World briefs

SOUTH CHINA SEA The Philippines has expressed concern to China over an increasing number of Chinese radio messages warning Philippine aircraft and ships to stay away from newly fortified islands and other territories in the South China Sea claimed by both countries.

CAMBODIA The ruling party of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen congratulated itself yesterday on its election victory, while the opposition party unable to contest the polls said they marked the death of democracy in the Southeast Asian country.

INDONESIA Hundreds of tourists stranded on Mount Rinjani on the Indonesian island of Lombok by an earthquake that killed 16 people and triggered landslides are making their way off the mountain, shaken by their experience but mostly unharmed, an official said yesterday. 

MYANMAR One of two Reuters journalists charged with possessing official information testified yesterday that he knew nothing about documents that police allegedly found on his phone and had no idea where they came from.

AUSTRALIA-EAST TIMOR Australia’s foreign minister was visiting East Timor yesterday to repair bilateral tries after a bitter dispute over energy revenue and spying allegations.

INDIA yesterday released a final draft of a list of its citizens in the northeastern state of Assam, leaving some 4 million people on edge to prove their Indian nationality.

SYRIA Government forces pressed ahead with their offensive in the country’s south yesterday despite threats by the Islamic State group to kill civilians it recently captured there.

SWEDEN Foreign firefighters who helped their Swedish colleagues with raging wildfires in the past weeks have begun returning home as the fires die down, emergency authorities in Sweden said yesterday.

US-NICARAGUA The White House is condemning months of violent conflict in Nicaragua that has left hundreds dead. A spokesperson said that President Daniel Ortega and his vice president are “ultimately responsible for the pro-government parapolice that have brutalized their own people.”

MEXICO Police and soldiers have arrested a suspect in the disappearance of three Italian men in the western state of Michoacan.