World News Roundup: Hamas fighters seek to block Israeli army's advance on Gaza City; Pope, on visit to military cemetery, says there are no real winners in war and more

Health officials said on Wednesday that the hospital, which was the only cancer treatment hospital in the Gaza Strip, had to shut down amid Israel's bombardment of the enclave. China says official to lead a delegation in China-US nuclear talks The Chinese foreign ministry said on Thursday a leading official from its department of arms control affairs will lead a delegation in China-U.S. nuclear talks.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Hamas fighters seek to block Israeli army's advance on Gaza City

Israeli tanks and troops pressed towards Gaza City on Thursday but met fierce resistance from Hamas militants using mortars and hit-and-run attacks from tunnels as the Palestinian death toll from nearly four weeks of bombardments mounted. The war is closing in on the Gaza Strip's main population centre in the north where Israel has been telling people to evacuate as it vows to annihilate the Islamist group.

Israeli settler attacks fuel the fire as Gaza war rages

Mourning his father and brother, Mohammed Wadi says armed Israeli settlers from outposts overlooking his olive-growing West Bank village no longer aim low when they shoot at Palestinian neighbours. "Now, they shoot to kill," he said. Violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, already at a more than 15-year high this year, surged further after Israel hurtled into a new war in the separate enclave of Gaza in response to Palestinian militant group Hamas unleashing the deadliest day in Israel's history on Oct. 7.

Pope, on visit to military cemetery, says there are no real winners in war

There are no real winners in any war, Pope Francis said on Thursday during a visit to a World War Two military cemetery, with conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine on his mind. Francis used a wheelchair at Rome's Commonwealth cemetery to pass by the gravestones and to lay flowers during a visit on All Souls Day, when the Roman Catholic Church commemorates all those who have died.

Taiwan scrambles air force after Chinese warplanes cross median line

Taiwan scrambled its air force on Thursday after spotting 20 Chinese warplanes crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait, the unofficial barrier between the two sides, Taiwan's defence ministry said, as Beijing continues military activities near the island. The Chinese aircraft included an unspecified number of fighter jets and drones which entered Taiwan's northern, central and southwestern air defence identification zones (ADIZ) from Thursday afternoon, the ministry said in a statement.

Turkey ready to take cancer patients from shut Gaza hospital

Turkey is ready to take in cancer patients from Gaza's Turkish-Palestinian Friendship hospital, which went out of service on Wednesday after running out of fuel, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said on Thursday. Health officials said on Wednesday that the hospital, which was the only cancer treatment hospital in the Gaza Strip, had to shut down amid Israel's bombardment of the enclave.

China says official to lead a delegation in China-US nuclear talks

The Chinese foreign ministry said on Thursday a leading official from its department of arms control affairs will lead a delegation in China-U.S. nuclear talks. The ministry did not name the official.

Activists struggle to commemorate victims of Soviet repression

If history is written by the victors, then a small group of Russian activists are doing their best to make sure the battle to remember the millions of victims of Soviet repression is not lost - one small steel plaque at a time. President Vladimir Putin has sidelined those who have done most to research the crimes of seven decades of communism, perhaps loath to invite comparison with his own suppression of dissent, or blur the patriotism needed to drive his war in Ukraine.

Border crossing with Afghanistan swamped by Afghans after Pakistani expulsion order

Thousands of people swamped Pakistan's main northwestern border crossing seeking to cross into Afghanistan on Thursday, a day after the government's deadline expired for undocumented foreigners to leave or face expulsion. Pakistani authorities began rounding up undocumented foreigners, most of them Afghans, hours before Wednesday's deadline. More than a million Afghans could have to leave or face arrest and forcible expulsion as a result of the ultimatum delivered by the Pakistan government a month ago.

Worldcoin aims to set up global ID network akin to India's Aadhaar

Worldcoin, the cryptocurrency project set up by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, aims to establish a global ID network akin to India's Aadhaar biometric ID system, a senior employee told Reuters. More than 2.4 million people have signed up to have their irises scanned by Worldcoin's "orb" devices in exchange for a digital ID and free cryptocurrency, shrugging off privacy campaigners’ concerns that the database could be misused.

Putin revokes Russia's ratification of nuclear test ban treaty

President Vladimir Putin on Thursday signed off on a law revoking Russia's ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, a move he says is designed to bring Moscow into line with the United States. Russia says that it will not resume testing unless Washington does and that its de-ratification does not change its nuclear posture or the way it shares information about its nuclear activities.