IN BRIEF (Page 11)

Philippines

Congress extends martial law

Philippine lawmakers on Saturday voted to extend martial law on the southern island of Mindanao until the end of the year, giving President Rodrigo Duterte extra time to quell a rebellion by militants allied with the Islamic State group. A total of 261 legislators agreed to extend military rule in a seven hour-long joint special session of the House of Representatives and the Senate, accounting for more than two-thirds of Congress membership of more than 300.

United Kingdom

Report: 120,000 kids homeless

The number of homeless children in Britain living in temporary accommodation has rocketed to more than 120,000, a report revealed on Saturday. The Local Government Association, which represents 350 town and city councils in England, described the current situation as unsustainable. The association says the number of homeless children councils are having to house has increased by more than a third in the last three years.

United States

8 people found dead in truck

Eight people have been found dead in a tractor-trailer outside a Walmart in Texas in what police are calling a horrific human trafficking case. Several other people, possibly dozens, were found in the truck, which didn't have a working air conditioning system, and they were taken to hospitals, firefighters said. A person from the truck approached a Walmart employee in a parking lot and asked for water late on Saturday night or early on Sunday morning, San Antonio police said.

Egypt

Court sentences 28 to death

An Egyptian court has sentenced 28 people to death for their involvement in the assassination of the country's prosecutor-general in 2015. Saturday's sentences come after consultation with the Grand Mufti, Egypt's top religious authority, over preliminary death sentences handed to the defendants last month. The sentences are subject to appeal.

United States

Moon dust bag sells for $1.8m

The bag used by US astronaut Neil Armstrong to bring back dust samples from the moon during humankind's first moon-landing mission has been sold for $1.8 million at an auction in New York, local media reported. It was considered a good deal for the mysterious buyer as the price was below the pre-sale estimates of $2 million to $4 million, USA Today reported.

India

Arrests over theft of 50m liters of oil

Police in Rajasthan have cracked a criminal syndicate accused of smuggling more than 50 million liters of crude oil inside water tankers from India's largest onshore oilfield, an official said on Sunday. The theft at the Cairn India oilfield went undetected for nearly six years until police arrested 25 people last week for involvement in the sophisticated smuggling network.

(China Daily 07/24/2017 page11)