IN BRIEF (Page 11)

Iran

Weapons shipment claim rejected

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif rejected as "lies" on Thursday an Israeli claim that it intercepted a ship carrying advanced rockets sent by Teheran to the Gaza Strip. "An Iranian ship carrying arms for Gaza. Captured just in time for the annual (pro-Israel lobby) AIPAC anti-Iran campaign. Amazing Coincidence! Or same failed lies," Zarif wrote on Twitter.

Libya

Gadhafi's son handed over

Niger has turned over to Tripoli a son of Libya's late ruler Muammar Gadhafi after he fled across the desert during the 2011 uprising that ended his father's four-decade rule. The government said Saadi Gadhafi, who escaped to Niger during the revolt that saw rebels capture and kill his father, was now in Libyan custody.

United States

Two guilty of selling trade secrets

A California businessman was convicted on Wednesday of stealing trade secrets from US chemical company DuPont to help a Chinese company develop a white pigment used in a wide range of products. In a San Francisco federal court, a jury found Walter Liew guilty on more than 20 criminal counts including conspiracy to commit economic espionage and trade secret theft. It also convicted another defendant, former DuPont engineer Robert Maegerle, on multiple counts.

Sri Lanka

9 more Indian fishermen detained

The nation's navy detained nine Indian fishermen on Thursday, bringing the number arrested in two days to 41, said a spokesman ahead of talks next week between the two nations on fishing rights. The second round of talks on fishing rights in the Palk Strait will be held in Colombo on March 13. "We have handed over the fishermen and trawlers to the police. They were illegally fishing in the northern waters of Sri Lanka," said navy spokesman Kosala Warnakulasooriya.

Afghanistan

NATO airstrike kills 5 soldiers

A NATO airstrike in eastern Afghanistan accidentally killed five Afghan soldiers on Thursday, officials said, the latest incident likely to worsen already fraught relations between Kabul and the US-led coalition. NATO offered its condolences over the deaths and vowed action to avoid further mistakes, but President Hamid Karzai has often seized on botched airstrikes to launch bitter criticism of the international military effort in Afghanistan.

Singapore

Bitcoin exchange CEO found dead

The 28-year-old US boss of a Bitcoin exchange has been found dead at the base of a Singapore apartment block, police and reports said on Thursday, in the latest misfortune linked with the troubled virtual currency. Singapore police said they were investigating the "unnatural" death of Autumn Radtke, CEO of Singapore-based First Meta, on Feb 26.

Bangladesh

Garment factory catches fire

A fire broke out at a garment factory in the Bangladeshi capital on Thursday, police and firefighters said, but it was not immediately clear if anyone was inside the building at the time. Firefighters were trying to put out the blaze with the help of police and volunteers.

AFP-Reuters-Xinhua

(China Daily 03/07/2014 page11)