AFP, Paris
France was on edge Saturday on the eve of its most unpredictable presidential election in decades, which will take place under heightened security after the jihadist killing of a policeman. The Islamic State-claimed slaying of the officer on Paris’ Champs Elysees avenue thrust questions of security to the fore of campaigning after nine months of relative calm.
20 children killed in South Africa bus crash
AFP, Johannesburg
At least 20 children were killed in a bus crash outside the South African capital Pretoria on Friday, emergency services said, as paramedics treated the injured at the scene. The minibus collided with a truck on a road between the towns of Bronkhorstspruit and Verena, about 70 kilometres (45 miles) from Pretoria.
“It is confirmed 20 children have been killed,” Russel Meiring, spokesman for the ER24 emergency medical service, told AFP.
Wildfire threatens 2,000 homes in Florida
Reuters, Folorida
A wildfire in southwest Florida triggered evacuation orders for about 2,000 homes on Friday, prompting the governor to deploy National Guard troops to help residents fleeing the flames. The wildfire has charred about 4,800 acres (1,942 hectares) in Collier County and forced residents to evacuate their houses in the Golden Gate Estates area of Naples, Clark Ryals, a senior forester for the Florida Forest Service, said by telephone. The blaze was only 10 percent contained.
Panama Papers law firm partners get bail
AFP, Panama City
The partners of the law firm at the heart of the Panama Papers scandal were given bail pending further legal action over allegations they helped launder money related to a huge Brazilian bribery case.
Juergen Mossack and Ramon Fonseca were freed on bail of $500,000 each, their lawyer, Marlene Guerra, told AFP.
They had been detained since February 9 in relation to an investigation over the money-laundering allegations tied to the bribery affair in Brazil, known as the “Car Wash” case..
