NEWS OF THE DAY
From Around the World
1 India elections: Voters in the western state of Gujarat cast ballots Saturday in local elections that are seen as a crucial test of the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party. Saturday’s polls are the first of two phases of voting in the state that Modi ruled as chief minister for over a decade before he led his party to a sweeping victory in national elections in 2014. A pre-election survey and several political analysts have predicted that the BJP, which has ruled Gujarat for almost two decades, faces a tough test. Rahul Gandhi, who now heads the opposition Congress party, has assembled an alliance with small but key political groups in the state. The BJP swept state elections in the northern states of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand early this year but lost in Punjab state to the Congress party.
2 Iran avalanche: The state-run IRNA news agency reported Saturday that eight climbers have died in an avalanche and a ninth person is missing. The climbers were part of a 15-member team and were trying to reach a shelter Thursday when the avalanche struck on Oshtorankouh mountain, in the country’s southwest, IRNA said. Oshtorankouh is one of the highest peaks in the Zagros mountains, part of what is known as the Iranian Alps.
3 War crimes trial: Croatia’s state television reported Saturday that a former general who died after taking what he said was poison at a U.N. war crimes court has been cremated. A private ceremony was held for Slobodan Praljak, who was convicted of war crimes in Bosnia and sentenced to 20 years in prison. Praljak gulped what he said was poison after judges at the war crimes tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, confirmed his verdict at an appeals hearing in late November. Dutch authorities and the U.N. court are investigating how Praljak got hold of the apparent poison while in custody. Many in Croatia consider Praljak a hero despite his war crimes conviction.
4 Venezuela envoy: The Trump administration will send to Caracas as its top diplomatic envoy a former ambassador with a reputation for candidness and controversy at a time when relations between the countries are rapidly deteriorating. The decision to send Todd Robinson was confirmed by the office of Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla. In his long diplomatic career, Robinson has specialized in Latin America, with stints in Colombia, Bolivia, El Salvador, the Dominican Republic and Guatemala. He will arrive in Venezuela at a critical time in the socialist-run country. The Trump administration has sanctioned dozens of top officials, including President Nicolas Maduro. Venezuela and the U.S. haven’t exchanged ambassadors since 2010, so Robinson will take up the position of chief of mission in the U.S. Embassy in Caracas.
5 Navy crash: The U.S. Navy said Saturday that it will deploy deep water salvage experts to search for a transport aircraft that crashed in the western Pacific last month, killing three sailors. The C-2A Greyhound aircraft was traveling to the aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan when it crashed the day before Thanksgiving in the Philippine Sea. Eight people were rescued. The plane’s last position on the surface is known but the depth of the water exceeds 16,000 feet. A salvage team will depart Japan to try to pick up the aircraft’s emergency location signal. If successful, the Navy will seek to recover the aircraft and the fallen sailors. The sailors have been identified as Lt. Steven Combs Jr. and Airman Apprentice Bryan Grosso of Florida and Airman Matthew Chialastri of Louisiana.