Foreign Desk

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

The New York Sun

NORTH AMERICA


PLANE CRASHES AFTER TAKEOFF IN CANADA


HALIFAX, Nova Scotia – A Boeing 747 cargo jet that left Connecticut for Spain with a crew of seven crashed in a fireball after its tail section apparently broke off during takeoff after a stopover at Halifax International Airport early yesterday. All aboard were feared dead.


The MK Airlines jet, loaded with lawn tractors and 58 tons of lobster and fish, crashed shortly before 4 a.m. local time into a largely wooded area near an industrial park north of Halifax, said Steve Anderson, a spokesman for the carrier in Sussex, England. The flight had originated from Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks, Conn., and stopped in Halifax for refueling en route to Zaragoza, Spain.


“The plane left Bradley at about midnight last night,” said John Wallace, a spokesman at the Connecticut airport. “It arrived here and took off from here without incident.” The tail of the jet lay in a field at the end of the runway, inside the fence surrounding the airport. The rest of the plane cut a wide, V-shaped swath through woods and brush and came to rest in pieces less than a mile away. The tops of several trees and power poles were sheared off.


– Associated Press


SOUTHEAST ASIA


KING SIHANOUK’S SON NAMED NEXT MONARCH


PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – Retiring King Norodom Sihanouk’s son, a former ballet dancer and U.N. cultural ambassador, was officially confirmed yesterday to succeed his father on the throne, assuring the continuation of the ancient monarchy. Prince Norodom Sihamoni, who has spent much of his life abroad, was unanimously approved by a nine-member Throne Council, said a statement signed by the panel’s chairman, Chea Sim, who is also the country’s acting head of state.


The meeting was triggered by the 81-year-old King Sihanouk’s surprise abdication last week for health reasons. His ailments over the past decade have included colon cancer, diabetes, hypertension, and two strokes.


King Sihanouk and Prime Minister Sen had both warned that failure to choose a new king by yesterday could have threatened the continued existence of the monarchy and might destabilize this poor country of 13 million people. Prince Sihamoni, 51, is with King Sihanouk in Beijing, where the monarch has been receiving medical treatment. They are expected to return to Cambodia next Wednesday, and a coronation ceremony is planned for October 29, said King Sihamoni’s half-brother Ranariddh, who is head of the National Assembly.


– Associated Press


EAST AFRICA


FORMER WARLORD SWORN IN AS PRESIDENT OF SOMALIA


NAIROBI, Kenya – A former soldier, rebel, and warlord was sworn in yesterday as the new president of Somalia in the latest attempt to unite the nation under a central government for the first time since 1991. Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed took the oath of office from the speaker of the new parliament, Shariif Hassan Sheikh Aden. The heads of government from Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Djibouti, and Yemen attended the ceremony and voiced their support for Mr. Yusuf.


A former colonel in the Somalia army during the 1960s, Mr. Yusuf was jailed by former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre when he refused to cooperate in a coup d’etat in 1969.With Ethiopian support, he launched a rebellion against Mr. Barre during the 1980s.The Horn of Africa country has been divided into fiefdoms ruled by rival warlords since 1991, when Mr. Barre was ousted. There have been 13 previous peace efforts and two previous governments were formed, but they never managed to take effective control over most of the country.


Somalia’s civil war has left more than 500,000 dead, 2 million people driven from their homes, and 1.5 million people refugees in neighboring countries. The new government has no civil service, treasury, or even buildings to meet in.


– Associated Press


PERSIAN GULF


CHARITY OPEN DESPITE ORDERS TO CLOSE IT


RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – A charity that Washington accuses of helping finance terrorist activities was still open yesterday – the deadline that the government ordered for its operations to be dissolved – and an official said employees do not know when their last day of work will be.


The official, who would not give his name, said the Riyadh-based al-Haramain Foundation has been notified of the government decision to close it, but a committee entrusted with setting a time for the closure had not decided when that day will come. “Come here Saturday, come here Sunday, and you will see employees reporting to work,” the official said. “The closure cannot happen with the push of a button.”


A Saudi official speaking late Wednesday said the foundation was as good as closed and any employees still reporting to work are merely dealing with paperwork to end contracts of the staff and dissolve the foundation.


Earlier this month, a Saudi official said the government had ordered the charity’s closure and dissolution of operations by October 15.


– Associated Press


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