NEWS OF THE DAY
1 Jailed leader: Spain’s Supreme Court judges ruled Friday to keep Catalonia’s ousted vice president in jail while he is being investigated for rebellion and other charges stemming from the restive region’s drive for independence from Spain. The judges said there was a risk that Oriol Junqueras might again commit crimes, as there was no sign that he intended to change his ways. Junqueras was one of several members of Catalonia’s pro-secession regional cabinet who were fired and jailed on provisional charges following a declaration of independence on Oct. 27. Other members of the Catalonia government, including ex-leader Carles Puigdemont, are fugitives in Brussels.
2 Georgia sentences ex-president: A court in the former Soviet republic of Georgia on Friday sentenced former President Mikheil Saakashvili in absentia to three years in prison for abusing his power in pardoning four policemen convicted of killing a banker. Saakashvili, who was president from 2004-13, left Georgia when his presidency ended and eventually went to Ukraine, where he was appointed governor of the Odessa region. He resigned from that post in 2016 and harshly criticized Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko for not halting the official corruption that has crippled the country. The Ukrainian leader last year stripped Saakashvili of his citizenship while he was abroad. Saakashvili returned to Ukraine in September and has led a series of anticorruption protests against the government.
3 Great Barrier Reef: Deadly starfish are feasting on parts of the world’s largest reef system, which is already threatened by rising ocean temperatures, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority said Friday. Crown-of-thorns starfish, a native species whose numbers occasionally grow so out of control they endanger the reef, have been detected on 37 sections of the southerly Swain Reef, more than 60 miles off Australia’s northeast coast. The reef is one of the planet’s largest living structures and is home to thousands of species, including sharks, turtles and whales. The cause of the outbreak is unknown. The new outbreak comes as scientists warn that coral bleaching — death caused by the stress of rising ocean temperatures — is straining the reef ’s ecosystem.
4 Tourist killed: A hot air balloon carrying foreign tourists over Egypt’s ancient city of Luxor crash-landed Friday, killing a tourist from South Africa and injuring at least 12 others, Egyptian officials said. Strong winds forced the balloon, which was carrying 20 tourists, off course above the southern city, home to some of Egypt’s most famous pharaonic temples and tombs. The balloon flew at an altitude of 1,500 feet before the pilot lost control over a mountainous area, the officials said. 5 Kidnapped groom: Police in India’s eastern Bihar state said Friday they are investigating a complaint from a young man that he was allegedly kidnapped and forced to marry a woman he did not know. The practice of kidnapping men and forcing them to wed is apparently prevalent in parts of Bihar by poorer families who cannot afford the dowries demanded by grooms with professional qualifications. Vinod Kumar, 29, an engineer at a steel plant, was allegedly kidnapped when he went to attend a friend’s wedding and forced to marry a woman against his will, his family said in their police complaint. Kumar was rescued by police from a village in Bihar’s Mokama district, where he was kept captive after the wedding.