South Korea

1 Chinese worker dead in Seoul

The Chinese embassy in South Korea has urged local authorities to properly handle an incident in which one Chinese worker died and two others are still missing. It confirmed on Wednesday that the three men were among six people who went missing at a flooded underground waterworks construction site along the Han River in Seoul. Rescue workers on Wednesday retrieved a body that was later identified as a Chinese worker.

Syria

Clashes claim 29 lives in two days

At least 29 people have been killed in fighting between Kurdish and jihadist fighters in northern Syria in the past two days, a watchdog said on Thursday. "At least 19 Al-Nusra Front (jihadist) fighters and 10 Kurds have been killed since the day before yesterday in clashes in the oil region of Hassakeh," the organization said.

Greece

Greek lobbying criticized

Germany's finance minister told Greeks to stop lobbying for more debt forgiveness during a visit to Athens on Thursday that forced authorities to shut the city center and ban protests against the deeply unpopular champion of austerity. Visiting the country for the first time since its debt problems kindled the eurozone crisis four years ago, Wolfgang Schaeuble's motorcade drove through streets empty except for riot police to meet a packed audience of Greek businessmen.

India

Judges warn of acid sales

India's top court ruled on Thursday that authorities must regulate the sale of acid used in a spate of attacks on women by jilted boyfriends and others. A panel of Supreme Court judges also said that every victim of such an attack must be "rehabilitated and compensated" by their respective state government. In one particularly notorious recent incident, four sisters suffered severe burns after being attacked with acid by two men on a motorbike while they were walking home in northern India last year.

Iraq

Ahmadinejad arrives in capital

Outgoing Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad on an official visit on Thursday to hold talks with the country's leaders, Iraqi television reported. The state-run Al Iraqiya channel showed the outgoing Iranian president being officially received at Baghdad airport by Iraqi Vice-President Khudair al-Khuzaie and top Iraqi officials.

China Daily - Reuters - AP - AFP

(China Daily 07/19/2013 page12)