Brazil's central bank has frozen four bank accounts belonging to ex-President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva due to his recent conviction on corruption charges, the federal judge overseeing the case said. The assets in question amount to more than 600,000 Brazilian reals (US$190,000), according to the office of Sergio Moro, who last week sentenced Silva to 9½ years in prison in connection with a sprawling graft probe involving state-run oil giant Petrobras. Moro also barred the ex-president from using three apartments, a piece of land and two cars linked to him. None can be sold until there is a final ruling on the case.
Chilean lawmakers took a major step towards legalising abortion in some cases, a dramatic development in one of Latin America's most traditionally conservative countries. In a marathon session, the Senate voted to allow abortions when a mother's life is in danger, when the fetus is not viable and in cases of rape. A version of the bill was approved in 2016 by the lower house, where a vote on changes introduced by the Senate was postponed to tomorrow. President Michelle Bachelet supports the measure and has said she would sign the law.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was caught by a live microphone railing against the European Union's "crazy" insistence on resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as a precondition for closer ties. Netanyahu was meeting leaders of Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia at a regional summit. Netanyahu was discussing Iran, Syria, Isis, and EU-Israel relations when some of his comments - and those of other leaders at the meeting closed to the media - were accidentally broadcast to journalists in another room. Netanyahu also made a rare public admission that Israel has struck Iranian arms convoys in Syria bound for Hezbollah "dozens and dozens of times". The PM was overheard blasting the EU's approach to Israel, saying "it's crazy. I think it's actually crazy" that the 28-nation bloc maintains that resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict must come before closer trade ties.
Australia's offshore refugee processing centre on Manus Island will close by the end of October, Immigration Minister Peter Dutton has confirmed. "Manus Island is due to close by the end of October," he told Sky News. "I've been very clear about that and that is what we're going to achieve." The exact timing depends on Australia's deal with the US to accept refugees from the Papua New Guinea facility for resettlement after September 30.
Police in suburban Cleveland say a fast-food restaurant customer angry about the way his sandwich tasted and looked threatened to shoot somebody over it. The South Euclid Police Department reported receiving a call about a man storming into the Steak 'n Shake restaurant "acting crazy," saying he had a gun and was going to shoot someone. Police say the 20-year-old man complained that the egg on his sandwich was runny and slimy and looked like spit. He was in custody pending a court appearance on an aggravated menacing charge. Police say he didn't have a gun.
