JAPAN
Driverless trains planned
Shinkansen bullet trains could be operating without drivers from the mid 2030s, one of its main rail operators said on Tuesday. East Japan Railway is to first introduce trains where many of the driver’s tasks are automated, but they will remain in the cab, on parts of one route from 2028, the firm said. The following year, the company said it hopes to trial driverless trains on a short stretch of out-of-service track before rolling them out between Tokyo and Niigata on the Joetsu Shinkansen line in the mid 2030s.
JAPAN
Fuji activity declines
Fewer climbers tackled Mount Fuji during this year’s hiking season after Japanese authorities introduced an entry fee and a daily cap on numbers to fight overtourism, preliminary figures showed. Online reservations were also brought in this year by officials concerned about safety and environmental damage on the country’s highest mountain. The number of climbers fell by 14 percent between early July — when the volcano’s hiking trails opened for the summer — and early this month, the Ministry of the Environment said.
AUSTRALIA
Arms convention protested
Protesters yesterday clashed with police outside a military arms convention in Melbourne. Protesters hurled bottles, rocks and horse manure, a police statement said. Police used pepper spray, flash distraction devices and foam baton rounds. Police arrested 33 people for offenses including assault, arson and blocking roadways. About 1,800 police officers were deployed to a convention center where the Land Forces International Land Defense Exposition is taking place through tomorrow. Roads have been closed and traffic was disrupted by the protesters organized by the Students for Palestine and Disrupt Wars groups. “We’re protesting to stand up for all those who have been killed by the type of weapons on display at the convention,” Students for Palestine national co-convener Jasmine Duff said in a statement.
GERMANY
Dresden bridge fails
A bridge partially collapsed in Dresden early yesterday morning, rescue services said, adding that no one was injured. A roughly 100m section of the Carola Bridge plunged into the Elbe river overnight, the Dresden fire brigade said. The entire area has been sealed off and no river traffic was possible, Dresden police said on X. Rescue services were at the scene and were working on damage control to prevent further parts of the bridge from collapsing, fire brigade spokesman Michael Klahre told reporters, adding that the cause of the collapse was still unknown.
KENYA
Protests stop flights
Hundreds of workers at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport yesterday demonstrated against a planned deal between the government and a foreign investor. Planes have remained grounded, with hundreds of passengers stranded at the airport. The government has said that the build-and-operate agreement with India’s Adani Group would see the nation’s main airport renovated, and an additional runway and terminal constructed, in exchange for the group running the airport for 30 years. The Kenya Airport Workers Union said that the deal would lead to job losses, and “inferior terms and conditions of service” for those who remain.
Drug lord Jose Adolfo Macias Villamar, alias “Fito,” was Ecuador’s most-wanted fugitive before his arrest on Wednesday, more than a year after he escaped prison from where he commanded the country’s leading criminal gang. The former taxi driver turned crime boss became the prime target of law enforcement early last year after escaping from a prison in the southwestern port of Guayaquil. Ecuadoran President Daniel Noboa’s government released “wanted” posters with images of his face and offered US$1 million for information leading to his capture. In a country plagued by crime, members of Fito’s gang, Los Choneros, have responded with violence, using car
Two former Chilean ministers are among four candidates competing this weekend for the presidential nomination of the left ahead of November elections dominated by rising levels of violent crime. More than 15 million voters are eligible to choose today between former minister of labor Jeannette Jara, former minister of the interior Carolina Toha and two members of parliament, Gonzalo Winter and Jaime Mulet, to represent the left against a resurgent right. The primary is open to members of the parties within Chilean President Gabriel Boric’s ruling left-wing coalition and other voters who are not affiliated with specific parties. A recent poll by the
TENSIONS HIGH: For more than half a year, students have organized protests around the country, while the Serbian presaident said they are part of a foreign plot About 140,000 protesters rallied in Belgrade, the largest turnout over the past few months, as student-led demonstrations mount pressure on the populist government to call early elections. The rally was one of the largest in more than half a year student-led actions, which began in November last year after the roof of a train station collapsed in the northern city of Novi Sad, killing 16 people — a tragedy widely blamed on entrenched corruption. On Saturday, a sea of protesters filled Belgrade’s largest square and poured into several surrounding streets. The independent protest monitor Archive of Public Gatherings estimated the
Irish-language rap group Kneecap on Saturday gave an impassioned performance for tens of thousands of fans at the Glastonbury Festival despite criticism by British politicians and a terror charge for one of the trio. Liam Og O hAnnaidh, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, has been charged under the UK’s Terrorism Act with supporting a proscribed organization for allegedly waving a Hezbollah flag at a concert in London in November last year. The rapper, who was charged under the anglicized version of his name, Liam O’Hanna, is on unconditional bail before a further court hearing in August. “Glastonbury,
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