A round-up of today's other world news in brief...
French forces intercept 11 Somali pirates
PARIS – France intercepted 11 suspected Somali pirates yesterday after they mistook a French naval ship for a commercial vessel and started heading towards it in preparation for an attack, a defence ministry spokesman said.
Somali pirates have stepped up their attacks on vessels in Indian Ocean shipping lanes and the Gulf of Aden, capturing dozens of vessels, kidnapping hundreds of hostages and raking in millions of dollars in ransoms. – (Reuters)
Two women found dead at hotel
LONDON – British police said they had evacuated a London hotel after the bodies of two women were found inside in what firefighters said was a “chemical incident”.
Officers were called to the Costello Palace Hotel in the Finsbury area of London yesterday morning after the two bodies were discovered.
“The bodies remain at the scene. We await confirmation regarding the cause of death,” police said. – (Reuters)
Sunni militia leader arrested
TIKRIT – Iraqi forces backed by US troops have arrested a US-allied Sunni Arab militia leader, Iraqi and US officials said yesterday.
The US military said Nadhim al-Jubouri, leader of a government-backed local militia and a religious leader in the town of Dhuluiya, 70km north of Baghdad, and his two brothers were seized on Saturday. – (Reuters)
Girl dies as Italian troops fire on car
HERAT – Italian troops fired on a passenger car in western Afghanistan yesterday, killing a 12-year-old Afghan girl and wounding three members of her family, the family said.
A spokesman for the Italian contingent in Afghanistan said the girl was in a car that was driving at high speed and had ignored warning signs.
“Given that the car continued racing, despite the signals and warning shots, the soldiers opened fire,” said the spokesman. – (Reuters)