World News at a Glance

Trump Calls Relations With Saudi Arabia ‘Excellent,’ While Congress Is Incensed

The suspected murder of a prominent Saudi journalist exposed a growing rift Thursday between the White House and Congress over U.S. policy on Saudi Arabia, as Republican lawmakers demanded an investigation of Jamal Khashoggi’s whereabouts even as President Donald Trump declared his relations with Riyadh “excellent." The Saudi-led bombing campaign of rebels in Yemen was already a source of tension between Congress and the Trump administration. But last week’s disappearance of Khashoggi, a columnist for The Washington Post living in Virginia, incensed Republicans and Democrats in Congress, who accused the White House of moving too slowly in pressing for answers.

South Korea Backtracks on Easing Sanctions After Trump Comment

South Korea moved to patch up an emerging diplomatic row with the United States on Thursday, disowning any plan to lift sanctions against North Korea after President Donald Trump’s blunt remark that Seoul could “do nothing” without Washington’s “approval.” Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha of South Korea said Wednesday that government agencies were discussing lifting a broad trade and investment embargo that Seoul imposed on the North in 2010, a statement that came despite Washington’s efforts to keep the economic pressure on Pyongyang until it denuclearizes.

Russian Rocket Fails, and Two Astronauts Make Safe Emergency Return

As they hurtled toward space faster than a rifle bullet, an American astronaut and a Russian cosmonaut were forced to make a harrowing but safe emergency landing Thursday when the rocket carrying them and hundreds of tons of explosive fuel failed less than two minutes after liftoff. The Russian-built Soyuz capsule parachuted to Earth about 12 to 15 miles outside Zhezqazghan, in central Kazakhstan. Neither crew member — Nick Hague of the U.S. or Alexei Ovchinin of Russia — was injured, both the Russian and American space agencies said, and they were rescued within an hour of their landing.

Far-Right Party Urges German Students to Denounce Biased Teachers

A far-right German political party is calling on students and their families to report teachers who air their political views in school, leading to charges that the party has revived the methods of the East German state police. A website run by the Alternative for Germany, also known as the AfD, urges students and parents to send information about teachers violating the country’s neutrality code, which forbids them from promoting their political views. The party suggested offenses could range from “crude criticism of the AfD to incorrect and subjective learning materials,” to outright calls to take part in anti-AfD protests.

Danish Welfare Agency Worker Is Accused of Stealing $17 Million

A senior civil servant stole $17 million from the Danish welfare agency where she worked for 40 years — money intended to help the most vulnerable people — and is the subject of an international hunt, the authorities said this week. Officials have not publicly named the suspect, a 64-year-old who was described as a “trusted employee” of the National Board of Health and Welfare, but the Danish news media have identified her as Anna Britta Troelsgaard Nielsen, who headed a department within the agency and last year received a medal for her service from Queen Margrethe II.

Britain to Allow Prescriptions for Medicinal Cannabis

Doctors in Britain will be able to legally prescribe medicinal cannabis from Nov. 1, after two highly publicized cases of young, epileptic patients dependent on marijuana-based treatments put pressure on the government to review its policy. The change was announced Thursday by Home Secretary Sajid Javid, after he called for a review of cannabis-based medicinal products. His office said in July it had decided that “senior clinicians will be able to prescribe the medicines to patients with an exceptional clinical need.” "It was important that we took swift action to help those who can benefit from medicinal cannabis,” Javid said.

Malaysia to Repeal Death Penalty and Sedition Law

The case of Muhammad Lukman Mohamad ignited outrage in August, when he received a death sentence in Malaysia for selling medicinal cannabis oil to cancer patients. Even the country’s new prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, called for a review of Mohamad's sentence. Now, Mahathir’s government is going one step further, eliminating the death penalty entirely. “All death penalty will be abolished. Full stop,” the country’s minister of law, Liew Vui Keong, said. The government is also preparing to rescind the colonial-era Sedition Act, which was used by previous governments to silence critics and opposition politicians.

Egypt Sentences 17 to Death in Attacks on Christians

An Egyptian military court handed down death sentences Thursday to 17 people convicted in a series of fatal attacks on Christians that started in December 2016 and left more than 80 people dead and 150 wounded. Egyptian state media said the defendants were accused of belonging to the Islamic State and of plotting attacks against Christian churches and a police checkpoint. Egypt has faced a wave of Islamic militancy since the 2013 military overthrow of Mohammed Morsi, the Muslim Brotherhood leader who had been elected president, and the subsequent crackdown on his supporters. Nineteen other defendants were given life sentences.