World briefs

UNITED NATIONS Portugal’s Antonio Guterres, who was formally approved yesterday to be the next U.N. secretary-general, said he faces “huge challenges” and hopes to see unity and consensus during his term. Guterres was approved by acclamation. The Security Council’s recommendation now goes to the U.N.’s 193-member General Assembly, which is expected to vote on Ban Ki-moon’s successor next week. More on p14

EAST TIMOR Two East Timorese journalists are going on trial in a criminal defamation case brought by the country’s prime minister that has alarmed press freedom groups. Raimundos Oki and his former boss Lourenco Vicente Martins are charged with “slanderous denunciation” and face up to three years in prison if found guilty. The trial is set to begin today. Rights groups have urged that the case be dropped.
THAILAND Buddhist monks, survivors, mourners and activists mark the 40th anniversary of one of the darkest days in Thailand’s history, when police killed scores of university students at a peaceful protest, and vigilantes defiled the dead.

PHILIPPINES  An independent poll shows that more than three-quarters of Filipinos are satisfied with President Rodrigo Duterte, even though he is under fire internationally for his deadly crackdown on suspected drug dealers and users.

MYANMAR  A court sentences a Dutch citizen to three months in prison for interfering with a religious observance by unplugging an amplifier blasting a late-night Buddhist sermon near his hotel.

INDIA-US Indian police arrest 70 people and question hundreds more after uncovering a massive scam to cheat thousands of Americans out of millions of dollars by posing as U.S. tax authorities and demanding unpaid taxes.

TURKEY A bomb placed on a motorcycle exploded yesterday near a police station in Istanbul, wounding at least 10 civilians. Vasip Sahin, the governor for Istanbul, told reporters at the scene in the Yenibosna district that none of the injured was in serious condition. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast, which could be heard from the city’s nearby Ataturk Airport.

GERMANY  A court has convicted four men who procured tens of thousands of euros (dollars) worth of supplies for the ultraconservative Ahrar al-Sham group in Syria of supporting a terrorist organization.