Protester killed in Baghdad, dozens wounded across Iraq
AFP, Baghdad
An Iraqi protester was killed yesterday in the capital Baghdad and dozens more wounded across the country’s restive south as sit-ins turned violent, medics told AFP. The demonstrator died after being shot by a rubber bullet near Al-Ahrar bridge, which has been sealed off by security forces as it leads to a cluster of government buildings on the west bank of the river Tigris. The area, north of the main protest camp of Tahrir Square, has become a flashpoint, with security forces using volleys of tear gas, rubber bullets and live fire to keep crowds from crossing the bridge.

Soviet woman spy who helped foil attack on Allied leaders dies
AFP, Moscow

Goar Vartanyan, one half of a legendary Soviet spy couple who helped prevent a Nazi assassination of allied leaders in Tehran in 1943, has died at age 93. Goar, who with her husband Gevork worked as a secret agent on numerous missions abroad, died on Monday, Russia’s SVR foreign intelligence service said. She was to be buried at Moscow’s prestigious Troyekurovskoe cemetery, possibly on Friday, SVR spokesman Sergei Ivanov told AFP.

Vietnam jails six on anti-state charges
AFP, Hanoi
Vietnam yesterday jailed six people on various security and anti-state charges in three separate cases, in one of the harshest days of sentencing in the communist country where dissidence is routinely quashed. The one-party state has long jailed its critics, though a hardline leadership in charge since 2016 has ushered in an uptick in arrests and convictions of activists, dissidents and bloggers.

Dead deer found in Thailand with 7kg of plastic in stomach
AFP, Bangkok

A wild deer was found dead after swallowing 7 kilograms (15 pounds) of plastic bags and other trash in Thailand, an official said Tuesday, raising the alarm on waste littering the country’s waters and forests. The Southeast Asian country is one of the world’s largest consumers of plastic, with Thais using up to 3,000 single-use plastic bags each per year, whether for wrapping street food, takeaway coffee or packing groceries.

Georgian police use water cannon on
protesters
AFP, Tbilisi

Police in Georgia used water cannon yesterday to disperse demonstrators who pressed ahead with anti-government rallies despite a new police crackdown and the arrest of protesters. On Monday, up to 20,000 opposition supporters rallied in the Georgian capital Tbilisi, urging the government to resign and calling for new legislative elections.