World News at a Glance

Releasing 3 Americans, North Koreans Signal Openness to Washington

The release of three American prisoners cleared away a last obstacle on Wednesday to a landmark nuclear summit meeting between President Donald Trump and North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un. North Korea freed the prisoners, all Americans of Korean descent, even as the two countries finalized details for a meeting between their leaders. The move was North Korea’s most tangible gesture aimed at improving relations with the United States since Trump took office. U.S. officials said it sent another signal that North Korea may be serious about ending its long confrontation with the United States after nearly seven decades of mutual antagonism.

Malaysia Opposition, Led by 92-Year-Old, Wins Election

Prime Minister Najib Razak, accused of stealing hundreds of millions of dollars in government funds, lost the Malaysian national elections on Wednesday to a coalition led by his onetime mentor — a former leader who made a political comeback at 92, the government news agency reported. With his return to power, former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad would become the world’s oldest elected government leader. The victory of his coalition is the first by the opposition in Malaysia’s history, ending the current governing party’s six decades in power.

Iran Fires Rockets From Syria, Israelis Say

Iranian forces in Syria fired about 20 rockets into the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights early Thursday, targeting forward positions of the Israeli military, according to a military spokesman. The spokesman, Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, said Israel had responded to the attack but did not provide details. If confirmed, this would be the first rocket attack carried out directly by Iran, rather than by one of its proxies, against Israel. Conricus said that several of the rockets had been intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system. He said that he was not aware of any casualties and that damage to Israeli facilities was low.

5 Top Officers in ISIS Ranks Are Captured in Joint Sting

Five senior Islamic State officials have been captured, including a top aide to the group’s leader, in a complex cross-border sting carried out by Iraqi and American intelligence, two Iraqi intelligence officials said Wednesday. The three-month operation tracked a group of senior Islamic State leaders who had been hiding in Syria and Turkey. The officials said those captured included four Iraqis and one Syrian whose responsibilities included governing the Islamic State’s territory around Deir el-Zour, Syria, directing internal security and running the administrative body that oversees religious rulings.

Deadly Jail Riot Near Indonesian Capital Is Claimed by ISIS

A deadly riot involving terrorism suspects inside a high-security detention center outside Indonesia’s capital stretched into Thursday morning, officials said, and the media arm of the Islamic State claimed its loyalists were behind the uprising. The police said five guards and one detainee had been killed. Gen. Mohammad Iqbal, a National Police spokesman, told reporters that the riot erupted late Tuesday at the detention center, which is inside the headquarters of the National Police Mobile Brigade, in Depok, West Java Province. He said at least six detainees were holed up in the compound. “We’re still negotiating with them, we’re still talking to them,” he said.

Spain Tries to Foil Vote in Catalonia

Spain’s government on Wednesday moved to block the latest attempt by separatist legislators in Catalonia to re-elect Carles Puigdemont as the region’s leader, even as he fights extradition from Germany. The government asked Spain’s Constitutional Court to declare invalid a Catalan law approved recently by separatist legislators that could have allowed Puigdemont to be voted into office in absentia. After the government’s appeal, the Constitutional Court immediately suspended the Catalan law and warned separatist lawmakers against holding any vote that would violate that order.

Trump a Nobel Laureate? It’s a Possibility

For President Donald Trump, the possibility of receiving a Nobel Peace Prize once seemed far-fetched. (The committee that awards the prize said this year that a nomination for him had been forged twice, by an unknown perpetrator whose motives remain a mystery.) But the idea of his 2019 nomination, submitted by a group of 18 House Republicans and endorsed by President Moon Jae-in of South Korea, has started to take root over the past few weeks as his own potentially historic summit meeting with Kim Jong Un of North Korea looms. “Everyone thinks so, but I would never say it,” Trump said Wednesday when asked if he deserved the prize.