US wants German troops in Syria

BERLIN • The United States special representative on Syria yesterday pushed Berlin to ramp up its military involvement in the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria militant group.

Mr James Jeffrey called on Germany to send ground troops to Syria's north as Washington looks to withdraw from the region.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

Saudi airline scraps B-737 Max deal

RIYADH/DUBAI • Saudi Arabian budget airline Flyadeal will not proceed with a provisional order for 30 Boeing 737 Max aircraft, instead opting for a fleet of Airbus A-320 jets.

Flyadeal has been reconsidering a commitment to order the B-737 jets after two Max aircraft crashed in Ethiopia in March and Indonesia last October. The disasters had triggered the global grounding of the aircraft.

REUTERS

Seized tanker not going to Syria: Iran

GENEVA • An Iranian tanker captured by British Royal Marines in Gibraltar last week was not headed to Syria, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said yesterday.

The minister said the giant tanker has a capacity of up to two million barrels of oil and that was why it was travelling through the Strait of Gibraltar rather than the Suez Canal. He did not give information on the tanker's final destination.

REUTERS

Landslides kill one, displace thousands

DHAKA • Monsoon-triggered landslides in Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh have killed one person and left more than 4,500 homeless, aid officials said yesterday.

About 35cm of rain fell in 72 hours before the landslides started on Saturday, the United Nations said.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE