Reuters: World

Iranian chess player appears at Kazakhstan tournament without hijab for second day -Reuters witness An Iranian chess player on Wednesday took part in an international tournament in Kazakhstan without a hijab for the second day running, according to a Reuters journalist present. A Reuters witness at the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships in Almaty, Kazakhstan, saw Sara Khadem competing without a headscarf, a violation of Iran's laws governing female dress code. Iran has been swept by demonstrations against the country's clerical leadership since mid-September, when 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini died in the custody of morality police who detained her for "inappropriate attire." read more

Chinese hospitals 'extremely busy' as COVID spreads unchecked Chinese hospitals were under intense pressure on Wednesday as a surge of COVID-19 infections strained resources in the last major country to move towards treating the virus as endemic. In an abrupt change of policy, China this month began dismantling the world's strictest COVID regime of lockdowns and extensive testing, putting its battered economy on course for a complete re-opening next year. The easing of restrictions, which came after widespread protests against them, means COVID is spreading largely unchecked and likely infecting millions of people a day, according to some international health experts. read more

Tensions rise in northern Kosovo, Serbia puts army on alert Protesting Serbs in the ethnically divided city of Mitrovica in northern Kosovo erected new barricades on Tuesday, hours after Serbia said it had put its army on the highest combat alert following weeks of escalating tensions between Belgrade and Pristina. Serbia's defence ministry said in a statement late on Monday that in response to the latest events in the region and its belief that Kosovo was preparing to attack Serbs and forcefully remove the barricades, President Aleksandar Vucic had ordered Serbia's army and police to be put on the highest alert. "There is no reason to panic, but there is reason to be concerned," Serbia's defence minister Milos Vucevic told RTS television late on Monday. read more

Putin says Russia ready to negotiate over Ukraine, Kyiv says Moscow doesn't want talks Russia is ready to negotiate with all parties involved in the war in Ukraine but Kyiv and its Western backers have refused to engage in talks, President Vladimir Putin said in an interview aired on Sunday. Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine has triggered the most deadly European conflict since World War Two and the biggest confrontation between Moscow and the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. There is, thus far, little end in sight to the war. The Kremlin says it will fight until all its aims are achieved while Kyiv says it will not rest until every Russian soldier is ejected from all of its territory. read more

China angered, Taiwan cheered by new U.S. defence act China expressed anger on Saturday at a new U.S. defence authorisation law that boosts military assistance for Taiwan, while Taipei cheered it for helping boost the island's security. China, which considers democratically governed Taiwan its own territory, expressed "strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition" regarding the U.S. National Defense Authorization Act, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement. It said the $858 billion military spending measure, which authorises up to $10 billion in security assistance and fast-tracked weapons procurement for Taiwan, contained provisions that "cause serious damage to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait". read more

Russian politician files legal challenge over Putin's reference to Ukraine "war" A St Petersburg politician has asked prosecutors to investigate Russian President Vladimir Putin for using the word "war" to describe the conflict in Ukraine, accusing the Kremlin chief of breaking his own law. Putin has for months described his invasion as a "special military operation". He signed laws in March that prescribe steep fines and jail terms for discrediting or spreading "deliberately false information" about the armed forces, putting people at risk of prosecution if they call the war by its name. But he departed from his usual language on Thursday when he told reporters: "Our goal is not to spin the flywheel of military conflict, but, on the contrary, to end this war." Nikita Yuferev, an opposition councillor in the city where Putin was born, said he knew his legal challenge would go nowhere, but he had filed it to expose the "mendacity" of the system. read more

Putin says Russia wants end to war in Ukraine President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Russia wants an end to the war in Ukraine and that this would inevitably involve a diplomatic solution. Putin made the comments a day after U.S. President Joe Biden hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in the White House and promised him continued and unwavering U.S. support. "Our goal is not to spin the flywheel of military conflict, but, on the contrary, to end this war," Putin said. "We will strive for an end to this, and the sooner the better, of course." read more

Ukraine's Zelenskiy tells U.S. Congress aid is 'not charity', urges more support President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told the U.S. Congress that aid to Ukraine was an investment in democracy and "not charity" as he invoked American battles against the Nazis in World War Two to press for more assistance for his country's war effort. Zelenskiy's comments on Wednesday come as Republicans - some of whom have voiced increasing scepticism about sending so much aid to Ukraine - are set to take control of the U.S. House of Representatives from Democrats on Jan. 3. Some hardline Republicans have even urged an end to aid and an audit to trace how allocated money has been spent. read more

Ukraine's Zelenskiy goes to Washington seeking 'weapons, weapons and more weapons' Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was en route to the United States on Wednesday to meet President Joe Biden, address Congress and seek "weapons, weapons and more weapons" in his first overseas trip 300 days since Russia invaded his country. Zelenskiy said the visit was aimed at strengthening Ukraine's "resilience and defence capabilities" amid repeated Russian attacks on energy and water supplies in the dead of winter. Presidential political adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said Zelenskiy's U.S. visit showed the high degree of trust between the two countries and offered him the opportunity to explain what weapons Kyiv needs. read more

Magnitude 6.4 quake shakes northern California, leaves 2 dead, thousands without power A powerful magnitude 6.4 earthquake jolted the extreme northern coast of California before dawn on Tuesday, crumpling homes and roads, rupturing utility lines and leaving thousands of residents without running water and electricity. At least a dozen people were injured, and two others died from "medical emergencies" that occurred during or just after the quake, according to the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office. The tremor, which struck at 2:30 a.m. PST and was followed by about 80 aftershocks, was centered 215 miles (350 km) north of San Francisco offshore of Humboldt County, a largely rural area known for its redwood forests, local seafood, lumber industry and dairy farms. read more

U.S. State Dept says toll of COVID in China a concern for the world The United States hopes that China can address the current COVID-19 outbreak as the toll of the virus is a global concern due to the size of the Chinese economy, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said on Monday. "The toll of the virus is of concern to the rest of the world given the size of China's GDP, given the size of China's economy," Price told a daily briefing at the State Department. "It's not only good for China to be in a stronger position vis-a-vis COVID but it's good for the rest of the world as well," Price said. read more

Factbox: Elon Musk's Twitter polls - from stake sales to CEO decisions A majority of Twitter users voted for billionaire Elon Musk to step down as the chief executive of the social media firm after he started a poll on Sunday evening, the latest twist in a chaotic reign following his $44 billion takeover. The poll, which concluded with 57.5% of the votes favoring Musk step down as CEO, started after his tweet on Sunday that said: "Going forward, there will be a vote for major policy changes." read more