World News at a Glance

Sailing Race Turns Fatal Near Hong Kong

A sailboat competing in the Volvo Ocean Race, an around-the-world sailing competition, collided with a Chinese fishing vessel near Hong Kong early Saturday, killing one of the Chinese boat’s crew members, race organizers and Chinese state media said. The Vestas 11th Hour Racing boat hit the fishing vessel around 1:20 a.m. local time. The crew alerted Hong Kong authorities and race officials immediately after the collision. The Hong Kong Marine Rescue Coordination Center said that nine of the fishing boat’s crew members were rescued. The dead sailor was from mainland China. No members of the U.S.-Danish racing team were injured.

Turkish Jets Bomb Kurdish Militias in Syria

Turkish jets bombed the Syrian Kurdish enclave of Afrin on Saturday as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey vowed to crush Kurdish militant forces across northern Syria to remove what he said was a terrorist threat. Turkish news agency Anadolu reported jets bombed more than 100 targets, including an air base, in the first day of air operations against Kurdish militias. Fighters of the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army also crossed the border into the enclave and engaged Kurdish militants, the agency reported. Erdogan has pressed ahead with the offensive despite warnings from the United States that it would destabilize Syria.

Gunmen Storm Hotel in Kabul Full of Guests

Armed insurgents stormed Kabul’s largest hotel Saturday, setting off an explosion and sparking a fire, trapping an unknown number of hotel guests inside, Afghan officials confirmed. There was no information on the number of casualties, as the armed attackers kept authorities at bay. Military and civilian ambulances stood by at the scene, and helicopters circled hours after the standoff first began around 9 p.m. local time. Najib Danish, spokesman for the Ministry of Interior, confirmed the attack and said he believed there were two or three attackers in the main building of the hotel, which has hundreds of guest rooms.

Syria Promotes Tourism, Despite Devastation of Civil War

Across Syria, buildings lie in ruin, millions have fled their homes and historic sites have been shattered. But Syrian officials were hoping that foreign visitors would look past that devastation, as they promoted the country at a tourism trade fair in Madrid. Bassam Barsik, director of marketing at the Syrian Ministry of Tourism, said 1.3 million foreign visitors traveled to Syria last year; he said officials hoped to raise the number of visitors to 2 million in 2018. Officials say the country is experiencing a modicum of stability, since the government has regained control of much of the territory lost in recent years to rebels.

North Korea Agrees, Again, to Pre-Olympic Visit to South Korea

North Korea will send an advance team of officials, including a well-known singer, a day later than scheduled to prepare for cultural performances during the Winter Olympics next month, South Korean officials said Saturday. The confusion surrounding the visit came as the International Olympic Committee approved 22 North Korean athletes to take part in the games and confirmed that the two countries would march together during the Feb. 9 opening ceremony. The efforts to ensure that North Korea takes part in the games are part of moves to lessen tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

Pope, in Peru, Visits Victims Devastated by Disasters

Pope Francis on Saturday consoled the victims of natural disasters in Trujillo, Peru, ravaged by warming coastal waters, storms and deadly mudslides, as he returned to themes of poverty and the environment on the second day of his visit to the country. Peru is still recovering from devastating weather that battered the country a year ago and left about 160 people dead and hundreds of thousands of others unable to return to their homes, mainly because of mudslides. The damage was blamed on El Niño, a temporary rise in temperatures along the coast that causes increased rainfall and stronger storms.