World briefs

FRANCE At least three small civilian drones flew over iconic landmarks in Paris in the early hours yesterday for a second night, local media reported. Citing its own sources, the local broadcaster Europe1 said the drones were spotted over La Place de La Concorde. Police had already been investigating who was behind some five separate drone flights over emblematic places including the Eiffel Tower, the Place de la Concorde, the Invalides military museum and the American Embassy the previous night.

CHINA’s manufacturing activity edged up to a four-month high in February although export orders decreased for the first time in nearly a year, in the latest sign of uncertainty for the world’s No. 2 economy, according to a private survey.

SOUTH KOREA A gunman shoots and kills three people in a Sejong City convenience store that he then sets on fire before fleeing, South Korean police say. The suspect is later found dead with a gunshot wound in his head in an apparent suicide.

MALAYSIA The family of jailed Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim seeks a royal pardon in a last-ditch effort to try free him from a sodomy conviction.

AUSTRALIA-EGYPT Australia imposes financial sanctions on the Egypt-based militant group Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis.

JAPAN A panel of experts appointed by Japan’s prime minister met for the first time yesterday to discuss what he should say in a statement marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, fueling speculation that he may water down previous government apologies for the country’s wartime past.

BANGLADESH A court in Bangladesh issued an arrest warrant Wednesday for former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia after she failed to appear in court for the fourth time in two corruption cases against her.

AFGHANISTAN Avalanches caused by a heavy winter snow killed at least 108 people in northeastern Afghanistan, an emergency official said yesterday, as rescuers clawed through debris with their hands to save those buried beneath.

USA For the first time, a study shows that a drug used to treat HIV infection also can help prevent it when taken before and after risky sex by gay men.

GERMANY An 18-month-old boy dies of measles in Berlin, the first known fatality in an outbreak of the disease that has seen more than 570 cases in the city since October.

UK Britain has become the first country in the world to allow the creation of human embryos from the DNA of three people, a technique intended to help mothers avoid passing on genetically degenerative diseases to their babies. The bill granting the controversial techniques was passed Tuesday by the House of Lords, after being approved earlier this month by the House of Commons.