Hit the North
On October 24, South Korean elderly people prepare to cross the border for family reunions with their North Korean family members at a transit office in Goseong, South Korea. — AP
Fatal bombs
Attackers target procession
Dhaka — Unidentified attackers threw home-made bombs on October 24 at a venue where about 25,000 Shia Muslims gathered for a traditional procession in Bangladesh’s capital, leaving one dead and more than 100 injured, police said.
Police say the incident took place at an important 17th century centre of learning for the minority Shia community.
A 12-year-old boy died and many people were injured, police said. At least five bombs were thrown, of which three exploded and two were recovered. — AP
Boat blast
Police arrest Vice-President
Male — Maldives police on October 24 arrested Vice-President Ahmed Adeeb on suspicion of links to a blast on the presidential boat in September.
Ahmed was arrested at the airport when he returned from China, a police spokesman said.
The September 28 explosion took place aboard the speedboat when President Yameen Abdul Gayoom and his wife were returning to the capital after a hajj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia. Yameen escaped unhurt but his wife, an aide and a bodyguard were injured. — AP
Parade crash
Emergency personnel on October 24 investigate the scene of an accident after a vehicle crashed into spectators during the Oklahoma State University homecoming parade. — AP
Grim discovery
Residents find migrant bodies
Tripoli — The bodies of 29 people thought to be migrants have been discovered on beaches around a city 160km east of Tripoli, a local medical team said on October 25.
“Local residents told us about bodies on the beaches around Zliten,” spokesman Mohamed al-Misrati said. “We discovered 25 bodies, then another four.”
Tripoli authorities’ official news agency reported they were from Africa. The North African country is a popular jumping off point for migrants seeking to reach Europe. — AFP
Bizarre crime
Nude burglar kisses man
Portland — A naked burglar who hopped into a Portland, Oregon couple’s bed in the middle of the night wound up fleeing down the street after the male victim woke up and chased him with a gun, firing three shots. Police reported the incident on October 24.
Portland police said Dean Defeudis, 32, broke into the home around 3 am on October 23, gathered items of value and then stripped naked, climbed into bed with a man and woman, and then kissed the man. — Reuters
Turkish skirmish
Police break up fight
Tokyo — At least 12 people were injured in a scuffle between Turks and ethnic Kurds as hundreds of Turkish citizens gathered on October 25 at their embassy in Tokyo to vote in a general election. TV footage showed police breaking up the fight outside the mission as voting for the November 1 election began. The injured included two police officers.
Jiji Press, quoting a Turkish voter, said the clash began after Kurds tried to display the flag of a pro-Kurdish party. — AFP
EASY NEWS FOR M1-3
Bar blaze
Fire kills 17 people
Manodo — A fire destroyed a karaoke bar. It happened in Indonesia on October 25. Seventeen people died, mostly from smoke inhalation, police said. — AP
Exercises
1. Which of the following statements is TRUE, according to the story about the explosion in Bangladesh?
a. More than 250,000 people attended the procession.
b. The attackers remain unknown.
c. More than 100 people were killed.
2. Vice-President Ahmed Adeeb was arrested on suspicion of links to a blast on the presidential boat in September. True or false?
3. How old was the German man when he died in Chon Buri?
Vocabulary
- pilgrimage (n): a journey to a holy place for religious reasons
scuffle (n): a short and not very violent fight or struggle
inhalation (n): taking air, smoke or gas into your lungs as you breathe
