KATHMANDU: At least 20 people, including eight foreign hikers and a group of yak herders, were killed in Nepal by unseasonal blizzards and avalanches triggered by the tail of cyclone Hudhud, officials said yesterday. Rescue officials said the death toll could rise as dozens of other foreigners and locals who had been trekking were out of contact due to poor communication links and could have been caught in blizzards. Two climbers from Slovakia and three Nepalese guides were also reported missing. For the past two days, Nepal has been lashed by heavy rains. The weather triggered blizzards at high altitudes. The bodies of a Nepali citizen, two Polish nationals and an Israeli hiker were found along a trekking route in the Thorang-La area near Annapurna, the world’s 10th highest mountain. Police said eight Nepalis had died in Mustang. In the neighbouring district of Manang, four Canadian hikers and an Indian national were killed in an avalanche. Three yak herders were killed after being swept away by a separate avalanche at Nar village in Manang, officials said.
Malaysia nabs
13 with IS links
KUALA LUMPUR: Malay-sian authorities said yesterday they had arrested 13 Malaysians suspected of having links to Islamic State and who were planning to leave for Syria. Police on Monday raided a restaurant in Shah Alam, a suburb 30 minutes from the capital of Kuala Lumpur, after authorities discovered the group, which included women, was making plans to leave Malaysia.
Thai junta chief hints at poll delay
BANGKOK: Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha, who led a military coup in May, said yesterday that elections planned for 2015 will depend on whether wide-ranging national reforms can be completed within a year.
Bangla ex-minister faces arrest
DHAKA: A Bangladesh court ordered the arrest yesterday of a former minister who was dismissed last week after Islamists staged nationwide protests calling for his prosecution over remarks criticising the Haj pilgrimage. The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate court issued an arrest warrant for Abdul Latif Siddique for allegedly “wounding religious sentiments” of the country’s majority Muslim population, police inspector Aminur Rahman said. .
Agencies
