IS defeated
Shiite fighters from the Popular Mobilisation units flash the victory sign in Tikrit, on April 1, a day after Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared victory in the weeks-long battle to retake the northern Iraqi city from the Islamic State group. — AFP
Murder mystery
Greyhounds found dead
Sydney — Fifty-five dead greyhounds were found dumped in Australia and spent rifle cartridges seen nearby, police said on April 2, with the grisly discovery coming on the heels of a live baiting scandal rocking the dog-racing industry.
The carcasses were found on March 31 by a member of the public near Bundaberg, 360 kilometres north of Brisbane in Queensland.
The deaths are being investigated by the Joint Greyhound Racing Inquiry Taskforce, established to probe live baiting using possums, rabbits and piglets to train some of the country’s most successful dogs. — AFP
Smugglers arrested
Prostitution ring busted
Montreal — Federal police on April 1 arrested the leaders of a prostitution ring that smuggled at least 500 women, mostly from China and South Korea, into Canada.
Six people were arrested in Toronto and Montreal and charged with prostitution-related crimes. Two others are still wanted by police, including a woman alleged to have recruited young women for sex work.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said the group is linked to an Asian triad that smuggled more than 500 women into Canada. The women crossed through the US border or airports using visas obtained through false pretences, police said. — AFP
Militants attack
On April 2, Kenyan soldiers take cover as shots are fired in front of Garissa University in Garissa town, Kenya, near the Somalia border. At least 15 people have been killed and 60 injured in an attack carried out by Somalia’s Islamist militant group al-Shabab, according to local media reports. — EPA
Big breakout
Prisoner escapes form asylum
Athens — The wife of an imprisoned former Greek minister escaped from a psychiatric hospital, where she was serving her sentence for the same corruption charges as her husband, authorities said.
Vicky Stamati, wife of former Socialist Party member Akis Tsochatzopoulos, went missing from her cell on April 2 in the Dromokaitio state psychiatric asylum. She was convicted in 2013 with her husband, step-daughter and others in a corruption case.
Sentenced to 12 years for money laundering and accepting illegal funds, she suffered poor health after the trial. She then had a nervous breakdown and was transferred to the asylum. — AP
Demonstrators killed
Suicide bomber hits city
Kabul — A suicide bomber attacked an anti-corruption demonstration in eastern Afghanistan on April 2, killing 16 and wounding up to 60, officials said.
The explosion in the eastern city of Khost, a Pakistani border province full of Taliban militants, hurt a local MP along with civilians and members of the security forces, local officials said.
Hedayat Hamidi, from the provincial public health department, said local hospitals received 60 injured. Nobody had yet admitted responsibility for the attack. — AP
Border bombing
Myanmar accepts blame
Beijing — China’s Foreign Ministry said Myanmar apologised for a cross-border bombing last month that killed four Chinese farmers. Myanmar Foreign Minister U Wunna Maung Lwin expressed regret over the incident in Beijing on April 2.
Myanmar originally rejected China’s claim that one of its planes dropped a bomb that caused the deaths but later accepted the findings of a joint investigation into the March 13 bombing and will now discuss compensation for victims.
An upsurge in fighting between the Myanmar army and ethnic Kokang rebels currently plagues the Chinese border area. — AP
EASY NEWS FOR M1-3
Deadly weather
Floods hit northern Chile
Santiago — There is bad flooding in northern Chile. Officials said on April 1 that 24 people had drowned in the floods. Thousands were left homeless and 69 people were missing, officials said. — AFP
Exercises
1. Where did Vicky Stamati escape from?
a. A psychiatric asylum.
b. A maximum security prison.
c. The Socialist Party.
2. How many Chinese farmers were killed by cross-border bombing on March 13?
3. On which road was the fake bomb in Bangkok found?
Vocabulary
- greyhound (n): a large thin dog with smooth hair and long thin legs, that can run very fast and is used in the sport of greyhound racing
cartridge (n): a tube or case containing explosive and a bullet, for shooting from a gun
triad (n): a Chinese secret organisation involved in criminal activity
pretence (n): a claim that you have a particular skill or quality
psychiatric (adj): relating to the study and treatment of mental illness
upsurge (n): a sudden large increase in something
