■ NEW ZEALAND
Rabbit abuser fined
A man in Auckland who swung a rabbit around by its ears and thrust it into the faces of passers-by after he had been drinking methylated spirits was fined NZ$500 (US$370) yesterday. Graham Paul Brown was found guilty of animal cruelty in Auckland District Court over the incident in February, which he said was an attempt to amuse anyone in the country’s biggest city who had never seen a rabbit before. The 53-year-old was also given a six-month suspended sentence for spitting on a police officer who arrested him. Brown, who denied the charges, said he had developed a close relationship with the rabbit, even feeding it a carrot from his mouth, and supported the animal’s torso as he held it by the ears. He said a serious lung condition caused him to inadvertently spit at the police officer after he had been drinking methylated spirits with a friend in the city center.
■ THAILAND
Government to lift decree
The government said yesterday that it was considering lifting a state of emergency in three northeastern provinces, but not in Bangkok, where there have been a series of minor blasts in recent weeks. Security officials are evaluating the situation in Nakhon Ratchasima, Khon Kaen, and Udon Thani — strongholds of the opposition “Red Shirts” — to gauge whether to revoke the decree, Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thaugsuban said. Seven areas, including Bangkok, are still under the decree, which was introduced in the capital in early April in response to the Red rallies that left 91 people dead in clashes between protesters and the army.
■ PHILIPPINES
Bishops lambaste condoms
Catholic bishops in Manila yesterday warned that they would support protests against President Benigno Aquino III if he pushed through with his plan to promote contraception. The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines said it was offended by Aquino’s statement on Monday in which he said his government would provide artificial birth control methods to the poor. Father Melvin Castro, a spokesman for the bishops, said that many lay leaders who supported Aquino’s campaign for the presidency were “disappointed and hurt” by his statement.
■ UNITED NATIONS
Ban picks envoy to Pakistan
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon appointed veteran Turkish diplomat Rauf Engin Soysal on Monday as the top envoy to help Pakistan’s relief efforts. Soysal, who is Turkey’s deputy undersecretary for bilateral political affairs, will replace Jean Maurice Ripert, France’s former ambassador, who has been the special envoy for assistance to Pakistan since August last year. Spokesman Martin Nesirky said the secretary-general was grateful for Ripert’s “important contribution” over the past year in mobilizing assistance to thousands of people from Pakistan’s north who fled their homes and to victims of the recent massive flooding.
■ AUSTRALIA
Stiletto quartet make record
Four women in Sydney have nabbed the world record for the fastest relay race in stiletto heels. The quartet from Canberra completed an 80m course near Sydney’s Opera House in about one minute and four seconds yesterday — while wearing 7.5cm stilettos. A record keeper from Guinness World Records confirmed the women had set the record and presented them with a certificate. The women — known as the Pinkettes — said they planned to use their A$10,000 (US$9,600) prize for a trip to Thailand.
■ AUSTRIA
Sikh gets life for attack
An Indian Sikh was jailed for life by a Vienna court yesterday in connection with an attack last year on a temple in which a guru died. The 35-year-old man was accused of murder and two counts of attempted murder. Four of his five accomplices received jail terms of 17 to 18 years for complicity in murder and wounding, while the fifth was given a six-month sentence. Sant Rama Nand and another guru, Sant Niranjan Dass, were visiting from India when they were attacked as they gave a sermon at the temple in Vienna. Nand died and Dass was wounded after being hit by two bullets in the abdomen and the hip, while another 16 people were also injured in a melee as worshippers tried to subdue the attackers. The temple said it had received threats from another Viennese Sikh temple in connection with the visit by two gurus.
■ SPAIN
Basque separatists arrested
Seven alleged members of an offshoot of Basque separatist group ETA were arrested early yesterday in the Basque Country, media reported. The seven were said to belong to the radical Askapena group, which is considered as the foreign propaganda branch of the armed organization, banned as a terror group by the EU and the US. No official confirmation of the arrests was available. Officials on Sunday rejected the ETA’s latest statement that it is ready to observe a permanent ceasefire in its battle for an independent homeland.
■SERBIA
Man pleads guilty for brawl
A former college basketball player pleaded guilty in Belgrade on Monday as part of a deal that would send him to prison for his role in a barroom brawl in Binghamton, New York, that left a classmate badly injured, the classmate’s lawyers said. Miladin Kovacevic, 23, was accused of beating Bryan Steinhauer of Brooklyn, New York, in 2008. Steinhauer spent months in a coma and had to relearn how to speak and walk. One of Steinhauer’s lawyers, Irwin Rochman, said the plea agreement called for Kovacevic to receive a sentence of two years and three months. Rochman said the agreement also called for Kovacevic to testify against two diplomats who helped him leave the US several weeks after the episode. Kovacevic had been charged with assault in Binghamton but jumped bail after one of the diplomats helped post it for him.
