CHINA
Mob attacks police chief suspected in fatal crash
BEIJING | A police officer was suspected of driving a police van drunk and killing five people in a central China crash that sparked angry crowds to smash and flip police cars in the latest burst of public anger against the authorities.
Wang Yinpeng, the head of a township police station in Henan province’s Runan county, was charged with endangering public security after the van crashed into two street lamp poles Saturday afternoon, the official Xinhua News Agency said.
The poles fell, fatally crushing five victims and injuring three more.
The Runan county publicity department said the officer was suspected of driving drunk, Xinhua reported.
Crowds surrounded the crashed van and two other police cars and two vans, and overturned and smashed them out of “unhappiness” with how the police were handling the crash, the Southern Metropolis Daily said.
RUSSIA
Cargo ship launched to space station
MOSCOW | A Russian cargo ship was launched successfully to the International Space Station on Sunday, clearing the way for the next manned mission and easing concerns about the station’s future after a previous failed launch.
The unmanned Progress M-13M blasted off as scheduled at 2:11 p.m. Moscow time from the Russian-leased Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, Mission Control spokesman Valery Lyndin said.
“It was a perfect launch,” Mr. Lyndin told the Associated Press, adding the ship successfully reached a designated orbit and will dock at the station Wednesday. A new crew will be launched to the space outpost on Nov. 14, he said.
A Progress launch failure in August, which was blamed on an “accidental” manufacturing flaw, cast doubts about future missions to the station, because the upper stage of the Soyuz booster rocket carrying the cargo ship to orbit is similar to that used to launch astronauts.
The next Soyuz launches were delayed pending the outcome of the probe. NASA said the space station - continuously manned for nearly 11 years - will need to be abandoned temporarily if a new crew cannot be launched by mid-November.
MYANMAR
Suu Kyi holds talks with government minister
YANGON | Myanmar democracy movement leader Aung San Suu Kyi met Sunday with a Cabinet minister to discuss issues that could lead to a breakthrough in the country’s long-running political deadlock.
Labor Minister Aung Kyi read a joint statement after their meeting that said the two had discussed an amnesty, peace talks with ethnic armed groups and economic and financial matters.
Some 200 of an estimated 2,000 political prisoners were released on Oct. 11 under an amnesty for 6,300 convicts.
An elected but military-backed government took power in March after decades of repressive army rule and its new president, Thein Sein, has moved to liberalize the political atmosphere.
In the past week, Parliament has amended a law to try to woo Mrs. Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy into reregistering as a political party.
The government would like to see the United States and other Western nations lift political and economic sanctions imposed against the repressive former ruling junta. Without Mrs. Suu Kyi’s blessings they are unlikely to do much.
SAUDI ARABIA
Prince increases reward for capture of Israeli soldier
RIYADH | A member of the royal family increased to $1 million a reward offered by a prominent Saudi cleric to anyone who captures an Israeli soldier to swap him for Palestinian prisoners.
Prince Khaled bin Talal told the kingdom’s al-Daleel TV station by telephone over the weekend that he was raising a previous offer made by Sheik Awadh al-Qarani, who promised $100,000 for capturing an Israeli soldier.
“I tell Sheik al-Qarani that I support you and I will pay $900,000 to make it one million dollars to capture an Israeli soldier to release other prisoners,” he said.
The Saudi offers follow in the wake of the release of Israeli soldier Sgt. Gilad Schalit, who was held by Palestinian terrorists for more than five years. Israel has agreed to free more than 1,000 prisoners in exchange.
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