Reuters World News Summary
Following is a summary of current world news briefs.
Pope Francis is in critical condition but alert, Vatican says
Pope Francis, in critical condition battling double pneumonia, had a "tranquil" night, was alert and had rested after a respiratory crisis and blood transfusions, the Vatican said on Sunday. The pope was admitted to Rome's Gemelli hospital on February 14 after experiencing difficulty breathing for several days and subsequently had pneumonia diagnosed in both lungs.
China accuses Australia of 'hyping' Chinese naval drills
China defense ministry spokesperson Wu Qian said on Sunday that Australian complaints over recent Chinese live-fire naval drills in international waters between Australia and New Zealand were "hyped up" and "inconsistent with the facts." Australia Defence Minister Richard Marles said on Saturday that Beijing had failed to give satisfactory reasons for what he called inadequate notice for live-fire drills a day earlier, which he said had forced airlines to divert flights.
Swiss could contribute to peacekeeping in Ukraine, army chief says
Switzerland could contribute troops to a future peacekeeping mission in Ukraine if it were requested and the government agreed, Swiss armed forces chief Thomas Suessli said in an interview published on Sunday. "We could probably field around 200 soldiers in nine to 12 months," Suessli told newspaper SonntagsBlick, stressing that it would be a matter for the government and parliament to decide if any appeal were made to Switzerland.
Israel says it is postponing release of Palestinian prisoners
Israel said on Sunday it was delaying the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners it had planned to free the day before until militant group Hamas met its conditions, underscoring the fragility of the Gaza ceasefire accord. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office released a statement in the early hours of Sunday saying that Israel was waiting to deliver the 620 Palestinian prisoners and detainees "until the release of the next hostages has been assured, and without the humiliating ceremonies."
Hamas says Israel's claim on hostages' handover ceremony is pretext to evade its obligations
Hamas on Sunday condemned Israel's decision to postpone the release of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, saying its claim that the hostages' handover ceremonies are "humiliating" was false and a pretext to evade Israel's obligations under the Gaza ceasefire agreement. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin "Netanyahu's decision reflects a deliberate attempt to disrupt the agreement, represents a clear violation of its terms, and shows the occupation's lack of reliability in implementing its obligations," Ezzat El Rashq, a member of the Hamas political bureau, said in a statement.
Tens of thousands mourn Hezbollah's slain leader Nasrallah in mass funeral
Tens of thousands of people gathered on the outskirts of Beirut on Sunday to pay their respects to Hezbollah's slain leader Hassan Nasrallah, nearly five months after he was killed in an Israeli airstrike in a stunning blow to the Iran-backed group. The killing of Nasrallah, who led the Shi'ite Muslim group through decades of conflict with Israel and oversaw its transformation into a military force with regional sway, was one of the opening salvos in an Israeli escalation that badly weakened Hezbollah.
Trump gets middling grades on Americans' top issues, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds
Americans give President Donald Trump middling marks on his handling of the economy and efforts to shrink the government and are unimpressed by some of the early fights he has picked, such as proposals to take over Gaza, a Reuters/Ipsos poll shows.
The poll, conducted February 13-18, asked more than 4,000 U.S. adults nationwide whether they supported a range of positions staked out by Trump and how much the issues would motivate them to vote in the future. The results point to Trump putting considerable effort into policies that many Americans don't like, or don't consider very important.
British PM Starmer says there can be no Ukraine talks without Ukraine's participation
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Sunday that there can be no talks about the future of Ukraine without the participation of Ukraine, setting his stall out before a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump this week. "Nobody wants the bloodshed to continue. Nobody, least of all the Ukrainians," he told the Scottish Labour Party conference in Glasgow.
Germans vote as far-right party set for best ever result
Germans were voting in a national election on Sunday that is expected to restore power to Friedrich Merz's conservatives, while the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is forecast to achieve its best result yet in Europe's ailing economic powerhouse. Merz's CDU/CSU bloc has consistently led polls but is unlikely to win a majority given Germany's fragmented political landscape, forcing it to sound out coalition partners.
Russia launches war's largest drone attack on Ukraine, Kyiv says
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday that Russia launched more than 200 drones in an overnight attack, the largest of the war, as he condemned Russia's "aerial terror" and called for unity among Ukraine's allies. "Every day, our people stand against aerial terror," he wrote on X.
