Death toll at 29 after restaurant collapse tragedy

Shanxi: Chinese authorities say the death toll has risen to 29 in the collapse of a two-storey restaurant in the northern province of Shanxi.

The Ministry of Emergency Management says another 28 people were injured, seven of them seriously, when the building suddenly crumbled during an 80th birthday celebration for a resident on Saturday.

A total of 57 people were brought out alive, the ministry said.

There was no immediate word on what caused the collapse or on the fate of the birthday guest and other celebrants.

The restaurant was in Shanxi province’s Xiangfen county, about 630 kilometres (400 miles) southwest of Beijing.

Nanlioao: A three-yearold girl in Taiwan was reported to be safe after becoming caught in the strings of a kite and lifted several metres into the air.

The girl was taking part in a kite festival in the seaside town of Nanlioao when she was caught up by a giant, long-tailed orange kite.

Video shot at the scene showed her twisting several times above a crowd of adults who struggled to pull the kite back to earth.

News reports said the girl was frightened but suffered no physical injuries in the incident.

Neudaberg: Three people have died and four others were injured after the van they were in was hit by a tree, Austrian police said.

The 30-metre (100ft) oak toppled on to a road near Neudaberg, about 118 kilometres (73 miles) south of Vienna, during a storm, regional police said.

Austria’s public broadcaster ORF reported that those killed were men aged 60, 64 and 70.

The injured were the 74-year-old driver, two women and a child.

Paris: A senior French military officer based abroad is under investigation for “serious security breaches”, the defence minister said.

Europe-1 radio reported that the officer served on a Nato base in Italy and is accused of treason for passing “ultra-sensitive” information to Russian secret services.

The French Defence Ministry would not provide details about the officer.

Defence minister Florence Parly said only that a judicial procedure is under way and the French military has taken “necessary protective measures”.

The Paris prosecutor’s office, which is handling the case, would not comment. Nato did not immediately respond to requests for information.

Ms Parly also said France is putting “massive investment” into military activities in space notably after a 2018 incident in which a Russian satellite cosied up to a French one in an apparent effort to eavesdrop on secure military communications.

Burgenland: Authorities in eastern Germany have banned swimming in parts of the River Unstrut after claims that a crocodile was seen there.

Officials in Burgenland county, about 115 miles south west of Berlin, said the ban would remain in place until September 6.

Extensive searches for the reptile have so far produced no evidence of its existence, they said.

Residents, boat users and cyclists travelling along the Unstrut were asked to report any further sightings.