World News: UK Supreme Court says legal definition of 'woman' means biological female and excludes transgender people

This is the World Now, bringing you the latest stories from around the globe.

In the UK, the Supreme Court has made a landmark decision regarding the legal definition of a woman.

According to the ruling, under the Equality Act 2010, woman refers exclusively to biological sex, excluding transgender people.

The unanimous ruling on Wednesday, local time, stems from a legal challenge by the feminist advocacy group For Women Scotland against the Scottish government's inclusion of transgender women in a 2018 law that mandated 50% female representation on public boards.

The Court ruled that the definition of woman should only include biological females.

It said that interpreting the definition to include individuals based on gender identity would make the Equality Act inconsistent.

However, the decision does not revoke existing protections against discrimination for transgender individuals.

Women's rights groups lauded the ruling as a reaffirmation of sex-based rights while LGBTQ+ organizations expressed concern and disappointment.

The French government has announced the expulsion of 12 Algerian diplomatic staff, following Algeria's decision to expel 12 French diplomats.

Thus comes after France arrested an Algerian consular official suspected of links to a kidnapping.

On Wednesday local time, France's foreign affairs minister said France will expel 12 Algerian diplomatic and consular officials in France, and recalled its ambassador from Algiers for consultations.

This move comes after Algeria decided to expel 12 French diplomats after France detained an Algerian consular agent linked to a kidnapping case.

In 2024, an activist and influencer known as "Amir DZ," a critic of the Algerian government, was abducted near Paris and released the following day.

French prosecutors have charged three Algerian nationals, including the consular official, with kidnapping and terrorist conspiracy.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday met with three former hostages held by Hamas, who were released in late 2023 and February of this year.

Speaking to Alexander Trufanov, who had been held by Hamas in Gaza for 498 days, Putin pledged to continue efforts to secure the release of remaining hostages.

Putin also acknowledged "years of stable relations" with Palestinian representatives as pivotal in facilitating the release of the hostages, and extended gratitude to Hamas for what he termed a "humanitarian act."

Trufanov, whose father was killed during the October 2023 Hamas attack, appealed to Putin to persist in efforts to free others still in captivity.

Finally, astronomers have identified a new planet, located approximately 120 light-years from Earth, that resembles Tatooine, the home planet of Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars movie.

The planet appears to orbit a pair of brown dwarfs, or what experts call "failed stars" that are too small to shine like the Sun.

What makes this planet special is that it moves in a completely different direction from how the two stars orbit each other, referred to as a "polar orbit."

Although the planet was not directly seen, scientists spotted its presence by watching the movement of the stars.

The author of the study, an astronomer from the University of Birmingham, said, "There aren't many very young planetary systems like this."

This research was published in the journal Science Advances on April 16.

Choi Chi-hee, Arirang News.