Beijing under lockdown for overnight army parade rehearsal
AFP, Beijing
The centre of Beijing was under lockdown early Sunday for a nighttime parade rehearsal by the Chinese military which is preparing for October 1 ceremonies to mark Communist China’s 70th anniversary.
The enormous Avenue of Eternal Peace, which leads to Tiananmen Square and runs east-west, was closed to traffic for about a dozen kilometres (seven miles) to allow troops to parade around Tiananmen Square, the symbolic heart of Chinese power.
Six journalists abducted in war-ravaged Afghanistan
AFP, Kabul
The Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan have abducted six local journalists from the country’s southeastern Paktia province, officials and local media confirmed on Saturday.
Abdullah Hasrat, spokesman for the provincial governor, told Anadolu Agency that the incident took place in the restive Zurmat district when a group of young journalists from neighboring Paktika province were on their way to attend a training session.
Typhoon kills 5 in North Korea, 3 in South Korea
AP, Seoul
One of the most powerful typhoons to ever hit the Korean Peninsula has left five people dead and three injured in North Korea, state media reported Sunday, in its first public announcement of casualties since the storm made landfall in the country a day earlier.
Before reaching North Korea, Typhoon Lingling hit South Korea, killing three people and injuring 13 others, though the country appears to have escaped widespread damage.
Tokyo braces for direct hit from typhoon Faxai
AFP, Tokyo
A strong typhoon that could bring “historic” winds and rain was poised to make a direct hit on Tokyo later Sunday, as authorities warned of high waves, landslides and flooding. Typhoon Faxai, packing winds of up to 216 kilometres (134 miles) per hour, is forecast to reach coastal areas near Tokyo in the late hours of Sunday into Monday morning, Japan’s meteorological agency said. “Please be on full alert against gusts and high waves and be vigilant about landslides, floods and swollen rivers,” the agency said in a statement.
Atomic watchdog chief in Iran for high-level talks
AFP, Tehran
The acting head of the UN atomic watchdog, Cornel Feruta, arrived in Tehran on Sunday for high-level talks with Iranian officials, the semi-official ISNA news agency reported. The International Atomic Energy Agency official’s visit comes a day after Iran announced its latest step in reducing its commitments to a 2015 nuclear deal.
The Romanian diplomat was to meet Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation chief Ali Akbar Salehi, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, and Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, ISNA said.
