The United States, France and Britain on Tuesday demanded that Syria detain government officials suspected of involvement in the February assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and ensure their cooperation with a U.N. probe or face possible sanctions. The new draft resolution spells out a list of stern measures against Syria, including an immediate travel ban and asset freeze on suspects identified by the commission. The Security Council could hold a meeting Monday to adopt the resolution.
Afghanistan: Twin attacks kill eight
Militants killed six civilians in a botched ambush on a U.S. troop convoy south of Kabul, officials said Tuesday, while to the east, attackers gunned down two senior police officers. Also Tuesday, a cache of bombs was discovered in a Kabul junkyard.
Israel: Militant leader mourned
Thousands of Palestinian mourners buried Luay Saadi, one of Islamic Jihad’s top leaders, in the West Bank on Tuesday, a day after he was killed during a shootout with Israeli troops. Early today, Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired another rocket into southern Israel, but there were no reports of injuries. An Israeli aircraft fired at least one missile into an open field in northern Gaza in response, the army said.
China: School stampede kills seven
A stampede on a stairwell at an elementary school in southwest China killed seven children and injured 37, state media reported today. Students were leaving their evening classes in Tongjiang on Tuesday when the stampede occurred in the stairwell, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. The cause was under investigation.
Japan: Panel recommends empress
An advisory panel on Japan’s monarchy will propose allowing women to ascend the throne, the chairman said Tuesday, in a boost to a measure that has broad support in Japan and could relieve pressure on the imperial family to produce a male heir. The amendment would be subject to approval from both houses of parliament. Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako have one child, a 3-year-old daughter named Aiko.
From Herald news services
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