 2021, escalating an already "terrifying" situation, the Catholic Church's Indigenous Missionary Council (Cimi) said on Wednesday. In its annual report on violence against indigenous people, Cimi detailed a dramatic intensification of abuses in the third year of President Jair Bolsonaro's government, which has dismantled inspection and indigenous protection bodies.

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