SEOUL: North Korea has mobilised missiles in preparation for a massive parade later this month to mark the 60th anniversary since the end of the Korean War, a report said yesterday. Satellite imagery has revealed more than 10,000 soldiers practising for the parade at Mirim Airport near Pyongyang, Seoul-based Yonhap news agency said. The parade will mark the July 27 anniversary, celebrated by the North as the “Day of Victory”.
Heatwave kills 12 in Japan
TOKYO: A severe heatwave that hit Japan a week ago has claimed at least a dozen lives, reports said yesterday. The mercury has topped 35 degrees Celsius across the country for several days. Thousands have been taken to hospital, suffering from heatstroke or exhaustion. Yesterday, the day’s highest temperature was 38.3 degrees in Kawanehon town in Shizuoka prefecture. More than 40 places recorded 35 degrees or more.
Worst flight delays in China
BEIJING: Air passengers in China experience the world’s most disrupted travel plans, according to a report which names two major airports and China’s leading airlines among the most delayed. Beijing International Airport is the world’s most delayed, with only 18.3 percent of commercial flights leaving on schedule. Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport has the second worst departure record with only 23.5 percent leaving on time, said the report by FlightStats, a US-based air travel information service. It said eight of the 10 worst-performing Asian airlines in terms of delays were Chinese.
N Koreans held in Myanmar
SEOUL: South Korea has launched a probe into allegations that dozens of North Korean refugees were being held by rebels in Myanmar and forced to work on a drug farm, activists said yesterday. The probe follows a report that 64 refugees were taken to a rebel camp northeast of Tachilek, a town along the border between Myanmar and Thailand. They were caught while attempting to travel to Thailand after fleeing their poverty-stricken homeland, Yonhap news agency said. AGENCIES
