Thai "Red shirts" rally in Bangkok to mark 80 years of democracy
A 35,000 strong Thai “red shirt” rally is taking place in central Bangkok to mark 80 years of democracy in the country, local police say. The demonstration comes amid renewed political tensions in the troubled kingdom. The country has been rife with political tensions since Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was ousted by royalist generals in a 2006 coup. Mass protests by the Red Shirts in April and May 2010 triggered a military crackdown that left more than 90 people dead in the country's worst civil unrest in decades.
76 Buddhist monks hospitalized after bee swarm attack
Seventy six novice Buddhist monks in Thailand have been hospitalized after being attacked by a huge swarm of bees. Six of the monks being treated are in a coma, and 19 more are in critical condition, local media reports. The abbot of the temple where the monks reside said the bees came from their own hives and had never been so aggressive.
Tymoshenko excused from attending trial by doctors
Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who is currently on trial for tax evasion and fraud, will not be attending the opening session due to ill health. The German medics attending to the already jailed politician have recommended she refrain from movement. The penitentiary where she is currently incarcerated has confirmed they will not be transporting Tymoshenko to the courthouse. She is currently serving 7 years for abuse of power.
Turkey reports air raids on Kurds in Iraq
Turkey’s Air Force carried out air strikes on nine Kurdish militant targets in northern Iraq from June 22-24, its military said in a statement. Most of the targets were in the Qandil region of Iraqi Kurdistan.
Turkish jet wreckage reportedly found
Rescuers have located the wreckage of the Turkish jet that was downed by Syrian air defense forces after entering Syrian airspace on Friday, Turkish TV reports.
NATO to discuss Turkish jet incident on Tuesday
NATO member state envoys are too meet on Tuesday to consult with Turkey over the downing of its reconnaissance jet by Syria.
Turkish plane downed by Syria was conducting test-flight
The jet downed by the Syrian military after apparently violating Syrian air space was testing a domestic radar system and had no connection to the crisis in Syria, the Turkish foreign minister said. The military plane was shot down on Friday over Syrian territorial waters. The aircraft’s two pilots are still missing.
China’s submersible "Jiaolong" reaches record 7,015 meters into Mariana Trench
China's manned submersible the “Jiaolong”, named after a mythical sea dragon, succeeded in diving 7,015 meters below sea level on Sunday morning during its fourth dive into the Mariana Trench. Three Chinese oceanauts sent greetings from the sea floor to the three astronauts who performed their first-ever manual space docking. The oceanauts had succeeded in reaching the depths of 6,671, 6,965 and 6,963 meters in their previous three dives from June 15 to 22.
China performs first-ever manual space docking
The Chinese space capsule Shenzhou 9 has finished manually docking with the orbiting module Tiangong 1 in a new breakthrough for the country’s space program.
Minor earthquake strikes off Japan coast
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake has struck off the eastern coast of Japan, the US Geological Survey reports. There have been no reports of injuries, damage or tsunamis. Japan is located in a zone of heightened seismic activity and experiences tremors at a regular interval. In March 2011, an earthquake-generated tsunami killed over 15,000 people and crippled the Fukushima Daichi nuclear plant by disabling its cooling systems.
Air India pilots go on hunger strike
Air India pilots, who have been on strike since May 7, have now decided to go on hunger strike, the Times of India reports. In Delhi, eight pilots are going on hunger strike starting Sunday. Their colleagues in Mumbai will join them on Monday. About 400 members of the Indian Pilots' Guild went on strike to protest management’s decision to cross-utilize crews and train them to fly on both Boeings and Airbuses. IPG says the move will damage their career progression. Since the beginning of the strike, Air India has already fired over 100 pilots and hired new ones.
NYC police arrest triple murder suspect
New York City police have arrested Roberto Nunez, the suspect in the murder of three men in a car parked next to Columbia University on June 7. Investigators were able to identify the man by conducting a DNA analysis of a blood-stained shirt left close to the murder scene, as well as reviewing video footage of the murder suspect walking away from the car on the day of the deadly shootings. The slain men were supposedly involved in the drug trade and stole narcotics from drug dealers, causing the latter to retaliate.
Bolivia deploys troops to major cities over coup fears
Bolivia has deployed troops to its major cities over fears that striking police officers may be trying to organize a coup. The government says the strikers have been stockpiling weapons and sending them to other police units. The police strike over low wages began on Thursday, with a group of officers vandalizing the headquarters of police intelligence in the city of La Paz. The protests spread on Friday, with a group of strikers attacking a police building and some 4,000 officers occupying barracks.
Eleven Taliban militants killed, 51 captured in Afghanistan
Eleven Taliban militants have been killed and 51 captured during a 24-hour-long cleanup operation across the country, the Afghan Interior Ministry said. A joint operation of Afghan security forces backed by US troops was conducted in Kabul, Nangarhar, Baghlan, Balkh, Kandahar, Helmand, Zabul, Khost, Paktia, and Ghazni provinces. The Taliban announced earlier that starting on May 3 it was beginning its annual spring offensive in Afghanistan, threatening to attack “foreign invaders, their advisors, their contractors, all those who help them militarily and in intelligence.”
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