A round-up of other world stories in brief...
Man fires on mothers with airgun
LYONS – A man fired a small airgun at mothers waiting for their children outside a school yesterday, lightly wounding five of them and causing panic in the neighbourhood.
“He shot at people who were in front of the school, a police source said, later adding that the targets were mothers waiting at the entrance of the pre-school for children aged between two and six.
The gunman did not hurt or aim at any of the children. Police said they had evacuated the school and were still searching for the man, who had apparently fired the shots from a building opposite the school. – (Reuters)
Former judge jailed for perjury
SYDNEY – A former Australian judge was jailed for at least two years today for lying to police that someone else was driving his car when it was clocked speeding.
Marcus Einfeld (70) pleaded guilty in the New South Wales Supreme Court to perjury and making a false statement with intent to pervert the course of justice to avoid an Australian $35 (€17) traffic fine. Einfeld is a recipient of the Order of Australia, one of the country’s highest civilian honours, for his humanitarian work. – (PA)
Pope takes turtle on his travels
LUANDA, Angola – Pope Benedict flew from Cameroon to Angola yesterday with an unusual travelling companion – a turtle.
Just before he left Cameroon, the pope met a group of Baka Pygmies, hunter-gatherers from the country’s rain forests.
They gave him the turtle which was about 30cm (one foot) long.
Taken aboard the plane in a wicker cage, it made the flight to Luanda in the first-class section along with the Vatican entourage, without apparent discomfort. – (Reuters)