United Kingdom

Parliament OKs gay marriage

British lawmakers have passed a bill legalizing same-sex marriage in England and Wales, with the first gay weddings expected to take place by next summer. In what was largely seen as a formality, members of the House of Commons on Tuesday approved minor amendments made to the legislation, which had cleared the House of Lords a day earlier.

Lebanon

Pro-Assad figure gunned down

Suspected rebel gunmen assassinated a well-known supporter of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Lebanon on Wednesday. Mohammad Darra Jamo, a commentator who worked for Syrian state media and often appeared on Arab TV channels to press Assad's cause, was riddled with bullets by gunmen at home in the town of Sarafand, Lebanese security sources said.

Yemen

Al-Qaida leader killed by drone

Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula on Wednesday confirmed the death of its deputy leader Saeed al-Shehri in a US drone strike, dealing a new blow to the already weakened network's operations in Yemen. Shehri was released from Guantanamo Bay in Cuba in 2007 and was flown to Saudi Arabia, where he was put through a rehabilitation program.

South Sudan

Troops cannot protect civilians

South Sudan's deputy defense chief has said neither his troops nor United Nations peacekeepers are able to protect civilians in conflict-wracked Jonglei, where thousands of rival ethnic militiamen are fighting. Video footage from Jonglei shot by UN officials show columns of heavily armed fighters from the Lou Nuer people marching, while a small force of government troops and UN peacekeepers looked on.

Reuters

(China Daily 07/18/2013 page12)