NEWS OF THE DAY
From Around the World
1 Contaminated water: A Japanese government panel on Friday roughly accepted a proposal for releasing into the sea massive amounts of radioactive water now being stored at the tsunamiwrecked Fukushima nuclear plant. The economy and industry ministry’s proposal said releasing the water gradually into the sea was the safer, more feasible method, though evaporation was also a proven method used after the 1979 Three Mile Island accident. The proposal in coming weeks will be submitted to the government for further discussion to decide when and how the water should be released. The recommendation comes nearly nine years after the 2011 meltdowns of three reactor cores at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant.
2 Syria fighting: An advocacy group warned Friday that nearly half of 390,000 displaced people in the Syrian government’s twomonthlong offensive on the country’s last rebelheld region are children, calling it a wave of displacement unlike anything seen before in the war. The offensive by government forces, backed by ally Russia, has focused mainly on Idlib province, and also lately on neighboring Aleppo, in an attempt to seize control of a strategic highway that links the capital, Damascus, and the north. The push accelerated in the past two weeks. According to Save the Children, half of those displaced were children, adding that throughout this month, at least 37,000 children have been forced to flee.
3 Gays arrested: Authorities in Mauritania have arrested 10 men after a video appeared on social media of a gay couple appearing to take part in a traditional wedding ceremony, human rights groups said. Police later determined the gathering was a birthday party but the men remain in custody with no trial date set yet. Mauritania practices strict Islamic law known as Shariah and homosexuality is criminalized. If convicted, the men could face the death penalty though executions have not been carried out in more than a decade, according to Amnesty International. Samesex acts are illegal in more than 33 African countries.
4 Euthanasia verdict: A court in Belgium on Friday acquitted three doctors of charges of manslaughter by poison in a case that has been seen as a key test of the nation’s euthanasia laws. The three doctors were involved in the euthanasia of a 38yearold patient, Tine Nys, who suffered with mental problems and died in 2010. Her family argued the euthanasia should never have happened, claiming her mental state was not hopeless and treatment was still possible. Nys had struggled with psychiatric problems for years and had attempted suicide several times. Belgium is among a few countries that allow doctors to kill patients at their request, and one of two that allow it for people with a mental illness. Out of about 2,000 euthanasia cases a year in Belgium, very few are permitted for psychological issues.
5 Fighter jets: Poland signed a $4.6 billion deal with the United States on Friday for the purchase of 32 of its advanced F35 fighter jets to enhance air defense on NATO’s eastern flank at a time of increased Russian military activity. Polish President Andrzej Duda said it was an “exceptionally important day for Poland’s air force and for the security of Poland and of our part of Europe.” Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak signed the deal and handed the document to the U.S. ambassador to Poland, Georgette Mosbacher, during a ceremony at an air force academy in the town of Deblin. Duda said it was among the biggest deals in the history of Poland’s armed forces and a sign of the strength of relations with the U.S. Opposition politicians criticize the contract as too costly.