■ MALAYSIA
Student in jungle ordeal
A student survived for 18 days alone in the dense jungle with only a few chocolate sticks to eat after becoming lost during a camping trip, the New Straits Times reported yesterday. Nor Umaisarah Sameaun, 21, was accidentally left behind by her university group in the popular tourist area of Gunung Tahan. "I shouted but no one could hear me," she told the paper. She was bruised, sprained an ankle and almost drowned when she slipped and fell into a river, forcing her to lay up five days before resuming her search for a way out of the jungle. Eventually she shouted for help when she came across some backpacks on the river bank which belonged to two Russian tourists and their guide who helped her to safety.
■ JAPAN
Stressed man kills son
A man allegedly killed his baby son because of the stress caused when he quit smoking and started drinking less to save money for the newborn's care, police and reports said yesterday. Masaya Omichi, a 30-year-old hospital clerk, was arrested late on Tuesday on murder charges in Osaka, local police said. "He allegedly pressed his five-month-old son's head hard with his hand and committed other abusive acts at his house on Feb. 16, killing the boy," an Osaka police spokesman said.
■ CHINA
Factory fire kills 15
A factory fire in Shenzhen yesterday killed 15 people and severely injured three, state media said. "Firemen rescued six from the building. Three were injured and are now receiving treatment in hospital," Xinhua news agency said. The bottom floor of the building was used as a workshop for foam products, Xinhua said. It did not say how many people were working in the factory when the fire started.
■ FRANCE
EU reviews DNA rules
Lawyers for two British citizens cleared of crimes were to ask the European Court of Human Rights yesterday to order their DNA samples destroyed in a case that could lead to changes in British criminal law. The case concerns a 19-year-old man identified as "S," who was acquitted of an offense in 2001, and 45-year-old Michael Marper, who was charged in a separate case in which the charges were later dropped. If the complaint is upheld, DNA samples from people with no conviction might have to be scrapped.
■ UNITED STATES
Czechs tough on Russia
The Czech Republic will not ask Russia for permission to site a US radar station on its soil and rejects returning to Moscow's sphere of influence, Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek said on Tuesday. On a visit to Washington to discuss details of a plan to host part of a US anti-missile defense system, Topolanek said the Czech Republic would cooperate with Russia on many issues, but would decide its internal affairs alone. The US administration wants to deploy interceptor missiles in Poland and a radar station in the Czech Republic.
■ UNITED KINGDOM
Quake shakes England
An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.2 struck 205km north of London and 80km east of Sheffield yesterday. Officials said there were no reports of anyone being killed or serious damage. The quake struck about an hour after midnight and was felt in London. In the town of Barnsley a man was injured in the pelvis when a chimney collapsed and plunged through the roof of his bedroom, an ambulance service spokeswoman said. "[The quake] was really bad. I was fast asleep and woke up and the room was shaking," Jemma Harrison of Manchester told the BBC.
■ GERMANY
Nazi spoils may be found
Authorities began digging on Tuesday in a remote corner of the southeast for what they hope is a massive haul of treasure buried by the Nazis during World War II. Excavators began work near the village of Deutschneudorf, not far from the border with the Czech Republic, where treasure-hunters said last week they had detected precious metals around 20m underground. The search began after the notebook of a wartime Luftwaffe pilot was found after his death. His notes indicated that several tonnes of treasure were buried in the area, Deutschneudorf Mayor Heinz-Peter Haustein said.
■ RUSSIA
Man demands US pay up
A man has said he will stay on hunger strike until the US gives him US$10 million in compensation for injuries he suffered in an accident involving a US diplomat's car. Alexander Kashin says he was left disabled at age 23. "I have no intention of halting the strike. I will keep refusing food until I either die or they meet 100 percent of my demands," Kashin said on Tuesday, the ninth day of his hunger strike. Kashin's legal action dates back to the accident on Nov. 27, 1998, which left him with severe spinal injuries. The US embassy in Moscow declined to comment. Kashin, who is confined to a wheelchair, says he was contacted by US officials after he began his hunger strike, but says he rejected their offer to pay him US$100,000. "This amount is absolutely not enough for my medical treatment," Kashin said.
■ UNITED KINGDOM
Commons roof scaled
Three men and two women climbed onto the House of Commons roof yesterday and unfurled banners protesting at plans to expand Heathrow airport. The demonstration by the "Plane Stupid" group coincided with the end of a public consultation process on proposals to build a third runway at the airport. The group evaded tight security to reach the roof and hang banners. "I'm standing on the roof of parliament because the democratic process has been corrupted," protester Richard George said.
