IN BRIEF (Page 11)

Turkey

8 killed in armed border clashes

At least eight people were killed in clashes between the Turkish military and Kurdish rebels on the country's Syrian border, the army said on Tuesday. It was the most serious outbreak of violence since the militants declared a cease-fire last year. A local official earlier pointed the finger at smugglers after an armed group crossing the border from Syria into Turkey ignored calls to stop and opened fire on an army outpost.

United States

Case of secret photos settled

A "rogue" gynecologist's secret use of tiny cameras to record hundreds of videos and photos of his patients' sex organs has led to a $190 million settlement with about 8,000 women and girls, lawyers said on Monday.

Dr Nikita Levy was fired after 25 years with the Johns Hopkins Health System in Baltimore in February 2013 after a female co-worker alerted authorities about a pen-like camera he wore around his neck. He committed suicide days later, as a federal investigation led to roughly 1,200 videos and 140 images stored on computers in his home.

Texas to stem immigrant wave

The US state of Texas plans to send 1,000 National Guard troops to the border with Mexico in order to stem the influx of illegal immigrants and bolster border security, Gov Rick Perry announced on Monday. The buildup of guardsmen, which is expected to take 30 days, will be focused on the Rio Grande Valley in southern Texas to support the state's Department of Public Safety in hunting down drug cartels, smuggling rings and other criminal elements, Perry told reporters.

Afghanistan

Bomber kills 4 foreign guards

A suicide bomber on a motorcycle targeted a police compound housing foreign advisers in Kabul on Tuesday, killing four foreign security guards and wounding six, Afghan officials said. The attacker struck at the gates of the compound, which houses foreign advisers to the Afghan government as well as the office of the deputy minister for counter-narcotics in the heart of the country's capital, said Deputy Interior Minister, Mohammad Ayoub Salangi. The nationality of the dead guards was not immediately disclosed.

Thailand

King endorses Constitution

Thailand's military authorities won approval from the king on Tuesday for an interim Constitution mapping out year-long political reforms expected to curb the influence of fugitive ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra. It was the first time the revered but ailing King Bhumibol Adulyadej, 86, has granted an audience to coup leader General Prayut Chan-O-Cha since the military seized power two months ago.

AP-Reuters-AFP-Xinhua

(China Daily 07/23/2014 page11)