Reuters World News Summary

But the U.S. has called for pauses to allow aid to enter Gaza, while Russia wants a humanitarian ceasefire. World leaders seek to suspend Israel-Hamas fighting for Gaza aid Countries including the United States, Canada, Russia and Arab states pushed for either a pause or ceasefire in fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip so that humanitarian aid could be delivered to besieged Palestinian civilians, and late on Tuesday eight trucks with water, food and medicine entered the enclave from Egypt.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

To cease fire or pause? US, Russia poised for UN showdown on Israel

The United States and Russia have put forward rival plans at the United Nations to help Palestinian civilians caught in the Israel-Hamas conflict in the Gaza Strip: a humanitarian pause or a ceasefire. Both countries seek U.N. Security Council resolutions to address shortages of food, water, medical supplies and electricity in Gaza. But the U.S. has called for pauses to allow aid to enter Gaza, while Russia wants a humanitarian ceasefire.

World leaders seek to suspend Israel-Hamas fighting for Gaza aid

Countries including the United States, Canada, Russia and Arab states pushed for either a pause or ceasefire in fighting between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip so that humanitarian aid could be delivered to besieged Palestinian civilians, and late on Tuesday eight trucks with water, food and medicine entered the enclave from Egypt. Nearly three weeks after Hamas militants shocked Israel with an attack on southern Israeli towns in a rampage that killed 1,400 mostly civilians, world leaders sought to prevent the conflict from spreading.

Israel strikes Syrian army assets after rocket launches, Israeli military says

Israel's military said its jets struck Syrian army infrastructure and mortar launchers early on Wednesday in what it described as a response to rocket launches from Syria toward Israel. The military said it had identified two rocket launches from Syria that had landed in open areas late on Tuesday, and that it had responded with artillery fire at the sources of the launches.

Russian forces pound eastern Ukraine's Avdiivka

Russian forces pounded the shattered eastern Ukrainian city of Avdiivka on Tuesday, but heavy losses forced them to switch to air attacks and rely less on full-on ground advances, Ukrainian officials said. Russia has focused on advancing in the east -- in the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk -- after failing to move on Kyiv in the early days of its invasion, launched in February 2022.

Blinken tells UN: US doesn't want war with Iran but will defend itself

The United States told the United Nations on Tuesday it does not seek conflict with Iran, but Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned that Washington would act swiftly and decisively if Iran or its proxies attacks U.S. personnel anywhere. Blinken spoke to the 15-member U.N. Security Council amid international fears the conflict between Israel and Iran-backed Palestinian Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip could spill over into a wider war, drawing in Lebanon's heavily armed Hezbollah that is also supported by Tehran.

Freed Israeli hostage says 'I've been through hell'

An elderly Israeli hostage who was released by Hamas overnight said she had been beaten by militants when she was abducted and taken to Gaza on Oct. 7, but was then treated well during her two-week captivity in the Palestinian enclave. Yocheved Lifshitz, 85, was one of two elderly women freed late on Monday, leaving around 220 hostages still in the hands of Hamas, including both of their husbands.

Missing millions at top Costa Rica bank spark investigation

Costa Rica's attorney general's office has opened an investigation into the disappearance of some $6 million at the Central American country's largest commercial bank, bank officials said on Tuesday. The 3.3 billion colones ($6.2 million) in question were first detected missing at the National Bank of Costa Rica in August through internal audits, and five employees have been suspended as a result, the bank's interim manager, Jaime Murillo, told a press conference.

Biden's Israel stance angers Arab, Muslim Americans; could jeopardize 2024 votes

Arab and Muslim Americans and their allies are criticizing President Joe Biden's response to the Israel-Hamas war, asking him to do more to prevent a humanitarian crisis in Gaza or risk losing their support in the 2024 election. Many Arab Americans are upset Biden has not pushed for any humanitarian ceasefire even as Palestinians are killed fleeing Israel's bombardment of the Gaza Strip, more than a dozen academics, activists, community members and administration officials said.

One dead, four missing after freighters collide in North Sea

One body has been recovered, two people have been rescued, and four are missing after two freighters collided in the North Sea off the coast of Germany, the maritime emergency authority said on Tuesday. The Verity, which the Central Command for Maritime Emergencies said had sunk, had been on its way from Bremen to the English town of Immingham with seven crew members on board. The Polesie was sailing from Hamburg to La Coruna in Spain.

Exclusive-U.S. military steps up Middle East surveillance as threats to troops grow

The U.S. military is taking new steps to protect its troops in the Middle East as concerns mount about attacks by Iran-backed groups, and it is leaving open the possibility of evacuations of military families if needed, officials tell Reuters. The measures include increasing U.S. military patrols, restricting access to base facilities and hiking intelligence collection, including through drone and other surveillance operations, officials say, speaking on condition of anonymity.

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