NEWS OF THE DAY
From Around the World
1 Syria war: The global chemical weapons watchdog says the nerve agent sarin and toxic chemical chlorine were “very likely” used as weapons in two attacks in central Syria in late March 2017. The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons said Wednesday that its fact-finding mission probing alleged attacks in Syria found that “sarin was very likely used as a chemical weapon in the south of Ltamenah” in Hama province on March 24 and that chlorine was very likely used a day later at and near Ltamenah Hospital. The OPCW’s fact-finding team is not mandated to apportion blame for chemical attacks.
2 National apology: Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull will deliver a national apology to child sex abuse victims as part of the government’s response to a longrunning inquiry that heard allegations against government and private institutions and prominent individuals in five years of hearings. The apology, to be delivered on Oct. 22 after public consultations, was announced Wednesday as Turnbull outlined his government’s formal reaction to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Its inquiry ended in December after taking evidence from leaders such as Vatican Cardinal George Pell, who is charged with committing historical sex abuses himself and was accused of failing to protect children.
3 Giant swastika: Two men have been convicted of violating German laws against displaying Nazi-era symbols for etching a giant swastika into the dirt on the roof a house and leaving it there for months. The two defendants, aged 30 and 31, were convicted Wednesday by an administrative court in the southern city of Augsburg and each fined $5,885. The younger man, not identified in line with privacy laws, told the court that he used a highpressure water jet to draw the swastika as a “stupid joke” at a garden party. The homeowner said he hadn’t bothered to remove it until police started investigating the case.
4 Ex-ruler imprisoned: A Maldives court on Wednesday sentenced a former strongman accused of plotting to overthrow the government to 19 months in prison for failing to cooperate with the police investigation. Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who ruled the Indian Ocean archipelago state from 1978 to 2008, is the second former president to be jailed under President Yameen Abdul Gayoom’s rule. He was arrested in February on charges of attempting to overthrow the government of Yameen, his half-brother. Maldives, known for its expensive tourist resorts, became a multiparty democracy in 2008, ending Gayoom’s 30-year strongman rule. However, Yameen, who was elected in 2013, has rolled back much of the democratic gains.
5 Marie Antoinette jewels: Sotheby’s says it’s auctioning a set of natural pearls that once belonged to the famed — or infamous — French queen Marie Antoinette, and have not been seen in public for 200 years. The sale of “Royal Jewels from the Bourbon-Parma family” is set to take place in Geneva on Nov. 12. Sotheby’s says Marie Antoinette, who was guillotined during the French Revolution, was often portrayed wearing pearls, which the auction house says were as prized as diamonds in the late 18th century. Announcing the sale Wednesday, the auction house said the collection includes a diamond pendant and natural pearl that is estimated to fetch up to $2 million.