Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Two earthquakes strike Kepulauan Batu, Indonesia -EMSC

Two earthquakes measuring nearly magnitude 6 struck Kepulauan Batu, Indonesia, in the morning hours on Sunday, according to the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC). The first earthquake, pegged by the EMSC at a magnitude 6.1 struck Kepulauan Batu early Sunday, followed by another 5.8 magnitude quake just hours later.

Brazil's Lula doesn't want to 'please anyone' with Ukraine stance

Brazil's Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Saturday he did not want to "please anyone" with his views about Russia's invasion of Ukraine, after provoking criticism in the West for suggesting Kyiv shared the blame for the war. Speaking in Lisbon at the start of his first visit to Europe since being elected president, Lula said his aim was to "build a way to bring both of them (Russia and Ukraine) to the table".

Foreign states start evacuations from Sudan as battle rages

Some foreign nationals began evacuating from a Red Sea port in Sudan on Saturday, as air strikes again rocked the capital Khartoum after a week of fighting between rival commanders that has killed hundreds of civilians. The bloody onslaught of urban warfare has trapped large numbers in the Sudanese capital, disabling the airport and rendering some roads impassable.

Russia announces 'reciprocal' expulsion of more than 20 German diplomats - RIA

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Saturday that Moscow was expelling more than 20 German diplomats, the RIA Novosti news agency said, as Berlin said some Russian diplomats had left Germany. A German Foreign Ministry official said Berlin and Moscow had been in contact about their respective representations in the last few weeks with the aim of reducing Russia's intelligence presence in Germany.

Data company Palantir to help Ukraine prosecute alleged Russian war crimes

Ukraine plans to deploy software from U.S. data analytics provider Palantir Technologies Inc to help it prosecute alleged war crimes committed by Russia, the company told Reuters. Palantir, which has supplied Ukraine with systems to help it target Russian tanks and support refugees, is now working with the prosecutor general's office to help investigators across Europe pool and process data, the company said.

Philippines, China to set up more lines of communication to resolve maritime issues

Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and his foreign secretary met Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang on Saturday with Manila and Beijing pledging to work together to resolve their maritime differences in the South China Sea. Talks between the countries' key officials in Manila mark the latest in a series of high-level meetings of the Philippines with leaders of the United States and China as the two superpowers battle for strategic advantage in the Indo-Pacific.

Meghan hits out at UK media over King Charles letters

Meghan, the wife of Britain's Prince Harry, criticised the British media on Saturday over reports that letters exchanged with King Charles played a part behind her decision not to attend his coronation, her latest confrontation with the press. The Daily Telegraph reported Meghan had written to the now king to express her concerns about unconscious bias in the royal family. It said the letter was sent following her 2021 comments in an interview with Oprah Winfrey that the family had raised concerns about how dark her son's skin would be.

Indonesian, Malaysian Muslims celebrate Eid al-Fitr as COVID fears recede

Muslims in Indonesia and Malaysia gathered in large groups to usher in the Eid al-Fitr festival on Saturday, relieved to be able to celebrate freely after the lifting of most COVID-19 restrictions. In Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority country, hundreds of worshippers turned up for morning prayers at the historic port of Sunda Kelapa in North Jakarta to mark the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.

Russia advising citizens to avoid traveling to Canada, citing attacks

Russia is advising citizens to avoid travel to Canada, citing what it calls numerous cases of discrimination against Russians, including physical violence, its foreign ministry said on Saturday. Canada is one of the most vocal backers of Ukraine in the war against Moscow's forces and has imposed sanctions on hundreds of Russian officials and companies as well as wide-scale trade bans.

Israelis protest planned judicial overhaul ahead of 75th independence day

Tens of thousands of Israelis joined protests on Saturday against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plans to tighten controls on the Supreme Court, ahead of Israel's independence day marking 75 years since establishment of the Jewish state. The plans were paused last month in the face of a wave of strikes and mass demonstrations. The latest protests against them come as Israelis are set to mark both Israeli independence day and Israeli memorial day, which commemorates those killed in Israel's wars and in terror attacks.

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