Sagaing: drone attack by military junta destroys church in Card Bo’s native village
Today's headlines: Hezbollah fires rockets into northern Israel, killing seven, including four Thais; Israeli bulldozers demolish UNRWA office. In Japan, cyclists who use a mobile phone or are intoxicated while riding risk jail time. India and China have completed the withdrawal of soldiers from sensitive points along their disputed Himalayan border. In Iran, the amputations of fingers of people convicted of theft are back.
MYANMAR
The war pitting Myanmar’s military against rebel groups does not spare churches, mosques and monasteries. Recently, armed drones struck Mon Hla, a village in the Sagaing region, the birthplace of Card Charles Maung Bo, the archbishop of Yangon. In the raid, the Church of St Michael was hit resulting in the destruction of “an entire side of the church, the whole right side,” an anonymous source said. The church’s bell tower and nave were also damaged.
ISRAEL – LEBANON – THAILAND
Two Hezbollah rocket attacks in northern Israel, in Metula and on the outskirts of Haifa, have killed seven people, including four Thai migrant workers, one of the deadliest days in months. In the Nur Shams camp (West Bank), Israeli bulldozers destroyed the local UNRWA headquarters. Lastly, at least 47 Palestinians were killed overnight near Deir Al-Balah, Gaza, in addition to the 46 who died in yesterday's attacks. A hospital was also hit.
JAPAN
Cyclists who use a mobile phone while riding face up to six months in prison under the revised road traffic law that came into effect today, plus a fine of 100,000 yen (about US$ 655). In addition, anyone riding a bicycle under the influence of alcohol can expect a custodial sentence of up to three years or a fine of 500,000 yen (just under US$ 3,300).
INDIA – CHINA
India and China have completed the withdrawal of troops from two sensitive points, scene of clashes in the past, in an area along the Himalayan border claimed by both countries. The announcement was made in Delhi, but Beijing has not issued any official statement. Yesterday the soldiers exchanged boxes of sweets as a gesture of goodwill, followed by a joint patrol.
IRAN
Iran has cut off four fingers of the right hand of two brothers convicted of theft, as the authorities increasingly turn to a form of punishment banned by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Iran is a signatory. The amputations of Shahab and Mehrdad Teimouri in Urmia Central Prison were carried out using a guillotine-like device.
RUSSIA – NORTH KOREA
In Khabarovsk, a city on Russia’s Pacific coast, a youth club to study the ideas of Juche was created in a local school, thanks to an agreement between a history teacher Vladislav Kushnirenko and North Korean consul Li Sen-Ir. Juche is the official ideology of North Korea and is based on the texts of its first leader, Kim Il-Sung, regarding “world revolution”.
UZBEKISTAN – UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
The crown prince of Dubai, Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, posted pictures of his summer excursions to Uzbekistan on social media. He travelled to the Central Asian country on an “ecological” hunt of birds, especially the Asian houbara, a rare species, captured with falcons, to be taken to special reserves in the Emirates.
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12/02/2016 15:14
