US President Donald Trump has nominated Indian-American nuclear expert Rita Baranwal to head the nuclear energy division at the department of energy. If approved by the Senate, Baranwal will be an assistant secretary of energy, responsible for nuclear technology research and the development and management of the department’s nuclear technology infrastructure, the White House said in a statement. Baranwal currently serves as the director of the Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear initiative. Previously, she served as director of Technology Development & Application and was a manager in Materials Technology, where she led research and development in nuclear fuel materials for US naval reactors. She earned her BA in engineering from MIT and PhD from University of Michigan.
Pak oppn leader gets 10 days’ jail ahead of by-poll
Lahore: Pakistani opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif was jailed for 10 days after being arrested in a corruption case, his lawyer said, meaning he will not be able to campaign for his party ahead of by-elections next week. Shehbaz is the younger brother of ousted PM Nawaz Sharif, who was sentenced earlier this year to 10 years in prison. The arrest of Shehbaz by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in Lahore involved a case of alleged corruption in a low-cost housing scheme when Shehbaz was chief minister of Punjab province. A NAB court on Saturday heard charges that Sharif in 2014 illegally cancelled a contract with a construction company and sought to award it to another company, allegedly for a bribe. The court ordered him remanded in custody for 10 days to be interrogated, his lawyer Azam Nazir Tarar said. Sharif denies any wrongdoing, and his brother has denounced corruption cases against him as politically motivated.
Mush may be forced to return, warns Pak CJ
Irked by former dictator Pervez Musharraf’s failure to come back to Pakistan and face ongoing cases against him, Chief Justice Saqib Nisar warned that if the “courageous commando” does not appear soon, he may be forced to return in a disgraceful manner. Justice Nisar made the remarks when Musharraf’s lawyer told the three-judge bench that his client “respects the court” but was unable to return due to his medical condition and reservations over the provision of security.
Musharraf, 75, who has been living in Dubai since 2016, is facing the high-profile treason case for suspending the Constitution in 2007.
Pak orders 18 international NGOs to shut operations
Pakistan ordered 18 international aid organizations to close, threatening the assistance they provide to some of the country’s most vulnerable, international aid workers said. The majority of the shuttered aid groups are US-based, while the remainder are from Britain and the EU, according to a government list. Caught in the latest order to close are aid groups such as World Vision US, Catholic Relief Services US, International Relief and Development US, ActionAid UK, and Danish Refugee Council, Denmark. There was no official explanation from the new government and there was no response to queries about the closures from the Interior Ministry, which issued the order. The Information Ministry and Foreign Ministry also did not respond to queries. The organizations have been given 60 days to wrap up their operations, said Imran Yusuf Shami, country director for Plan International, whose organization was told its registration had been denied.
Pakistan postpones ruling on Christian woman
Pakistan’s Supreme Court has postponed its ruling on a final appeal by a Christian woman on death row since 2010 on charges of blasphemy. The judicial panel listened to Asia Bibi’s defense lawyer challenge statements by those who accused her of insulting Islam’s prophet, an allegation that can incite riots in Pakistan. The charge dates back to 2009 when Bibi went to get water for her and her fellow farmworkers. Two Muslim women refused to take a drink from a container used by a Christian. They demanded she convert to become a Muslim which she refused. Following her refusal, a mob accused her of blasphemy. She was convicted and sentenced to death. The three-judge panel led by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar did not indicate when the court would announce its ruling. Her lawyer Saif-ul Malook said that he was optimistic that Bibi would win the appeal. But if not, he would seek a review, which could take years to complete.
4 killed in Sri Lankan storm
At least four people were killed and over 10,000 affected as heavy rains and strong winds lashed Sri Lanka over the weekend, the government said. Disaster Management Center (DMC) spokesperson Pradeep Kodippili in the latest update said the four deaths were reported from Kalutara and Galle. Heavy rains had caused flash floods in Badulla, Kalutara, Galle and Kegalle, from where thousands of families were evacuated. Dry rations were distributed to them. Kodippili said waters were receding but more rains were expected in many parts of the island. Thunder showers are forecast in northern, western and eastern provinces and in Galle, Matara and Kalutara districts, the Met said. Heavy rains of up to 100 mm was expected in the Eastern, Southern, Central Sabaragamuwa, Uva and Western Provinces, the department added.
