Coal mine explosion in China kills 90 people

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A gas explosion at a coal mine in China’s northern Shanxi province killed at least 90 people, state media said on Saturday, in the country’s deadliest mining accident in recent years. Official news agency Xinhua said the accident at Changzhi city’s Liushenyu coal mine happened on Friday evening. Around 247 workers were on duty at the time. Nine miners were still unaccounted for as of Saturday afternoon, Xinhua said, and more than 120 people were hospitalized. The cause of the explosion was under investigation, Xinhua reported, and rescue work is pressing on with hundreds of rescuers and medical personnel sent to the site. Among the injured, many were hurt by toxic gas, according to state media CCTV. Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for an all-out effort to rescue the missing, reported Xinhua. Xi also called for the “proper handling of the aftermath of the accident and urged a thorough investigation into its cause, with accountability pursued in accordance wi...
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Islamist militants kill at least 20 Nigerian troops

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By Ahmed Kingimi Reuters

Suspected Islamist fighters killed at least 20 Nigerian soldiers, including a commanding officer, after attacking an army base in a remote town in northeastern Borno state, security sources and residents said on Sunday.

Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters have mainly operated in Borno, targeting security forces and civilians, in the process killing and displacing tens of thousands of people.

The latest assault happened on Friday, when ISWAP members arrived on gun trucks and attacked the army’s 149 Battalion in Malam-Fatori town, gateway to the border with Niger, two soldiers and residents said.

One of the soldiers who survived the attack told Reuters by phone that troops were taken by surprise as the militants “rained bullets everywhere”.

“We tried so much to repel the attacks and after more than three hours of gun duel, they overpowered us, killing our commanding officer, a lieutenant colonel,” the soldier said, declining to be named because he is not authorised to speak to the media.

He said 20 soldiers died while several were injured.

A Nigerian Army spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Residents who left the town said some of the militants were seen in Malam-Fatori as late as Saturday night.

Malakaka Bukar, a member of the local militia recruited to help the army, said the militants also burned buildings, forcing some residents to flee the town.

“They preached to some of the residents,” said Bukar.

Although weakened by military assaults and internal fighting over the years, Boko Haram and ISWAP have stepped up attacks in Borno since the turn of the year, killing dozens of farmers and fishermen in series of raids.



from The Times Of Earth https://ift.tt/tfRZW4S

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