UNITED KINGDOM

Interviewer David Frost dies

British journalist David Frost, best known for interviewing former US president Richard Nixon, died of a heart attack on Saturday at the age of 74, the BBC said on Sunday. Frost is most famous for a 1977 interview during which Nixon apologized for the Watergate scandal - when his Republican party staff bugged the opposition Democrats' offices.

INDIA

Outrage over rape sentence

India's opposition said on Sunday it would seek tougher punishments for juveniles after the first verdict in the New Delhi gang-rape case saw a teenager sentenced to three years' detention, sparking widespread anger. The rape and murder of a 23-year-old student by six attackers on a moving bus in December sparked nationwide protests and led to reforms that mandated longer sentences for adult sex offenders.

AUSTRALIA

Divers recover bombs from reef

A joint Australian-US Navy dive team recovered bombs dropped by US forces on the Great Barrier Reef during a training exercise in a delicate deep-sea operation. The divers attached balloons to pull the two unarmed GBU-12 laser guided bombs to the surface in a two-day deepwater operation involving strong tides.

GERMANY

Former Nazi officer faces trial

A 92-year-old former SS officer will appear in court on Monday in one of the last trials of its kind in Germany, accused of the murder of a Dutch resistance fighter in 1944. Nearly 70 years after the incident, Siert Bruins, a Dutch-born German national, will take the stand in the western German town of Hagen.

EGYPT

Ship attack fails in Suez Canal

A container ship in the Suez Canal was the target of a failed "terrorist" attack on Saturday aimed at disrupting traffic through the key waterway, the head of the Suez Canal Authority said. Admiral Mohab Mamish confirmed that "a terrorist" had launched the attack against a Panamanian-flagged ship, adding in a statement that "the attempt failed completely and there was no damage to the ship or the containers it carried".

UNITED STATES

Wildfire smoke hits Yosemite

Dense smoke from a wildfire burning in and around Yosemite National Park on Saturday hampered both suppression efforts and the prized views sought by holiday weekend tourists. For the first time since the blaze broke out in a neighboring forest two weeks ago, smoke obscured Yosemite Valley, home to the California park's most popular landmarks, spokeswoman Kari Cobb said.

Reuters-AFP

(China Daily 09/02/2013 page11)