■ CRIME
Drug ring broken up
Drug enforcement authorities in Taiwan, the US and Thailand have broken up a major drug ring in the Golden Triangle after more than one year of intensive joint tracking, the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau (MJIB) said. The MJIB and the Criminal Investigation Bureau have been cooperating closely with Thailand’s Office of Narcotics Control Board and the Royal Thai Police’s Narcotics Suppression Bureau, as well as the US Drug Enforcement Administration, to track down a drug ring headed by a Thai druglord of Chinese origin known as Jifan, an MJIB release said. After more than a year of investigation, agents from the five agencies raided the ring’s operational bases in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai and other areas in the Golden Triangle early on Wednesday morning, the MJIB said. The raids led to the arrest of Jifan and other key figures, including two men known as Jimao and Singhol, and the seizure of more than 10 million Thai baht (US$286,000) in drug money, it said.
■ TRAVEL
‘Yellow’ alert widened
Argentina and Brazil have been added to the “yellow” travel alert category along with 22 other countries and Hong Kong for having confirmed cases of the influenza A(H1N1) virus, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. Travelers should take extra sanitation precautions when visiting “yellow” alert countries, the ministry said. So far, Mexico remains the only country on the “red” alert list, which means travelers should avoid non-essential trips to Mexico until further notice. For an updated list of travel alerts, visit the Bureau of Consular Affairs at www.boca.gov.tw.
■ HEALTH
Boy dies of influenza
A five-year-old boy died on Thursday after fighting a bout of severe influenza for more than a month, making him the fifth flu-related fatality reported in Taiwan so far this year. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Deputy Director-General Shih Wen-yi (施文儀) said the case had nothing to do with the current global swine flu outbreak. Taiwan is still free of influenza A(H1N1), Shih said. The boy became sick during the flu season earlier this year, Shih said, adding that none of his kindergarten classmates had contracted the virus. So far this year, 19 cases of severe flu have been reported, CDC tallies show. Although the flu season has passed, Shih said people should still maintain good hygiene habits and wash their hands frequently to avoid contracting the virus.
■ HEALTH
Group urges blood tests
As many as 50 percent of adult women tested recently by the Taiwan Heart Foundation displayed high levels of lipids in the blood, which can increase the risk of heart disease, foundation officials said yesterday. A total of 800 women volunteered to undergo the tests, which were conducted two weeks ago in the Taipei, Taichung and Kaohsiung regions. The tests show that half the women had total cholesterol levels exceeding 240mg/dl. Even among younger women aged 20 to 39, two to three in every 10 had high cholesterol levels, foundation CEO Huang Jui-jen (黃瑞仁) said. He said the results indicate that hyperlipidemia is not unique to older women, although the ratio of women with the problem tends to increase with age. He advised women aged 30 or older to undergo blood lipid tests at least once every three years. If the tests show abnormal results, treatment should be given and follow-up tests should be conducted every year, he said.
Twenty-four Republican members of the US House of Representatives yesterday introduced a concurrent resolution calling on the US government to abolish the “one China” policy and restore formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Led by US representatives Tom Tiffany and Scott Perry, the resolution calls for not only re-establishing formal relations, but also urges the US Trade Representative to negotiate a free-trade agreement (FTA) with Taiwan and for US officials to advocate for Taiwan’s full membership in the UN and other international organizations. In a news release announcing the resolution, Tiffany, who represents a Wisconsin district, called the “one China” policy “outdated, counterproductive
Actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has “returned home” to Taiwan, and there are no plans to hold a funeral for the TV star who died in Japan from influenza- induced pneumonia, her family said in a statement Wednesday night. The statement was released after local media outlets reported that Barbie Hsu’s ashes were brought back Taiwan on board a private jet, which arrived at Taipei Songshan Airport around 3 p.m. on Wednesday. To the reporters waiting at the airport, the statement issued by the family read “(we) appreciate friends working in the media for waiting in the cold weather.” “She has safely returned home.
TRUMP ERA: The change has sparked speculation on whether it was related to the new US president’s plan to dismiss more than 1,000 Joe Biden-era appointees The US government has declined to comment on a post that indicated the departure of Laura Rosenberger as chair of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). Neither the US Department of State nor the AIT has responded to the Central News Agency’s questions on the matter, after Rosenberger was listed as a former chair on the AIT’s official Web site, with her tenure marked as 2023 to this year. US officials have said previously that they usually do not comment on personnel changes within the government. Rosenberger was appointed head of the AIT in 2023, during the administration of former US president Joe
ON PAROLE: The 73-year-old suspect has a criminal record of rape committed when he was serving in the military, as well as robbery and theft, police said The Kaohsiung District Court yesterday approved the detention of a 73-year-old man for allegedly murdering three women. The suspect, surnamed Chang (張), was arrested on Wednesday evening in connection with the death of a 71-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙). The Kaohsiung City Police Department yesterday also unveiled the identities of two other possible victims in the serial killing case, a 75-year-old woman surnamed Huang (黃), the suspect’s sister-in-law, and a 75-year-old woman surnamed Chang (張), who is not related to the suspect. The case came to light when Chao disappeared after taking the suspect back to his residence on Sunday. Police, upon reviewing CCTV