MORE than 20 people, including pregnant women and children, have been killed in recent tribal violence in Papua New Guinea (PNG), according to local media reports.
The death toll and dates of the violence in the remote highland province of Hela vary in reports, with some putting the death toll from the flare-up of violence between rival tribes higher. It is one of the worst outbreaks of tribal violence in PNG for years.
Hela Police Chief Teddy Augwi said: “This is not a tribal fight where the opposing villagers face each other on field. This is a fight in guerrilla warfare, meaning they play hide-and-seek and ambush their enemies.”
Many villagers have fled the violence and it is not immediately clear if any suspects had been arrested. Photograph: Facebook/Pills Kolo.
ELSWHERE, the German Government said it has not decided who it wants to succeed Christine Lagarde as the next head of the International Monetary Fund, amid reports it is backing Bank of England boss Mark Carney.
Government spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer said that Germany “would wish for a qualified European candidate”.
She denied reports which suggested Germany and France have agreed to support departing BoE governor Mr Carney, who is Canadian but recently became a British citizen too.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel later said that Europeans lay claim to nominating the next IMF chief, but said such positions would not be decided solely based on a candidate’s “geographical origin”.
MEANWHILE France’s Defence Ministry has acknowledged the US-made missiles captured from the self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA) belonged to French military.
A statement said the missiles were made with the intention of protecting French anti-terrorism forces in Libya and therefore, did not violate the arms embargo. It said they were damaged and no longer operational and were put into storage for destruction.
The revelation risks being highly embarrassing for France, which has offered support for the LNA’s leader Khalifa Hifter, who controls eastern Libya.
France denied transferring the missiles to Hifter’s forces and said the Americans had been informed.
AND FINALLY award-winning television, film and theatre actor Rip Torn has died aged 88.
He died on Tuesday afternoon at home with his wife, Amy Wright, and daughters Katie Torn and Angelica Page by his side. He was best-known for his roles in Men in Black and The Larry Sanders Show, where he won an Emmy in 1996 for playing the producer Artie. Stars paid tribute on social media. Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane said: “Rip Torn always made me laugh. Artie and Bob Diamond were two utterly unforgettable characters.”
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