Brooklyn Museum Protest Highlights Global Tensions

Pro-Palestinian protesters occupied parts of the Brooklyn Museum, hanging a banner and clashing with police. Some arrests were made, with exact numbers forthcoming, as the museum closed early due to the disruption. This incident underscores ongoing global tensions and the impassioned responses they elicit.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Canadian serial killer Robert Pickton dies after prison attack

Convicted Canadian serial killer Robert Pickton died on Friday aged 74 after he was assaulted by another inmate in a maximum-security prison earlier this month, prison authorities said. One of Canada's most infamous mass murderers, Pickton was convicted in 2007 of killing drug addicts and prostitutes and butchering their remains at his pig farm in the Pacific province of British Columbia.

India heatwave kills at least 33, including election officials

At least 33 people, including election officials on duty, died of suspected heatstroke in India's states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha on Friday, and the heatwave in the region is expected to continue until Saturday, authorities said.

India has been experiencing a blisteringly hot summer and a part of capital Delhi recorded the country's highest ever temperature at 52.9 degrees Celsius (127.22°F) this week, though that may be revised with the weather department checking the sensors of the weather station that registered the reading.

Blinken discusses Gaza plan with Turkey, Jordan and Saudi Arabia

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken held separate phone calls on Friday with foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Jordan, the State Department said, to discuss a proposal to achieve an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and secure the release of hostages. The top U.S. diplomat, conducting the calls on the plane as he flew back to Washington from Prague, underscored to his counterparts that the proposal is in the interests of both Israelis and Palestinians, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.

Chinese vice foreign minister urged US to stop 'smearing' China, Beijing says

Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu urged the United States to refrain from "smearing" China and to stop imposing "abusive" sanctions on Chinese companies at talks this week in Washington, China's foreign ministry said on Friday. Ma met U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and deputy national security adviser Jon Finer on Thursday, a day after the U.S. accused Beijing's leadership of supporting Russia's war in Ukraine and said China could face further Western sanctions.

Israel's Netanyahu gets invitation to address US Congress

The leaders of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives on Friday invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address a joint meeting of Congress, a show of support amid partisan divides over Israel's campaign in Gaza. The letter inviting Netanyahu was signed by Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

Israel completes combat operations in part of north Gaza, military says

Israeli forces have ended operations in north Gaza's Jabalia area after days of intense fighting and over 200 airstrikes, while probing further into Rafah in south Gaza, targeting what they say is the last major redoubt of Hamas battalions. Israeli troops found caches of rocket launchers and other weapons, as well as Hamas tunnel shafts in the centre of Rafah, the military said on Friday, pressing an offensive to break up militant combat units it says are hunkered down in the city on the border with Egypt.

South Africa heads for coalition as ANC support plunges

South African parties geared up for coalition talks on Friday as the governing African National Congress (ANC) looked set to fall well short of a majority for the first time in 30 years of democracy. While the party of the late Nelson Mandela looked likely to remain the largest political force after Wednesday's election, voters appeared to have punished the former liberation movement for years of economic decline, which have left many in poverty.

Biden unveils new Gaza truce proposal, Hamas responds positively

U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday laid out what he described as a three-phase Israeli proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza in return for the release of Israeli hostages, saying "it's time for this war to end" and winning a positive initial reaction from Hamas. The first phase involves a six-week ceasefire when Israeli forces would withdraw from "all populated areas" of Gaza, some hostages - including the elderly and women - would be freed in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, Palestinian civilians would return and 600 trucks a day would bring humanitarian aid into the devastated enclave.

Trump says he will appeal historic conviction

Donald Trump said on Friday he would appeal the guilty verdict that made him the first U.S. president convicted of a crime, though he will have to wait until after his sentencing on July 11 before taking that step. In rambling remarks at the Trump Tower lobby in Manhattan where he announced his first presidential run in 2015, Trump repeated his complaints that the trial was a "rigged" attempt to hobble his comeback White House bid and warned that it showed no American was safe from politically motivated prosecution.

Pro-Palestinian protesters occupy parts of Brooklyn Museum

Pro-Palestinian protesters took over parts of the Brooklyn Museum on Friday, hanging a banner above the main entrance, occupying much of the lobby and scuffling with police, witnesses said. Some arrests were made but a New York Police Department spokesperson said it would be hours before officials had an accurate count. The art museum in the New York City borough of Brooklyn said it closed an hour early due to the disruption.

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