IN BRIEF (Page 11)

Australia

57 refugees sent to island detention site

Fifty-seven male asylum-seekers deemed to be a security risk will be sent to a remote Pacific island detention center for medical treatment instead of Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Wednesday. Under Canberra's hard-line immigration policy, asylum-seekers trying to reach Australia by sea are intercepted and sent for processing to camps in Papua New Guinea and the tiny South Pacific island of Nauru. The men have been accused of crimes such as sexual assault and posted extremist imagery online, Morrison said. They will be treated at a detention center on Christmas Island, a territory some 1,550 kilometers northwest of the mainland.

Japan

Ghosn leaves prison after 108 days in jail

Ousted Nissan Motor Chairman Carlos Ghosn was released from jail on Wednesday after posting $9 million in bail, giving the executive fresh impetus to craft his defense against financial misconduct charges in Japan. He was wearing a workman's uniform, face mask, blue cap and glasses when he slipped out of the Tokyo Detention House and got into a minicar unrecognized by many of the journalists and TV crews camped outside the facility. The former titan of the global auto industry had been confined to a small, unheated room in the detention center for more than 100 days since he was arrested on Nov 19 on charges Ghosn has described as "meritless".

United Kingdom

Police examine 3 explosive devices

Three small explosive devices in plastic mailing bags arrived at offices for two London airports and at a train station on Tuesday, and Irish police said they were helping British counterterrorism police with the investigation. London's Metropolitan Police Service said the devices found near London's Heathrow and City airports and at Waterloo Station "appear capable of igniting an initially small fire when opened". No person or group claimed responsibility for sending the devices and police said they haven't made any arrests. Train services to City Airport were suspended temporarily and the administrative building was evacuated. Flights were not affected.

Russia

Putin urges protection of military secrets

President Vladimir Putin has urged Russia's top domestic security agency to tighten its protection of information related to new weapons. In a speech on Wednesday before top officials of the Federal Security Service, or FSB, Putin said foreign spies have intensified their efforts to get access to Russia's secrets. The Russian leader noted that the FSB last year exposed 129 foreign intelligence officers and 465 of their agents. He said the FSB should pay particular attention to protecting information related to the development, test and production of new Russian weapons.

Reuters - AP - Xinhua

(China Daily 03/07/2019 page11)