Philippine President asks Congress to extend martial law
AP, Manila
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has asked Congress to extend martial law in the southern third of the country until the end of the year because the rebellion there will not be completely quelled by July 22, the end of his 60-day martial law proclamation, his spokesman said Tuesday.
Duterte declared martial law on May 23 following a bloody siege of the southern city of Marawi by Islamic State group-aligned militants, the most serious security crisis he has faced since assuming power in June last year.
Erdogan to visit Qatar, KSA
AFP, Istanbul
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will this month visit Qatar and Saudi Arabia, which are locked in a deep diplomatic crisis, his office announced Tuesday. Erdogan will also visit Kuwait, the main mediator in the Qatar crisis, during his July 23-24 tour.
Turkey is a key ally of Qatar, which has been diplomatically and economically isolated by its Gulf neighbours over allegations it supports terrorism.
Heavy rainfall causes floods in Istanbul
AP, Istanbul
Heavy rainfall has caused floods in Istanbul, inundating roads, underpasses and subway lines and causing havoc in the city.
Several vehicles were stranded in the floodwaters on Tuesday and television footage showed a rescue crew entering an underpass in a rubber boat to help trapped passengers.
The private DHA news agency said people stranded in homes due to flooding in the district of Silivri – one of the worst-hit areas – were also helped out in boats.
Strong quake hits Russia’s Kamchatka area
Reuters, Moscow
A powerful earthquake of magnitude 7.8 off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula triggered a tsunami warning but the threat has now passed, the U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. Pacific Tsunami Center said.
The quake struck at 11:34 a.m. on Tuesday (2334 GMT on Monday) some 125 miles (200 km) from the city of Nikolskoye on Bering island off the Kamchatka Peninsula.
The epicenter was west of Attu, the westernmost and largest island in the Near Islands group of Alaska’s remote Aleutian Islands.
