NEWS OF THE DAY
From Around the World
1 Lebanon search: A search operation where a building collapsed during last month’s deadly blast in Beirut stopped Sunday after rescue workers said they did not find any survivors. The search had gripped Lebanon, sparking hope that a survivor might be found under the rubble a month after the blast on Aug. 4 that killed 191 people and wounded nearly 6,500. The operation began Thursday when a dog used by a searchandrescue team signaled the detection of a possible human under the rubble. Rescuers had used cranes, shovels and their bare hands.
2 Tanker fire: A fire on a large oil tanker drifting off Sri Lanka’s coast was extinguished on Sunday after burning for three days, as a team of experts moved to salvage the vessel, the country’s navy said. With its engines shut down, the tanker — carrying nearly 2 million barrels of crude oil — drifted about 20 nautical miles from Sri Lanka’s eastern coast on Friday before a tugboat towed it farther out to sea. The fire killed one crew member and injured another. The fire began in an engine room boiler but did not spread to the tanker’s oil storage area and no leak has been reported, the navy said. Sri Lankan officials have warned of possible massive environmental damage to Sri Lanka if the ship leaks or explodes.
3 Pipeline blast: The death toll from a gas pipeline explosion in a mosque outside Bangladesh’s capital rose to 24 on Sunday while authorities were examining how a leakage caused the accident. A series of explosions triggered a fire Friday night as worshipers were finishing their prayers. At least 37 people were admitted to a burn unit in a staterun hospital in Dhaka, where 24 subsequently died. Doctors said the other victims were in critical condition as they suffered burns on up to 90% of their bodies. Officials said the impact of the blast caused at least six air conditioners to also explode as the fire rapidly raced through the packed mosque. Authorities said they suspected gas had accumulated inside the mosque from a leak in the underground pipeline.
4 Hong Kong arrests: At least 289 people were arrested Sunday at protests against the government’s decision to postpone elections for Hong Kong’s legislature, police said. The elections were to have taken place Sunday, but Chief Executive Carrie Lam on July 31 postponed them for one year. Lam blamed an upsurge in coronavirus cases, but critics said her government worried the opposition would gain seats if voting went ahead on schedule. Police said most of the arrests were for unlawful assembly. One woman was arrested on charges of assault and spreading proindependence slogans. Police said such slogans are illegal under a newly enacted national security law. The coronavirus and the tough new security law have diminished antigovernment demonstrations this year, but smaller groups still take to the streets.
5 Stabbing spree: A man was killed and seven people were injured in latenight stabbings in a busy nightlife area of the central England city of Birmingham, police said Sunday. Officers said they were searching for a lone male suspect in what appeared to be random attacks. Chief Superintendent Steve Graham of West Midlands Police said detectives were still investigating the motive but “there is absolutely no suggestion at all that this is terrorrelated.” West Midlands Police said officers were called to reports of a stabbing shortly after midnight. That was soon followed by reports of other stabbings early Sunday across the city center over two hours. Graham said two of the seven injured people, a man and a woman, were in critical condition. Five others received minor injuries.