Briefly

UNITED STATES

Floyd died from lack of oxygen, court hears

Medical experts used anatomical diagrams and charts to testify on Thursday that George Floyd was killed by police pinning him to the ground, not a drug overdose, challenging a key assertion by former police officer Derek Chauvin in his murder trial for Floyd's deadly arrest. Dr Martin Tobin, who treats patients in a Chicago hospital's intensive care unit, told the jury that Floyd died "from a low level of oxygen" caused by being handcuffed face down in the street with the police officer's knee on his neck. Video of the arrest last May sparked global protests. Jurors touched various parts of their necks under Tobin's guidance as the doctor gave impromptu anatomy lessons from the stand. Any "healthy person," he said, would have died in a similar restraint, which he compared to a vise, supporting the county medical examiner's finding that Floyd's death was a homicide at the hands of police officers.

SOUTH KOREA

Tanker held by Iran now on the move

A South Korean oil tanker held for months by Iran amid a dispute over billions of dollars seized by Seoul was freed and sailed away on Friday, just hours ahead of further talks between Teheran and world powers over its tattered nuclear deal. MarineTraffic.com data showed the MT Hankuk Chemi leaving Bandar Abbas in the early morning hours. South Korea's Foreign Ministry said Iran released the tanker and its captain after seizing the vessel in January. The ministry says the Hankuk Chemi left an Iranian port at around 6 am local time after completing an administrative process. Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Saeed Khatibzadeh, later confirmed that Iran had released the vessel. The seizure of the tanker in January had triggered a diplomatic dispute after Iran demanded that South Korea release $7 billion in funds frozen in South Korean banks under US sanctions.

Agencies Via Xinhua