PARIS — Intruders, apparently drunk, broke into the Orsay Museum through a back door early Sunday and punched a hole in a renowned work by Impressionist painter Claude Monet, the French culture minister said.
A surveillance camera caught a group of four or five people entering the museum, which houses a major collection of Impressionist art on the Left Bank of the French capital along the Seine River.
An alarm sounded and the group left, but not before damaging an invaluable painting, “Le Pont d’Argenteuil,” Culture Minister Christine Albanel said. The painting now has a horizontal tear about four inches wide.
Albanel said the painting could be restored.
Iran: No U.S. talks, president says
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Sunday that talks with the United States would only be possible if Washington changes its policy toward Iran, an official Web site reported. Ahmadinejad was referring to President Bush’s comment last week that the United States would be willing to negotiate with Iran if it suspended its nuclear program.
Congo: Rebels grab gorilla habitat
Rebels have seized an area in eastern Congo that serves as a wildlife habitat for endangered mountain gorillas, threatening one of the last known populations of the animals, conservationists said Sunday. Only 700 mountain gorillas exist in the world, of which more than half live in the Virunga National Park conservation area. Rebels loyal to warlord Laurent Nkunda have frequently battled over the park in their clashes with the army.
Cuba: Train, bus wreck kills 28
A bus collided with a train in eastern Cuba, killing at least 28 people and injuring another 73, including 15 in critical condition, state media reported Sunday. A newspaper reported that the collision took place Saturday at a railroad crossing near a bridge in the small town of Veguita, in Yara municipality.
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