While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Sept 17
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Emergency team members recover a body in the Libyan city of Derna, after two dams burst amid torrential rain, causing catastrophic flooding. PHOTO: AFP
PHOTO: AFP
Libya’s burst dams had decades-old cracks, says official
Two dams that burst in a hurricane-strength storm, unleashing a wall of water that killed thousands in the Libyan port of Derna, had been cracked since 1998, an official said.
Prosecutor general Al-Seddik Al-Sour has announced an investigation into the circumstances leading to the collapse, culminating in the catastrophic flash flood that swept through the city.
Like much of Libya’s crumbling infrastructure, the two dams that had been built to hold back water from Derna fell into disrepair during years of neglect, conflict and division in chaos-ridden Libya.
The North African country is currently ruled by two rival administrations that have battled for power since a Nato-backed uprising toppled and killed longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011. A 2020 ceasefire has largely held.
Italian military jet crashes during exercise
AFP
An Italian military jet crashed during an exercise in Turin, hitting a car in which an entire family was travelling and killing a five-year-old girl, Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said on Saturday.
Italian news agency AGI reported that the victim’s nine-year-old brother was seriously injured, while the two parents and the jet’s pilot were not in life-threatening danger.
“The ministry expresses its condolences to the family members,” Mr Crosetto said in a statement, adding he “had made available every facility and skill for the handling of the emergency and in support of any people involved”.
Russia denies Ukraine has retaken Andriivka
Russia on Saturday said its forces remained in control of villages near the shattered city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, dismissing a Ukrainian claim to have recaptured the locality of Andriivka, a stepping stone to the larger city.
The commander of Ukraine’s land forces posted a video purporting to show the capture of Andriivka amid a landscape of scorched territory and devastation.
And a top military spokesman said Ukrainian troops were making headway in both the east and south – the two main theatres of Ukraine’s counteroffensive in the 18-month-old war against Russian invaders.
Red Bull woes nothing to do with FIA directive
The Straits Times
Red Bull’s Singapore Grand Prix qualifying woes had nothing to do with a recent move by the governing FIA to tighten the rules on flexible bodywork, team boss Christian Horner said on Saturday.
Championship leader Max Verstappen, riding a wave of 10 wins in a row, qualified only 11th while Mexican team mate and closest title rival – albeit 145 points behind – Sergio Perez was 13th fastest.
Red Bull had been in a league of their own previously, winning every grand prix this season and 15 in succession dating back to last year, but Ferrari and Mercedes secured the front row slots for Sunday’s night race.
Russell Brand denies media allegations of sex assaults
British comedian and actor Russell Brand has denied any criminal wrongdoing as the Sunday Times newspaper reported four women had accused him of sexual assaults, including rape, during a seven-year period when he was at the height of his fame.
Brand, 48, the former husband of US singer Katy Perry, issued a denial to unspecified “very serious criminal allegations” hours before they were published online by the newspaper on Saturday.
The Sunday Times did not say if any of the women had made complaints to the police.
