A moderate earthquake struck southern China, destroying houses and injuring 26 people, state media reported Sunday. The magnitude 5.3 quake that hit Yunnan province Saturday afternoon also damaged reservoirs, highways and telecommunications networks, the official Xinhua News Agency said. No deaths were reported, but an undetermined number of people were left homeless.
Vatican: Pope prepares for Germany
Pope Benedict XVI voiced hope that his trip this week to his native Germany for a youth gathering would spur a new European wave of faith, to counter what he described as a spiritual fatigue on the traditionally Christian continent. Benedict will fly to Cologne on Thursday to begin a four-day visit for World Youth Day, a Catholic jamboree of rallies and religious services with young people.
Russia: Soldiers killed in Chechnya
A land mine exploded Sunday in Roshni-Chu in Chechnya when Russia troops came to the aid of a local Moscow-backed official whose home was under attack by rebels, killing a senior Russian military officer and four other soldiers, officials said. Rebels apparently had expected Russian soldiers to come to the administrator’s rescue and prepared an ambush, an Interior Ministry spokesman said.
From Herald news services
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