IN BRIEF (Page 11)

South Korea

Railway workers end long strike

Thousands of South Korean railway workers agreed on Monday to end a three-week partial strike after lawmakers promised to consider their opinions in the government's controversial plan to reorganize railway services. More than 6,000 unionized workers of Korea Railway Corp - about one-third of the company's staff - have been on a strike since Dec 9 to protest management's overhaul plan, which workers fear will spark mass layoffs and pay cuts.

United States

Texas billionaire dies at age 82

Billionaire Harold Simmons, one of the richest men in the United States and a major contributor to the US Republican Party, has died in his native Texas at 82. Simmons, listed at No 40 on Forbes' list of the 400 wealthiest US citizens, funneled millions of dollars to Republican campaigns with a view toward defeating President Barack Obama's re-election bid last year.

Egypt

4 Al-Jazeera journalists held

Egypt's Interior Ministry said security forces have arrested journalists working for the Qatar-based Al-Jazeera network over alleged links to the Muslim Brotherhood, the leading Islamist group that Egypt last week branded a "terrorist" organization. The network said on Monday that four members of its Cairo team - correspondent Peter Greste, producers Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed, and cameraman Mohamed Fawzy - have been in custody since Sunday night. Al-Jazeera said the network is demanding their immediate release.

Antarctica

Blizzard thwarts rescue attempt

An Antarctic blizzard has halted an Australian icebreaker's bid to reach a Russian ship trapped for a week with 74 people onboard, rescuers said on Monday. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority, which is co-ordinating the rescue, said that the Aurora Australis had to return to open waters about 33 km from the stranded Akademik Shokalskiy because of poor visibility. A Chinese icebreaker, the Snow Dragon, has been halted by thick ice within sight of the ship.

Congo

Militants killed in Kinshasa

Congolese security forces killed at least 40 armed militants on Monday as heavy gunfire rocked several districts of the capital Kinshasa, panicking residents. The shooting erupted at the international airport and the main military headquarters, while police said armed youths took hostage several reporters from the state television station RTNC. The motives of the attackers was not immediately clear. No civilian casualties have been reported.

AFP-AP-Reuters

(China Daily 12/31/2013 page11)