World Briefs: Findings on Taiwan helicopter crash

TAIPEI • Thick fog, terrain and human factors were to blame for a military helicopter crash last month that killed Taiwan's chief of general staff and seven senior officers, said investigators, who ruled out mechanical failure.

"The pilot had only six or seven seconds to pull up after thick fog rapidly descended," Air Force Major-General Huang Chih-wei said yesterday.

General Shen Yi-Ming and his entourage were killed while on a routine mission to visit soldiers in Yilan county.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

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First China-Vatican ministerial meeting

BEIJING • The foreign ministers of China and the Vatican have met in the first high-level encounter between them - a sign of improving relations between two states with no diplomatic ties. The talks between Mr Wang Yi and Archbishop Paul Gallagher in Munich last Friday come as relations steadily improve following a landmark deal in 2018 on the appointment of bishops.

They reiterated the willingness to continue the institutional dialogue at the bilateral level.

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US celebrity lawyer found guilty

NEW YORK • A US jury has found Michael Avenatti guilty in a criminal trial accusing the celebrity lawyer of trying to extort millions of dollars from Nike and defraud a youth basketball coach he represented.

Avenatti made a name for himself two years ago when he represented adult film actress Stormy Daniels in lawsuits against President Donald Trump.

He could be sentenced to more than 40 years in prison on June 17.

REUTERS