Reuters World News Summary

Following is a summary of current world news briefs. Ontario finance minister resigns amid outrage over Caribbean holiday

Ontario's Finance Minister Rod Phillips resigned on Thursday after public outrage over a Caribbean vacation he took earlier this month in violation of his own government's coronavirus travel warnings. Phillips, a member of the ruling Progressive Conservative Party in the Canadian province, admitted this week that he travelled to the French island of St. Barts on Dec. 13, after the legislative session ended. Saudi-led coalition strikes at Yemen capital after attacks on Aden blamed on Houthis

Saudi-led coalition warplanes struck targets in Yemen's Houthi-held capital Sanaa on Thursday in retaliation for attacks in the southern port city of Aden the previous day that took place as officials in a government backed by Riyadh arrived there. The coalition accused the Houthi movement, which it has been fighting for six years, of staging the attack on Aden's airport and a second one on the presidential palace. Iran's foreign minister says Trump trying to fabricate pretext to attack Iran

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Thursday accused U.S. President Donald Trump of attempting to fabricate a pretext to attack Iran, and said Tehran would defend itself forcefully. Separately, a military adviser to Iran's supreme leader warned Trump "not to turn the New Year into mourning for Americans". Sudan declares full control of border territory settled by Ethiopians

Sudan said on Thursday its forces had taken control of all of Sudanese territory in a border area settled by Ethiopian farmers, after weeks of clashes. Ethiopia, for its part, accused its neighbour of sending forces into its territory for attacks. Colombia's FARC delivers a fraction of pledged peace deal assets by deadline

Colombia's demobilized FARC guerrillas have delivered just a fraction of the assets they had pledged to compensate conflict victims in the four years since they signed a peace deal, the government said on Thursday. Colombia signed a peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) at the end of 2016, which ended the rebel group's part in five decades of conflict that has left more than 260,000 dead and millions displaced. After disarming, the FARC became a legal political party using a different name with the same acronym. In northern France, first trucks cross new customs border with UK

Moments after Britain completed its divorce with the European Union, the first trucks hauling goods across the new customs border presented their clearance documents to French agents before loading onto a train to pass through the Eurotunnel. A barcode on Romanian driver Toma Moise's paperwork was scanned and approved in seconds. "The future, I don't think it will be difficult," he said in broken English before continuing his journey towards Britain. With little ado, a divided United Kingdom casts off into the Brexit unknown

The United Kingdom left the European Union's orbit on Thursday, turning its back on a tempestuous 48-year liaison with the European project for an uncertain post-Brexit future in its most significant geopolitical shift since the loss of empire. Brexit, in essence, took place at the strike of midnight in Brussels, or 2300 London time (GMT), when the United Kingdom ended the de facto membership, known as the transition period, which lasted 11 months after it formally left on Jan. 31. Crowds fill streets in China's pandemic-hit Wuhan, celebrate New Year

Large crowds took to the streets at midnight on Friday in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, celebrating the arrival of 2021 after a year marred by a deadly pandemic that killed thousands there and required the city to be locked down between the end of January and early April. As per tradition, hundreds gathered in front of the old Hankow Customs House building, one of the city’s more popular New Year’s Eve spots. When the building’s old clock reached midnight many people released balloons into the air, cheered and called out "happy new year". Reuters cameraman detained in Ethiopia has seen no evidence against him, lawyer says

Reuters cameraman Kumerra Gemechu has been held in solitary confinement for nearly a week without charge or being given any evidence of wrongdoing, his lawyer said. His lawyer Melkamu Ogo said on Wednesday that police informed him that their lines of enquiry included accusations of disseminating false information, communicating with groups fighting the government, and disturbing the public's peace and security. However, he said he has seen no evidence. Women should decide whether to legalize abortion, Mexican president says

Mexico's president said on Thursday that women should decide whether the country should legalize abortion, but he declined to take a position on the issue, which is still opposed by many Mexicans. One day after the Argentine Senate voted to make abortion legal, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador was asked during a news conference whether he thought his country should follow suit.