IN BRIEF

India

Woman burned alive over protest

A 20-year-old woman was burned alive in a village in the western Indian state of Rajasthan for staging a protest against the cutting down of trees. The incident took place on Sunday but came to light on Monday when she died in hospital. The woman, identified as Lalita, had raised objections to the cutting down of trees on her farm for the construction of a road near her village on Sunday. Initially it started as a minor argument, but the row escalated and a group of villagers allegedly poured petrol on her and set her on fire.

11 killed after truck overturns

At least 11 people were killed and 42 others injured, some of them critically, after a mini-truck carrying them overturned Monday in central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, police said. The accident took place near Neechi village on Jabalpur-Chargawan road in Jabalpur district, about 317 km east of Bhopal, the capital city of Madhya Pradesh. The deceased were identified as agricultural laborers.

The Philippines

Three Malaysian hostages saved

Philippine troops have rescued three Malaysians held captive by Abu Sayyaf rebels, the military said on Monday, the second such operation in four days as security forces step up offensives against the extremist group. The three men were kidnapped from a ship eight months ago, and their rescue means no other Malaysians are currently held hostage as two others were rescued at sea last week.

Iran

Govt to sanction 15 US companies

Iran said on Sunday it will impose sanctions on 15 US companies for supporting Israel's "terrorist actions" as part of reprisals for the increasing pressure being announced by Washington lawmakers. The decision, which is largely symbolic since the firms do not do business with Iran, comes two days after the US announced new sanctions against groups and individuals that it accuses of collaborating with Iran's weapons program. The sanctions target firms that provide arms and equipment to Israel "for use against the Palestinians", IRNA said.

Somalia

Kenyan forces kill 31 militants

Kenyan troops in Somalia killed 31 al-Shabaab militants in a raid on two of their bases in Jubbaland, the Kenyan military said on Monday. The East African nation has thousands of its forces in the African Union Mission in Somalia to help curb al-Shabaab and improve security as part of a reconstruction drive after two decades of civil war that shattered the country.

United States

Uber grounds self-driving cars

Uber has grounded its fleet of self-driving cars pending an investigation into the crash of an Uber autonomous vehicle in Arizona, a spokesperson for the car-hailing service said on Sunday. No one was seriously injured in the accident which occurred on Friday in Tempe, Arizona while the vehicle - a Volvo SUV - was in self-driving mode, the company said.