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At least 16 people are dead and more than a dozen others trapped after monsoon downpours that have brought death and destruction to south Asia caused a building to collapse in Mumbai.
The four-storey residential building gave way on Thursday morning in the densely populated area of Bhendi Bazaar, after roads were turned into rivers in India’s financial capital, which has been struggling to cope with some of the heaviest rainfall in more than 15 years. Read more HERE
Russia is preparing to mount what could be one of its biggest military exercises since the cold war, a display of power that will be watched warily by Nato against a backdrop of east-west tensions.
Western officials and analysts estimate up to 100,000 military personnel and logistical support could participate in the Zapad (West) 17 exercise, which will take place next month in Belarus, Kaliningrad and Russia itself. Moscow puts the number significantly lower. Read more HERE
Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un have stepped up their rhetoric over North Korea’s nuclear programme, a day after Pyongyang drew int’l condemnation when it launched a mid-range missile over Japan. The US president, who on Tuesday said “all options are on the table” to contain North Korea, tweeted on Wednesday that “talking is not the answer” and said the US had been paying “extortion money” to the regime. The North Korean leader earlier described Tuesday’s missile launch as a “meaningful prelude. Read more HERE.
Police in western Iran have seized 100 carrier pigeons used to smuggle drugs. Anti-narcotics officers seized homing pigeons trained for delivering drugs carried in small blue plastic bags attached to their legs, the Irna state news agency reported. According to Irna, the use of birds to transport recreational substances is unprecedented. A young population and an abundance of cheap, addictive substances, many coming over the border from Afghanistan, pose a twin challenged to Iranian authorities. Read more HERE.
A bribery and cronyism scandal that has already toppled a South Korean president has claimed a major business scalp after a court sentenced Lee Jae-yong, the acting chairman of Samsung, to five years in prison for crimes including offering bribes and perjury.
The billionaire, South Korea’s third-richest man and heir to the sprawling Samsung empire, had been accused of making large donations to foundations run by a close friend... Read more HERE.