World News Update, what you need to know

Activists chanting "Russia!" have broken through police lines and stormed several government buildings in eastern Ukrainian regions seeking independence from Kiev following last month's fall of a Kremlin regime.

ELSEWHERE:

TOKYO - Prime Minister Tony Abbott will meet Japan's revered emperor at his palace ahead of an announcement about the outcome of free trade talks in Tokyo.

WELLINGTON - The saying goes that you can't beat Wellington on a good day but the royals will not see the capital at its best when they arrive to kick-off their 10-day New Zealand visit.

PARIS - France says its envoy to Kigali will attend commemorations marking the 20th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide, denying a boycott after the justice minister's attendance was cancelled in a diplomatic row.

KANO, Nigeria - Gunmen believed to be Fulani herdsmen have stormed a meeting in northern Nigeria's Zamfara state and killed 30 people.

DAMASCUS - At least 13 rebels have died in a blast in the city of Homs in central Syria as they primed a car bomb for an attack, an NGO says.

JERUSALEM, April 6 AFP - Israel and the Palestinians have held last-ditch talks with a US envoy on salvaging their teetering peace talks, after the Jewish state threatened to take retaliatory measures.