Briefly

NIGER

At least 26 children die in school fire

At least 26 children aged 5 and 6 were killed on Monday when their straw and wood classrooms caught fire in southern Niger, seven months after a similar tragedy in the capital Niamey. Three days of mourning have been declared in the Maradi region from Tuesday. "This tragic event once again puts the Nigerien people in mourning," the government said in a statement and added that straw and wood classrooms would be banned across the country. Niger, one of the poorest countries in the world, has tried to fix shortages of school buildings by constructing thousands of straw and wood sheds to serve as classrooms, with children sometimes sitting on the ground.

UNITED STATES

Life expectancy fell sharply in pandemic

The United States saw the second steepest decline in life expectancy among 37 countries and regions during the COVID-19 pandemic last year, Indian news outlet WIONEWS reported, citing a recent study. The study, published earlier this month by British medical journal The BMJ, assessed premature deaths in 37 upper-middle and high-income countries or regions with reliable and complete mortality data. Men in the US saw life expectancy fall by nearly 2.3 years, from about 76.7 to 74.4, while that for women fell from about 81.8 to 80.2, according to the study. The study also showed that the drop in life expectancy in the US was driven by the deaths of young people during the pandemic, suggesting the US government did not do so well in protecting the younger generation from the pandemic.

SINGAPORE

Hearing delayed on man's execution

Singapore's top court on Tuesday postponed the appeal hearing for a Malaysian man on death row believed to be mentally disabled, after he was diagnosed with COVID-19, in a case that has drawn international attention. Nagaenthran K. Dharmalingam, 33, was scheduled to be executed by hanging on Wednesday for trying to smuggle a small amount of heroin－less than 43 grams－into the country. The Malaysian national was sentenced to death in November 2010, under Singapore's strict anti-drug laws. Previous attempts to reduce his sentence to life in prison or receive a presidential pardon have all failed, despite pleas from rights groups.

Agencies - Xinhua