S. Korea to appoint special prosecutor

SEOUL • South Korea's Parliament yesterday approved a Bill to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate an influence-peddling scandal engulfing President Park Geun Hye, sharply increasing political pressure on her amid calls for her to step down.

Her lawyer said the aim was for Ms Park to appear before prosecutors next week to address allegations.

REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

Jakarta won't accept blame for lost wrecks

JAKARTA • Indonesia refused to take the blame yesterday for the disappearance of at least six British and Dutch World War II shipwrecks - considered war graves - that investigators believe could have been salvaged for scrap.

Former colonial ruler The Netherlands has launched a probe into how three Dutch navy ships seemingly vanished from the bed of the Java Sea, while Britain has urged Indonesia to investigate the disappearance of three of its vessels.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

Beijing issues serious air pollution alert

BEIJING • The Chinese capital and its adjacent area have issued an orange alert for heavy air pollution as smog looks set to linger for the next three days.

The orange alert, the second-highest in the four-tier warning system, went into effect from midnight on Wednesday.

Beijing is forecast to suffer serious air pollution until tomorrow.

XINHUA