IN BRIEF (Page 12)

Switzerland

El Nino likely by end of year

There's a strong chance an El Nino weather event will reappear before the end of the year and shake up climate patterns worldwide, the UN weather agency said on Thursday. The El Nino, a flow of unusually warm surface waters from the Pacific Ocean toward and along the western coast of South America, changes rain and temperature patterns around the world and usually raises global temperatures.

Syria

Govt strikes insurgents in Iraq

Syria's air force struck Sunni militants inside Iraq this week, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said on Thursday, as British Foreign Secretary William Hague visited Baghdad to urge its leaders to unite. Maliki's confirmation of the air raids, which he said he "welcomed" but did not request, came after powerful Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr vowed to "shake the ground" under the feet of advancing Sunni militants.

Somalia

Militants attack hotel, claiming 3

A Somali army official said three people were killed when a suicide bomber and gunmen attacked a hotel housing African Union troops in central Somalia. The official said a suicide bomber blew himself up near the Amalow Hotel in Bulo-Burte town before gunmen tried to force their way in. Gunfire could be heard as he spoke by telephone.

United States

More citizens use cannabis

More US citizens are consuming cannabis as their perception of the health risks declines, the UN drugs and crime agency said on Thursday, suggesting legalization may further increase its use among the young. In a finding that could feed into an international debate on the decriminalization of marijuana, it said more people around the world, including in North America, were seeking treatment for cannabis-related disorders.

France

Last space truck set for July 24

The last of five robot resupply ships Europe was scheduled to provide for the International Space Station will be taken aloft on July 24, launch firm Arianespace said on Thursday. Known as an Automated Transfer Vehicle, the freighter will be launched from Kourou, French Guiana, at 10:41 pm on July 24, it said in a statement in Paris.

Czech Republic

2 die in small plane crash

An ultralight plane crashed in the southern Czech Republic early on Thursday, killing both men on board, officials said. The two-seat Dynamic plane went down near the village of Kondrac after taking off from an airport in the nearby city of Ceske Budejovice, police said.

AP - AFP

(China Daily 06/27/2014 page12)