IN BRIEF (Page 12)

Iraq

PM rejects Kurds' offer to freeze vote

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Thursday rejected the offer of the Kurdish Regional Government to freeze the results of the Kurdish independence referendum to pave the way for a dialogue with Baghdad. Abadi's comments came at a meeting with Iranian Vice-President Eshaq Jahangiri in Teheran during Abadi's tour to neighboring Turkey and Iran. He said he'll only accept a full cancellation of the independence vote and its results.

Bangladesh

600,000 refugees seeking shelter

The number of Rohingya refugees fleeing Myanmar into Bangladesh since Aug 25 has reached 604,000, UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said on Wednesday. "Refugees have sought shelter in Bangladesh since the outbreak of violence in Myanmar," he said. More than half of the new arrivals to escape violence in Myanmar's Rakhine state are living in the Kutupalong Expansion Site, which includes several makeshift settlements and land allocated by the government, he said.

Japan

Minister returns salary over scandal

The trade minister is voluntarily returning two months of his salary after a government-backed lender reported $2.3 billion in shady loans based on faked documents that enabled companies to take advantage of government-funded low interest loans. Hiroshige Seko, who heads the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, mentioned the action at a conference on Thursday while discussing problems with corporate governance at Japanese companies.

Finland

At least 4 killed in train accident

A train collided with a military vehicle at a railroad crossing in southern Finland on Thursday, killing at least four people, police and military officials said. The crash near Raseborg, about 85 kilometers southwest of Helsinki, also left several people injured. A train passenger and that three soldiers were among the dead.

Australia

Sydney combats residential waste

The City of Sydney Council have announced a radical new plan to combat residential waste. The "Leave Nothing to Waste" strategy is set to become the most comprehensive scheme of its kind and aims to eventually bring Sydney's landfill waste to zero. As part of the trial residents of the harbor city can opt to have their food waste collected separately and taken to a facility where it will can be converted into high grade compost or energy.

(China Daily 10/27/2017 page12)