Reuters, London
British Prime Minister Theresa May’s gamble on a snap election was under question on Thursday after a YouGov opinion poll showed her Conservative party’s lead had fallen to a fresh low of 3 percentage points just a week before voting begins.
A failure to win the June 8 election with a large majority would weaken May just as formal Brexit talks are due to begin while the loss of her majority in parliament would pitch British politics into turmoil.
Japan launches rocket carrying GPS satellite
Reuters, Tokyo
Japan launched a rocket carrying a satellite with a local version of the U.S. global positioning system (GPS) on Thursday, which is expected to increase the precision of location information used in smartphones and car navigation system.
Japan launched an H-2A rocket which carries the satellite called “Michibiki No.2” from a space centre in Tanegashima, southern Japan.
The nation launched the first Michibiki satellite into space in 2010 on a trial basis and it plans to send two more satellites later this year, according to the Cabinet Office.
Bomb threat by passenger disrupts Malaysia Airlines flight
AP, Kuala Lumpur
Passengers and crew on a Malaysia Airlines flight from Melbourne to Kuala Lumpur tackled a fellow passenger who attempted to enter the cockpit shouting he had a bomb, authorities and witnesses said on Thursday. The 25-year-old man, a Sri Lankan national, was tied up with seatbelts and the flight diverted back to Melbourne following the incident shortly after takeoff from Tullamarine Airport late on Wednesday.
20,000 chickens die from bird flu outbreak in China
PTI, Beijing
More than 20,000 chickens have died from a bird flu outbreak at a poultry farm in northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, a media report said today.
The H7N9 bird flu virus spread within a private poultry company, the government of Yuyang district, Yulin city said in a statement, adding that chickens started dying from May 25.
A three-kilometre-radius area has been closed for disinfection, and the area will be closed for 21 days starting from yesterday, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
