More news in brief.
Two die as crane falls in New York City
NEW YORK -A large crane collapsed in New York City yesterday, killing two people and damaging an apartment building on Manhattan's Upper East Side - a day after city officials investigated the crane's operations.
The crane operator and another construction worker died in the collapse shortly after 8am eastern time. A third worker was seriously injured and a pedestrian received minor injuries, New York mayor Michael Bloomberg and police said.
Mr Bloomberg said the top section of the crane broke off and smashed into an apartment building called The Electra, which is more than 20 floors high, on 91st Street and First Avenue.
"We don't know why it snapped off and we will certainly do an investigation," he said. - (Reuters)
Gazan students lose scholarships
JERUSALEM -The US state department has withdrawn its Fulbright scholarships from seven Palestinian students from Gaza because they are unable to obtain Israeli permission to leave the small strip of land.
The students were told in a letter from the US consulate general in Jerusalem, dated Thursday, that the state department "will not be able to finalise your Fulbright Student Scholarship for 2008". No explanation was given, but the students were told to apply again next year, when they would be given "priority consideration" but with no guarantee that the scholarships would be awarded again.
Tom Casey, a spokesman for the state department, which sponsors the scholarships offering students abroad a chance to study in the US, said they would instead be given to Palestinians from the West Bank, who can travel abroad more easily. - (Guardian service)
One killed as aircraft hits cars
TEGUCIGALPA -A passenger aircraft skidded off a runway at Tegucigalpa airport in Honduras yesterday as it was trying to land and veered onto a road, killing at least one of those on board, officials said.
A local manager of El Salvador's TACA airline, Armando Funez, said there were 142 passengers on board the aircraft, which was arriving from San Salvador when it zig-zagged off the runway and smacked into some cars. - (Reuters)
Homeless woman lived in cupboard
KASUYA, JAPAN - A homeless woman has been caught after spending a year living undetected in a man's cupboard. The homeowner had installed cameras that transmitted images to his mobile phone after becoming puzzled by food disappearing from his kitchen.
One camera captured someone moving and he called police, believing it was a burglar. Police found the 58-year-old hiding in the top compartment of a cupboard in a bedroom in Kasuya. - (AP)