Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

Taliban say killing of leader's brother will not derail U.S. talks

Afghan Taliban officials said on Saturday the killing of the brother of their leader in a bomb attack would not derail talks with the United States aimed at securing the withdrawal of U.S. troops after 18 years of war. Taliban leader Haibatullah Akhundzada was not in the mosque near the Pakistani city of Quetta when a bomb went off but his younger brother, Hafiz Ahmadullah, was leading Friday prayers and was among four people killed, several Taliban officials have said.

Court documents show U.S. seeks seizure of Iranian tanker violating sanctions

Newly released U.S. court documents show the United States issued a warrant for the seizure of an Iranian tanker that British Royal Marines had seized last month in Gibraltar, citing evidence that it was transporting oil to Syria in violation of U.S. sanctions. The oil tanker Grace 1, the more than 2 million barrels of oil it carries and $995,000 are subject to forfeiture based on a complaint by the U.S. government, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jessie Liu said in a news release on Friday.

U.S. appeals court deals partial setback to Trump rule to curtail asylum

A U.S. appeals court on Friday dealt a setback to the Trump administration attempt to bar almost all asylum applications at the U.S.-Mexico border, but stopped short of applying its decision nationwide. While ruling against a provision of President Donald Trump's hard-line anti-immigration policy, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the decision would only apply to the nine Western states that make up the 9th Circuit. Only two of those nine, California and Arizona, are on the border with Mexico.

India eases some curbs in Kashmir, including fixed line phone use

Indian authorities eased restrictions on movement and restored landline telephone links in some parts of Kashmir on Saturday, the biggest relaxation in a crippling lockdown since New Delhi announced it was removing the region's special status on Aug. 5. The moves came even as there were celebrations and protests by Kashmiris opposed to the Indian policy in Srinagar on Friday night. The celebrations were to mark the first United Nations Security Council meeting about the Kashmir issue for about five decades.

Hong Kongers stage more anti-government protests, braving storms

Thousands of Hong Kongers including many teachers took part in more anti-government rallies on Saturday, braving thunderstorms to march past shops shuttered due to growing concern that police could adopt tougher tactics to drive activists from the streets. Following an escalation in violence over the past few days, the rallies this weekend are a key test of whether the protest movement can retain the broad support that it has appeared to enjoy. The peaceful turnout suggested it may, though the protests turned more confrontational by nightfall.

Senior UK Conservative lawmaker says he could not back Corbyn-led government

A Conservative lawmaker at the center of efforts to block a no-deal Brexit said on Saturday he was pessimistic about his chances because he and other party colleagues could not support a caretaker government led by opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn. With Prime Minister Boris Johnson vowing to take Britain out of the European Union with or without a deal by Oct. 31, anti-Brexit politicians from all sides have been trying, and so far failing, to agree on a plan to stop it from happening.

Houthi drone attack on Saudi oilfield causes "limited" gas fire, output unaffected

A drone attack launched by Yemen's Houthi group on an oil field in eastern Saudi Arabia on Saturday caused a "limited" fire at a gas plant but had no impact on oil production, state-run oil company Saudi Aramco said. A Houthi military spokesman said earlier on Saturday that the group had targeted the Shaybah oil field with 10 drones, in what he said was the "biggest attack in the depths" of the kingdom, the world's top oil exporter, by the Iran-aligned group.

North Korea's Kim oversaw the test-firing of new weapon again: KCNA

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw the test-firing of a new weapon again on Friday morning, state media KCNA said on Saturday. North Korea launched at least two short-range ballistic missiles on Friday, South Korea's military said, its sixth round of weapons launches since late July, complicating efforts to restart talks between the United States and North Korea over Pyongyang's weapons programs.

Rescue worker killed in attack on ambulance in northern Myanmar - army

One rescue worker was killed and several others were wounded when an ambulance came under fire in northern Myanmar amid clashes between troops and ethnic rebels in the region, an army spokesman and a witness said on Saturday. The rescue workers were 13 miles from Lashio, the largest town in Shan State, where ethnic armed groups have been fighting for greater autonomy from the central government, when their convoy came under attack.

Civilian death toll mounts as Syrian offensive widens

Air strikes have killed more than two dozen civilians including 11 children in rebel-held northwestern Syria in the last two days in an escalation of a Russian-backed offensive, a war monitor and local activists said on Saturday. An air strike in the village of Deir killed seven people, mostly children, on Saturday morning, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. On Friday, air strikes in the village of al-Haas killed 13 people. The dead included a pregnant woman and her unborn baby, local activists and the Observatory said.