World briefs

CHINA The U.N. counterterrorism chief visited Xinjiang last week despite protests from the U.S. and a rights group that the trip would be inappropriate in light of the human rights conditions in China’s far west region. More on p11

INDIA’s recent national election delivered a historic victory to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist party, but also exposed the influence of money, power and questionable morality on the world’s largest democracy.

ISRAEL A Jerusalem magistrate court yesterday sentenced Sara Netanyahu, the wife of Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to pay a fine of more than USD15,000 for misusing state funds.

PAKISTAN A rights group has urged the Pakistani government not to execute a prisoner with “clear symptoms of mental illness” scheduled to be hanged in two days

TURKEY Passengers on a Turkish Airlines jetliner flying to Sudan had to subdue a man who started screaming a few minutes after takeoff and began smashing an oxygen mask box and then a cabin window before pushing flight attendants aside and rushing toward the cockpit.

UAE Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said in remarks published yesterday that the kingdom will not hesitate to confront threats to its security and joined the U.S. in accusing its bitter rival Iran of being behind the attacks on two vessels traveling near the Strait of Hormuz, a vital trade route for Arabian energy exports in Asia.

SOMALIA A pair of explosions rocked Somalia’s capital and left 11 people dead, the country’s police chief said Saturday, as the al-Qaida-linked extremist group al-Shabab claimed responsibility.

ITALY Pope Francis donned a white firefighter’s safety helmet yesterday to enter a damaged cathedral during a visit to central Italy, where he gave encouragement to people still struggling three years after devastating earthquakes struck.

UK Candidates seeking to beat favorite Boris Johnson and become Britain’s next prime minister warned yesterday that the Conservative Party needs a real leadership contest, not just a coronation for the flamboyant front-runner.

US Some Alabama sex offenders who abuse young children will have to undergo “chemical castration” while on parole, under a new law, but the requirement has prompted legal concerns and it appears to be rarely used in some states that allow it.