Briefly

RUSSIA

Coal mine fire kills 11, with dozens trapped

A fire at a coal mine in Russia's Siberia killed 11 people and injured more than 40 others on Thursday, with dozens of others still trapped, authorities said. The blaze took place in the Kemerovo region in Siberia. Russia's state Tass news agency reported, citing an unnamed emergency official, that coal dust caught fire, and that smoke quickly filled the mine through the ventilation system. A total of 285 people were in the mine at the time of the incident, and 237 of them have been evacuated. Efforts to rescue the rest are still ongoing, hampered by large amounts of smoke. Russia's Investigative Committee has launched a criminal probe into the fire on suspicion of safety violations that led to the deaths.

INDIA

Death sentences for rapists commuted

Mumbai's top court on Thursday commuted the death sentences of three men convicted in a rape case that heightened public outrage over women's safety in India. The assault in 2013 followed another high-profile gang-rape case the previous year that left a woman dead in New Delhi, sparking nationwide protests resulting in tougher anti-rape laws. The three men in Mumbai, along with two accomplices, trapped and repeatedly raped a 22-year-old photojournalist while she was on assignment at an abandoned factory compound. The attack dismayed residents of Mumbai, a metropolis considered far safer for women than the capital, sparking protests in the city.

LIBYA

Gadhafi son's bid for president rejected

Libya's top electoral body on Wednesday disqualified the son and onetime heir apparent of the late leader Muammar Gadhafi from running for president in elections to be held next month, citing his previous convictions. The name of Seif al-Islam Gadhafi appeared on a list of ineligible candidates issued by the country's High National Elections Committee. He can appeal the decision in court in the coming days. Seif al-Islam had been sentenced to death by a Tripoli court in 2015 for using violence against protesters in 2011, but that ruling has since been called into question by Libya's rival authorities. He is also wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of crimes against humanity.

Agencies via Xinhua