Reuters World News Summary

The EU on May 2 allowed the five countries - Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia - to ban domestic sales of Ukrainian wheat, maize, rapeseed and sunflower seeds while allowing transit through them for export elsewhere, including to other EU countries. US senator presses for declassified report on Al Jazeera reporter's killing U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen called on Monday for declassifying a government report on the death of Al Jazeera's Shireen Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American journalist who was shot and killed while covering an Israeli army raid last year.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Shelling, looting in Sudan's capital as military factions battle for eighth week

Shelling and heavy clashes hit areas of Sudan's capital on Monday, residents said, with reports of spreading lawlessness in Khartoum and in the western region of Darfur after more than seven weeks of conflict between rival military factions. Fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) intensified after the expiry late on Saturday of a ceasefire deal brokered by Saudi Arabia and the U.S.

Russia, Ukraine face off at World Court over MH17 airliner downing

Ukraine and Russia face off at the top United Nations court on Tuesday over Moscow's alleged backing of pro-Russian separatists blamed for the shooting down of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 in 2014. Judges at the International Court of Justice will hear Ukraine's claim that Moscow violated a U.N. anti-terrorism treaty by equipping and funding pro-Russian forces who international investigators concluded shot down the jetliner over eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 passengers and crew.

Ukraine has enough weapons to begin counter-offensive, says foreign minister

Ukraine has enough weapons to begin its counter-offensive against Russia, and the operation will give the country the victory it needs to join NATO, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told Reuters on Monday. Membership of the military alliance would "probably" only be possible for Ukraine after the end of active hostilities, Kuleba said in an interview in Kyiv.

Russia says it thwarts another major attack in Ukraine, inflicting heavy losses

Russia said on Tuesday it had thwarted another major Ukrainian offensive in Donetsk, inflicting heavy losses, while Ukraine hailed progress in fighting in the east, although it was unclear if it marked the start of a long-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive. On Monday, Russia said Ukrainian forces over the weekend had begun a major offensive in the southern part of the Donetsk region, which it had also thwarted.

EU extends restrictions on Ukrainian grain imports

The European Commission said on Monday it was extending until Sept. 15 an arrangement whereby five of Ukraine's EU neighbours can restrict imports of Ukrainian grain. The EU on May 2 allowed the five countries - Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia - to ban domestic sales of Ukrainian wheat, maize, rapeseed and sunflower seeds while allowing transit through them for export elsewhere, including to other EU countries.

US senator presses for declassified report on Al Jazeera reporter's killing

U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen called on Monday for declassifying a government report on the death of Al Jazeera's Shireen Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American journalist who was shot and killed while covering an Israeli army raid last year. One of the most recognizable journalists covering the Israeli-Palestinian conflict for two decades, Abu Akleh was killed in May 2022 during an Israeli raid in the West Bank city of Jenin. Her death triggered outrage across the region.

Robert Hanssen, FBI agent who spied for Russia, found dead in prison

Robert Hanssen, the former FBI agent turned spy whom the bureau describes as the most damaging in its history, was found dead in his prison cell on Monday, U.S. authorities said. Hanssen, 79, was sentenced in 2002 to life in prison after pleading guilty to spying for the Soviet Union and later Russia for over 20 years.

After dangerous encounters, US accuses China of military 'aggressiveness'

The White House said on Monday recent dangerous encounters between U.S. and Chinese forces in the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea reflect a growing aggressiveness by Beijing's military that raises the risk of an error in which "somebody gets hurt." Washington's sharply worded warning followed the U.S. Navy's release on Sunday of a video of what it called an "unsafe interaction" in the Taiwan Strait in which a Chinese warship crossed in front of a U.S. destroyer in the sensitive waterway.

Turkey's Erdogan appoints spokesperson Kalin as intelligence chief

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan appointed his spokesperson Ibrahim Kalin as the head of the National Intelligence Agency (MIT) on Monday, Erdogan's communications office said. Hakan Fidan, who had been Turkey's intelligence chief since 2010, was appointed foreign minister on Saturday.

India investigates rail disaster as trains crawl through crash site

The official investigation into India's deadliest rail crash in over two decades began on Monday after preliminary findings pointed to signal failure as the likely cause for a collision that killed at least 275 people and injured 1,200. The disaster struck on Friday, when a passenger train hit a stationary freight train, jumped the tracks and hit another passenger train passing in the opposite direction near the district of Balasore, in the eastern state of Odisha.

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