NEWS OF THE DAY
From Around the World
Tunisia bombing: A suicide bomber blew herself up on a busy Tunis avenue on Monday, killing herself and wounding nine others, Tunisia’s TAP news agency reported. The 30-year-old woman set off the blast in front of a theater on Habib Bourguiba Avenue in the capital. TAP said the injured included eight police officers and one civilian. Apart from the bomber, no one else was killed. Habib Bourguiba avenue is the cultural, political and economic heart of Tunis — and is sometimes called Tunisia’s Champs Elysees.
Mideast violence: Hundreds of Palestinians on Monday laid to rest three teenage boys killed in an Israeli air strike, with their families insisting they had no militant ties as mourners called on Gaza’s militant groups to retaliate. The deaths a day earlier of the teens — Gaza’s Health Ministry said were 13 and 14 years old — threatened to plunge the area into further violence after an exchange of fire between Gaza militants and Israel over the weekend. The Israeli army struck 80 targets in Gaza in response to the heaviest rocket salvos from the Hamas-ruled territory in months. The Israeli military said the teens had attempted to damage the border fence.
Mexico airport: Voters have rejected completion of a partly constructed airport for Mexico City, opposing it by a 70 to 29 percent margin. Presidentelect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Monday he will respect the referendum, effectively ending the $13 billion project that is already about onethird built. Organizers of Sunday’s referendum reported that just over 1 million people participated. The vote was criticized, because only about one out of every 90 registered Mexican voters participated. Lopez Obrador had pledged during his campaign to cancel the project, claiming it was marred by overspending and corruption.
Italy flooding: Venice officials say 70 percent of the city has been flooded by waters rising 61 inches above sea level. Venice frequently floods when high winds push in water from the surrounding lagoon, but Monday’s levels were exceptional. Much of Italy is under alert for flooding from heavy rains. Veneto regional governor Luca Zaia says flooding could reach the levels of the 1966 flood that inundated both Venice and Florence. The flooding and heavy winds toppled trees, killing six people.
Afghanistan attack: A suicide bombing targeting the Afghan election commission’s office in Kabul on Monday killed a police officer and wounded five people. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack, the latest surrounding Afghanistan’s embattled parliamentary election process. Both the Taliban and Islamic State had threatened to disrupt the elections, which were held in most provinces on Oct. 20 and in southern Kandahar province on Saturday.
China Sea tensions: The U.S. Navy will continue patrolling the disputed South China Sea, a top Navy official said Monday, after a Chinese destroyer came dangerously close to an American Navy ship during a “freedom of navigation” sail-by near a Chinese-occupied reef. Admiral John Richardson, who heads U.S. naval operations, said Monday that such patrols highlight the U.S. position against “illegitimate maritime claims.” While Washington has no claims to the strategic waterway, it has declared that freedom of navigation and the peaceful resolution of the disputes are in the U.S. national interest. The U.S. has also questioned China’s expansive claims, bringing it into a collision course with Beijing as the countries’ ties deteriorate.
Chronicle News Services