IN BRIEF (Page 11)

India

Ruling party leaders face trial over 1992 attack

India's top court on Wednesday ordered four senior leaders of the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party to stand trial over a 1992 attack on an ancient mosque that sparked Hindu-Muslim violence that killed thousands. The attack on the mosque in Ayodhya, 550 kilometers east of New Delhi, sparked the largest explosion of Hindu-Muslim violence in the country in decades, leaving 2,000 people dead. Thousands more died in later violence caused by disputes over the site.

Bus falls into river, killing at least 44

At least 44 people were killed and 12 others injured after a passenger bus carrying them fell into river in northern state of Himachal Pradesh, officials said on Wednesday. Deadly road accidents are common in the country due to overloading, bad condition of roads and reckless driving. The World Health Organization said last year that India accounted for 200,000 deaths annually due to road accidents.

Yemen

Saudi helicopter shot down by friendly fire

A Saudi helicopter came down during military operations in Yemen on Tuesday, killing 12 officers aboard, Saudi media reported, and a Yemeni Defense Ministry website said the cause was friendly fire. The death toll was one of the largest in a single incident involving Saudi forces since a Saudi-led coalition intervened in Yemen's civil war in 2015.

United Kingdom

Suspect named in London nightclub acid attack

Police investigating an acid attack at a London nightclub that left 20 people injured are searching for the boyfriend of a reality TV performer who has urged him to turn himself in. London police have named Arthur Collins as a suspect wanted for questioning in the case, which left two people seriously injured. The attack happened on Monday after a dispute between two groups at the Mangle nightclub.

The Philippines

Sulphur-powered giant shipworm unearthed

An enormous black worm that lives in the mud of the sea floor and survives on the remnants of noxious gases digested by bacteria has been unveiled by scientists for the first time. The slimy giant shipworm can grow up to 1.55 meters in length, despite living a sedentary life in ocean sediment and apparently eating nothing more than the waste products of the microorganisms that live in its gills.

(China Daily 04/20/2017 page11)