Asean ministers put pressure on Burma

MANILA South-East Asian foreign ministers have pressed Burma to release Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize winner, and show “tangible progress” in democratic reforms.

The members of the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) agreed at their annual meeting to set up a regional human rights commission, overcoming fierce resistance from Burma’s junta. Asean has said repeatedly that it hopes to encourage reform in Burma and promote human rights through engagement. (AP)

Holiday isle blaze

MADRID Hundreds of people were evacuated in the Canary Islands after a fire that has been raging in soaring heat since Friday spread. A total of 1,050 people were ordered from their homes in the hamlets of Mogan, San Bartolomé de Tirajana and Tejeda on the island of Gran Canaria. The fire broke out in a mountainous and sparsely populated area. (AFP)

Migrants escape

ROME Thirty-two Egyptians escaped from an immigration processing centre in the port of Bari, southern Italy, after clashes with security forces. Fifteen security staff sustained light injuries, and four inmates were taken to hospital after trying to jump the wall of the centre. Four Egyptians were charged with rebellion and assault. (AFP)

War crimes charges

BELGRADE Serbia’s war crimes prosecutor has charged a former army officer with shelling the historic Croatian town of Dubrovnik in 1991. Vladimir Kovacevic, 46, is accused over the death of two civilians and the destruction of six Unesco heritage sites. The UN war crimes tribunal declared him mentally unfit for trial. (AFP)

Hit twice by lightning

PITTSBURGH “Lightning never strikes twice” does not apply to Don Frick, who has survived being hit by lightning for the second time – 27 years to the day after the first. Mr Frick, 68, had taken shelter in a shed. The lightning left him with a hole in his jeans, but no injuries. (AP)

Prisoner's threat

DELHI An HIV-positive Indian prisoner has threatened to try to infect inmates and officials if he is not given privileges. The man, 24, who is charged with attempted murder and robbery, is demanding better food, cigarettes and more time out of his cell, the Hindustan Times said. “This is his usual modus operandi,” a Tihar jail official said. (Reuters)

Body found in fridge

KUALA LUMPUR A man who bought a flat in an affluent suburb of the Malaysian capital found a dead body chopped into 11 pieces in the fridge. Police said that the new owner noticed a strong smell when he entered the luxury apartment. The unidentified body, said to be of a man, had been there for about a week, it was reported. (AFP)

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