Niger’s junta releases French official held for 5 days
PARIS – A French official detained in Niger last week has been released, the French government said Thursday. The arrest heightened tensions between France and Niger, where military officers deposed an elected president last month and ordered French officials to leave.
France’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Stephane Jullien, counselor for French citizens abroad, was released Wednesday, five days after he was arrested. It didn’t provide details about the release, or about the reason for his arrest. The French government had urged his liberation.
Military officers in Niger overthrew and detained elected President Mohamed Bazoum in July and last month ordered the French ambassador to leave the country. France, Niger’s former colonial ruler, has refused to heed the order, saying that the junta isn’t the country’s legitimate authority.
French Ambassador Sylvain Itte was asked to leave Niger in a letter from the Nigerien Foreign Ministry that accused him of ignoring an invitation for a meeting with the ministry. The letter also cited “actions of the French government contrary to the interests of Niger.”
Manhunt following shooting of Iowa officer ends with arrest
ALGONA, Iowa – A northern Iowa police officer was shot Wednesday night, prompting a manhunt that ended with an arrest in Minnesota.
The Iowa State Patrol said the officer was shot around 8 p.m. in Algona, a town of about 5,300 residents. The officer’s name and details about the officer’s condition were not immediately released.
The 43-year-old suspect fled, prompting a Blue Alert to let the public know a suspect who posed a potential threat to law enforcement was on the loose.
KCCI-TV reported that the suspect was captured just before midnight and taken into custody in Brown County, Minnesota, according to a news release from the sheriff. Brown County is about 100 miles north of Algona. The release said the man was captured without incident.
Pakistani court rejects ex-PM Imran Khan’s bail plea
ISLAMABAD – A Pakistani court on Thursday rejected the bail plea of former Prime Minister Imran Khan on charges of leaking state secrets, his lawyer said.
Khan is accused of exposing an official secret document, dubbed Cipher, when he waved a confidential diplomatic letter at a rally last year.
It was apparently correspondence between a Pakistani ambassador to Washington and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad. Khan told the rally it was proof that his removal from power in April 2022 was a conspiracy.
After a private hearing, Judge Abul Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain dismissed the plea under the Official Secrets Act.
Rep. Scalise returns to
Capitol after cancer diagnosis
WASHINGTON – Rep. Steve Scalise, the No. 2 House Republican, returned to the U.S. Capitol on Thursday for the first time since being diagnosed with a blood cancer known as multiple myeloma and told reporters his chemotherapy treatment is underway.
“It’s kind of a few months process. They don’t know yet how long it’s going to be – four months, six months – but they want to continue to evaluate and say, ‘OK, how’s he doing? How’s the treatment?’ The treatments are going well so far,” said Scalise, who was taking precautions to protect his immune system and wore a face mask and stood back from reporters as he entered the Capitol building.
The Louisiana congressman, 57, said he would be able to receive some of the chemotherapy treatment in Washington and continue his work in Congress, where he was limiting his in-person interactions.
Scalise said his diagnosis came after his wife urged him to visit the doctor three weeks ago when his appetite dropped while he was traveling for political events. He said the diagnosis was made quickly and his wife and he decided they wanted to be “very aggressive” in treating the multiple myeloma.
2nd major UK police force suffers cyberattack in less than month
LONDON – Personal details of thousands of police officers and staff from Greater Manchester Police have been hacked from a company that makes identity cards, the second such cyberattack to affect a major British police force in less than a month.
Details on identity badges and warrant cards, including names, photos and identity numbers or police collar numbers, were stolen in the ransomware attack, Greater Manchester Police said Thursday. The thirdparty supplier was not identified.
The force said no home addresses of officers or any financial information about individuals was stolen.
Botulism outbreak tied to sardines served in Bordeaux leaves 1 dead
PARIS – A 32-year-old woman died in France and eight other people remained hospitalized Thursday after an apparent botulism outbreak linked to homemade sardine preserves and a wine bar in Bordeaux, according to regional health officials.
At least 10 people who ate in the restaurant between Sept. 4 and Sept. 10 were hospitalized, most of them in intensive care or critical condition, according to a note by the deputy director of the regional health authority, Dr. Gregory Emery. All had consumed sardine preserves served by the restaurant, he said.
While awaiting definitive lab confirmation that botulism was the source of their illnesses, local authorities were working to track down other people who ate the sardines and warned that the number of those infected could grow.
The restaurant, the Tchin Tchin Wine Bar, was closed pending further investigation. Regional newspaper Sud-Ouest quoted the manager as saying that he had ordered some jars of sardines thrown out because of a bad smell but others from the same lot appeared to be safe.