IN BRIEF (Page 11)

Iraq

20 killed in barracks attack

Militants in Iraq launched an attack on military barracks in the country's north and killed 20 troops, including some who had been bound and shot at close range, authorities said on Sunday. The killings at the barracks in the village of Ayn al-Jahish outside the northern city of Mosul represent the latest blow to the government's efforts to achieve stability.

Thailand

Govt to boost security

Thailand's caretaker government says it will increase security to prevent clashes that could arise between the two sides in an escalating political crisis. In a televised announcement on Sunday, the government's security committee warned people to stay away from protest sites for their own safety.

Yemen

Suicide bombing leaves 13 dead

A suspected al-Qaida suicide bomber on Sunday killed 12 soldiers and a civilian in a military base in southeast Yemen, officials said, as government forces pursued jihadists in three restive provinces. The bombing came just hours after three gunmen were killed when they attacked a checkpoint close to the presidential palace in the capital Sanaa, the same post where five soldiers died on Friday in a similar attack.

Moldova

Petition to Russia confiscated

Moldovan authorities said they have stopped Russia's deputy prime minister from leaving the country with a petition calling on Moscow to recognize a separatist region, but he claimed on Sunday he had delivered most of the signatures supporting it. Dmitry Rogozin visited the separatist province of Trans-Dniester, where 1,500 Russian troops are stationed, to celebrate Victory Day on Friday. He offered support to separatists and criticized Moldova's government for seeking closer ties with the European Union.

Afghanistan

Car explosion claims 5 lives

Authorities say five civilians have been killed and 36 wounded in a suicide car bomb attack on an Afghan army vehicle in southern Afghanistan.

AP-Xinhua-AFP

(China Daily 05/12/2014 page11)