Briefly

ETHIOPIA

Protests over singer's death claim 81 lives

At least 81 people were killed in Ethiopia after a popular singer's death sparked violent protests in the Oromia region, said Ararsa Merdasa, the Oromia police chief, on Wednesday. Those killed included protesters and police officers. Hachalu Hundessa, a singer who focused on the rights of the country's Oromo ethnic group and became a popular voice in a wave of protests that led to the downfall of the previous prime minister in 2018, was shot dead by unidentified gunmen on Monday. Following his death, huge protests erupted in Addis Ababa, the capital, and the Oromia region, the homeland of the Oromo people.

MEXICO

24 shot dead in attack on drug rehab center

Gunmen burst into an unregistered drug rehabilitation center in Irapuato in central Mexico and opened fire on Wednesday, killing 24 people and wounding seven, authorities said. Apparently the attackers shot everyone at the rehab center. State police said nobody was abducted. Photos purporting to show the scene suggest those at the center were lying down when they were sprayed with bullets. No motive was given in the attack, but Governor Diego Sinhue Rodriguez Vallejo said drug gangs appeared to have been involved.

TURKEY

Court considers status of iconic Hagia Sophia

Turkey's highest administrative court on Thursday began considering a request to turn Istanbul's iconic Hagia Sophia, which now serves as a museum, back into a mosque. The 6th-century structure was the Byzantine Empire's main cathedral before it was changed into an imperial mosque following the Ottoman conquest of Istanbul. Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the modern Turkish republic, then turned it into a museum that attracts millions of tourists each year. Nationalist and religious groups have long been pressing for the structure to be converted back into a mosque. Others believe the UNESCO World Heritage site should remain a museum.

Xinhua - Agencies