IN BRIEF (Page 11)

VENEZUELA

Maduro asks US people for solidarity

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro asked the US people to show their solidarity and avoid a "Vietnam in Latin America". In a video posted on social media late on Tuesday, Maduro said: "I am appealing to your conscience, I am appealing to your solidarity,... if the United States intends to intervene, it will have a Vietnam worse than it can imagine. Let's not allow violence." The bulk of the news circulating in the United States about Venezuela has been fabricated to justify an intervention, he said. The relationship between Venezuela and the US worsened after Washington decided to recognize opposition leader Juan Guaido as interim president.

DJIBOUTI

Death toll at 52 after migrant boats sink

The death toll from the sinking of two boats carrying migrants to Yemen from Djibouti rose to 52 on Thursday, the United Nations' migration agency said, appealing to regional leaders to take action to stop such tragedies. Rescuers working in Djibouti's northeastern Obock region continued to recover bodies on the Horn of Africa nation's coast following the capsizing of the two boats earlier this week. The sinking of the vessels, which survivors say were carrying Ethiopians, is the latest tragedy to occur on the risky route used by African migrants seeking work in the Middle East.

UNITED STATES

Elephant seals take over California beach

A herd of elephant seals took over a popular California beach while it was closed during the partial federal government shutdown and the animals show no sign of wanting to leave. A storm and high tides inundated the seals' usual habitat about 50 kilometers northwest of San Francisco, encouraging them to seek safe haven nearby. "Since Drakes Beach was closed during part of the shutdown, and there were no Park Rangers and no members of the public, that aided in the colonization of the beach," said John Dell'Osso, a spokesman for Point Reyes National Seashore park, where Drakes Beach is located.

UNITED NATIONS

UN council backs new Yemen mission chief

The UN Security Council on Wednesday endorsed the appointment of former Danish general Michael Lollesgaard to head the UN observer mission in war-wracked Yemen, diplomats said. Lollesgaard will replace Patrick Cammaert, the Dutch general who had been tapped a little over a month ago to lead the mission deployed in the Red Sea port city of Hodeida. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had told the council in a letter sent on Monday that he planned to appoint Lollesgaard and gave the council 48 hours to raise objections. No objections were raised before the Wednesday deadline.

JAPAN

'Uranium' on online auction site probed

Japanese authorities are investigating how a substance that appears to be uranium came to be offered for sale on an online auction site, a nuclear official said on Thursday. Police are trying to confirm whether the product is radioactive, he said, with local media reporting investigators are questioning "a number of people" suspected of involvement in the sale and purchase of the substance. An initial test of the confiscated powder found it to be radioactive, Kyodo News said. The Nuclear Regulation Authority received a report about a year ago about what was being billed as "uranium" on a popular auction site operated by Yahoo! Japan. The case was referred to police as the law requires special permits for transferring the ownership of uranium and other radioactive materials, an atomic agency official said.

Xinhua - Afp - Reuters

(China Daily 02/01/2019 page11)