NEWS OF THE DAY
Congo violence: The United Nations says two peacekeepers have been killed and several more injured after an attack in eastern Congo by Ugandan rebels belonging to the group known as ADF. Suspected rebels attacked Monday near a U.N. base in Mamundioma, 22 miles from Beni. Forces have been deployed to the area in the North Kivu province as fighting continues. The assault comes after local administrator Amisi Kalonda said fighting in the region overnight Saturday killed 10 people. However, David Muhaze, the president of a civil society organization, said at least 22 people are missing.
Myanmar refugees: At least 12 people died when an overcrowded boat carrying Rohingya Muslims fleeing Myanmar overturned, police said Monday. Five of the dead were children, and up to 35 people were on the boat. The capsizing occurred late Sunday in Bangladesh’s southern coastal district of Cox’s Bazar. Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya have fled Myanmar since Aug. 25 when the military launched a crackdown that had been decried by the United Nations as “ethnic cleansing.” Myanmar’s military launched what it described as “clearance operations” after an insurgent group attacked security posts and killed several police and border guards.
UNESCO leadership: UNESCO’s executive board is choosing a new leader to replace departing director Irina Bokova, whose tenure was marred by funding troubles and tension over its inclusion of Palestine as a member. Intense diplomatic wrangling has marked the race among seven candidates to become the next director general of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, based in Paris. Arab countries have long wanted to lead the organization, though divisions over Palestinian membership have complicated their push. Voting by UNESCO’s 58-member executive board started Monday and continues through the week until a candidate wins a majority. The choice then goes to the full UNESCO general assembly next month for final approval.
Afghanistan attacks: The International Committee of the Red Cross announced on Monday that it will soon close two offices in Afghanistan’s northern Faryab and Kunduz provinces and also reduce its activities in Balkh province following deadly attacks on its staff in the north. Since last December, the attacks have killed one foreign and six Afghan staff members of the ICRC. There are at least 120 international and 1,800 local staff members of the ICRC working in Afghanistan and the downsizing will include both national and international staff members. At least nine provinces in the north and northeast of the country, where several thousand people need ICRC’s help, will be badly affected by the reduction and the closure of the offices.
Firecracker ban: India’s Supreme Court on Monday banned the sale of fireworks in New Delhi and nearby towns 10 days before the Hindu festival of Diwali, in a move to curb the capital’s deadly air pollution. Millions of highly polluting firecrackers are normally lit on Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights that falls on Oct. 19 this year. Last year, the Supreme Court stopped the sale of fireworks in and around New Delhi after a slew of petitions flagged the alarming rise in pollution levels after Diwali. Every year, in the days following the festival, city hospitals report a spike in respiratory and asthma cases and many people find it difficult to breathe.
Chronicle News Services