PASSENGER VESSEL SINKS
A passenger vessel carrying 458 people has sunk in the Hubei section of the Yangtze River. The river’s navigation administration said the vessel sank due to a cyclone. Despite the poor weather conditions, relief efforts are underway with more than 2 thousand 1 hundred soldiers and policemen taking part in search and rescue operations.Five bodies have been found and at least 30 people rescued, including the captain and the ship's chief engineer - who have both been detained.
IRAQI FORCES STRUGGLE
Iraq’s security forces reported at least 82 people were killed and 85 others were injured in two separate attacks conducted by ISIS militants in Anbar province and Therthar area. ISIS’ Anbar attacks, which targeted the Third Brigade headquarters in north Fallujah, left 37 people dead and another 55 wounded. Iraqi police officials claim that all the victims and injured were members of the Iraqi security forces, including senior officers.
OPPOSITION PROTEST CALL
Burundi’s opposition leaders have announced that a large protest against President Pierre Nkurunziza will be held in capital Bujumbura. It is unclear how many protest leaders will attend the march as many have left the country or are in hiding. For weeks, many in the country have been protesting against Nkurunziza’s run for a third term, as the country’s constitution stipulates a two-term limit. Security forces have killed over 20 people and 90 thousand Burundians have been displaced.
RELIGIOUS DISCRIMINATION RULING
The US Supreme Court has ruled in favour of Samantha Elauf in her case against against American clothing company Abercrombie & Fitch. Abercrombie had denied her a sales job in 2008 in the state of Oklahoma because she wore a headscarf for religious reasons. The Employment Opportunity Commission first brought Elauf’s case to a federal district court that ordered Abercrombie to pay Elauf 20 thousand dollars. However, that decision had been overturned by the 10th US Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver, which led to the case being brought to the US Supreme Court.
