Major fire kills 7 in India’s Mumbai

A woman reacts to a massive fire that broke out at a residential building in Mumbai, India, on Saturday. Seven people died and several others were injured during the fire. Television footage showed plumes of smoke from the 18th floor of the 20-story building. Though the reason for the fire is yet to be ascertained, officials said it appeared that some cables in the building’s electric duct melted after a short circuit.Xinhua

Assange wins 1st stage to appeal extradition case

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange on Monday won the first stage of his effort to appeal a U.K. ruling that opened the door for his extradition to U.S. to stand trial on espionage charges.

The High Court in London gave Assange permission to appeal the case to the U.K. Supreme Court. But the Supreme Court must agree to accept the case before it can move forward.

The decision is the latest step in Assange’s long battle to avoid trial on a series of charges related to WikiLeaks’ publication of classified documents more than a decade ago.

Just over a year ago, a district court judge in London rejected a U.S. extradition request on the grounds that Assange was likely to kill himself if held under harsh U.S. prison conditions.

Armenia’s president

resigns

The president of Armenia has announced his resignation, complaining that his office is not granted sufficient powers to allow him to be an effective head of state.

Armen Sarkissian was chosen as president by the national parliament in 2018 as Armenia was transitioning from a presidential system of government to a parliamentary one. He was recommended for the job by outgoing President Serzh Sargsyan.

In his resignation statement on Sunday, Sarkissian said when he decided to take the post, “I was relying on the proposal made to me, according to which the new presidential institution will have tools, opportunities to influence foreign policy, economic, investment policy.”

17 dead in nightclub fire in Cameroon’s capital

A fire erupted at a popular nightclub in the Cameroon capital of Yaounde, setting off explosions that killed at least 17 people and seriously injured seven others, government officials said on Sunday.

The tragedy comes as the central African country hosts thousands of soccer players, fans and officials from across the continent for the month-long African Cup of Nations soccer tournament.

It was not immediately clear what had sparked the fire at Livs Nightclub in the capital’s Bastos neighborhood. Workers there initially said it was caused by a short circuit. However, a government statement later on Sunday suggested that fireworks had ignited the building’s roof, and then the fire spread to areas where cooking gas was stored.

Death toll from Yemen prison airstrike hits 82

The death toll from a Saudi-led coalition airstrike that hit a prison run by Yemen’s Houthi rebels has climbed to at least 82 detainees, the rebels and an aid group said on Saturday.

Internet access in the Arab world’s poorest country meanwhile remained largely down as the coalition continued airstrikes on the rebel-held capital, Sanaa, and elsewhere.

The airstrike in the northern Saada province on Friday was part of an intense air and ground offensive that marked an escalation in Yemen’s civil war.

Extremists abduct 17 girls in northeast Nigeria

Islamic extremists have abducted 17 girls in northeast Nigeria, witnesses said on Saturday as the West African nation’s military said it “remains resolute in decisively countering the terrorists.”

Members of the Boko Haram jihadi group attacked Pemi, a village in the Chibok local government area of Borno state, on Thursday, two residents said. The state is where Boko Haram’s decade-long insurgency against the Nigeria Government has been concentrated.

In a statement on Friday, the Islamic State group also claimed responsibility for killing “many Christians” and setting fire to two churches and several houses during an attack on the Borno town of Bimi.

(SD-Agencies)