Following is a summary of current world news briefs.

French PM, paying tribute to slain teacher, says France will defend its values

French Prime Minister Jean Castex paid tribute on Saturday to history teacher Samuel Paty a year after he was murdered by an Islamist radical, saying France would stand up for its values of secularism and freedom. Paty’s attacker, a teenager of Chechen origin, had wanted to avenge the teacher’s use of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad in a class on freedom of expression for 13-year-olds. Muslims see any depiction of the Prophet as blasphemous.

U.S. offers payments, relocation to family of Afghans killed in botched drone attack

The Pentagon has offered unspecified condolence payments to the family of 10 civilians who were killed in a botched U.S. drone attack in Afghanistan in August during the final days before American troops withdrew from the country. The U.S. Defense Department said it made a commitment that included offering “ex-gratia condolence payments”, in addition to working with the U.S. State Department in support of the family members who were interested in relocation to the United States.

ASEAN excludes Myanmar junta leader from summit in rare move

Southeast Asian countries will invite a non-political representative from Myanmar to a regional summit this month, delivering an unprecedented snub to the military leader who led a coup against an elected civilian government in February. The decision taken by foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) at an emergency meeting on Friday night, marks a rare bold step for the consensus-driven bloc, which has traditionally favoured a policy of engagement and non-interference.

Former Iranian central bank chief sentenced to 10 years on corruption charges

A former governor of Iran’s Central Bank, Valiollah Seif, was sentenced on Saturday to 10 years in prison on corruption charges involving the mismanagement of millions of dollars, the judiciary said. Seif and two of his deputies, who also received jail terms, were found guilty of “disturbing the foreign exchange market, the country’s economic climate and mismanagement,” a judiciary spokesman was quoted as saying by state media.

UK PM Johnson visits church where lawmaker was stabbed to death

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday laid flowers outside the church where a lawmaker was stabbed to death a day earlier, in what police say was a terrorist attack probably linked to Islamist extremism. The attack on David Amess, from Johnson’s Conservative Party, comes five years after the murder of Jo Cox, a lawmaker from the opposition Labour Party, and has prompted a review of the security of elected politicians.

Austrian chancellor says government coalition can still work together

Newly installed Austrian Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg said the country’s ruling coalition is on “thin ice” but could still work together after his predecessor Sebastian Kurz quit last week. Kurz stepped down https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/austrias-kurz-says-stepping-down-chancellor-2021-10-09 a week ago at the behest of his junior coalition partner, the Greens, after prosecutors placed him and nine others under investigation on suspicion of breach of trust, corruption and bribery.

Taliban pledge to step up security as Shi’ite victims buried in Afghanistan

Taliban authorities pledged to step up security at Shi’ite mosques as hundreds of people gathered on Saturday to bury the victims of the second Islamic State suicide attack on worshippers in a week. Hardline Sunni group Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack on the Fatima mosque in Kandahar that saw a group of suicide bombers shoot their way into the mosque before blowing themselves up among the worshippers during Friday prayers.

Hindu group urges India to regulate platforms, cryptocurrency

A powerful right-wing Hindu group linked to India’s ruling party has called for curbs on streaming platforms and cryptocurrencies, saying regulation was essential. “There is a need to regularise these things for the larger good of the society,” said Mohan Bhagwat, head of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the ideological parent of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party.

Lebanon’s PM says government is keen not to interfere in any file related to the judiciary – statement

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said the government is keen not to interfere in any file related to the judiciary, according to a statement from his office on Saturday. The statement came following a meeting with the justice minister and the head of the higher judicial council after seven people were killed in violence in Beirut on Thursday.

Pro-military protests in Sudan as political crisis deepens

Thousands of military-aligned demonstrators gathered in front of the presidential palace in Khartoum on Saturday, chanting “down with the government of hunger” as Sudan grapples with the biggest political crisis in its two-year transition. Military and civilian groups have been sharing power in the east African country in an uneasy alliance since the toppling of long-standing President Omar al-Bashir in 2019.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)