NEWS OF THE DAY
From Around the World
_1 Corruption probe: Kenyan authorities have charged 24 officials in what prosecutors call the first stage of investigations into a $79 million corruption scandal that has pressured President Uhuru Kenyatta to crack down on graft. The Office of the Director of Public Prosecution has said 40 officials and 14 businessmen will be charged with corruption-related offenses related to alleged wrongdoing in the National Youth Service. All of the officials charged Tuesday denied the charges that include abuse of office and conspiracy to commit fraud.
_2 Libya election: Rival Libyan leaders meeting in Paris on Tuesday tentatively agreed on a road map leading to parliamentary and presidential elections on Dec. 10, but the plan faces major obstacles in the North African country, where rival authorities rely on an array of unruly militias. French President Emmanuel Macron, who hosted the conference, lauded the eight-point declaration as a “crucial step” toward stabilizing the country, which was plunged into chaos after the 2011 uprising that toppled and killed Moammar Khadafy. The conference aimed to restore order in Libya, where lawlessness has fed Islamic militancy, human trafficking and instability in the wider region.
_3 Euthanasia rejected: Portuguese lawmakers Tuesday narrowly rejected a proposal by a 115-110 vote to make Portugal one of only a handful of countries in the world allowing euthanasia and doctor-assisted suicide. Euthanasia was forced onto the political agenda by a public petition urging its introduction in 2016. Euthanasia — when a doctor kills patients at their request — is legal in Belgium, Canada, Colombia, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. In Switzerland, and some U.S. states, assisted suicide — where patients administer the lethal drug themselves, under medical supervision — is permitted. _4 Forced marriage: A British jury has convicted a couple of attempting to force their teenage daughter to marry her first cousin in Bangladesh. The 19-year-old from Leeds in northern England said her parents used verbal and physical abuse to try to get her to marry the relative. The teenager eventually alerted British consular officials and was rescued days before the wedding. A jury at Leeds Crown Court found the couple guilty Tuesday of forced marriage and of using violence, threats or coercion. The parents, who can’t be named to protect their daughter’s identity, are due to be sentenced June 18. Last week, a Birmingham woman was sentenced to 4½ years in prison for forcing her teenage daughter to marry a relative in Pakistan — the first successful prosecution of its type in England. _5 Russian oligarchs: The sudden immigration to Israel of Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich makes him the latest in a string of Jewish Russian oligarchs who have made a home in the country in recent years. Abramovich received his Israeli citizenship Monday upon arriving in Israel on his private jet, immediately becoming the country’s richest person, with an estimated net worth of more than $11 billion. Israel grants automatic citizenship to anyone of Jewish descent. The Chelsea football club owner made the move after his British visa was not renewed, apparently as part of British authorities’ efforts to crack down on associates of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Some 30 to 40 Russian tycoons have taken Israeli citizenship or residency, with most staying only part-time or temporarily because of scrutiny over their affairs.