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DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH

North Korean soldier shot trying to defect to South A North Korean soldier was shot and wounded as he made it to a South Korean controlled border post. It was a rare defection at the only point where soldiers from the two sides stand just meters from each other. A North Korean soldier defected to South Korea on Monday by bolting across the border truce village of Panmunjom, the only place along the heavilymilitarized Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) where the two sides stand face-to-face. The North Korean soldier was shot and wounded by his own side before reaching the section controlled by South Korea. He was taken by helicopter to a hospital. There was no exchange of gunfire between the two sides, but South Korea said its forces were put on alert. North Korean soldiersoccasionally try to defectacross the heavily-fortified DMZ, but it is rare for defections at Panmunjom.

Yemeni ports to reopen for aid, says Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, reacting to UN famine warnings, says ports in Yemen under its control will reopen for aid shipments. Riyadh had shut them down last week after a missile attack blamed on Iran-backed Houthi rebels. The Saudi mission at the UN announced Monday that "all ports" controlled by Yemenʼs Saudibacked government would reopen "within the next 24 hours." Last week, UN and other international agenciesheaped criticism on the Saudi-induced port closures, warning that the blockade would bring millions of Yemenis closer to famine deaths if not lifted. The ports to reopen were Aden, Mocha and Mukalla, said a statement from the Saudi UN mission. It also asked the UN to send inspectors to ports in rebelheld areas, like Hodeida, to avert alleged weapons smuggling.

266/2017 • 14, NOVEMBER 2017

Earthquake hits Iraq-Iran border Leaves hundreds dead, thousands injured

A 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck the mountainous border region between the two countries late on Sunday. More than 400 people have been killed, mostly in Iran. At least 400 people have died and more than 6,500 been injured in Iran after an earthquake shook the border region with Iraq, authorities said. In neighboring Iraq, officials confirmed eight people had died and more than 500 were injured. The hardest-hit region was western Iranʼs Kermanshah province, which lies in the Zagros mountains dividing Iraq and Iran. In the town of Sarpol-e Zahab in Kermanshah province, 15 kilometers (10 miles) from the Iraqi border, at least 236 were killed. Iranʼs emergency services chief Pir Hossein Koolivand said it was "difficult to send rescue teams to the villages because the roads have been cut off... there have been landslides." Most of the region is rugged mountain terrain populated by farmers, with many pictureque villages made out of earthen bricks clinging to hillsides. As daylight broke, the extent of the destruction became clearer as concern mounted about civilians trapped under rubble in remote villages in the area. Iranian officials said the death toll was likely to rise. The Iranian government sent 30 Red Crescent teams to the quake zone, parts of which were without

power. Three emergency relief camps were being set up by Iranian officials. The Iraqi ministry of health said seven people had died and 321 taken to hospitals in the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan. Four people reportedly died in the town of Darbandikhan and two — including a child and an elderly person — died in the town of Kalar, about 70 kilometers (45 miles) south of Darbandikhan. In nearby Halabja, residents fled their homes and many slept outside out of fear of the earthquake and potential aftershocks, local teacher Warzer Ali told DW reporter Chase Winter via social media. "Many people slept out in the street, others left the town and slept in fields," Ali said, adding that aftershocks were felt. The Turkish Red Crescent and the national disaster response agency, AFAD, sent aid and rescue teams to the disaster area in Iraqi Kurdistan. According to the US Geological Survey (USGS), the earthquake had a 7.3 magnitude and hit at 9:18 p.m. local time (1818 UTC) around 30 kilometers (19 miles) southwest of Halabja. The quake was felt as far away as southeastern Turkey and Baghdad.

Left-wing extremism: German police step up search for former RAF terrorists German police have released new photos and videos of three former Red Army Faction (RAF) terrorists who are linked to at least nine robberies. The suspects allegedly robbed an armored car last year with a bazooka. After decades of searching forthree former members of the leftist Red Army Faction (RAF)militant group, German police published new videos and photos of the suspects on Monday in the hopes of getting a concrete lead. Ernst-Volker Staub, Burkhard Garweg and Daniela Klette are suspected of carrying out nine robberies in northern Germany after years hiding from authorities. Lower Saxonyʼs state criminal police office circulated videos which allegedly depict 63-year-old Staub and 49-year-old Garweg carrying out an armed robbery at a supermarket in the northern German town of Hildesheim last May.

Amnesty slams Syrian regime for crimes against humanity Amnesty International says the Syrian regime has conducted unlawful sieges aimed at forcing civilians from their homes ahead of "reconciliation" accords. It accuses Damascus of using "surrender or starve" tactics. The regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad has committed crimes against humanity and war crimes by subjecting cities to unlawful sieges that gave civilians no choice but to give up or die, rights group Amnesty International said on Monday.

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