World briefs

FRANCE A letter exploded yesterday at the French office of the International Monetary Fund, lightly injuring one person, amid heightened security around Europe after a string of deadly attacks. The incident came as a Greek anarchist group claimed responsibility for a failed letter bomb sent to the German Finance Ministry on Wednesday.

TAIWAN is planning to upgrade its F-16 fighter jets and will seek cutting-edge stealth aircraft from the United States in the face of a growing military threat from rival China, the Defense Ministry says.

CHINA Chinese director Jia Zhangke, known for films exploring China’s wrenching social changes, will host his own festival to showcase the work of young directors and movies from developing countries. The Pingyao International Film Festival will be held Oct. 19-26 in the ancient city in the northern province of Shanxi, from where Jia hails.

JAPAN U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson calls on North Korea to abandon its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, saying the isolated nation “need not fear” the United States. Tillerson made the declaration after meeting his Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo.

PHILIPPINES A lawmaker files an impeachment complaint against President Rodrigo Duterte because of the thousands of deaths in his anti-drug crackdown and alleged corruption, although the bid faces an uphill battle with Duterte’s allies holding an overwhelming majority in Congress.

AUSTRALIA A court fines gambling company Tabcorp a record 45 million Australian dollars (USD35 million) for failing to comply with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing obligations.

SOMALIA Britain’s foreign secretary made a surprise visit to Somalia for talks with the country’s new president as a worsening drought threatens millions of people in the Horn of Africa nation. “It is all so, such a shame that you are facing the problems that you are facing, though I think that we are moving fast to try to tackle that this time ‘round,” Boris Johnson told President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed.

UNITED NATIONS The United States will launch a competition in the coming weeks to find projects that will reduce modern slavery, which by one estimate affects nearly 46 million people around the world, U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley announced. She told a U.N. Security Council meeting focusing on the scourge that the initiative will seek to raise USD1.5 billion to help countries break trafficking rings and support survivors.

BIG TOBACCO The governing body of the International Labor Organization, which has taken millions of dollars in funding from Big Tobacco, has shelved a decision about whether to cut ties with the industry. The ILO body voted yesterday to delay until November a decision about whether to join other U.N. agencies that have pledged to fight tobacco-industry influence in policymaking.