■ UNITED STATES
MVEMCJSUNPE is the key
Those having trouble remembering the newly assigned 11 planets can thank a fourth-grader in Great Fall, Montana. Maryn Smith, the winner of the National Geographic planetary mnemonic contest, came up with the phrase: My Very Exciting Magic Carpet Just Sailed Under Nine Palace Elephants to help remember Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Ceres, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto and Eris. Smith's mnemonic will be published in astronomer David Aguilar's book, 11 Planets: A New View of the Solar System and recorded in a song by singer Lisa Loeb.
■ BRAZIL
Alleged heist chief nabbed
Police arrested the alleged leader of a gang that stole US$70 million from a bank in the city of Fortaleza in what was then the world's biggest heist, authorities said on Tuesday. Jossivam Alves dos Santos was detained on Monday in a tire shop in the city of Tabatinga near the capital Brasila, police said. Police said Santos led the August 2005 robbery, where thieves tunneled 80m to reach the bank vault. Eleven people have already been convicted. Santos' assets have also been seized, bringing the total recovered to about US$30 million, police said.
■ BRAZIL
Mummy found in monastery
Exterminators looking for termites in a monastery in Sao Paulo found a mummy and a skeleton believed to be at least 200 years old, Father Armenio Rodrigues Nogueira said on Tuesday. "There were some mounds of termite dust and the exterminators broke into the walls to see what was in there," said Nogueira, who is in charge of the Mosteiro da Luz (Monastery of Light). "It was a huge surprise." The monastery was founded in 1774.
■ MEXICO
Smoking ban passed
Lawmakers voted on Tuesday to ban smoking in bars, restaurants and other enclosed public spaces nationwide. Establishments that breach the ban will be fined and recalcitrant smokers caught illicitly puffing could face up to 36 hours in jail. The bill was approved by the Senate after being passed by the lower house late last year. President Felipe Calderon is expected to sign it into law in the next few days.
■ ARGENTINA
Veteran dies before trial
A retired military officer accused of abducting babies during the1976 to1983 "dirty war" was killed by a gunshot to the head just days before he was to testify in court. It was not immediately clear if Paul Navone committed suicide or was murdered.
RARE EVENT: While some cultures have a negative view of eclipses, others see them as a chance to show how people can work together, a scientist said Stargazers across a swathe of the world marveled at a dramatic red “Blood Moon” during a rare total lunar eclipse in the early hours of yesterday morning. The celestial spectacle was visible in the Americas and Pacific and Atlantic oceans, as well as in the westernmost parts of Europe and Africa. The phenomenon happens when the sun, Earth and moon line up, causing our planet to cast a giant shadow across its satellite. But as the Earth’s shadow crept across the moon, it did not entirely blot out its white glow — instead the moon glowed a reddish color. This is because the
Romania’s electoral commission on Saturday excluded a second far-right hopeful, Diana Sosoaca, from May’s presidential election, amid rising tension in the run-up to the May rerun of the poll. Earlier this month, Romania’s Central Electoral Bureau barred Calin Georgescu, an independent who was polling at about 40 percent ahead of the rerun election. Georgescu, a fierce EU and NATO critic, shot to prominence in November last year when he unexpectedly topped a first round of presidential voting. However, Romania’s constitutional court annulled the election after claims of Russian interference and a “massive” social media promotion in his favor. On Saturday, an electoral commission statement
Chinese authorities increased pressure on CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd over its plan to sell its Panama ports stake by sharing a second newspaper commentary attacking the deal. The Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office on Saturday reposted a commentary originally published in Ta Kung Pao, saying the planned sale of the ports by the Hong Kong company had triggered deep concerns among Chinese people and questioned whether the deal was harming China and aiding evil. “Why were so many important ports transferred to ill-intentioned US forces so easily? What kind of political calculations are hidden in the so-called commercial behavior on the
‘DOWNSIZE’: The Trump administration has initiated sweeping cuts to US government-funded media outlets in a move critics said could undermine the US’ global influence US President Donald Trump’s administration on Saturday began making deep cuts to Voice of America (VOA) and other government-run, pro-democracy programming, with the organization’s director saying all VOA employees have been put on leave. On Friday night, shortly after the US Congress passed its latest funding bill, Trump directed his administration to reduce the functions of several agencies to the minimum required by law. That included the US Agency for Global Media, which houses Voice of America, Radio Free Europe and Asia and Radio Marti, which beams Spanish-language news into Cuba. On Saturday morning, Kari Lake, a former Arizona gubernatorial and US
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