transfer stalls
AP, Beirut
Activists and residents say thousands of Syrians evacuated from their besieged towns have spent the night on buses at an exchange point as a much criticized population transfer deal stalls. Ahmed Afandar, a resident evacuated from his hometown near Madaya, says dozens of buses carrying children, women and men are not allowed to proceed toward rebel-held Idlib as planned. He said it is not clear what hinders the completion of the evacuation.
Lanka rubbish dump landslide death toll rises to 16
Reuters, Colombo
A rubbish dump landslide in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo killed at least 16 and injured over a dozen, military spokesman and hospital officials said on Saturday, as emergency workers dug into the mountain of trash in search of survivors. The estimated 300-foot (91 meter) dump collapsed after flames engulfed it late on Friday, the island nation’s traditional new year’s day, and witnesses said around 100 houses could have been buried.
Pakistan army foils major
terrorist attack
AP, Islamabad
Pakistan’s military says security forces foiled a “major terrorist attack” on minority Christians when they killed a militant and detained his associate in the eastern city of Lahore. It was unclear which militant group wanted to target Easter Sunday in Lahore, where more than 70 people were killed in a 2016 suicide bombing at a park, which was crowded with Christians and Muslims at the time.
Violence flares at Australian refugee facility
Reuters, Sydney
Violence has flared at an Australian asylum-seeker detention center in Papua New Guinea (PNG), and shots were fired when local people tried to break into the center after an argument got out of hand, media and a rights group reported on Saturday.
There were no reports of serious injuries at the center on Manus island but the trouble is likely to add to pressure on Australia from rights groups and the United Nations to close it and another center in Nauru, criticized over poor conditions.
