NEWS OF THE DAY
From Around the World
1 Deadly avalanches:
A series of avalanches struck a central province in Afghanistan, killing at least 21 people, authorities said Friday. According to the spokesman of the ministry for disaster management, seven people remain missing following the avalanches in central Daykundi province on Thursday while 10 others were injured. At least 50 houses were destroyed in the slides. Cold weather and difficult conditions were hampering rescue efforts. Most highways in the region have been closed for weeks due to heavy snowfall and fears of avalanches.
2 France politics:
Rivals from across the political spectrum on Friday condemned an online leak of sexual images that led an associate of French leader Emmanuel Macron to drop out of the race to become mayor of Paris. Expressions of support for Benjamin Griveaux, even from political rivals, were a reminder of the longstanding view in France that public servants’ private lives are largely off limits. A Russian performance artist claimed responsibility for posting the sexually explicit videos that apparently prompted Griveaux to end his bid for Paris City Hall. Griveaux previously served as a spokesman for Macron’s government. His sudden withdrawal from the race left Macron’s centrist party without a candidate in the French capital for the municipal elections next month.
3 Belarus independence:
The president of Belarus said Friday that Russia insisted on merging the two states during last week’s talks on further integrating the countries’ economies. “They understand integration as swallowing up Belarus. This isn’t integration. It’s incorporation. I will never go for this,” President Alexander Lukashenko said. Tension has been running high between the neighboring exSoviet states for several months. As negotiations on closer ties stalled, Russia halted oil supplies to Belarus and Lukashenko repeatedly accused the Kremlin of pushing for a merger of the two countries. Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin met last week for yet another round of talks in Sochi, but failed to reach an agreement.
4 Radical right arrests:
German police have detained 12 men on suspicion of involvement in a farright group that allegedly planned attacks against politicians and minorities, officials said Friday. Federal prosecutors said four German men were detained on suspicion of founding and participating in “a rightwing terrorist organization.” Eight other men were detained on suspicion of “supporting a terrorist organization.” The four main suspects and a further unnamed suspect are alleged to have formed an organization in September 2019 with the aim of overthrowing the state and social order in Germany. Police searched premises linked to the suspects at 13 locations in six states Friday. Prosecutors said the raids turned up sufficient evidence for authorities to formally seek arrest warrants against the suspects.
5 Remains recovered:
Search teams in Indonesia on Friday found the bodies of a dozen soldiers killed when their helicopter crashed eight months ago in the country’s easternmost province of Papua where separatist rebels are active, officials said. The cause of the crash remains under investigation. Teams from the military found the wreckage of the Russianmade Mi17 on a steep slope at an elevation of about 12,500 feet. Local military commander Binsar Sianipar, who led the mission, said stormy weather hindered the retrieval of the bodies using ropes and the effort will resume early Saturday. The helicopter lost contact five minutes after takeoff from Oksibil, the capital of the district of Bintang Mountain on June 28. It was traveling to the provincial capital, Jayapura.