Quake-shaken Burmese city cleaning up
BAGAN, Burma — Soldiers and residents of an ancient Burmese city known for its historic Buddhist temples began cleaning up debris Thursday from an earthquake that shook the region and damaged nearly 200 pagodas.
At least four people were killed and at least 171 pagodas were damaged in Bagan when a magnitude-6.8 quake struck Wednesday. The tremor was centered about 15 miles west of Chauk, just south of Bagan.
The city is one of Burma’s top tourist attractions, drawing visitors from all over the world who can view a panorama of temples stretching to the horizon flanked by the Irrawaddy River.
Burmese President Htin Kyaw arrived Thursday in Bagan to assess the damage and speak with officials about how to repair it.
The city has more than 2,200 structures, including pagodas and temples, constructed in the 10th to 14th centuries. Many are in disrepair while others have been restored in recent years, aided by the U.N. cultural agency UNESCO.
Iran boat nearing, U.S. ship fires 3 times
A U.S. Navy ship fired three warning shots in the direction of an Iranian boat that was approaching another U.S. ship head-on in the North Arabian Gulf on Wednesday, officials said.
According to a U.S. official, the Iranian boat moved within 200 yards of the USS Tempest and ignored several bridge-to-bridge radio calls and warning flares. It finally turned away after the USS Squall, which was with the Tempest, fired three warning shots.
The incident was one of three encounters that U.S. ships had with Iranian Revolutionary Guard boats in the Persian Gulf on Wednesday.
The same Iranian boat that barreled toward the USS Tempest also crossed in front of the USS Stout three times at high speed in the same region. The U.S. official called it an unsafe intercept, and said the USS Stout, a guided-missile destroyer, had to maneuver to avoid a collision.
In the third encounter, three Iranian boats crossed in front of the USS Tempest at high speed, moving within 600 yards of the ship. The Tempest and the Squall are patrol ships.
Iran’s defense minister said Thursday that his naval forces will warn or confront any foreign ship.
Bolivian official slain by striking miners
LA PAZ, Bolivia — Striking miners in Bolivia kidnapped and beat to death the country’s deputy interior minister after he traveled to the area to mediate in the bitter conflict over mining laws, officials said late Thursday.
Government Minister Carlos Romero called it a “cowardly and brutal killing” and asked that the miners turn over the body of Rodolfo Illanes, vice minister of the interior regime.
Romero said earlier that Illanes had been kidnapped and possibly tortured, and media reports that he had been killed by the miners had not been confirmed.
But late Thursday Romero and Defense Minister Reymi Ferreira said the vice minister of the interior regime had been beaten to death by the miners, who are demanding more rights, including the right to associate with private companies.
Illanes had gone to Panduro, a town 80 miles south of La Paz, where the strikers have blockaded a highway since Monday, to open a dialogue. Thousands of passengers and vehicles are stranded on roads blocked by the strikers.
Russia calls military drills; Poland wary
MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin announced snap military drills on land and in the Black and Caspian seas, the defense ministry said Thursday.
The drills began at 7 a.m. Moscow time in Russia’s southern, western and central military districts where troops have been put on combat alert, the ministry said in a statement. Russian television led its news bulletins with images of heavy weaponry and tanks on the move and troops in full combat gear running to grab weapons.
In neighboring Poland, which has been wary of Russia’s actions, the defense ministry said Minister Antoni Macierewicz ordered a briefing of the heads of the armed forces’ Operational Command, Military Intelligence and Military Counterintelligence. The timing of the briefing was not revealed.