International news brief: Trump reiterates intention to contest 2024 polls; Multiple shootings in US

Washington, Sep 08: Donald Trump is considering running for another term as US President in 2024. "Everyone wants me to run. I'm leading in the polls, and every poll - Republican polls and Democrat polls. I'll make a decision in the very near future, I suspect. And I think that a lot of people are going to be very happy," Trump told NDTV.

Multiple shootings in US

Multiple shootings were reported in Memphis in the US on Wednesday evening by a 19-year-old black suspect who recorded his actions on Facebook, police said. The suspect who was identified as Ezekiel Kelly is now in custody.

Another US congressional delegation in Taiwan amid tensions

Another US congressional delegation is visiting Taiwan as tensions remain high with China over its claims to the self-governed island. A steady stream of US visitors have come to meet with Taiwanese officials since US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited in early August. Since then, China has stepped up its military harassment of Taiwan, sending warships, warplanes and even drones towards the island on a daily basis.

The eight-member bipartisan delegation is scheduled to meet with Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen on Thursday. It is led by Florida Democrat Stephanie Murphy, who is among lawmakers who introduced a bill that would allow the US to lend weapons to support Taiwan, similar to a bill that had passed to lend weapons to Ukraine.

Kamala Harris to attend state funeral of Japan's former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo

US Vice President Kamala Harris would travel to Tokyo to attend the state funeral of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on September 27. Abe, Japan's longest-serving prime minister, was fatally shot on July 8 while the 67-year-old leader was delivering a campaign speech in western Japan ahead of the House of Councillors election on July 10. Harris would be travelling to Tokyo on behalf of US President Joe Biden to lead the Presidential delegation to the state funeral of Abe, according to her spokesperson Kirsten Allen.

Obamas unveil their White House portraits

Former President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle returned to the White House on Wednesday for the unveiling of official portraits with a modern vibe: him standing expressionless against a white background and her seated on a sofa in the Red Room wearing a formal light blue dress. "Barack and Michelle, welcome home," President Joe Biden said before he invited the Obamas to the stage to unveil the portraits. Some in the audience gasped, others applauded.

Italy: Major fire, injuries at chemical plant outside Milan

More than 100 emergency workers had finally made some headway on a massive fire at an industrial compound outside of Milan late on Wednesday, Italian media reported. However, several workers were badly injured thousands of liters of chemicals were still burning.

"The situation is quite complex due to the nature of the material, which is liquid solvents in large quantities," the local fire was quoted as saying by Italian daily Corriere della Sera.

The fire broke out early in the morning in the town of San Giuliano Milanese, southeast of Milan at the Nitrolchimica company, which deals with solvent recovery and hazardous waste disposal.

with agency inputs