TOKYO (Reuters) - A U.S. naval base in western Japan was briefly locked down on Thursday after reports of gunshots, but operations were soon back to normal with no evidence of an active shooter and no casualties, the navy said in an official tweet.

JAKARTA (Reuters) - A 280-strong search-and-rescue team scoured the waters off an Indonesian island for dozens missing on Thursday, a day after a speedboat carrying mostly migrant workers struck a reef and sank, the national disaster mitigation agency said.

By Idrees Ali FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Reuters) - The United States is continuing to talk with ally Turkey on the role it will play in the operation to seize the city of Raqqa, Islamic State's main stronghold in Syria, U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter said on Wednesday.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia and the Syrian army on Wednesday told anti-government rebels in Aleppo to leave by Friday evening, signaling an extended moratorium on air strikes in the city.

By Mostafa Hashem and Ahmed Tolba CAIRO/BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi expressed confidence in victory, in his first message after U.S.-backed Iraqi forces started an offensive to take back Mosul, the last major city under control of his group in Iraq. He also called on Islamic State fighters to invade Turkey.

MANILA (Reuters) - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte chided the United States on Wednesday for halting the planned sale of 26,000 rifles to his country, calling those behind the decision "fools" and "monkeys" and indicating he might turn to Russia and China instead.

By Maher Chmaytelli and Stephen Kalin BAGHDAD/BARTELLA, Iraq (Reuters) - U.S.-backed Iraqi forces moved closer on Wednesday to a town south of Mosul where aid groups and regional officials say Islamic State has executed dozens of prisoners.

By Jonathan Barrett and Colin Packham SYDNEY (Reuters) - A report into missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 by the Australian safety investigator leading the search supports its view that the aircraft descended rapidly after running out of fuel with no human intervention, the agency said on Wednesday.

MANAGUA (Reuters) - Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega is expected to win re-election by a landslide on Nov. 6, according to a poll published on Tuesday, the last such survey released before the vote.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - North Korea is preparing to launch an intermediate-range ballistic missile in the next three days, Fox Business Network reported on Tuesday, citing two unidentified U.S. officials. The communist nation planned the launch for between 24 and 72 hours, the cable network reported.