ICELAND – Coalition government collapses in the midst of child abuse scandal
Icelandic Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson has called a snap election following the loss of its one-seat majority in parliament. Last Friday, the Bright Future party walked out of the three-party coalition currently governing the country. This follows allegations that Benediktsson tried to conceal a letter written by his father recommending that his friend, Hjalti Sigurjón Hauksson, convicted for sexual abuse of his stepdaughter, have his “honour restored.” According to Icelandic law, this would change his civil status to allow him to apply for certain jobs. Bright Future called the government’s efforts to hide the letter a “breach of trust.” The government was formed nine months ago and this is Iceland’s second snap election in a year. Iceland’s previous government fell apart following another scandal regarding the leaked Panama Papers.
With files from The Independent and Al Jazeera.
UNITED KINGDOM – Homemade explosive detonates on London train
A homemade explosive device detonated on a subway car during rush-hour on September 15 in London. 29 people were injured, though none of the injuries were life-threatening and authorities say that most of the damage was avoided, as the bomb failed to detonate properly. The country’s threat level was raised to ‘critical,’ the highest possible designation, and the so-called Islamic State has claimed responsibility. Authorities are still investigating the events of that morning and reviewing CCTV footage.
With files from CBC News and BBC News.
MYANMAR – Humanitarian crisis continues for Rohingya
Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi announced that she will not be attending the United Nations General Assembly scheduled to take place later in September. This follows accusations from UN human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein that Myanmar’s army is waging a “systematic attack” on the Muslim Rohingya minority that is a “textbook example of ethnic cleansing.” The army denies these allegations. Suu Kyi is facing criticism from rights groups, and some critics are calling for her Nobel Peace Prize to be retracted. Nearly 400,000 Rohingya, especially women and children, have already fled to neighbouring Bangladesh, which is facing a humanitarian crisis as it attempts to provide for the incoming refugees.
With files from The Telegraph and Al Jazeera.
OUTER SPACE – NASA crashes spacecraft into Saturn
NASA’s spacecraft Cassini has ended its journey by crashing into Saturn after 13 years of circling the planet, diving between its rings, and collecting temperature readings and other valuable images and data. Cassini was launched from Florida in 1997 and arrived to Saturn in 2004. After its mission was twice extended, Cassini met an unusual fate when NASA decided to run it into Saturn where it could burn up instead of letting the spacecraft run out of fuel, crash, and possibly contaminate one of Saturn’s moons.
