IN BRIEF (Page 12)

Nicaragua

Construction of canal delayed

Nicaragua's government says its construction of the canal to connect the oceans to the east and west will start a year later than planned because the waterway's path has yet to be defined. The president of the canal authority, Manuel Coronel Kautz, said the project will not begin until 2015 because the canal's route will not be approved until the third quarter of 2014.

India

Building collapse kills 11 workers

At least 11 workers were killed and many more feared trapped when a half-built apartment block collapsed in the Indian resort state of Goa, police said on Sunday, the latest disaster to draw attention to safety standards amid a construction boom. The three-story building in Canacona, in the western state, India's smallest, collapsed on Saturday.

Lebanon

Militant chief dies in custody

The leader of an al-Qaida-linked group that carried out attacks across the Middle East before shifting its focus to Syria's civil war died on Saturday while in custody in Lebanon, the army said. In a statement, the Lebanese army said Majid al-Majid "died this morning while undergoing treatment at the central military hospital after his health deteriorated".

United States

Obama proposes gun control rules

The Obama administration proposed two new federal gun control rules on Friday to ensure more information about the mentally ill reaches background check databases. The rules come on top of a series of executive actions President Barack Obama announced after the Connecticut school shooting that left 26 people dead in 2012.

Egypt

Qatari envoy summoned

Egypt's foreign ministry summoned Qatar's ambassador on Saturday to complain about interference in its internal affairs, after Doha criticized Cairo's crackdown on the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood. The formerly close Qatari-Egyptian relationship has soured since the Egyptian army ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi last July.

Israel

'Progress' made toward deal

US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Sunday that the Israelis and Palestinians were making some progress in peace talks, but there was still a chance no accord would be reached. Kerry said both sides had a sharper idea of the compromises needed to secure an agreement despite their deep skepticism on the chances of success.

AFP-Reuters-AP

(China Daily 01/06/2014 page12)