BRAZIL
Elephant arrives at rescue
Ramba, an Asian elephant that spent decades performing in circuses, has started a new life in an open-air sanctuary in Chapada dos Guimaraes, after traveling thousands of kilometers by plane and truck from a Chilean zoo. Ramba’s much-anticipated arrival at the 1,133 hectare Elephant Sanctuary Brazil in Mato Grosso state late on Friday was broadcast live on Facebook and viewed thousands of times. The elephant, estimated to be more than 52 years old, worked in circuses in Argentina and Chile before she was rescued by activists in 2012. She was then kept in a roadside zoo in Rancagua, Chile, while her rescuers searched for a new home. Her ordeal left her with abscesses as well as kidney and liver problems. Ramba was accompanied by US-based Global Sanctuary for Elephant head Scott Blais as well as a veterinarian, volunteers and federal police.
Photo: AFP
“Ramba needs a quiet place, one where she feels safe and is not on display, where she is surrounded by others of her kind who truly understand her and can help her,” Blais said. “She needs sanctuary.”
RUSSIA
Gold mine officials arrested
Three officials at a gold mine in Siberia where 15 people died after a dam collapsed on Saturday were arrested yesterday. “The head of the gold mining company Sissim and the manager and foreman of the mining site have been arrested,” the national Investigative Committee said in a statement. The three have been taken to Krasnoyarsk for questioning, it said. Six people are still listed as missing after the dam on the Seiba River burst and flooded cabins where workers were living. Officials said the dam had been built in breach of safety rules and claimed that the authorities were not even aware of its existence.
ITALY
Right-wing groups rally
Tens of thousands of protesters rallied in Rome on Saturday for a so-called “Italian Pride” rally that brought together the right-wing League, the far-right Brothers of Italy party and Forza Italia. The League called for the mass demonstration to protest against the government forged by two former arch-enemies, the center-left Democrats and the 5-Star Movement, to avoid a snap election. Neo-fascist group CasaPound also joined the rally, sparking a political controversy within the center-right moderates. Its supporters were relegated to a corner of the crowded San Giovanni square and closely escorted by police.
NIGERIA
Police rescue 147 at school
Police in the north have rescued 147 people from an Islamic boarding school where they were being abused, the fourth such raid in a month, an official said. Armed officers found the inmates when they raided a school in the Rigasa district, Kaduna State Women Affairs Commissioner Hafsat Baba said. “All the inmates were found in chains and said they were beaten. There are 22 women among them and some of them complained of being sexually abused,” she added. Two Cameroonians and two people from Niger and four children were also rescued. The inmates had been taken there by family members for “petty theft, delinquency and drug addiction,” Baba said. “Some of them have psychological problems and are mentally unstable.”
AUSTRALIA
Record flight completed
Qantas yesterday completed the first non-stop commercial flight from New York to Sydney, which was used to run a series of tests to assess the effects of ultra-long-haul flights on crew fatigue and passenger jetlag. The Boeing 787 Dreamliner touched down in Sydney early in the morning after a flight of 19 hours and 16 minutes — the world’s longest. Qantas said tests ranged from monitoring pilot brain waves, melatonin levels and alertness to exercise classes for passengers. A total of 49 people were on board to minimize weight and give the necessary fuel range. “Overall, we’re really happy with how the flight went and it’s great to have some of the data we need to help assess turning this into a regular service,” said captain Sean Golding, who led the four pilots.
AUSTRALIA
Official pans cannabis law
Canberra’s new legislation legalizing possession of small amounts of cannabis for personal use do not provide legal protection and clash with federal laws, Attorney-General Christian Porter said yesterday. The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) last month became the first of the country’s six states and two main territories to legalize the possession of up to 50g per person of cannabis for personal use, with the law set to come into effect from Jan. 31. However, federal law prohibits such use and Porter, who has been reviewing the ACT laws and yesterday sent a letter to the ACT attorney-general, signaled this will not change. “They’re terrible laws for a variety of reasons,” Porter told the Australian Broadcasting Corp TV Insider political show.
INDIA
Nine killed in shelling
Two soldiers and a civilian were killed in cross-border shelling with Pakistan in Kashmir, the government said yesterday, while Islamabad said six died on its side, making it one of the deadliest days since New Delhi revoked Kashmir’s special status in August. Three Indian civilians were injured and some buildings and vehicles destroyed because of several hours of heavy shelling by both sides in the Tanghdar region late on Saturday night, a senior police official said.
AFGHANISTAN
Election results delayed
Preliminary results expected on Saturday after last month’s presidential election have been delayed, the election commission said. Officials had previously indicated that results would likely be pushed back. However, in her announcement, Awa Alam Nuristani, who heads the Independent Election Commission, did not say how long the vote count would be delayed. “Unfortunately, because of some technical issues and for transparency, we could not announce the results based on the election timetable,” she said, apologizing at a news conference.
MALAYSIA
‘Abominable’ scrapped
Animated film Abominable would not be shown after its distributor yesterday said it could not comply with censors’ demands to cut a controversial scene showing Beijing’s disputed claims in the South China Sea. The decision came after Vietnam pulled the Universal Pictures movie from theaters days ago and the Philippines’ foreign secretary called for the segment to be excised. The animated film about a Chinese teenager helping a yeti return to his home shows a chart featuring the “nine-dash” line, which sets out Beijing’s expansive claims to the waters.
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
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