16-year-old jailed for kissing girl friend
A 16-year-old boy in Turkey has been jailed for four and a half years for kissing his 13-year-old girlfriend after teachers found his schoolmates sharing video of the event. A court in Antalya Province found the boy guilty of sexual abuse under a law that forbids sexual conduct with children under the age of 15. Video filmed by a schoolmate showing the boy hugging and kissing the girl in the school was used as evidence. Five other children - all school friends ages 13 to 16, including one who filmed the episode and others who shared it - were charged with using children to produce obscene images and spreading them. They were all acquitted. Zuhal Merve Ozfidan, the boy’s lawyer, said she would appeal the verdict, and declined to share the details of the case as it involves minors. The boy remains free pending appeal.
Malaysia arrests man stranded at airport for 7 months
A Syrian man who was stranded at a Malaysian airport for almost seven months has been arrested, an official said. Hassan al-Kontar had been stuck at the budget terminal of Kuala Lumpur International Airport since March 7, when officials refused to let him board a flight to Ecuador. Kontar, reportedly sought by authorities in his homeland for failing to serve in the military, was also refused entry into Cambodia and not allowed back into Malaysia due to visa issues. The 36-year-old was left stranded in the terminal, surviving on donated airline meals and washing in the toilets. He alleged that rights groups had refused him help. But Malaysian immigration chief Mustafar Ali said that police had finally decided to arrest Kontar and remove him from the airport, as his posts had embarrassed Malaysia. Officials will now work with the Syrian authorities to get him deported to his homeland.
Indonesia quake-tsunami toll reaches 1,944
Nearly 2,000 bodies have been recovered from Palu since an earthquake and tsunami struck the Indonesian city, an official said, warning the number would rise with thousands still missing. The death toll from the twin disaster on Sulawesi island that erased whole suburbs in Palu has reached 1,944, said local military spokesman M Thohir. "That number is expected to rise, because we have not received orders to halt the search for bodies," Thohir said. Authorities have said as many as 5,000 are believed missing in two hard-hit areas since the 28 September disaster " indicating far more may have perished than the current toll. Hopes of finding anyone alive have faded and the search for survivors amid the wreckage has turned to gathering and accounting for the dead. An official said that search for the unaccounted would continue until 11 October at which point they would be listed as missing, presumed dead. The government said it would declare those communities flattened in Palu as mass graves and leave them untouched.
South Africa train collision injures 320 people
About 320 people were injured when a packed train travelling from South Africa's business hub Johannesburg to the capital Pretoria crashed into the back of a stationary train, Metrorail authorities said. At least 32 people received serious injuries. "The injured commuters were taken for medical attention at various hospitals," Metrorail said in a statement adding that an inquiry will be conducted to find the cause of the accident. In January, a similar train accident on the outskirts of Johannesburg injured 200 people. South Africa has the continent's largest railway network, but it has been plagued by mismanagement and under-investment that has seen train use dwindle despite it being the cheapest form of public transportation. In a report, the government's Rail Safety Regulator said that, in the 2016/17 financial year, 495 people lost their lives on the country's railways and 2,079 were injured.
Thailand shuts beach to tourists indefinitely
A Thai beach made famous by the 2000 Leonardo DiCaprio movie “The Beach” will stay closed indefinitely to give its ecosystem time to recover, authorities said. Maya Bay, on Phi Phi Leh island in the Andaman Sea, was closed for four months on June 1 in a bid to salvage the area’s coral reefs, which have been damaged by warmer temperatures and a flood of tourists.
Nightclub asks patrons to get meningitis test
Patrons of a famed nightclub in Berlinare were told to immediately visit a doctor to be checked for bacterial meningitis after they may have been exposed to the life-threatening illness on the dance floor. Media reported that a KitKatClub visitor is suffering from meningitis likely contracted at the club. The club is renowned for its sexually uninhibited techno parties.
Man returns book 84 years after mom borrowed it
A Louisiana library says a book borrowed 84 years ago has been returned by the son of the woman who checked it out as an 11-year-old girl. Shreve Memorial Library’s Facebook page says the son found the “Spoon River Anthology” while cleaning house. The library said its fine of $3 per day was waived.
Rare bottle of Scotch fetches record £848k
An extremely rare bottle of whisky was sold for a new world record. The 60-year-old Macallan Valerio Adami 1926 was sold at Bonhams for a total £848,750 beating a previous bottle from the same cask that was sold in Hong Kong in May for £814,081.
