IN BRIEF (Page 11)

Turkey

Nation to reject invasion payout

Turkey said on Tuesday it will defy a European court order to pay 90 million euros ($124 million) in compensation to Greek Cypriots over its 1974 invasion of the island. The European Court of Human Rights ordered Turkey to pay the damages this week, 13 years after finding it guilty of "massive and continuous" rights violations against Greek Cypriots on the island. The court ruling said 30 million euros should go to the families of people who disappeared after the invasion.

Jordan

Ambassador to Libya freed

Jordan's ambassador to Libya, who was abducted last month at gunpoint in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, returned home on Tuesday after being freed by his captors. Ambassador Fawaz al-Etan was welcomed at Amman's military airport by jubilant family members and top Jordanian officials, including Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh who hours earlier announced the diplomat's release. Al-Etan waved to reporters as he stepped out of the plane at the Marka military airfield.

Japan

Proposal aims to cap population

Japan should stabilize its population at about 100 million people, stemming an expected dramatic fall over the next 50 years in the rapidly graying country, a panel proposed on Tuesday. If the plan is adopted by the government, it would be the first population target in the country. The current population of 127 million is projected to fall to about 87 million in 2060 because of a low birth rate and the almost complete absence of immigration.

Austria

Slow UN probe hampers talks

Signs that a UN watchdog investigation into suspected atomic bomb research by Iran is making little progress could further complicate broader diplomacy on ending the decade-old nuclear dispute. The International Atomic Energy Agency indicated late on Monday, after a three-hour meeting with Iran, that more work was needed by the country in order to fully implement a series of nuclear transparency steps by a Thursday deadline.

South Africa

Prosecutor to assess Pistorius

The chief prosecutor in the murder trial of Oscar Pistorius has asked that the double-amputee runner be placed under psychiatric evaluation after an expert witness testified that the athlete had an anxiety disorder. Prosecutor Gerrie Nel noted on Tuesday that a psychiatrist for the defense had testified that the disorder, which she had diagnosed in Pistorius, may have played a role in his fatal shooting of girlfriend.

Xinhua-AP-AFP-Reuters

(China Daily 05/14/2014 page11)