NEWS OF THE DAY
Weapons destroyed: Russia on Wednesday completed the task of destroying its huge, Cold War-era chemical weapons stockpiles, winning praise from an international chemical weapons watchdog. Russian officials reported the destruction of the country’s last remaining artillery projectile filled with VX toxic agent to President Vladimir Putin. The work took place at the Kizner facility in the Urals, one of seven facilities built in Russia to destroy chemical weapons in an effort that has spanned two decades and cost billions of dollars. Ahmet Uzumcu, director-general of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, commended Russia for achieving a “major milestone” with the destruction of its chemical arsenals. The OPCW oversees global efforts to eliminate stockpiles under the Chemical Weapons Convention that took effect in 1997. It says over 96 percent of the weapons declared by the convention’s 192 participants have been destroyed.
Drug war: Gunmen killed 15 people in a mass shooting at a drug rehabilitation center in the northern border state of Chihuahua in what was apparently a feud between drug gangs, Mexican authorities said Wednesday. The Chihuahua state prosecutor’s office said “initial investigations prove that the attack was related to drug distribution and the feud between the Mexicles and Aztecas gangs.” Prosecutors’ spokesman Carlos Huerta told the Milenio television news channel that the initial death toll of 14 had risen when another shooting victim died of his wounds. Prosecutors said at least seven other people were wounded in the attack in the state capital, also called Chihuahua. The Aztecas are armed enforcers for the Juarez drug cartel, and they have fought long-standing turf battles with the Mexicles in the border city of Ciudad Juarez, across from El Paso, Texas. Drug cartels have been known to use rehab centers to recruit addicts, and rival gangs sometimes assault the centers.
Ex-leader sentenced: A Thai court in Bangkok on Wednesday sentenced former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, whose government was ousted in a 2014 military coup, in absentia to five years in prison for alleged negligence in a money-losing rice subsidy program. Yingluck, who has said the charges are politically motivated, is believed to have fled the country last month before the original date of the verdict. Her lawyers said on Wednesday that they have no idea where she is.
Religion in schools: Brazil’s Supreme Court voted narrowly in Sao Paulo on Wednesday to authorize state schools to promote specific religions. Chief Justice Carmen Lucia made the deciding vote in favor of so-called confessional schools, at which teachers will be permitted to promote their religious beliefs during class. In non-confessional schools, teachers can discuss only the history and social impact of religion. The 6-5 decision by Brazil’s top court also states that students cannot be compelled to attend religion classes.
Migrants’ advocate: Pope Francis on Wednesday launched a two-year education campaign about the plight of migrants to counteract mounting anti-immigrant sentiment in the U.S. and Europe, urging the world: “Don’t be afraid!” Francis posed for selfies, shook hands, kissed babies and hugged migrants at the end of his weekly general audience, teaching by example that “others” are not to be feared but embraced. The campaign encourages people to meet with migrants and listen to their stories, rather than treat them as statistics clouded by negative stereotypes.
Chronicle News Services