NEWS OF THE DAY
_1 Missing sailors: Cameroon’s defense minister said Monday that at least 34 people have been declared missing after a military vessel sank off the country’s Atlantic coast. Joseph Beti Assomo said helicopters rescued three soldiers and were continuing the search. The ship was on a routine mission to the Bakassi peninsula when it sank Sunday, Assomo said. The oil-rich Bakassi peninsula was transferred to Cameroon by Nigeria following an International Court of Justice ruling. Nigerian forces had occupied the area in the 1980s, leading to violent confrontations with Cameroon’s military.
_2 Mexico corruption: Guatemala has handed Mexican authorities a former governor wanted on corruption charges. Former Veracruz Gov. Javier Duarte arrived Monday in Mexico City after dropping a fight against extradition. Duarte fled to Guatemala after resigning as governor of one of the country’s most populous states amid mounting allegations of corruption. He faces charges that include organized crime, influence trafficking and bribery. The case is sensitive for Mexico’s ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party, which is trying to clean up its image ahead of next year’s presidential vote. Duarte has insisted he is innocent.
_3 Pakistan politics: Opposition parties on Monday called on the Supreme Court to remove Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif from office after an investigation found that he and his family possess wealth exceeding their known sources of income. The investigation is linked to the mass leak of documents from a Panama-based law firm in 2016, which revealed that Sharif and his family have offshore accounts. Naeem Bukhari, a lawyer for opposition leader Imran Khan, submitted the request to the court. The court has the constitutional power to disqualify someone from serving as prime minister, and is expected to rule in the coming weeks. The Sharifs have denied any wrongdoing.
_4 Civilian deaths: Afghanistan’s protracted war killed a record number of civilians during the first six months of this year, according to a U.N. report released Monday, which blamed the majority of the deaths on bombings by insurgents. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said the “horrifying” figure of 1,662 people killed between January and June “can never fully convey the sheer human suffering of the people of Afghanistan.” Insurgent attacks killed 1,141 civilians, a 12 percent increase over the same period last year. The report commended Afghanistan’s security forces, saying fewer civilians were caught in the crossfire compared to last year. It said 434 civilians were killed during military operations against insurgents.
_5 Wildfires: At least 100 tourists have been forced to evacuate from a coastal area in Montenegro threatened by wildfires that are also raging along the Adriatic coastline in neighboring Croatia, authorities said Monday. Fueled by strong winds and dry weather, the fire on the Lustica peninsula in southern Montenegro has spread near to homes and camping areas. The navy stepped in to help evacuate the area by sea, officials said. Emergency services said the winds were hampering firefighters’ efforts to save the houses. To the north in Croatia, fires around Srinjene, near the coastal town of Split, forced tourists to leave the area, which was left without electricity or water, Croatian TV said. Firefighting planes could not fly due to the winds and turbulence.