IN BRIEF (Page 12)

South Korea

Charges expanded on Samsung chief

South Korea's special prosecutor's office said on Wednesday it had expanded charges against Samsung Group chief Lee Jae-yong to include hiding the proceeds of a criminal act before it decided to seek a warrant for his arrest for a second time. Lee has been identified as a suspect by prosecutors in an influence-peddling scandal that could topple President Park Geun-hye.

Kazakhstan

Start of Syria talks delayed by one day

Talks on the Syrian crisis involving Russia, Iran and Turkey that were due to start in the Kazakh capital Astana on Wednesday have been delayed by one day, Kazakhstan's Foreign Ministry said without giving the reason. An unnamed official from Russia's Defense Ministry told the Interfax news agency that delegations would hold bilateral meetings on Wednesday before a bigger meeting of all parties on Thursday which could produce a joint document.

India

Anthem-singing record is set

Half a million Indians have set a new world record by performing a mass rendition of their national anthem, as patriotic sentiment rises under a nationalist government. The Jana Gana Mana anthem was sung by 509,261 people in Gujarat, the home state of Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at the opening of a Hindu temple, said Guinness World Records.

Venezuela

Maduro demands apology from US

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro on Tuesday demanded the United States apologize for slapping sanctions on his vice-president over alleged drug trafficking. Maduro said he had told the Foreign Ministry to send an official protest note to Washington demanding it "retract and apologize publicly to our vice-president", Tareck El Aissami, for the sanctions against him.

New Zealand

Wildfires prompt evacuations

Hundreds of people in the New Zealand city of Christchurch were evacuated from their homes on Wednesday as wildfires threatened some suburbs. At least one home was burned down in the Port Hills. The mayors of Christchurch City and the adjacent Selwyn District declared a state of emergency. Selwyn Mayor Sam Broughton said changing winds had made the fires unpredictable.

Luxembourg

1 dead, 2 injured as trains collide

The driver of a passenger train was killed in Luxembourg on Tuesday after he ran a red light and collided with a freight train, officials said. The driver of the goods train was seriously hurt and a conductor on board the passenger train suffered minor injuries, they said. There were no travelers on board the passenger train at the time.

(China Daily 02/16/2017 page12)