■ Hong Kong
Bus wreck kills child
A 36-year-old passenger died and an eight-year-old boy was critically injured after they were thrown from the top deck of a double-decker bus in a collision in Hong Kong, police said yesterday. Siu Man-tin died on Monday, hours after the front of the bus was ripped off in the collision near Hong Kong's container port. Two other adult passengers were seriously injured, a police spokesman said. The 25-year-old driver of the bus -- run by Hong Kong's biggest bus company, KMB -- was suspended after the accident, a company spokesman said.
■ China
Bilis death toll rises to 188
The death toll in southern China from Tropical Storm Bilis has jumped by 10 to 188 after torrential rains swept away houses and triggered devastating mudslides, the government's main news agency said yesterday. Hunan Province was hardest hit, with at least 92 people killed after Bilis roared ashore last Friday, the official Xinhua news agency said. Elsewhere, 43 people were killed in Fujian Province and 44 died in neighboring Guangdong, the report said.
■ Singapore
Bird flu drill this week
Singapore will hold a two-day exercise this week to test the city-state's readiness for a flu pandemic. The drill, to be conducted on Friday and Saturday, is based on a scenario in which a human case of bird flu infection escalates into a pandemic, the Ministry of Health said in a statement posted on its Web site. No cases of bird flu have been reported in Singapore, but authorities remain on high alert for the H5N1 strain. The exercise will involve 1,000 staff members and volunteers.
■ Japan
Wrestler's temper earns ban
Russian sumo wrestler Roho became the latest foreign import to land himself in trouble after smashing a window and hitting two photographers in a fit of pique. The wrestler was given an unprecedented three-day ban on Sunday for throwing a tantrum after a defeat the previous day in Nagoya. Roho, nicknamed the "Russian bear," chased opponent Chiyotaikai into a bathroom after an explosive bout where both men broke several of sumo's strict rules of engagement. After exchanging angry words with Chiyotaikai, Roho punched through a window of a bathroom door, showering his conqueror with broken glass.
■ Nepal
King loses more power
The government has scrapped more laws and appointments made by King Gyanendra before he was forced to give up his authoritarian rule, officials said yesterday. The Cabinet decided on Monday to rescind 16 laws which gave the king power to make official appointments, designated him chancellor of several universities, and appointed royal family members to head key religious and conservation trusts, the government said in a statement. The Cabinet also appointed several heads of government-run agencies to replace people selected by the king during his nearly 15 months of direct rule, the statement said.
■ Sri Lanka
Roadside bomb kills one
A roadside bomb killed one person and wounded six others, including four government soldiers yesterday, the army said. Tamil Tiger rebels triggered the roadside bomb, which targeted a group of soldiers who were on foot patrol in northern Jaffna Peninsula, an official of the Media Center for National Security said on condition of anonymity in accordance with policy. The victim who died and two of the wounded were civilians caught in the blast, he said. There was no immediate comment from the rebels on the attack in Jaffna, 300km north of Colombo. Separately, Tamil Tigers fired at a police patrol, wounding one policeman in eastern Ampara, about 220km east of Colombo, the military said on its Web site. Rebels fled the area when police retaliated, it said.
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