JUBA, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- South Sudan has withdrawn its peacekeeping forces in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Lul Ruai Koang, the spokesperson of the South Sudan People's Defense Forces, told Xinhua on Sunday in Juba, the capital of South Sudan, that all the forces that had been deployed in December 2022, as part of the East African Community Regional Force, have been withdrawn from the North Kivu region of the DRC.

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 11 (NNN-Bernama) — Malaysian King Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah on Monday expressed regret and disappointment over the United States’ (US) use of its veto power to reject the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) draft resolution urging a ceasefire between the Zionist Israeli regime and Palestine.

NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — A former U.S. Navy SEAL who says he shot Osama bin Laden is at the center of a much different fight in Virginia, where plans for a military-themed brewery are drawing opposition over his alleged racist and homophobic remarks.

Robert J. O’Neill has a small ownership stake in Armed Forces Brewing Company and has served as its brand ambassador. His recent social media complaint about a Navy sailor who performs as a drag queen and a police report alleging he used a racial slur are fueling efforts to stop the brewery from opening in military-friendly Norfolk.

MOSCOW, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov demanded the release of hostages held in Gaza in telephone calls on Sunday and Monday with Hamas and other Palestinian factions, the Russian foreign ministry said.

The statement followed a series of meetings and calls between President Vladimir Putin and Middle East leaders in the past week.

MOSCOW, December 11. /TASS/: The puppet regime in Kiev will inevitably be abandoned by its overseas masters in the end, Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) Director Sergey Naryshkin said.

"The puppet regime in Kiev, which is alien to the majority of Ukrainians, and which has perpetrated bloody massacres in Donbass, in Odessa and in many other towns and villages of Ukraine, will eventually and inevitably be abandoned by its overseas masters," he said at a roundtable discussion devoted to the study of Ukrainian propaganda and efforts to fight against it.

DOHA, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday urged the UN Security Council (UNSC) to "press to avert a humanitarian catastrophe" in the Gaza Strip and reiterated his appeal for a ceasefire.

Guterres made the remarks at the Doha Forum in Qatar, two days after the United States wielded its veto power during a Security Council emergency meeting to quash a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

TEHRAN, Dec 11 (NNN-TASNIM) – A huge fire broke out yesterday morning, at an oil refinery in the eastern Iranian province of South Khorasan, leading to the simultaneous explosion of several gas condensates reservoirs.

The fire started at one of the reservoirs of the mini-refinery, which is located in Birjand Special Economic Zone, at 8:45 a.m. local time (0515 GMT), the report said.

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Battles raged across Gaza on Sunday as Israel indicated it was prepared to fight for months or longer to defeat the territory’s Hamas rulers, and a key mediator said willingness to discuss a cease-fire was fading.

Israel faces international outrage after its military offensive, with diplomatic support and arms from close ally the United States, has killed thousands of Palestinian civilians. About 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million people have been displaced within the besieged territory, where U.N. agencies say there is no safe place to flee.

PARIS, Dec 11 (Reuters) - French lawmakers will decide on Monday whether to cut short any debate on the government's immigration bill, which would effectively send flagship legislation back to the drawing board.

The immigration bill has been a key plank of President Emmanuel Macron's attempts to show he can be tougher on law and order issues while keeping France's doors open to foreign workers who can help the French economy.

UNITED NATIONS, December 11. /TASS/: The emergency special session of the UN General Assembly on Palestine will be resumed on December 12, the press service of the General Assembly’s President said.

"President of the UN General Assembly, H.E. Mr. Dennis Francis, has just informed Member States that he will convene the 45th plenary meeting of the tenth Emergency Special Session (ESS) of the General Assembly on Tuesday, 12 December 2023," the press service informed.

The meeting was initiated at the request of Egypt and Mauritania, it noted.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana (AP) — The government of Guyana, under pressure from neighboring Brazil and a Caribbean trading bloc, agreed Sunday to join bilateral talks with Venezuela over an escalating territorial dispute.

The century-old dispute between the two South American nations recently reignited with the discovery of masses of oil in Guyana. The government of Nicolas Maduro, through a referendum last week, has claimed sovereignty over the Essequibo territory, which accounts for two-thirds of Guyana and lies near big offshore oil deposits.

DODOMA, Dec 11 (NNN-DAILYNEWS) — Tanzania’s Capital City-Dodoma, is expected for the first-time to host next year’s World Bee Day (WBD) scheduled for May 20, 2024, the government has confirmed.

The confirmation was made here by the Assistant Director of Beekeeping Development from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism, Daniel Pancras during a special forum convened to set up preliminary preparations for hosting the crucial global event.