■UNITED KINGDOM
Ancient documents go online
One of the world’s most important caches of Greek manuscripts is going online, part of a growing number of ancient documents to hit the Web in recent years. The British Library said on Monday that it was making more than a quarter of its 1,000 volume-strong collection of handwritten Greek texts available online free of charge, something curators there hope will be a boon to historians, biblical scholars and students of classical Greece alike.
■ GERMANY
Conscription nearing end
The country moved a step closer to ending military conscription on Monday when conservative party leaders agreed to halt a draft embedded in the Constitution half a century ago to help keep the armed forces from ever again developing into a self-directed state within a state. Chancellor Angela Merkel said the ruling Christian Democratic Union party had agreed to the plan to freeze conscription but still keep it in the Constitution, a political salve to those uncomfortable with ending it altogether.
■ UNITED STATES
Thieves love Ramone sign
Officials say a metal homage to the late punk legend Joey Ramone may be New York City’s most-stolen street sign. The Department of Transportation recently had the “Joey Ramone Place” sign reinstalled in lower Manhattan for the fourth time since 2003. This time, it was raised 2.4m to curb temptation. The New York Post says that puts it about 6m above street level. The group’s long-time drummer, Marky Ramone, thinks Joey would appreciate the most-stolen distinction. The sign is at the corner of Bowery and East Second Street. Department spokesperson Seth Solomonow said Broadway, Wall Street and Love Lane signs have also attracted sign thieves.
■ MEXICO
Another mayor killed
The mayor of the town of Tancitaro, in southern Michoacan state, has been murdered, making him the 11th municipal leader slain so far this year, the state prosecutor said. Mayor Gustavo Sanchez, 29, and a colleague, Rafael Equihua Cervantes, 36, were found murdered on a rural road early on Monday, apparently stoned to death, state prosecutor Jesus Montejano said. “We are quite concerned because this is a situation [the style of the execution] quite unlike what organized drug crime usually does,” he said. Sanchez was not known to have a party affiliation and was a teacher by training before taking the helm of the town of 5,500. His predecessor resigned under pressure from an organized crime group. In January, Sanchez fired 60 local police who were replaced by federal officers.
■ UNITED STATES
No reprieve for suicide
A man whose attempted suicide last week gained him a brief reprieve was put to death on Monday by the state of Georgia for a triple murder in 1998, officials said. Brandon Rhode, 31, was pronounced dead at 10:16pm on Monday after being given a lethal injection. He was the 47th inmate put to death in Georgia since the US Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976. The Georgia State Supreme Court earlier on Monday denied his lawyers’ request for a third stay of execution, rejecting their arguments that he was not competent to be executed after last week’s suicide attempt. Rhode’s lawyers claimed the suicide attempt last week, in which he cut his throat and arms and lost half his blood, had left him brain damaged.
■ COLOMBIA
Landslide kills 30 people
A landslide buried about 30 people on a highway in a northwestern part of the country, authorities said on Monday, adding that it was unlikely there would be survivors found. A torrent of 100,000m³ of earth swept onto a highway in the town of Giraldo, which leads to the city of Medellin, Antioquia department disaster prevention chief John Rendon said. “In light of the amount of earth that fell on them, we think there is no probability that they are alive,” Rendon said. The landslide appeared to have struck as passengers on a bus that had broken down were transferring to another vehicle.
■ IRAQ
Soldier held over shooting
A US soldier is being held in Baghdad over the shooting deaths of two US service personnel and the wounding of another, the military said yesterday. Specialist Neftaly Platero is in “pre-trial confinement” over the Sept. 23 killing of the soldiers, the statement said. The statement did not mention where the shooting occurred, or provide any further details.
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
A top Vietnamese property tycoon was on Thursday sentenced to death in one of the biggest corruption cases in history, with an estimated US$27 billion in damages. A panel of three hand-picked jurors and two judges rejected all defense arguments by Truong My Lan, chair of major developer Van Thinh Phat, who was found guilty of swindling cash from Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) over a decade. “The defendant’s actions ... eroded people’s trust in the leadership of the [Communist] Party and state,” read the verdict at the trial in Ho Chi Minh City. After the five-week trial, 85 others were also sentenced on
‘DELUSIONAL’: Targeting the families of Hamas’ leaders would not push the group to change its position or to give up its demands for Palestinians, Ismail Haniyeh said Israeli aircraft on Wednesday killed three sons of Hamas’ top political leader in the Gaza Strip, striking high-stakes targets at a time when Israel is holding delicate ceasefire negotiations with the militant group. Hamas said four of the leader’s grandchildren were also killed. Ismail Haniyeh’s sons are among the highest-profile figures to be killed in the war so far. Israel said they were Hamas operatives, and Haniyeh accused Israel of acting in “the spirit of revenge and murder.” The deaths threatened to strain the internationally mediated ceasefire talks, which appeared to gain steam in recent days even as the sides remain far
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of