North Korea
Ballistic missiles launched
North Korea on Monday fired four banned ballistic missiles that flew about 620 miles, with three of them landing in Japan’s exclusive economic zone, South Korean and Japanese officials said, in an apparent reaction to huge military drills by Washington and Seoul that Pyongyang insists are an invasion rehearsal. It was not immediately clear the exact type of missile fired; Pyongyang has staged a series of missile test-launches of various ranges in recent months, including a new intermediate-range missile in February.
India
All-female crew sets record
Air India said it has set a world record by flying around the world with an all-female crew. Press Trust of India reported Sunday that the flight flew over the Pacific Ocean from New Delhi to San Francisco last Monday, and then flew back to New Delhi over the Atlantic on Friday. Apart from the all-female cockpit and cabin crew, the other staff involved in the flight — including the check-in and other ground staff and the air traffic controllers — were all women. According to the news report, Air India, the country’s state-owned carrier, has applied to Guinness World Records to be recognized for the feat.
France
Candidate won’t back down
With the Eiffel Tower as a backdrop, French conservative Francois Fillon clung tenaciously to his presidential candidacy Sunday, emboldened by thousands of supporters at a high-stakes rally aimed at quashing pressure on him to step aside because of impending corruption charges. Crowds of flag-waving voters chanting “Fillon, President!” appeared to give him the confidence he needs to keep up the fight. That support came despite a raft of defections by conservative allies in recent days that threatened to plunge France’s unpredictable presidential campaign into unprecedented disarray just seven weeks before its first-round election.
Israel
Legal marijuana a step closer
Holy smokes! The Israeli government has taken a step toward decriminalizing marijuana use. Israeli media say Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Cabinet has approved a measure that would reduce penalties for possession of marijuana. If caught, smokers would pay a fine, instead of facing criminal charges. Netanyahu said ahead of Sunday’s meeting that a “new enforcement policy” should be drawn up “cautiously and in a controlled manner.”
Compiled from wire reports