IN BRIEF (Page 12)

Germany

Hostages taken in town hall

A man claiming to be armed took several hostages on Monday in the town hall of a German city where Chancellor Angela Merkel had been due to give a campaign rally later in the day. Police blocked off the town center of Ingolstadt north of Munich and contacted the hostage-taker by phone, while Merkel's conservative party canceled the party event planned ahead of Sept 22 elections.

Surgeon tried over fake data

A surgeon went on trial in Germany on Monday for attempted manslaughter, accused of faking medical data to give his patients preferential access to donated livers at the expense of others. The 46-year-old former chief transplant surgeon at Goettingen University Hospital, identified only as Aiman O, denied the 11 counts of attempted manslaughter before the court in the central German city.

The Philippines

Cebu declares oil calamity

The central Philippine province of Cebu, known among divers around the world for its clear waters and coral reefs, declared a state of calamity on Monday as an oil slick from a ferry that sank late last week spread to about 20 percent of the coast. A 40-year-old ferry owned by 2GO Group sank about a kilometer offshore on Friday after a collision with a cargo vessel.

Malaysia

Police kill 5 in crime purge

Malaysian police said they killed five suspected gang members in a shootout early on Monday and arrested 200 people in a crackdown on a spate of violent crime that has shocked the country. Police launched the nationwide anti-crime push on Saturday following a growing public outcry over lawlessness that for the past month has seen near-daily shootings and other violence.

Reuters-AFP 

(China Daily 08/20/2013 page12)