Budapest Pride: Thousands Protest Against Anti-LGBTQ+ Policies

Thousands of Hungarians took to the streets for the annual Budapest Pride parade, protesting against the government's anti-LGBTQ+ policies. Prime Minister Viktor Orban's administration, which has been in power since 2010, has promoted a Christian-conservative agenda, including a controversial 2021 law banning the promotion of homosexuality among minors.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Thousands join Budapest Pride to protest anti-LGBTQ+ policies

Carrying rainbow flags and dancing through the streets, thousands of Hungarians celebrated the annual Budapest Pride parade on Saturday and vowed to keep protesting over the government's anti-LGBTQ+ policies. Prime Minister Viktor Orban, in power since 2010, promotes a Christian-conservative agenda and in 2021 banned the "promotion of homosexuality" among under-18s despite strong criticism from rights groups and the European Union.

Yemen's Houthis claim attack on four ships at Israel's Haifa port

Yemen's Houthis said early on Sunday that they had conducted a joint military operation with the Islamic Resistance in Iraq militant group, targeting four ships at Israel's northern Haifa port. The Houthi military spokesperson, Yahya Saree, said in a televised statement that the two groups launched a drone attack on two cement tankers and two cargo ships at the Haifa port on Saturday.

Three people killed, 10 wounded in Arkansas supermarket shooting

A shooter opened fire at an Arkansas supermarket on Friday, killing three civilians and wounding 10 other people, including two police officers, Arkansas State Police said. The suspect was also wounded in a shootout with police, Arkansas State Police Director Mike Hagar told reporters.

Death toll rises to 54 in India liquor tragedy

The death toll has climbed to 54 from consumption of tainted liquor in India's southern state of Tamil Nadu, with more than 100 people still in hospital, a government official said on Saturday. Nearly 200 people have been treated since Wednesday for vomiting, stomach aches and diarrhoea, after drinking liquor spiked with methanol in the district of Kallakurichi, about 250 km (150 miles) from Chennai, the state capital.

US aircraft carrier arrives in South Korea for military drills

A nuclear-powered U.S. aircraft carrier, the Theodore Roosevelt, arrived in the South Korean port city of Busan on Saturday to take part in joint military exercises later this month with the host nation and Japan, naval officials said. The leaders of the three countries agreed at a summit last August to hold annual military training drills as they sought to project unity in the face of China's growing power and nuclear threats from North Korea.

Russian bomb attack kills three, injures 52 in Ukraine's Kharkiv

Russian guided bombs shattered an apartment building in Ukraine's second-largest city on Saturday, killing three people, injuring 52 and prompting President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to call for more help to deal with the growing threat of such weapons. Pictures posted online showed parts of the five-storey apartment building in ruins, with windows smashed, balconies wrecked and rubble strewn about a crater on the ground.

Thousands of Israelis rally to mark to hostage's birthday

Thousands of Israelis rallied in Tel Aviv on Saturday to mark the 20th birthday of Naama Levy, who has been held hostage in Gaza since Oct. 7, and to call for an immediate ceasefire in the war with Palestinian militant group Hamas. Releasing balloons and chanting to the beat of drums, protesters shared bite-sized cupcakes decorated with birthday candles, while demanding the release of all hostages taken by Hamas following its deadly raid on Israel eight months ago.

Japanese Emperor Naruhito finally begins delayed UK state visit

Emperor Naruhito and his wife began a week long trip to Britain on Saturday, during which they will visit Oxford University where they both studied and attend a banquet with King Charles, but no formal meeting with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is scheduled. Naruhito and his wife, Empress Masako, had been due to make the visit in 2020 when Queen Elizabeth was still alive but it was postponed because of the COVID pandemic.

Israeli strikes kill at least 42 in Gaza, enclave's government media office says

At least 42 people were killed in Israeli attacks on districts of Gaza City in the north of the Palestinian enclave on Saturday, the director of the Hamas-run government media office said. One Israeli strike on houses in Al-Shati, one of the Gaza Strip's eight historic refugee camps, killed 24 people, Ismail Al-Thawabta told Reuters. Another 18 Palestinians were killed in a strike on houses in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood.

Israeli forces strap wounded Palestinian to jeep during raid

Israeli army forces strapped a wounded Palestinian man to the hood of a military jeep during an arrest raid in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin on Saturday. A video circulating on social media and verified by Reuters showed a Palestinian resident of Jenin, Mujahed Azmi, on the jeep that passes through two ambulances.

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