World briefs

CHINA A father and daughter are executed for attacking and killing a woman who had refused to join their outlawed religious group during an altercation at a McDonald’s outlet.

AFGHANISTAN Taliban insurgents, some likely wearing police uniforms, attack checkpoints in Afghanistan, killing at least nine officers, authorities say.

PAKISTAN When Pakistani Taliban militants stormed a Peshawar school and massacred 150 children and teachers, nobody could fight back. Shabnam Tabinda and some of her fellow teachers want to change that — and are practicing how to shoot terrorists.

THAILAND Police investigate a pair of bombings outside a luxury shopping mall in the heart of Bangkok, the first such violence reported in the capital since last year’s army coup. One person was slightly injured in the blasts Sunday night, and police said the small homemade bombs were designed to sow panic, not kill.

THAILAND A massive fire that engulfed a tire plant in Thailand’s eastern industrial estate caused about USD40 million in losses for one of China’s largest tire exporters, officials says. The fire destroyed six out of 15 warehouses in the Linglong International Tire compound.

AUSTRALIA Prime Minister Tony Abbott, facing down a revolt from within his own government ranks, promises he will never again choose who gets an Australian knighthood and officially ditches his unpopular parental leave policy.

INDONESIA An Indonesian court decides to go ahead with the trials of an American couple charged with murdering the woman’s mother while vacationing on the resort island of Bali last year. The three-judge panel overruled defense arguments that the indictment submitted by prosecutors had inaccuracies and should be annulled.

USA President Barack is sending Congress a USD4 trillion budget that seeks to raise taxes on wealthier Americans and corporations and use the extra income to lift the fortunes of American families who have felt squeezed during tough economic times. He would also ease tight budget constraints imposed on the military and domestic programs.

USA A Super Bowl that got off to a slow start wound up with a “Whoa!” finish, a lot like the New England Patriots’ entire season. Patriots quarterback Tom Brady threw two of his four touchdown passes in the final quarter to erase a double-digit deficit, rookie Malcolm Butler picked off Russell Wilson’s short throw while Marshawn Lynch watched, and the Patriots ended a decade drought without an NFL title by beating the defending champion Seattle Seahawks 28-24 in a taut classic Sunday night (yesterday morning).

BELGIAN police have evacuated hundreds of people from the European Parliament after a suspicious vehicle was spotted nearby. Parliament spokesman Jaume Duch Guillot said yesterday that “police evacuated three of the parliament’s buildings” in Brussels and cordoned off a suspicious car. Belgian media showed a photograph of a police robot moving toward a vehicle in a nearby street. Duch Guillot said about 500 people were evacuated but two of the three buildings, used only for administrative purposes, have since been declared safe.