Reuters World News Summary

On Sunday, the group of mostly Central American and Caribbean migrants had walked 15 kilometers (more than 9 miles) from the southern border city Tapachula to get to Alvaro Obregon, with plans to set off again around 4 a.m. the next day. Israel says five Gaza hostages found dead in tunnel, circumstances being probed Five Israeli hostages killed in Hamas captivity were recovered from an underground tunnel network in the northern Gaza Strip, the military said on Sunday, showing footage of a white-tiled bathroom and work room linked by dark concrete-lined passages.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Moldova's pro-European president Sandu says she will seek second term

Moldova's pro-European President Maia Sandu said on Sunday she intended to run for a second presidential term in late 2024 and called on parliament to begin preparations for a referendum on the country's drive to join the European Union. The country's most prominent opposition figure, Socialist pro-Russian former President Igor Dodon, denounced both her intention to seek re-election and the call for a referendum.

Ukraine's new Christmas Day unites Catholic-Orthodox family

Ukrainian couple Lesia Shestakova, a Catholic, and Oleksandr Shestakov, an Orthodox believer, will for the first time celebrate Christmas together on Dec. 25. Ukraine, like Russia, officially observed Orthodox Christmas on Jan. 7 according to the Julian calendar until Kyiv passed a law earlier this year shifting the date to Dec. 25 in line with other Western European countries.

Migrant caravan spends Christmas on the road before heading to U.S. border

Thousands of migrants arrived on Sunday in the southern Mexican town Alvaro Obregon to spend the Christmas Eve in a public square without shelter before making their way north to cross the country and reach the border with the United States. On Sunday, the group of mostly Central American and Caribbean migrants had walked 15 kilometers (more than 9 miles) from the southern border city Tapachula to get to Alvaro Obregon, with plans to set off again around 4 a.m. the next day.

Israel says five Gaza hostages found dead in tunnel, circumstances being probed

Five Israeli hostages killed in Hamas captivity were recovered from an underground tunnel network in the northern Gaza Strip, the military said on Sunday, showing footage of a white-tiled bathroom and work room linked by dark concrete-lined passages. The publication left open the question of how they had died, with chief military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari saying post-mortems were pending. "We will brief the families and then, depending on what they approve, the public," he said.

Chad votes yes to new constitution backed by junta

Chadians have voted in favour of a new constitution that critics say could help cement the power of junta leader Mahamat Idriss Deby. The referendum held earlier this month was approved by 86% of voters, the government commission that organised it said on Sunday. Voter turnout was about 64%, it said.

Thousands march in Rabat demanding end to Morocco-Israel ties

Thousands of protesters staged one of the largest pro-Palestinian marches in Rabat on Sunday since the outbreak of the war in Gaza, demanding an end to Morocco's ties with Israel.

Protests against Israel's war in Gaza have repeatedly drawn thousands of people in Morocco since the conflict began more than two months ago, mostly led by pan-Arab and Islamist groups.

16 people killed in attack in Nigeria -AFP

Sixteen people were killed in an attack in Nigeria's north-central state of Plateau, where clashes between herders and farmers are common, the AFP News Agency said on Sunday, citing the Nigerian army. The attack occurred in the village of Mushu, AFP said in a post on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.

Israeli airstrikes kill dozens, Gaza officials say, in Christmas bloodshed

Pope Francis lamented the war in the Holy Land where Palestinian health officials said airstrikes killed at least 78 people on Christmas Eve in one of the Gaza Strip's deadliest nights in Israel's 11-week-old battle with Hamas. Israeli strikes that began hours before midnight persisted into Christmas Day on Monday. Local residents and Palestinian media said Israel stepped up air and ground shelling against al-Bureij in central Gaza.

Thousands protest in Belgrade to demand elections annulled

Thousands gathered in the centre of Belgrade in an anti-government protest on Sunday to demand the annulment of parliamentary and local elections a week ago that international observers said were unfair. The populist ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) won 46.72% of the votes in snap parliamentary elections last weekend, according to state election commission preliminary results.

Russia, Ukraine exchange claims over downed military aircraft

Russian and Ukrainian military officials both reported downing enemy aircraft on Sunday in different areas of the 1,000-km-long (621-mile) front of their 22-month-old war. The commander of Ukraine's air force, Mykola Oleshchuk, said Ukrainian anti-aircraft units had struck a Russian Su-34 fighter bomber near the Russian-occupied city of Mariupol on the Sea of Azov in southern Ukraine.

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