WASHINGTON, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday canceled his planned trip later this month to the Swiss ski resort of Davos for the annual World Economic Forum (WEF), due to the ongoing partial government shutdown.

"Because of the Democrats intransigence on Border Security and the great importance of Safety for our Nation, I am respectfully cancelling my very important trip to Davos, Switzerland for the World Economic Forum," the president tweeted.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- Some U.S. military ground equipment has been withdrawn from Syria in recent days, U.S. media reported on Thursday.

"Some cargo has already moved," CNN quoted an administration official with direct knowledge of the operation as saying.

The official did not reveal detailed information as to what the cargo was or whether it had been moved out by aircraft or ground vehicles.

The recent cargo withdrawal is reportedly intended to show the progress of the Syria withdrawal plan to U.S. President Donald Trump by the Pentagon.

10 Jan 2019; AFP: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo vowed Thursday the United States and its allies would work diplomatically to expel all Iranian troops from Syria, urging Middle East nations to forge a common stand against Tehran.

"It's time for old rivalries to end, for the sake of the greater good of the region," said Pompeo at a keynote address in Cairo.

LONDON, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told his counterpart, Britain's Theresa May, in London Thursday that he supported the Brexit deal she has agreed with the European Union (EU).

After a high-level meeting with May at 10 Downing Street, Abe said: "It is the strong will of Japan to further develop this strong partnership with the UK, to invest more into your country and to enjoy further economic growth with the UK.

"That is why we truly hope that a no-deal Brexit will be avoided, and in fact that is the whole wish of the whole world."

WASHINGTON, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- Michael Cohen, U.S. President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer, will testify before the U.S. House Oversight and Reform Committee next month, the panel's chairman announced Thursday.

"I thank Michael Cohen for agreeing to testify before the Oversight Committee voluntarily," said the committee's chairman, Elijah Cummings, in a statement on Thursday.

11 Jan 2019; AFP: Holiday shopping reports released Thursday underscored anew the challenges US retailers face in the Amazon era -- even if consumers are willing to open their wallets to spend.

The updates were a mixed bag overall, with several retailers reporting small or moderate increases in comparable store sales during the critical November-December period.

But a report from Macy's aroused the most angst on Wall Street, after the chain slashed its profit forecast even as it signaled a modest increase in sales.

BEIRUT, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- The chief of United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) on Thursday urged Lebanon and Israel to refrain from any sudden activities near the Blue Line separating the two countries.

"The UNIFIL must be notified of any activities near the Blue Line in order to ... put in place coordinated security arrangements to avoid any possible incidents or violations," said Stefano Del Col.

CARACAS, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was sworn in before the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) to begin a new six-year term on Thursday.

Maduro told the president of the TSJ, Maikel Moreno, that he swore on behalf of the people of Venezuela and that he would fulfill and enforce all constitutional mandates to "seek to defend the independence and absolute integrity of the country."

After the inauguration ceremony, the president said the ceremony "was a peace step for the country."

OGDEN, Utah (AP) — Rachael Weatherly is a senior adviser for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, but she’s considering trying to get a job at a grocery store.

Weatherly is among the 800,000 federal employees who aren’t getting paychecks for the first time Friday because of the lingering government shutdown.

They are scaling back spending, canceling trips, applying for unemployment benefits and taking out loans to stay afloat, with no end in sight for a partial shutdown that enters its 21st day Friday and will be the longest in history by this weekend.

11 Jan 2019; AFP: The world's oceans are heating up at an accelerating pace as global warming threatens a diverse range of marine life and a major food supply for the planet, researchers said Thursday.

The findings in the US journal Science, led by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, debunk previous reports that suggested a so-called pause in global warming in recent years.

New Delhi, Jan 10 (PTI) Alok Verma was shunted out as the CBI chief after a marathon meeting of high-powered selection committee led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, officials said.

Verma, a 1979-batch AGMUT cadre IPS officer, has been removed from the high-profile post on the charges of corruption and dereliction of duty making him the first chief in the history of the agency to face such action, they said.

He is likely to be moved to the National Human Rights Commission, they said.

New Delhi, Jan 10 (PTI) The high-powered committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi met for over two hours on Thursday to decide fate of CBI Director Alok Verma, reinstated by a Supreme Court order after he was sent on forced leave by the government.

The meeting was also attended by Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge and Justice A K Sikri, who was nominated by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi to represent him.

It was not immediately clear what transpired in the meeting, called for the second consecutive day.