Briefly

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

PM objects to Biden's 'cannibals' remark

Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister James Marape took objection to the "cannibals" remark, after comments made by US President Joe Biden about his missing serviceman uncle. Biden had "appeared to imply his uncle was eaten by cannibals after his plane was shot down over PNG during WWII", Marape's office said in a statement on Sunday. "President Biden's remarks may have been a slip of the tongue; however, my country does not deserve to be labeled as such," he said.

MIDDLE EAST

1st Iran group heads to Saudi for pilgrimage

The first group of Iranian Muslims traveled on Monday to Saudi Arabia for umrah, a year-round pilgrimage they had been barred from for almost a decade over a rift between Teheran and Riyadh, the official IRNA reported. They are the first Iranians to make the pilgrimage since Teheran and Riyadh agreed in a China-brokered deal last year to restore ties and reopen their respective embassies after more than nine years.

Agencies - Xinhua