Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Jordan's King Abdullah presses Biden to avert Israel offensive in Rafah

Jordan's King Abdullah told U.S. President Joe Biden in a private meeting on Monday that an Israeli offensive in Rafah would lead to a "new massacre" of Palestinian civilians and urged the international community to take urgent action. "The king warned of the repercussions of the Israeli ground offensive on Rafah, which could cause a regional spillover of the conflict," a statement from the Jordan royal court said after Abdullah had lunch with Biden at the White House.

Fate of Gaza ceasefire uncertain, Israel vows to continue Rafah operation

Palestinian militant group Hamas on Monday agreed to a Gaza ceasefire proposal from mediators, but Israel said the terms did not meet its demands and pressed ahead with strikes in Rafah while planning to continue negotiations on a deal. The developments in the seven-month-old war came as Israeli forces struck Rafah on Gaza's southern edge from the air and ground and ordered residents to leave parts of the city, which has been a refuge for more than a million displaced Palestinians.

Judge warns Trump of potential jail time for violating gag order

The judge in Donald Trump's criminal trial fined him $1,000 and held him in contempt of court for a 10th time on Monday for violating a gag order and warned that further violations could land the former president in jail. Justice Juan Merchan said the nine $1,000 fines he had imposed previously did not seem to be deterring the wealthy business mogul from violating the order, which bars him from speaking publicly about the jurors and witnesses in the first criminal trial of a former U.S. president.

China's Xi backs Macron call for global Olympic truce

China's President Xi Jingping on Monday called for a global truce during the Olympic Games in Paris this summer after the French president and the head of the European Commission urged him to use his influence on Russia to end its war in Ukraine. President Emmanuel Macron is hosting the Chinese leader for his first visit to Europe in five years and held talks with him and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Paris as they sought to show a united front on issues ranging from trade to Ukraine.

EU eyes shipping, violations in new sanctions package, according to text

The European Union would ban trans-shipment of Russian LNG, the use of EU ports by vessels transporting goods contributing to Russia's war effort and make EU operators more accountable for any sanctions violations, according to a text under discussion. The text seen by Reuters on Monday covers proposals that would constitute a 14th package of sanctions against Russia over its 2022 invasion of Ukraine now being debated by EU members before it enters force.

Brazil's Lula seeks spending waiver for rain-ravaged Southern state where 85 have died

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva asked Congress on Monday to recognize a state of public calamity for the heavy rains that have killed at least 85 people in the country's southernmost state of Rio Grande do Sul. More than 130 people are still missing after flooding that has affected more than two-thirds of the nearly 500 cities in the state, leaving about 150,000 people displaced, the state civil defense authority said.

Building collapse in South Africa leaves two dead, dozens trapped

Rescue efforts were underway after two people were killed and dozens remained trapped after a multi-storey building under construction collapsed in the South African city of George, authorities said on Monday. Twenty-two people were rescued from the site and sent to hospitals, the municipality of George, a coastal city east of Cape Town, said in a statement.

US, most EU nations to boycott Putin's inauguration over Ukraine war

The United States and most European Union nations will boycott a Kremlin ceremony to swear in Vladimir Putin for a new six-year term as president on Tuesday, but France and some other EU states were expected to send an envoy despite a plea by Kyiv.

The varying diplomatic response by the Western powers underscored differences over how to handle the Russian leader more than two years after he launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Reuters wins two Pulitzers, ProPublica takes coveted public service award

Reuters won two Pulitzer Prizes on Monday, taking home the breaking news photography award for searing images of the Israel-Gaza conflict as well as the national reporting award for a series of investigations into Elon Musk's manufacturing empire. ProPublica won the coveted public service award for stories detailing undisclosed gifts and trips that U.S. Supreme Court justices, particularly Clarence Thomas, accepted from wealthy donors. The New York Times and the Washington Post each captured three prizes.

With bright tents and sombre mood, protesting UK students show solidarity with US peers

British students set up pro-Palestinian protest encampments on Oxford and Cambridge universities' historic campuses on a cloudy spring Monday, in a show of solidarity with their American peers. By early morning, students had erected dozens of brightly coloured tents on the lawns outside the relatively dull, yellow, 19th-century neo-Gothic Oxford University Museum of Natural History.

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