From Washington, this is VOA news. I'm Liz Parker reporting.

The U.N. Security Council is again demanding a cease-fire throughout Syria. The council reaffirmed it in a statement following a briefing Friday by the U.N. envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura.

The U.N. secretary-general, António Guterres, said he profoundly regrets the original resolution passed by the Security Council three weeks ago to cease violence in Syria and was never implemented.

Here is de Mistura. "It need not to be this way. Negotiations in Douma in the last few days do show that there is a way to create the conditions to advance the implementation of your resolution 2401."

De Mistura explained Russian officials negotiated a cease-fire in Douma with the Jaish al-Islam rebel force that [held] has held for six days.

Nine people are dead after a Turkish airstrike hit the main hospital in Syria's Afrin on Friday night. That's according to the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Turkey's military has denied hitting civilians in its offensive on the Afrin region which it launched in January.

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said Friday that it was "overwhelmingly likely" that Russian President Vladimir Putin himself made the decision to use a military grade nerve toxin to strike down a former Russian agent on English soil.

"It is overwhelmingly clear that this was directed by Russia and we await a serious response from the Russians to that global condemnation."

Johnson said Britain had nothing against Russians themselves and there was to be no Russia-phobia as a result of what was happening.

More on voanews.com. This is VOA news.

Two Israeli soldiers were killed and two others wounded in Friday's Palestinian car running attack in the occupied West Bank. That according to a military statement.

Former South African President Jacob Zuma will face old charges of fraud, racketeering and money laundering, prosecutors announced on Friday.

"I am of the view that there are reasonable prospects of a successful prosecution of Mr. Zuma on the charges listed in the indictment."

National Prosecuting Authority head Shaun Abrahams noted the "long history" of the reinstated charges against Zuma. They were thrown out by prosecutors nearly a decade ago in a contentious decision that opened the way for him to become president. The charges relate to an arms deal in the 1990s, when Zuma was deputy president.

He resigned as president last month.

More than 4,000 refugees from the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo have fled to Uganda over the past three days. The United Nations refugee agency says inter-ethnic violence and sexual abuse is the cause.

Agency spokesman Babar Baloch says the refugees recount chilling tales of violence and separation from family members.

"Armed men are reported to be attacking villages, looting and burning down houses, indiscriminately killing civilian populations and kidnapping young men and boys. A growing number of reports indicate that the violence is taking on ethnic dimensions as tribal groups engage in retaliatory attacks."

Baloch tells VOA that 77 percent of the people fleeing are women and children.

South Korean officials are beginning preparations for a summit next month with North Korea as a report shows the North had probably begun testing a nuclear reactor as recently as late February.

Satellite imagery from just two weeks ago showed activity at North Korea's Yongbyon facilities.

Friday, President Donald Trump of the United States signed legislation that would allow U.S. officials to travel to Taiwan to meet their Taiwanese counterparts. It's a move certain to anger China, which views Taiwan as a wayward province.

Hong Kong's richest man Li Ka-shing announced his retirement, bringing to close a rags-to-riches story that made him a hero to many.

He announced Friday he is stepping down from his business empire, effective May 10.

"... create Cheung Kong Hutchison, to be able to create such value for my shareholders and at the same time serve society. This is my legacy."

Li, who is 89 years old, will stay on as a senior adviser even after he steps down as chairman of his company.

There are eight candidates in Sunday's Russian presidential election, including President Putin.

More on voanews.com. I'm Liz Parker in Washington.

That's the latest world news from VOA.