Reuters World News Summary

Ukrainian troops near the front line said Russia was bombarding access roads to slow the Ukrainian assault, which has shifted momentum after months of slow Russian gains in Europe's deadliest ground combat since World War Two. Alberta wildfires hit gas flow out of Canada to US, spiking prices Alberta officials on Thursday warned more wildfires could spread in next few hot and dry days, even as firefighters make progress in tackling widespread blazes that have slowed the outflow of natural gas from Canada into the United States, spiking prices.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Air raid alerts extended throughout Ukraine

Air raid alerts were declared throughout Ukraine early on Friday, with some areas reporting explosions. Officials said anti-aircraft units were in action in several regions. Far western regions were initially left out of the warnings but officials later extended them to the entire country.

Pentagon accounting error overvalued Ukraine weapons aid by $3 billion -sources

The Pentagon overestimated the value of the ammunition, missiles and other equipment it sent to Ukraine by around $3 billion, a Senate aide and a defense official said on Thursday, an error that may lead the way for more weapons being sent to Kyiv for its defense against Russian forces. The error was the result of assigning a higher than warranted value on weaponry that was taken from U.S. stocks and then shipped to Ukraine, two senior defense officials said on Thursday.

Russian forces in retreat near Bakhmut, Ukraine and Wagner say

The Ukrainian military and Russia's Wagner private army both reported further Russian retreats around the city of Bakhmut on Thursday, as Kyiv pressed on with its biggest advance for six months ahead of a planned counteroffensive. Ukrainian troops near the front line said Russia was bombarding access roads to slow the Ukrainian assault, which has shifted momentum after months of slow Russian gains in Europe's deadliest ground combat since World War Two.

Alberta wildfires hit gas flow out of Canada to US, spiking prices

Alberta officials on Thursday warned more wildfires could spread in next few hot and dry days, even as firefighters make progress in tackling widespread blazes that have slowed the outflow of natural gas from Canada into the United States, spiking prices. Record-high temperatures and tinder-dry vegetation have led to an intense, early start to the wildfire season in western Canada this year and forecasters see no improvement in conditions at least until next week.

G7 leaders reckon with Ukraine, haunted by Hiroshima nuclear legacy

Leaders of the world's advanced democracies start their Group of Seven (G7) summit on Friday in Hiroshima with a sombre remembrance of the costs of war as they grapple with the conflict in Ukraine. Ahead of a summit focused heavily on ending Russia's war in Ukraine and on preventing conflict with China, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will gather world leaders at a peace memorial in the Japanese city levelled by an atomic bomb in World War Two.

UK to ban Russian diamonds at G7 in fresh round of sanctions

Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak plans to announce a ban on Russian diamonds and imports of metals from Russia including copper, aluminium and nickel in support for Ukraine, his government said in a statement. Britain is also targeting an additional 86 people and companies from Russian President Vladimir Putin's military industrial complex, in addition those involved in energy, metals and shipping industries.

Israel's 'Flag March' in Jerusalem rattles Palestinians

Tens of thousands of Israeli nationalists marched through the Muslim quarter of Jerusalem's walled Old City under heavy security on Thursday in an annual event that drew condemnation from Palestinians. The parade is the main celebration on Jerusalem Day, when Israel marks its capture of Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war. The event has become a show of force for Jewish nationalists and, for Palestinians, a blatant provocation meant to undermine their ties to the city.

Witnesses recount gunmen's raid on church in Sudan's capital

Over four terrifying hours last weekend, masked gunmen affiliated to one of Sudan's warring factions raided one of Khartoum's oldest churches, opening fire at church officials as they searched for cash, gold and women, two witnesses said. The raid was one of many targeting homes, factories, banks and places of worship that residents have often blamed on the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which have been battling the army across greater Khartoum over the past month.

Car breaches Vatican gate at high speed, man arrested

A man driving a car breached Vatican security on Thursday evening, driving at high speed through a gate of the city-state and reaching a central courtyard of the Apostolic Palace before being arrested, the Vatican said. A statement said a Vatican policeman fired a gun and hit the car. The man, described as about 40 years old and in an unstable sate of mind, did not get near the guest house on the other side of Vatican City where Pope Francis lives.

Devastating Italian floods kill at least 13, wreck homes and farms

Floods that killed at least 13 people in Italy's northern Emilia-Romagna region caused billions of euros' worth of damage and hit agriculture particularly hard, the regional governor said on Thursday. Torrential rains this week devastated the eastern side of the region, known as Romagna, with up to 300 landslides, 23 overflowing rivers, some 400 roads damaged or destroyed, and 42 flooded municipalities.

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