China: Landslide
BEIJING — Rescuers dug through the debris of China's latest landslide Thursday in a search for at least 90 people thought buried when a wall of mud crashed into their mountain town in southwestern China.
Wednesday's landslide in Puladi township in Yunnan province killed one person, covered homes and cut off roads in the area, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. More than 1,000 rescuers were working to find the missing, though fresh rains expected over the next two days could hamper their efforts. The slide tore away a bridge on the Nujiang river, which saw its water level surge by 19 feet, Xinhua said.
Congo: 3 killed
KINSHASA — Dozens of rebels attacked a U.N. peacekeeping base under darkness in eastern Congo early Wednesday, killing three Indian soldiers and wounding seven other peacekeepers, an Indian army official said.
Indian army spokesman Virendra Singh said up to 50 rebels attacked a base in Kirumba in North Kivu province around 2 a.m., leading to an exchange of gunfire.
Nearly 4,000 Indian army soldiers are part of the U.N. Congo peacekeeping mission, which has about 20,000 people from various countries.
Jado Ikosi, a human rights activist, said gangs entered after killing a guard with a spear.
Iran: U.S. condemned
UNITED NATIONS — Iran took its case against the United States to the United Nations on Wednesday and strongly condemned the top U.S. military chief for saying military action remains a possibility if the country develops nuclear weapons.
Iran's acting U.N. ambassador Eshagh Alehabib claimed in letters circulated to the secretary-general and presidents of the Security Council and General Assembly that Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, and other U.S. officials and lawmakers "threatened" to use military action under the "totally false" pretense that Iran is developing nuclear weapons.
Mullen said earlier this month that the U.S. military has a plan to attack Iran, although he thinks a military strike is probably a bad idea. Still, he said the risk of Iran developing a nuclear weapon is unacceptable and he reiterated that "the military option" remains on the table.
Mexico: Body found
MONTERREY — The kidnapped mayor of a northern Mexican town was found dead Wednesday, extending a rash of deadly attacks on political figures in an area besieged by drug gang battles.
Santiago Mayor Edelmiro Cavazos' body was found near a waterfall outside his town, a popular weekend getaway for residents of the industrial city of Monterrey, said Nuevo Leon state attorney general Alejandro Garza y Garza.
Police have not determined a motive, but the assassination bore the hallmarks of drug cartels waging vicious turf battles in northeastern Mexico: Cavazos' hands were bound, and his head was wrapped in tape.
Sudan: Shapely cities?
JUBA — A city shaped like a giraffe? A rhino-shaped town? Even one that looks from above like a pineapple?
Southern Sudan has unveiled ambitious plans to remake its capital cities in the shapes found on their state flags, and an official says the government is talking with investors to raise the $10 billion the fanciful communities would cost.
The plan in the war-torn region comes ahead of a scheduled January referendum on independence, which most people here believe will lead to the creation of the world's newest country. The south is rich in oil, but poverty and hunger are high throughout the region, which is struggling to recover after a civil war more than two decades long.