World Briefs

CHINA A Tibetan male character from the “Doctor Strange” comic books presented such a political minefield to Marvel that in the film version they cast a Caucasian woman in the role, reflecting the pressures Hollywood movie makers perceive when trying to appeal to the Chinese market.

TAIWAN Scores of Taiwanese fishermen protest outside Japan’s representative office in Taiwan to demand an apology over the seizure of one of their fishing boats by the Japanese coast guard.

NORTH KOREA Facing mounting international pressure over its nuclear and missile ambitions, North Korea has set a date for its biggest political convention in decades next week that is expected to bolster young dictator Kim Jong Un’s grip on power.

THAILAND Animals at Bangkok’s zoo are being fed special frozen fruit pops. People are flocking to shopping malls just to soak up the air-conditioning. Authorities are telling people to stay out of the blazing sun to avoid heat stroke. April is typically hot, but this year’s scorching weather has set a record for the longest heat wave in 65 years.

THAILAND’s military government yesterday turned up the pressure on its opponents, filing a legal complaint against critics of a proposed new constitution and detaining 10 people in connection with social media postings.

AUSTRALIA The fate of hundreds of asylum seekers being held in a detention center in Papua New Guinea is in limbo as the country’s prime minister announces the facility will close in response to a court ruling that Australia’s detention of the men on the island nation is illegal.

MYANMAR Two German tourists and their local guide are recovering from wounds suffered when they accidentally set off a land mine in eastern Myanmar.

CAMBODIA An overloaded truck carrying Cambodian garment workers swerved and flipped over after a tire exploded, leaving 64 passengers injured including several in critical condition.

ABU DHABI Etihad Airways announced profits of USD103 million in 2015 off total revenues of $9.02 billion, marking a fifth year in the black on its strategy of partnering with other carriers. The Abu Dhabi-owned carrier, which is the United Arab Emirates’ national airline, said its continued profitability showed the value of its approach of taking minority equity stakes and codeshares outside of traditional airline alliances.