The US government will begin a Christmastime shutdown at midnight, as Congress adjourned Friday without passing a federal spending bill or addressing President Donald Trump's demand for money to build a border wall.

Defence Secretary James Mattis has resigned, telling Donald Trump in a letter that he should choose a person who is more in tune with his world view after the US president decided to withdraw American troops from Syria.

The UK government has released a White Paper on its post-Brexit visas and immigration strategy, which is expected to benefit Indian students and professionals as it focuses on skills rather than country of origin.

 A third Canadian citizen has been detained in China, a Canadian newspaper reported Wednesday, amid a diplomatic spat between Beijing and Ottawa over the arrest of a Chinese telecom executive.

Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel has announced his resignation, less than two weeks after his main coalition partner quit in a row over migration, leaving him leading a minority government.

Sri Lanka's Parliament is set to convene on Tuesday for the first time after the reinstatement of Ranil Wickremesinghe as prime minister that ended the 51-day political standoff in the country, but he and President Maithripala Sirisena are yet to agree on Cabinet positions.

Embattled liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya's legal troubles continue to mount as he is set to face bankruptcy proceedings in the UK High Court next year, brought by a consortium of Indian banks in their attempt to recoup unpaid debt worth nearly 1.145 billion pounds.

British opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn tabled a non-binding no-confidence vote in Prime Minister Theresa May after she told MPs they will only get a delayed vote on her Brexit deal in the new year.