Briefly

AUSTRALIA

Authorities investigate bouncy castle deaths

Australian authorities said on Friday they were investigating whether a bouncy castle was tethered to the ground before a gust of wind blew it into the air, killing five children at an end-of-term school party. Three 12-year-old boys and two girls, aged 11 and 12, were killed when the large inflatable castle lifted off the ground on Thursday in Devonport, northern Tasmania, police said. Children were thrown from a height of about 10 meters, they said, citing initial witness reports.

MALI

28 UN peacekeepers killed last year

Twenty-eight peacekeepers were killed and 165 wounded in Mali in 2021, according to the United Nations. During a video conference in Bamako on Thursday, El-Ghassim Wane, head of the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali, said that"50 percent of all incidents" behind these deaths were caused by improvised explosive devices. The UN mission this year carried out 13,000 patrols and 100 operations to protect civilians.

UNITED STATES

Thong not a mask, airline tells passenger

A passenger was forced to disembark a flight in Florida because he insisted that wearing a red thong as a face mask complied with COVID-19 regulations, local media said on Thursday. Adam Jenne, 38, was asked to leave the aircraft before it took off from Fort Lauderdale airport. He told local news channel NBC2 that he wanted to show the "absurdity" of forcing passengers to wear masks on planes while allowing them to be removed to eat and drink on board.

Agencies - Xinhua