IN BRIEF (Page 12)

South Korea

Potential delay to THAAD system

The signing of a contract that would secure the location of a United States missile defense system in South Korea could be delayed, Seoul's Defense Ministry said on Monday. The Terminal High Altitude Area Defence system is due to be deployed on land which is now part of a golf course owned by the Lotte Group conglomerate in the Seongju region, southeast of Seoul. "Lotte needs to hold a meeting of the board of directors to approve the final assessment fee," Defense Ministry spokesman Moon Sang-gyun said. "We understand that the meeting has not happened yet, but will be held soon."

Syria

Rebel groups to attend talks

Syrian rebel groups have decided to attend peace talks backed by Russia and Turkey in Kazakhstan in a bid to check Iranian influence over the war, rebel officials said on Monday.

Their decision is a boost for a Russian-led initiative aimed at ending the nearly six-year-old conflict.

Russia, President Bashar al-Assad's most powerful ally, set the new diplomatic effort in motion after Syrian rebels suffered a major defeat last month by losing the rebel-held districts of eastern Aleppo.

United Arab Emirates

6 tourists injured in balloon crash

Investigators in the United Arab Emirates are looking into what caused a hot-air balloon to abruptly drop from the sky, injuring six tourists onboard. Police in the emirate of Sharjah said Monday that the balloon struck the ground on Saturday morning as it flew over the desert near the small town of al-Madam. Police say the six European and Asian tourists suffered moderate to serious injuries and were being treated in a hospital. The nationalities of the victims were not released.

(China Daily 01/17/2017 page12)