Briefly

UNITED STATES

Strike on boat from Venezuela kills 11

The US military killed 11 people on Tuesday in a strike on a vessel from Venezuela allegedly carrying illegal narcotics, President Donald Trump said, in the first known operation since his administration's recent deployment of warships to the southern Caribbean. The Pentagon has not released specifics about the attack, including what kind of drugs were on board, the quantity, or how the strike was carried out. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has cast the recent US deployment as a threat to the country. He did not address the strike directly, but charged that the US is "coming for Venezuela's riches", including oil and gas. The South American country has the world's largest proven oil reserves.

Judge blocks use of troops in California

A federal judge on Tuesday blocked US President Donald Trump's administration from using the military to fight crime in California, as the president threatened to send troops to more cities, including Chicago. San Francisco-based US District Judge Charles Breyer found that the administration willfully violated a law known as the Posse Comitatus Act, which sharply limits the use of the military for domestic enforcement, by employing troops to control crowds and bolster federal agents during immigration and drug raids. The ruling dealt a setback to Trump's push to broaden the role of the military on US soil, which critics say is a dangerous expansion of executive authority that could spark tensions between troops and ordinary citizens. Breyer put the ruling on hold until Sept 12. The Trump administration is likely to appeal the decision.

THAILAND

Acting PM seeks to dissolve lower house

Thailand's acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai announced on Wednesday that his caretaker government has moved to dissolve the lower house of parliament, potentially leading to an early general election. Speaking to reporters at the government house, Phumtham confirmed that a decree to disband the House of Representatives was submitted to King Maha Vajiralongkorn on Tuesday and now awaits royal approval. Given ongoing challenges, Phumtham said restoring political stability was essential to prevent further economic decline, stressing that the appropriate course of action would be to return decision-making authority to the electorate after discussions with the legal team.

Agencies - Xinhua