ASIA
China- As a part of a maritime “maritime operation ,” the United States has deployed the aircraft carrier, USS Carl Vinson, in the waters of the South China Sea. A statement issued by the Navy confirmed that the Vinson is guiding the missile destroyer USS Wayne E. Meyer and carries a flight group of more than 60 aircrafts, including F/A-18 jet fighters.
The Trump Administration is set on taking a more confrontational stance towards China in comparison to President Barack Obama’s.The deployment of the aircraft carrier comes amid the growing tensions over territory and trade.
The new Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, said in his confirmation hearing that China should be blocked from accessing its artificial islands, thus foreshadowing a potential showdown.
Malaysia- North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s half-brother Kim Jong Nam, died last Monday while on his way to catch a flight to the Chinese territory of Macau from Kuala Lumpur. Speculations are that he died from poisoning and Malaysia has asked Interpol to put out an alert for four missing North Korean suspects. North Korea has strongly denied any involvement in Kim’s death in an article published in the country’s state media, Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), on Thursday. North Korean leaders believe that the responsibility of Kim’s death lays with the Malaysian government as it happened in their territory, and that Malaysia is not investigating with proper seriousness.
EUROPE
United Kingdom- A dredger spotted an unexploded World War II-era German bomb at the bottom of Portsmouth harbor early Wednesday morning. It contained 290 pounds of explosives, and according to Capt. Roger Readwin of the Royal Navy, it was still dangerous even after sitting at the seabed for so many decades. The harbor is in process of being upgraded, and the dredger was digging up the harbor mud when the bomb struck its shovel.
Fortunately, the authorities were able to carefully tow it out of the harbor and detonate it in open sea without any casualties or injuries. The bomb was a German-made SC250, used extensively during the World War II, especially in the London Blitz. It had weighed approximately 500 pounds.
Sweden- Riots broke out in the immigrant neighborhoods of Stockholm on Monday night, as residents clashed with police officers and set their vehicles on fire. The officers were forced to call for reinforcements as the crowd grew bigger and more out of control in the Rinkeby suburbs. The riots come just a few days after President Donald Trump said in a statement that the increasing rate of crime in Sweden is attributed to the rising numbers of immigrants. The regional chief of police of Stockholm said that the riots were likely a form of retaliation to that statement .
AFRICA
Angola- The opening match of the Angolan football league, which was to happen on Friday, saw a stampede before the match, leading to the death of at least 17 people. The stampede happened at the Municipal Stadium 4 de Janeiro, which is in Uíge, some 300 kilometers northeast of the capital city of Luanda.
The stampede happened because the over-enthusiastic fans did not follow security instructions and tried to enter the stadium through one gate. This stampede led to 61 people getting injured, leaving 5 people in critical condition.
The match between Santa Rita de Cassia and Recreativo do Libolo, went on as scheduled and was won by Santa Rita by 1-0.