World briefs

SOUTH EAST ASIA Jihadis who fought by the hundreds for the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria now have a different battle closer to home in the southern Philippines. It’s a scenario raising significant alarm in Washington, where lawmakers want a bigger U.S. role, short of boots on the ground. They fear the area is becoming a new hub for Islamist fighters from Southeast Asia and beyond.

PHILIPPINES The government said yesterday that it would suspend offensives against communist guerrillas, aiming to foster talks for a cease-fire accord and a peace pact with New People’s Army rebels.

THAILAND The head of Thailand’s military government has used his special powers to cut through regulations and launch work on a much-delayed 179 billion baht (USD5.27 billion) joint Thai-Chinese project for a new railway from Bangkok to the northeast. 

VANUATU President Baldwin Lonsdale, who had been the leader of the archipelago-nation since 2014, has died after a sudden heart attack at the age of 67.

INDIA Six police were killed Friday when rebels fighting against Indian rule ambushed a police vehicle in Indian-controlled Kashmir, while two civilians were killed and several others injured in clashes that erupted during a gunbattle between rebels and government forces in the disputed region.

TURKEY A prosecutor says 731 soldiers at a western base were sent to the hospital with food poisoning and 21 people from the company that provided the food have been detained.

ROMANIA’s ruling party submitted a no-confidence vote against its own government yesterday after it withdrew its support for the prime minister.

GERMANY The head of the European Commission says he wants an official commemoration of former Chancellor Helmut Kohl, the leader responsible for Germany’s reunification, who died on Friday at his home in Ludwigshafen.

CUBA President Donald Trump’s announcement of a tougher line toward Cuba has delighted hardliners on the island, who say it reveals the long-held U.S. aim of imposing American will on Cuba and justifies their wariness toward Washington. The president’s speech to Cuban exiles in Miami has also dismayed moderates who were working with pro-engagement Americans. 

BRAZIL Embattled President Michel Temer exchanged furious denunciations of corruption Saturday with meatpacking billionaire Joesley Batistawho – himself under investigation for fraud – over bribes paid to politicians in exchange for political favors.