IN BRIEF (Page 12)

Qatar

Doha bans imports from 4 neighbors

Qatar has said it would ban products originating from the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt, almost a year after the four countries imposed an embargo on Doha. In June 2017, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE and Egypt severed diplomatic ties as well as all air, sea and land links with Qatar, accusing the gas-rich Gulf state of supporting terrorism and aligning with Iran against Arab interests. Doha has repeatedly denied the allegations, calling such isolation "diplomatically unjustified".

Republic Of Korea

Korean Air chief's wife questioned

The wife of the chief of Korean Air, the country's flagship carrier, was questioned by police on Monday over assault charges. The 69-year-old apologized after arriving at a police station in Seoul. Lee was accused of shoving and cursing workers at a construction site to expand a hotel in 2014 and assaulting and abusing workers who remodeled her mansion in 2013. Lee and her two daughters, including Cho Hyun-ah, infamous for the "nut rage" case, have been probed over abuse, assault, tax evasion and smuggling of luxury goods.

Colombia

Nation heads for divisive runoff

The country is heading for its most divisive presidential race in decades after Ivan Duque, right-wing candidate for the Democratic Center Party, won the first round of the presidential election on Sunday, claiming 39 percent of the vote with 99.99 percent of votes tallied. He was short of the 50 percent threshold needed to avoid a second-round runoff and will face runner-up Gustavo Petro of the left-wing, who harvested 25 percent of the vote. The second round will take place on June 17.

Xinhua - Reuters

(China Daily 05/29/2018 page12)