World News Roundup: Doctor? Engineer? As dreams fade, Afghan girls turn to madrasas; Indian tax inspectors examine mobiles, laptops of BBC employees and more

Following a pattern of heavy bombardments at times of Ukrainian battlefield or diplomatic advances, Russia launched 32 missiles in the early hours, Ukraine's Air Force said. Teenager rescued from rubble in Turkey 10 days after quake A teenage girl was pulled alive from the rubble in Turkey on Thursday more than 10 days after an earthquake that has killed more than 42,000 people in the country and neighbouring Syria, as families of those still missing await news of their fate.

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Doctor? Engineer? As dreams fade, Afghan girls turn to madrasas

In a chilly classroom in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar, the birthplace of the Taliban movement, teenage girls pore over Islamic texts as the disembodied voice of a male scholar emanates from a loud speaker. Pupils take turns to email questions to the scholar on the class laptop at the Taalum-ul-Islam Girls' Madrasa, or religious school, where male teachers are forbidden from hearing the voices of female students in person.

Indian tax inspectors examine mobiles, laptops of BBC employees

Indian tax officials examined mobile phones and laptops used by some BBC editorial and administrative employees, two sources told Reuters, as an inspection at the British broadcaster's offices in New Delhi and Mumbai entered a third day on Thursday. Tax officials had remained at the BBC's offices, some sleeping there, since the surprise inspection was launched on Tuesday, according to witnesses. Others said some employees were questioned on financial transactions late into the night.

Lebanese depositors smash up, burn Beirut banks

Several dozen Lebanese protesters attacked banks in a Beirut neighbourhood on Thursday, while blocking roads protesting against informal restrictions on cash withdrawals in place for years and rapidly deteriorating economic conditions. At least six banks had been targeted as the Lebanese pound hit a new record low on Thursday, a spokesperson for Depositors Outcry, a lobby representing depositors with money stuck in the country's banking sector, said.

Taiwan finds crashed weather balloon on remote island, likely Chinese

Taiwan's military said on Thursday it had found the remains of a probable crashed weather balloon likely from China on a remote and strategically located island near the Chinese coast, amid a dispute between China and the United States over spy balloons. Taiwan, claimed by China as its own territory, has complained of increased harassment by Beijing's armed forces over the past three years, including fighter jets flying near the island and drones buzzing offshore islets.

Explainer-What we know about China's medical reform protests

Hundreds of people in the Chinese cities of Wuhan and Dalian protested against medical benefit cuts on Wednesday in the latest display of public discontent after rare nationwide demonstrations last year over strict COVID curbs. Here is what we know about the protests.

Russia strikes across Ukraine as push for embattled Bakhmut grinds on

Russia battered Ukraine with multiple missile strikes on Thursday as its troops sought to advance in the east, Kyiv said, while Western allies pledged to keep military aid flowing for an intended Ukrainian spring counter-offensive. Following a pattern of heavy bombardments at times of Ukrainian battlefield or diplomatic advances, Russia launched 32 missiles in the early hours, Ukraine's Air Force said.

Teenager rescued from rubble in Turkey 10 days after quake

A teenage girl was pulled alive from the rubble in Turkey on Thursday more than 10 days after an earthquake that has killed more than 42,000 people in the country and neighbouring Syria, as families of those still missing await news of their fate. The 17-year-old was rescued in Turkey's southeastern Kahramanmaras province, broadcaster TRT Haber reported, 248 hours since the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck in the dead of night on Feb. 6.

A year into the war, Russians in Georgia are viewed with suspicion

On the first day of Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Nikolai Kireev sat with his three-year-old son and cried as he read the news. "That evening I decided it was obvious we had to leave the country as soon as possible," Kireev, who is originally from Moscow, told Reuters in an interview in his new home in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, where he has opened a bookshop aimed at Russian exiles.

Popes are for life, resignations should not become a fashion, Francis says

Pope Francis has said that pontiffs resigning instead of ruling for life should not become a "fashion" in the Roman Catholic Church and happen only in truly exceptional circumstances. The comments, made in private conversations with fellow Jesuits during his recent trip to Democratic Republic of Congo, were a shift away from previous remarks in which Francis said that longer life spans and medical improvements could make retired popes an institution in the Church.

China, Iran call for Iran sanctions to be lifted; Xi to visit

China's President Xi Jinping and his Iranian counterpart, Ebrahim Raisi, called on Thursday for the lifting of sanctions on Iran as an integral part of a stalled international agreement on its nuclear programme. Xi also accepted an invitation from Raisi to visit Iran and would do so at his convenience, the two leaders said in a joint statement on the last day of a three-day state visit to China by Raisi. Xi last visited Iran in 2016 as part of a tour of the Middle East.