Briefly

FRANCE

Louvre closes gallery over weak beams

France's Louvre Museum closed a gallery hosting Greek vases and office spaces on Monday, as its structures, designed in the 1930s, are in a dire state, the world's most-visited museum said, less than a month after a daring heist exposed its vulnerabilities. A new technical report revealed weaknesses in the beams under the second floor of the Sully Wing, necessitating the closure of the Campana Gallery on the first floor and the relocation of 65 museum staff members from the second floor, the Louvre stated.

UNITED STATES

Military action not ruled out in Venezuela: Trump

President Donald Trump said on Monday he had not ruled out putting US forces on the ground in Venezuela, while expressing a willingness to hear directly from Nicolas Maduro regarding the Venezuelan leader's proposals to avert further US military escalation. Asked if he would rule out US troops on the ground in the South American country, Trump said: "No, I don't rule out that, I don't rule out anything." Still, when questioned if he would speak to Maduro directly, Trump said: "I probably would talk to him, yeah. I talk to everybody." Maduro, when asked about Trump's comments on Monday, said differences should be resolved through diplomacy and that he is willing to hold face-to-face talks with anyone interested.

ECUADOR

21 killed and 40 injured in bus crash

Twenty-one people died and 40 were injured when a bus plunged into a ravine in Ecuador over the weekend, authorities said on Monday. The bus left the road between the central towns of Guaranda and Ambato on Sunday, when the initial death toll was given as 12. By Monday morning, the emergency services said the figure had "unfortunately risen to 21".

Agencies - Xinhua