INDIA
Soldiers killed on base
Four soldiers were shot dead yesterday in a predawn incident at a military base in Punjab, an army statement said. The incident was reported at about 4:35am at the Bathinda Military Station in the northern state where tensions have been high over the local resurgence of a separatist movement. “The area continues to be sealed off and joint investigations with Punjab Police are being coordinated to establish the facts of the case,” the army said. Bathinda’s top police official G.S. Khurana told broadcaster NDTV that the incident did not appear to be a terror attack. State police and the Ministry of Defence did not respond to requests for comment.
SOUTH KOREA
Party calls for US spy probe
The opposition Democratic Party yesterday urged the government to investigate alleged espionage by the US after leaked documents appeared to show that Washington was spying on its key Asian ally. A trove of highly sensitive US intelligence that has emerged online included revelations that Washington had been spying on President Yoon Suk-yeol’s national security advisers as part of an effort to secure arms supplies for Ukraine. Seoul on Tuesday sought to downplay the importance of the leaked documents, with Yoon’s office claiming “a significant number” of the documents were fake and his national security adviser saying there were no “malicious intentions” in the incident. The revelation has sparked criticism about the vulnerability of sensitive sites including the presidential office. “The government must get to the bottom of eavesdropping allegations and if they are found to be true, it must get an official apology and guarantee that it won’t do it again from the US,” Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung said.
UNITED STATES
Proud Boys leader testifies
A former leader in the Proud Boys on Tuesday took the witness stand to fight seditious conspiracy and other serious charges in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, telling jurors that the group had “no objective” that day. Zachary Rehl, who was a chapter leader from Philadelphia, became the first defendant in the high-stakes trial of five Proud Boys to testify. It is a potentially risky move in one of the most serious cases to emerge from the riot. “There was no objective on Jan. 6. I even asked the night before in the chat,” Rehl, 37, testified, referring to the chat the Proud Boys used to communicate ahead of the riot. “There were no objectives. We were just going to walk around the city. I said over and over again, I want the legal process to play out. That’s the process our country was founded on.”
UNITED STATES
Chemical use to be limited
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Tuesday proposed limiting the use of the chemical ethylene oxide after finding a higher-than-expected cancer risk at facilities that use it to sterilize billions of medical devices each year. The agency said its proposal would reduce ethylene oxide emissions by about 80 percent by targeting 86 medical sterilization facilities across the country. The companies would also have to test for the antimicrobial chemical in the air and make sure their pollution controls are working properly. “EPA’s number one priority is protecting people’s health and safety,” EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a statement. The agency’s proposals “would significantly reduce worker and community exposure to harmful levels of ethylene oxide,” he said.
UNITED STATES
Snowfall helps ski resorts
Record snowfall across much of the country’s west has not only helped to alleviate drought, it has also brought a massive boon for the region’s ski resorts, with many hoping to keep their lifts running deep into summer. “I bet you, here, we might make it into July. I hope so,” said local ski enthusiast Ian Burkle, 52. “We always aim for July 4. If you can ski up here on the fourth, it’s always great. It’s been a couple years since that.” This year, with mountains across California, Utah and Colorado reporting staggering snowfall, “A-Basin” has plenty of competition for spring skiing, in what is shaping up to be a bumper-sized season across the west.
UNITED STATES
Schwarzenegger fills pothole
Fed up by an enormous pothole in his Los Angeles neighborhood, Arnold Schwarzenegger picked up a shovel and filled it himself. The actor and former California governor on Tuesday posted a video on Twiter of him and a helper using packaged concrete to repair the road in the Brentwood area. “Today, after the whole neighborhood has been upset about this giant pothole that’s been screwing up cars and bicycles for weeks, I went out with my team and fixed it,” he wrote on Twitter. “I always say, let’s not complain, let’s do something about it. Here you go.” A neighbor rolled down her car window and shouted her thanks at the action-movie star. “You’re welcome,” said Schwarzenegger, decked out in work boots, a leather jacket and shades reminiscent of his role in The Terminator. “You have to do it yourself. This is crazy. For three weeks I’ve been waiting for this hole to be closed,” he said.
Seven people sustained mostly minor injuries in an airplane fire in South Korea, authorities said yesterday, with local media suggesting the blaze might have been caused by a portable battery stored in the overhead bin. The Air Busan plane, an Airbus A321, was set to fly to Hong Kong from Gimhae International Airport in southeastern Busan, but caught fire in the rear section on Tuesday night, the South Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said. A total of 169 passengers and seven flight attendants and staff were evacuated down inflatable slides, it said. Authorities initially reported three injuries, but revised the number
‘BALD-FACED LIE’: The woman is accused of administering non-prescribed drugs to the one-year-old and filmed the toddler’s distress to solicit donations online A social media influencer accused of filming the torture of her baby to gain money allegedly manufactured symptoms causing the toddler to have brain surgery, a magistrate has heard. The 34-year-old Queensland woman is charged with torturing an infant and posting videos of the little girl online to build a social media following and solicit donations. A decision on her bail application in a Brisbane court was yesterday postponed after the magistrate opted to take more time before making a decision in an effort “not to be overwhelmed” by the nature of allegations “so offensive to right-thinking people.” The Sunshine Coast woman —
BORDER SERVICES: With the US-funded International Rescue Committee telling clinics to shut by tomorrow, Burmese refugees face sudden discharge from Thai hospitals Healthcare centers serving tens of thousands of refugees on the Thai-Myanmar border have been ordered shut after US President Donald Trump froze most foreign aid last week, forcing Thai officials to transport the sickest patients to other facilities. The International Rescue Committee (IRC), which funds the clinics with US support, told the facilities to shut by tomorrow, a local official and two camp committee members said. The IRC did not respond to a request for comment. Trump last week paused development assistance from the US Agency for International Development for 90 days to assess compatibility with his “America First” policy. The freeze has thrown
TESTING BAN: Satellite photos show a facility in the Chinese city of Mianyang that could aid nuclear weapons design and power generation, a US researcher said China appears to be building a large laser-ignited fusion research center in the southwestern city of Mianyang, experts at two analytical organizations said, a development that could aid nuclear weapons design and work exploring power generation. Satellite photos show four outlying “arms” that would house laser bays, and a central experiment bay that would hold a target chamber containing hydrogen isotopes the powerful lasers would fuse together, producing energy, said Decker Eveleth, a researcher at US-based independent research organization CNA Corp. It is a similar layout to the US$3.5 billion US National Ignition Facility (NIF) in northern California, which in 2022 generated
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