Reuters, Muzaffarabad
Three people were killed and five wounded on Monday in Indian shelling across the disputed border with Pakistan in the Himalayan region of Kashmir, Pakistani officials said, as tension simmers between the nuclear-armed neighbors. Feelings have run high since July, when Indian security forces killed a young Kashmiri fighter in Indian-administered Kashmir, prompting months of protests and a corresponding security crackdown that has claimed more than 80 lives.
HK backs China bid to bar rebel lawmakers
AFP, Hong Kong
Hong Kong’s leader said on Monday he would “fully implement” a landmark ruling by Beijing which effectively bars two pro-independence lawmakers from the city’s legislature, in a crisis that heightens fears the rule of law is under threat. It is the latest chapter of political turmoil for the semi-autonomous city as fears grow that China is tightening its grip, and comes just over two years since Beijing issued an edict which plunged Hong Kong into months of protests.
Assange to get legal grilling: Sweden
AFP, Ecuador
Julian Assange will be questioned in person next week over longstanding rape accusations, Sweden’s public prosecutor’s office announced Monday, saying an Ecuadorian prosecutor would visit the WikiLeaks founder in the embassy where he has been holed up since 2012. “Ecuador has granted the Swedish request for legal assistance in criminal matters and the hearing will be conducted by an Ecuadorian prosecutor,” the public prosecutor’s office said in a statement.
