Following is a summary of current world news briefs.
Zelenskiy overhauls cabinet with slew of new ministers, top diplomat
Ukrainian lawmakers voted on Thursday to appoint nine new ministers, including the foreign minister and two deputy prime ministers, signing off on President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s biggest government shakeup since Russia’s 2022 invasion. Andrii Sybiha, 49, an experienced diplomat who does not have a prominent public profile, takes the reins of the foreign ministry, replacing Dmytro Kuleba, who has been one of the best known public faces of Ukraine in the West in recent years.
German police kill suspected Islamist gunman in shootout near Israeli consulate
German police shot dead an Austrian suspected Islamist gunman in Munich on Thursday in an exchange of fire close to the Israeli consulate, prompting politicians to stress the importance of protecting Israeli sites in the country. Police said the 18-year-old man fired shots from an old carbine rifle with a bayonet in Munich’s Maxvorstadt district, near both the consulate and a Nazi history museum, before being killed in a shootout with five officers.
Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei dies, days after boyfriend set her on fire
Ugandan Olympic marathon runner Rebecca Cheptegei died on Thursday, four days after she was doused in petrol and set on fire by her boyfriend in Kenya, in the latest attack on a female athlete in the country. Cheptegei, 33, who competed in the Paris Olympics, suffered burns to more than 75% of her body in Sunday’s attack, Kenyan and Ugandan media reported.
Biden administration races to save billions in Ukraine aid as deadline looms
U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration is engaged in urgent discussions with Congress to allow it to use up $6 billion in military aid for Ukraine before a Sept. 30 deadline, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. The effort comes at a high-risk moment for Ukrainian forces, who are advancing into Russia’s Kursk region while trying to hold off Russian forces threatening the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk.
France’s Macron names Brexit negotiator Barnier as new prime minister
After two months of political chaos following snap elections, French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday named as prime minister Michel Barnier, who pledged to cooperate across the political spectrum but gave few clues on his plans. The EU’s former chief Brexit negotiator – a discreet conservative who is relatively unknown in France despite former ministerial roles – faces the daunting challenge of steering tough legislation like the 2025 budget through a hung parliament while under constant threat of being toppled.
Georgia teachers pressed new panic buttons during shooting, alerting police
Teachers at the Georgia high school, where a shooter killed four people on Wednesday, pressed wearable panic buttons — in use just one week — to alert law enforcement officers that they were in danger. Responding officers could potentially pinpoint the location of the person who had pushed the panic button on maps on their mobile phones of the large Apalachee High School campus located around 40 miles northeast of Atlanta. The suspect in the shooting, a 14-year-old student at the high school, faces four counts of murder and will be tried as an adult.
Pope Francis heads to Papua New Guinea to visit remote Catholic communities
Pope Francis will touch down in Papua New Guinea later on Friday as the pontiff undertakes his longest ever overseas journey with an aim to reach Catholics in the most remote corners of the world and highlight a cause close to his heart, climate change. The Pope’s three-day visit to the country will include time in the capital Port Moresby where he will meet with authorities, civil societies and church leaders, participating in Sunday mass before heading to the remote town of Vanimo to meet with Catholic missionaries.
Palestinian children in south Gaza receive polio vaccinations amid continued war
Crowds of Palestinians gathered at medical centers in the south of the embattled Gaza Strip on Thursday for their children to be vaccinated against polio in the second stage of a campaign that has so far seen 187,000 youngsters inoculated. The U.N. Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA said the campaign, taking place after Hamas and Israel agreed on limited pauses in their fighting, was so far successful but complex.
Tunisian judge frees presidential candidate Ayachi Zammel
A Tunisian judge ordered the release of presidential candidate Ayachi Zammel from jail on Thursday, lawyers said, a month before an election that opposition critics say is rigged in favour of President Kais Saied. Zammel was arrested on Monday on suspicion of falsifying voter forms. Each candidate must submit forms from 10,000 supporters to qualify for the election. He denies the allegation.
Britain to send 650 air defence missiles to Ukraine in latest support
The British government said on Friday it would provide Ukraine with 650 lightweight multi-role missiles worth 162 million pounds ($213.13 million) to help protect the country from Russian drones and bombing. Russia last week unleashed its largest air attack on Ukraine since the full-scale war began early in 2022. Ukraine has made repeated requests for more air defence support to defend itself from missile and drone attacks.
Team BharatShakti
(With Inputs from Reuters)
