JAPAN
Talking robot blasts off
The first talking humanoid robot “astronaut” has taken off in a rocket. Kirobo — derived from the Japanese words for “hope” and “robot” — was among 5 tonnes of supplies and machinery on a rocket launched yesterday for the International Space Station from Tanegashima, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency said. The childlike robot was designed to be a companion for astronaut Koichi Wakata, and will communicate with another robot on Earth, according to developers. Wakata is expected to arrive at the space station in November. Ahead of the launch, the 34cm tall Kirobo told reporters, “one small step for me, a giant leap for robots.”
SWAZILAND
Chief bans miniskirts
A chief banned women from wearing miniskirts and trousers at a two-day nomination process that got under way on Saturday to select candidates for upcoming elections. “I told the residents recently, that tomorrow they should dress properly, decently in line with our culture to show respect,” Prince Mashila of Maphalaleni, a chiefdom about 20km from the capital Mbabane. “That’s all I asked for — just respect for the chief’s residence,” he said. Another chief has also banned short skirts at his homestead in the tiny kingdom. However, Timothy Mtetwa, the governor at the residence of King Mswati III, Africa’s last absolute monarch, struck a more conciliatory tone. “True we want chiefs’ residences to be respected, it is our culture, but, because of modernization, we can’t wish pants and miniskirts away. At some point we have to embrace and accommodate them,” he said. The two day process will nominate candidates for parliament and other local posts.
KENYA
Crash widow left ‘destitute’
A mother, pregnant with her fourth child, said on Saturday that she cannot support her family after her husband was killed in a road crash involving a US diplomat who has since left the country. Haji Hassan Ali Lukindo, 43, was killed in a car crash in Nairobi on July 11, when the minibus he was travelling in was involved in a crash with the car of a diplomat at the US embassy. “We have been left destitute since Haji was killed,” Latifah Naiman, 38, said. “I have no means to support our three children, and have to depend entirely on a well wisher for rent, food, school fees and daily living expenses.” Police confirmed that US diplomat Joshua Walde had been involved in a crash, and that he had given a statement to them, but had diplomatic immunity. “He has left Kenya ... he is a diplomat so had immunity and was free to go,” a senior police officer said, who was not authorized to speak to the media. Naiman said she was worried about how she could support her children, especially the baby soon to be born. “I am desperate for communication from the American authorities here,” she said. There was no immediate response from the US embassy.
CUBA
Russian warships pay visit
Three Russian warships led by the missile cruiser Moskva arrived on Saturday on the first such visit in four years. The ships were greeted by an artillery salute, a naval band and a few hundred onlookers as they arrived in the Bay of Havana. The government has said the ships are on a “friendly visit.” Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev visited Havana in February when he met President Raul Castro and his brother, former president Fidel Castro.
‘GROSS NEGLIGENCE?’ Despite a spleen typically being significantly smaller than a liver, the surgeon said he believed Bryan’s spleen was ‘double the size of what is normal’ A Florida surgeon who is facing criminal charges after allegedly removing a patient’s liver instead of his spleen has said he is “forever traumatized” by that person’s death. In a deposition from November last year that was recently obtained by NBC, 44-year-old Thomas Shaknovsky described the death of 70-year-old William Bryan as an “incredibly unfortunate event that I regret deeply.” Bryan died after the botched surgery; and last month, a grand jury in Tallahassee indicted Shaknovsky on a charge of manslaughter. “I’m forever traumatized by it and hurt by it,” Shaknovsky added, also saying that wrong-site surgeries can happen “during
Former Chinese ministers of national defense Wei Fenghe(魏鳳和) and Li Shangfu (李尚福) were both sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve over graft charges, state news agency Xinhua reported on Thursday, underscoring the severity of the purge in the military. The armed forces have been one of the main targets of a broad corruption crackdown ordered by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) after coming to power in 2012. The purges reached the elite Rocket Force, which oversees nuclear weapons as well as conventional missiles, in 2023. Earlier this year they escalated further, resulting in the removal of the top general in
New Zealand is open to expanding its frigate fleet beyond its current two vessels, with New Zealand Minister of Defence Chris Penk saying “no options are off the table” as the government weighs buying new warships from Japan or the UK. The government yesterday said it is looking to replace its two aging Anzac-class frigates, which were both commissioned almost 30 years ago. The UK’s Type 31 and Japan’s Mogami-class warships are the options under consideration. Speaking in an interview, Penk said there is potential to increase the number of frigates the nation purchases. “We need a certain amount of capability as a
The Philippine Coast Guard yesterday said it deployed aircraft to issue radio warnings to a Chinese research ship in a disputed area of the South China Sea “swarming” with vessels from Beijing’s so-called maritime militia. The research vessel Xiang Yang Hong 33 (向陽紅33), which is capable of supporting submersible craft, was operating near a reef in the contested Spratly Islands (Nansha Islands, 南沙群島), which Taiwan also claims, the Philippine Coast Guard said. The Chinese ship was deploying a service boat toward the Spratly’s Iroquois Reef on Wednesday when it was spotted by a coast guard plane, “confirming ongoing unauthorized [marine scientific research]
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