Briefly

HAITI

Over 50 killed after gas tanker explodes

A truck carrying gasoline exploded in the northern Haitian city of Cap-Haitien, killing more than 50 people and injuring dozens of others, officials and news reports said on Tuesday. "I saw on the scene between 50 and 54 people burned alive. It is impossible to identify them," Deputy Mayor Patrick Almonor said. The blast occurred late on Monday, Prime Minister Ariel Henry said, adding that he was devastated." Three days of national mourning will be decreed throughout the territory, in memory of the victims of this tragedy that the entire Haitian nation is grieving," he tweeted. No further details were immediately available. Le Nouvelliste newspaper reported that dozens had been hospitalized with injuries and that hospitals were seeking supplies. "We are overwhelmed," a person identified as Dr Calhil Turenne told the paper.

INDIA

8 arrested for 'offensive' posts on military chief

Eight Indians have been arrested for making "offensive" social media posts about the death of the country's military chief in a helicopter crash, according to officials and local reports. General Bipin Rawat, who was killed along with his wife and 11 others in last week's accident, was a figure seen as close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. But he also courted controversy, in one instance presenting an award to an officer who tied a civilian in India-controlled Kashmir to the front of his military vehicle in a show of force. Police have arrested hundreds of Indian internet users in recent years. More than a dozen people were arrested in October for celebrating Pakistan's defeat of India in a cricket match, with several still in custody after being charged under sedition and anti-terror laws.

UNITED KINGDOM

US diplomat's wife to face court hearing

The wife of a so-called US diplomat is due to face a London court hearing next month over a fatal car crash in England. Harry Dunn, 19, died after his motorcycle collided with a car driven by Anne Sacoolas near RAF Croughton, an air force base that is used by the US military. Sacoolas' husband is a US intelligence official based at the camp. She was given diplomatic immunity and fled Britain in 2019 shortly after the accident, setting off a dispute between London and Washington over whether she should return to face investigation. She faces a charge of causing death by dangerous driving. Dunn's mother, Charlotte Charles, said her family felt "very emotional and overwhelmed" by the news that Sacoolas would face the UK justice system.

Agencies - Xinhua