Briefly

ARMENIA

Prime minister resigns before snap polls

Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced his resignation on Sunday while retaining interim duties, formalizing a parliamentary vote to be held on June 20 in an effort to defuse a political crisis sparked by last year's war with Azerbaijan. "I am resigning from my post as prime minister today" to hold the vote, he said in an announcement broadcast on his Facebook page, adding that he would "continue to fulfill all the duties of the prime minister".

IRAQ

Up to 82 reported dead in hospital fire

Up to 82 people had been killed in a fire that broke out in a hospital treating coronavirus patients in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, official sources said on Sunday. The fire occurred late on Saturday night when several oxygen cylinders exploded, setting a huge fire at Ibn al-Khatib Hospital, which is dedicated to treating coronavirus patients on the eastern side of the capital, civil defense officials said.

FRANCE

Emergency meeting follows officer's killing

The French government held an emergency meeting on Saturday after a Tunisian man stabbed a police employee to death near Paris in an attack. The murder occurred on Friday at a police station about 60 kilometers from Paris. The victim was a 49-year-old police administrative assistant. She was stabbed twice in the throat. Her alleged attacker, Jamel Gorchene, 36, was shot dead by an officer at the scene. French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday that he will never give up in the fight against terrorism.

Agencies - Xinhua