World News Roundup: Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan wounded in 'clear assassination' attempt; Myanmar junta responsible for crisis, says Indonesia foreign minister and more

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has urged Myanmar to implement a peace plan agreed last year to halt a spiral of violence that has gripped the country since the military overthrew an elected government in Feb. 2021. Israeli far-rightist vows to impose order under new Netanyahu government A near-final tally of votes on Thursday showed former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on track to re-election with a clear parliamentary majority, boosted by ultranationalists who want tougher crackdowns on Palestinians.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan wounded in 'clear assassination' attempt

Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan was shot in the shin on Thursday when his anti-government protest convoy came under attack in the east of the country in what his aides said was a clear assassination attempt. Several others in the convoy were wounded and the information minister said a suspect had been arrested. One party member said there were reports one person had been killed.

Myanmar junta responsible for crisis, says Indonesia foreign minister

Myanmar's military government is responsible for a lack of progress on a peace plan agreed with ASEAN, Indonesia's foreign minister said on Thursday, adding the regional bloc has done its part in trying to end hostilities in the strife-torn country. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has urged Myanmar to implement a peace plan agreed last year to halt a spiral of violence that has gripped the country since the military overthrew an elected government in Feb. 2021.

Israeli far-rightist vows to impose order under new Netanyahu government

A near-final tally of votes on Thursday showed former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on track to re-election with a clear parliamentary majority, boosted by ultranationalists who want tougher crackdowns on Palestinians. In the latest violence, Israeli forces killed three Palestinians, including an Islamic Jihad militant in the occupied West Bank and a Jerusalem man who police said had stabbed an officer.

Iranian human rights lawyers criticise clerical leaders amid unrest

Forty prominent Iranian human rights lawyers have publicly criticised the country's clerical rulers, saying their crackdowns which crushed dissent for decades will no longer work and protesters seeking a new political order will prevail. "The government is still drowning in illusions and believes it can repress, arrest and kill to silence," the lawyers, some inside the country and some outside, said in a statement sent to Reuters.

North Korea fires suspected ICBM, warns U.S. against 'dangerous' choices

North Korea fired multiple missiles on Thursday, including a possible failed intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), prompting the United States and South Korea to extend air drills that have drawn Pyongyang's ire. Despite an initial government warning that the apparent ICBM had flown over Japan, triggering warning alarms for some residents, Tokyo later said that was incorrect.

Nuclear plant offgrid again as Russia strikes Ukraine infrastructure

Russian shelling and missile strikes have again hit energy infrastructure across Ukraine and knocked out electricity supplies to Europe's largest nuclear plant, Ukrainian officials said on Thursday. The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine has once more been disconnected from the power grid after shelling damaged the remaining high voltage lines, leaving it with just diesel generators, Ukraine nuclear firm Energoatom said.

Kremlin: Russia has not decided whether to extend Black Sea Grain deal

The Kremlin said on Thursday it had not committed to staying in the Black Sea grain deal, which has freed Ukraine's grain shipments from a Russian blockade of its Black Sea ports, beyond its current expiry date of Nov. 19.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Russia still needed to assesses whether the deal was working before deciding whether to extend its participation. Earlier on Thursday, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov urged the United Nations, which brokered the deal, to step up its efforts to ensure Western countries ease restrictions that Moscow says hinder its own agricultural and fertiliser exports, which also formed part of the deal.

Mexico succession puts scientist on path to be first woman president

The most historic legacy of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, a left-leaning resource nationalist who casts his administration as a turning point in the annals of Mexico, may be to pave the way for the country's first woman leader. Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum, a 60-year-old physicist, environmentalist and longstanding ally of Lopez Obrador who has governed as mayor in tandem with his presidency, has emerged as early front-runner to be his party's candidate in 2024, despite hints she could be more moderate than him.

Grief-stricken and angry South Korean parents bid final goodbyes to Halloween disaster victims

"Dad, I'm going out" were the last words Jung Hae-moon heard his daughter utter, at the end of a chat they had on the telephone on Saturday as she turned down an invitation to dinner. Hours later, 30-year-old Jung Joo-hee was among 156 people, most of them in their teens and twenties, killed in the South Korean capital while celebrating Halloween free of COVID restrictions for the first time in three years.

Two thirds of South Sudan population risk severe hunger in 2023 - U.N

Up to 7.8 million people in South Sudan, two thirds of the population, may face severe food shortages during next year's April-to-July lean season due to floods, drought and conflict, United Nations agencies said on Thursday. The shortages are worse than what the country experienced