Briefly

UNITED STATES

2 dead, 10 injured in US Steel plant explosions

Multiple explosions on Monday at a US Steel plant near Pittsburgh killed two people and injured 10 others, according to the company and local authorities. Firefighters battled flames and heavy smoke that billowed out of the Clairton Coke Works factory, which is owned by US Steel, a subsidiary of Nippon Steel. David Burritt, president and chief executive officer of US Steel, said that the company was working with local authorities to discover the cause. The probe into the explosion would be "a time-consuming technical investigation", Allegheny County Police Assistant Superintendent Victor Joseph said.

THAILAND

Soldier injured near Cambodia: Army

A Thai soldier was injured by a landmine near the Cambodian border on Tuesday, the Thai army said, days after the Southeast Asian neighbors agreed to a ceasefire following last month's deadly five-day conflict. The soldier's left ankle was severely injured when he stepped on the mine while patrolling along a routine border route in Thailand's Surin Province, the army said. The incident is clear evidence that Cambodia has violated the ceasefire as well as international agreements against landmines, Thai army spokesman Winthai Suvaree said. Cambodia rejected the Thai charges.

CHILE

74-million-year-old mammal fossil found

Scientists have discovered the fossil of a tiny mouse-sized mammal that lived during the time of the dinosaurs in Chilean Patagonia. "Yeutherium pressor" weighed between 30 and 40 grams and lived in the Upper Cretaceous period, about 74 million years ago. It is the smallest mammal ever found in this region of South America. The fossil consists of "a small piece of jaw with a molar and the crown and roots of two other molars", said Hans Puschel, who led the team of scientists from the University of Chile and the Millennium Nucleus research center.

Agencies Via Xinhua