Brazil: A Brazilian appeals court judge issued a second ruling ordering that former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva be released from jail, continuing a dramatic back-and-forth of conflicting judicial decrees. Judge Rogerio Favreto of the Fourth Federal Regional Tribunal said da Silva must be freed within the hour. It was unclear if police would comply with that decision. The judge in charge of da Silva's case at the regional court earlier reversed Favreto's first release order, and two legal analysts said that order superseded Favreto's. Also complicating matters is that typically the judge who initially convicted da Silva would be the one to relay the order to police and that judge told police to hold off. Da Silva began serving a 12-year sentence on a corruption conviction in April at the federal police headquarters in the southeastern city of Curitiba. He denies wrongdoing, and his conviction and jailing has divided Brazilians.
United States: A Massachusetts beauty queen has given up her crown due to a joke about the #MeToo movement. NBC 10 Boston reports Maude Gorman resigned as Miss Plymouth County for the Miss Massachusetts Miss America Organisation after an emcee made a joke about the women's movement on stage. During the event last week, the host did a skit with someone portraying God. She asks why Miss America officials would get rid of the swimsuit competition, then the person holds up a sign reading "#MeToo." Gorman, who is a survivor of sexual assault, says mocking a movement that empowers survivors is "inappropriate" especially by a "women's empowerment organisation." The Miss America Organisation posted an apology on its Facebook page saying the skit was not in the script or approved by the board.
Syria: Syrian air defence units responded to an Israeli "aggression" on an air base in the country's central province of Homs, shooting down several missiles, state TV said.
The channel, quoting an unidentified military official, said the attack targeted the T4 air base with six missiles. The report did not mention any casualties but said one warplane was hit and several missiles were shot down before reaching their target. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, said the missiles targeted Iranian troops and non-Syrian pro-Iranian fighters. The attack comes amid a Syrian government offensive against insurgent groups near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Israel has said it will not tolerate an Iranian military presence in Syria and has staged military strikes on Iranian targets there in recent months.
Britain: Michael Ondaatje's The English Patient was named the greatest-ever winner of the Man Booker Prize at an event celebrating five decades of the prestigious literary award. The Canadian writer's tale of love and conflict during World War II was awarded the Golden Man Booker Prize for fiction after winning a public vote. The English Patient won the Booker in 1992 and was made into a 1996 movie starring Ralph Fiennes, Juliette Binoche and Kristin Scott Thomas that won nine Academy Awards. A panel of judges selected five books from among the 51 winners of the Booker. The 1970s finalist was In a Free State by Trinidad-born V.S. Naipaul, while Moon Tiger by British writer Penelope Lively was the 1980s contender. Hilary Mantel's Tudor saga Wolf Hall and George Saunders' US Civil War symphony Lincoln in the Bardo were the finalists from the 2000s and 2010s.
United States: A porch collapsed at a Connecticut home, sending over a dozen people to the hospital. Approximately 20 people were on a second-floor balcony in Hartford when the floor gave way. Hartford police said 15 people were taken to Hartford Hospital with injuries that are not life-threatening. Among the injured were infants and young children. Assistant Police Chief Rafael Medina said people were gathered "on the second-floor porch for a family celebration." Witnesses told the Hartford Courant the gathering was a party celebrating the birth of two babies. Personnel from the Fire Marshal's Office and Hartford Licenses and Inspection deemed the structure to be habitable following an inspection. The cause of the collapse is under investigation.
North Korea: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is appealing for North Korea's leadership to follow Vietnam's path in overcoming past hostilities with the United States. Pompeo called on North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to replicate Vietnam's "miracle" of economic growth by improving ties with the US, vowing that America keeps its promises with former foes. The comments came after Pompeo brushed aside North Korea's accusation that the US was making "gangster-like" denuclearisation demands. Pompeo was speaking to members of the US-Vietnamese business community in Hanoi. He earlier visited North Korea and Tokyo.
Haiti: Looters are pillaging burned and vandalised shops in Haiti's capital following two days of violent protests over the Government's attempt to raise fuel prices. Journalists have seen young men stripping shelves bare in some supermarkets that are charred from the protests. Several bodies lay among the debris scattered in the streets. Police Director-General Michel-Ange Gedeon has ordered officers to crack down on what he calls "bandits who disturb the peace and security of the country." At least three people were killed in protests on Saturday and police say the bodies of four people were found yesterday. The Government scrapped plans to raise fuel prices to 38 to 51 per cent.
Israel: Two Israeli MPs have visited a flashpoint Jerusalem shrine after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly lifted a ban on Israeli parliamentarians entering the site. Agriculture Minister Uri Ariel and Likud party member Sharren Haskel visited the hilltop compound, known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary. The compound is considered the holiest site for Jews, the site of the two biblical Temples, and today is home to Al Aqsa Mosque, Islam's third holiest site. It is the emotional epicentre of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Netanyahu had instituted a ban on Israeli lawmakers visiting the site in November 2015 as a measure to ease tensions with the Palestinians.
-AP, Washington Post
