Briefly

AFGHANISTAN

Brain behind Kabul airport attack killed

The individual believed by the United States to be the mastermind behind the attack at Kabul's international airport on US troops withdrawing from Afghanistan in August 2021 was killed by the Taliban, US media reported on Tuesday, citing administration officials. According to multiple media reports, the US identified the suspect as a leader within the extremist group Islamic State's Afghan branch known as ISIS-K, but didn't name the individual and refused to reveal how this person was killed, for fear that doing so would jeopardize US intelligence-gathering capability in the region. The individual was "the mastermind of the horrific attack" on Aug 26, 2021 that killed 13 US service members as well as over 100 Afghan civilians.

JAPAN

Lunar landing mission attempt 'likely failed'

A private Japanese space company said on Wednesday its lander's attempt to touch down on the moon had likely failed, with the vehicle probably crashing on the lunar surface. The spacecraft's developer, Ispace, was attempting to make history by being the first private company to land a vehicle on the moon's surface, but said it lost contact with the lander early on Wednesday morning. The vehicle was planned to land near a crater at around 1:40 am JST on Wednesday. The company said in a statement that the spacecraft's fuel was thought to have run out and the speed of its descent increased rapidly thereafter.

SRI LANKA

China-aided outpatient building handed over

The outpatient building project of Sri Lanka's National Hospital, a leading hospital in the country, built with Chinese assistance was handed over to Sri Lanka on Tuesday. Chinese Ambassador Qi Zhenhong and Sri Lankan Minister of Health Keheliya Rambukwella, representing the two sides, signed the handover documents and attended a ceremony to celebrate the event. Qi said China has provided medical supplies and vaccines to Sri Lanka during the COVID-19 pandemic. The project, with a construction area of about 50,000 square meters, would bring the hospital's daily handling capacity to 6,000 patients, and greatly help alleviate local medical resource constraints.

Agencies - Xinhua