Greece election repeat
ATHENS: Greece confirmed yesterday that it would a hold a repeat general election on June 17, after party leaders failed to form a coalition government following an inconclusive election.
The need for a new election caused political uncertainty and rekindled fears that the debt-laden country may be forced out of the euro zone. – Reuters
Chen takes off for US
BEIJING: A plane carrying a blind activist at the centre of a Us-china diplomatic tussle has departed from Beijing for the US.
Chen Guangcheng and his family were on United Airlines Flight 88, which departed late yesterday afternoon from Beijing airport.
The departure of Chen to the US marks the conclusion of nearly a month of uncertainty for the selftaught legal activist. – Sapa-ap
Barrier Reef ship scare
SYDNEY: A broken-down cargo ship was drifting towards Australia’s Great Barrier Reef yesterday amid fears of major damage if it ran aground at the World Heritage site.
Authorities were rushing to the assistance of the Hong Kong-flagged bulk carrier, the ID Integrity, which broke down north of Cairns.
Authorities said the ship had suffered an “an engine breakdown en route from Shanghai”. – SAPA-AFP
Historic poll for Egypt
PORT LOUIS: Mauritius said on Friday it has agreed to prosecute Somali pirates, helping overcome one of the hurdles to cracking down on the wave of piracy that has hit international shipping.
The island nation said it had reached agreement with Somalia, and the semi-autonomous regions of Somaliland and Puntland, to accept suspected pirates for prosecution and trial from next month. – Reuters
100 hurt in Syria blast
DAMASCUS: A suicide bomber detonated an explosives-laden car outside security headquarters in Syria’s biggest eastern city yesterday, killing nine people and injuring 100, the government said.
The attack, the first of its kind in Deir Ezzor since an anti-regime uprising broke out in Syria in March last year, came as world powers discussed ways to end the relentless bloodshed. – SAPA-AFP
Bus fire kills 16 in India