Briefly

DR CONGO

Plane crashes in Goma, killing at least 24

At least 24 were killed, including some people at the site of the crash, when a small plane crashed into a densely populated neighborhood in the city of Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on Sunday, a local lawmaker and a rescue worker said. The aircraft, which was operated by local company Busy Bee, crashed shortly after takeoff en route to the city of Beni, about 250 kilometers to the north, North Kivu Governor Carly Nzanzu Kasivita's office said in a statement. The company said the plane had 16 passengers and two crew members on board. There was no word yet on what might have caused the accident. Jean Paul Lumbulumbu, the vice-president of North Kivu's Parliament, said 24 bodies had been recovered from the rubble, including those of several people hit by falling debris. A rescue worker, who asked not to be named, said 26 bodies had been recovered.

IRAQ

Pence met Kurdish allies in surprise Iraq trip

US Vice-President Mike Pence met Iraqi Kurdish leaders during a surprise visit to Iraq on Saturday. In his first Iraq tour as vice-president, Pence visited US troops at Ain al-Asad base in western Iraq's Anbar Province. He then traveled to Arbil, capital of the autonomous Kurdish region in the north of the country, for talks with officials there. But Pence "couldn't go to Baghdad for security reasons", a US official accompanying him on the trip told reporters. From Ain al-Asad, Pence traveled to the capital of the Kurdish region Arbil to meet its president, Nechirvan Barzani, and prime minister, Masrour Barzani.

ITALY

149 migrants rescued after boat capsizes

A total of 149 migrants were rescued and about 20 were missing after a boat capsized late on Saturday in stormy seas near the Italian island of Lampedusa, authorities and local media said on Sunday. The rescued migrants included 133 men, 13 women and three children. The search is still going on, the Italian Coast Guard said. Survivors told rescuers the vessel was carrying more than 160 people. Italian news agency ANSA reported.