IN BRIEF (Page 12)

China

Beijing slams US Tibet envoy

Beijing said on Monday it has never and will never recognize the so-called US special envoy on the Tibet issue. "The Chinese government resolutely opposes any foreign country using the so-called Tibet problem to interfere in China's internal affairs," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a regular news conference. US Secretary of State John Kerry named one of his officials, Sarah Sewall, as a special coordinator for the Tibet issue, on Friday.

Spain

Migrants storm African border

Some 500 African migrants stormed a triple barbed-wire border fence on Monday that divides the Spanish territory of Melilla from Morocco, with about 100 making it over, an official said. The migrants targeted two sections of the border and were "very violent" as they used "sticks and threw rocks at Spanish and Moroccan police", said a spokeswoman for the Spanish government's representative in Melilla.

India

Charges against marines dropped

India has dropped a plan to prosecute two Italian marines accused of killing two Indian fishermen under a tough anti-piracy law, a government lawyer said on Monday, offering a chance to end a diplomatic dispute between the two countries. Italy had strongly opposed India invoking the law, arguing that it would amount to treating the men as "terrorists", and last week it recalled its ambassador to New Delhi in protest against the delay in the 2-year-old case.

Cyprus

Workers scuffle with police

Angry electricity authority workers in Cyprus pelted Parliament with fruit and rocks during a strike on Monday to protest government plans to privatize the state-run organization. Electricity Authority of Cyprus workers gathered outside Parliament as lawmakers prepared to discuss a bill on privatizing the agency as well as the Cyprus Telecommunications Authority and the Cyprus Ports authority. Riot police scuffled with protesters. There were no immediate reports of arrests.

Pakistan

Top Taliban chief shot dead

A top commander of the Pakistani Taliban was shot dead by unidentified gunmen on Monday in the militant stronghold of North Waziristan, security sources and family members in the tribal region told Reuters. Asmatullah Shaheen was on the Pakistan army's list of 20 most-wanted Taliban commanders, and had a $120,000 bounty placed on his head since 2009.

China Daily - AFP - Reuters - AP

(China Daily 02/25/2014 page12)