Russia probe
Reuters, Washington
U.S. President Donald Trump again laced into Jeff Sessions, his attorney general, on Saturday after Sessions defended himself from the president’s scathing criticism over his recusal from a probe into Russia’s alleged interference in the 2016 election.
In a rare rebuttal to Trump, Sessions said on Thursday that he “took control of the Department of Justice” the day he became attorney general, and that “the actions of the Department of Justice will not be improperly influenced by political considerations.”
Two dead, 241 injured in Iran quake
AFP, Tehran
A strong 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck western Iran near the border with Iraq early Sunday, killing two people and injuring more than 200, officials said. The shallow quake hit 26 kilometres (16 miles) southwest of the city of Javanrud in Kermanshah province, the US Geological Survey said, near the site of a powerful quake last year that killed hundreds.
Flood toll in Kerala rises to 445
AFP, Kochi
The death toll from devastating floods in the southern Indian state of Kerala rose to 445 Sunday with the discovery of 28 more bodies as the waters recede and a massive cleanup gathers pace, government officials said. Around a million people are still packed into temporary relief camps and 15 are reported missing even as the government mounts an operation to clean homes and public places that have been filled with dirt and sand left by the floods.
Abstract artist Manev dies at 78
AFP, Sofia
French-Bulgarian artist Nicolas Manev, who worked in France for 50 years, died Saturday in Paris at the age of 78, his family told the Bulgarian BTA news agency. Manev was hospitalised on Thursday after suffering a cerebral haemorrhage. His funeral will be held in Bulgaria, his son Alexandre Manev told BTA.
Bus accident kills 15 in Bulgaria
Xinhua, Sofia
At least 15 people were killed and 27 others were injured in a bus accident on Saturday in Bulgaria, the country’s Minister of Health Kiril Ananiev told reporters.
According to the Interior Ministry, the accident took place around 5:10 p.m. (1510 GMT) local time in the Iskar Gorge near the town of Svoge, some 40 km north of Sofia, when the bus overturned off the road. The cause of the incident is under investigation.
Girl sexually assaulted in UP
PTI, Uttar Pradesh:
A Class 11 student was allegedly beaten up and sexually assaulted by a youth in Shamli district in Uttar Pradesh, yesterday. The accused was arrested after the incident was reported, the police said. According to the complaint lodged by the girl’s family, the incident took place when the girl was on her way to school, they said.
