News in Brief -(22-12-2017)

Myanmar Press Council calls for settling reporters’ case through media law
The Myanmar Press Council has called for the government to settle the case of two detained Reuters reporters through the media law, according to a report on the Mizzima website. The statement was issued at a press conference at the Orchid Hotel in Yangon on December 20. The press statement released says they want to appear as expert witnesses as and when the accused are put on trial and also requested the government to let them give legal aid to the two detained reporters if necessary. — Mizzima website

Woman delivers baby from embryo frozen for 24 years
MIAMI, Dec 21: An American woman has given birth to a healthy baby girl from an embryo that was frozen a quarter century ago, in what hospital officials say may be a world record. The baby, named Emma Wren Gibson, was born November 25, according to the National Embryo Donation Center (NEDC) in Knoxville, Tennessee, which revealed the birth announcement this week. The embryo was conceived by another couple and frozen on October 14, 1992. — AFP

NASA picks finalists to explore comet, Saturn’s moon
WASHINGTON, Dec 21: NASA on Wednesday announced two finalists for billion-dollar robotic missions-one to explore a comet and another Saturn's moon Titan-with a launch by the winner planned in the 2020s. "These are tantalizing investigations that seek to answer some of the biggest questions in our solar system today," said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. — AFP

Firefighters contain 60pc California fire
LOS ANGELES, Dec 21: Firefighters in California on Wednesday said the massive Thomas wildfire-about the size of sprawling Los Angeles-was about 60 percent contained but they warned strong winds were still forecast. Firefighters took advantage of weaker winds on Monday and Tuesday to battle the voracious blaze, which has already destroyed more than 1,300 structures. After the brief respite heavy winds are expected to return Wednesday to the California area plagued by a massive fire, potentially hindering the efforts of firefighters battling in an already dry climate. — AFP

Key ally of May resigns amid scandal
LONDON, Dec 21: A key ally of British Prime Minister Theresa May was forced to resign Wednesday after an investigation concluded he made misleading statements about pornographic images found on a Parliament computer in his office in 2008. Damian Green, who was ousted as first secretary of state, maintains he did not use pornography on his office computers, but he agreed he had not been forthcoming in statements made about the matter in November. — AP

Yugoslav court closes doors after 25 years
THE HAGUE, Dec 21: When Elizabeth Odio Benito and her fellow judges first arrived in The Hague to work at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, they didn't have a courtroom or rules to guide their work. As atrocities continued unabated, the judges began hammering out the legal framework for a groundbreaking United Nations court that wound up meting out justice for nearly a quarter of a century, prosecuting and sentencing some of the top military and civilian leaders from the devastating wars that tore apart the Balkans in the 1990s.—AP

Pakistan bus accident kills 11
MULTAN, Dec 21: Police say a speeding passenger bus has collided with a parked long trailer on a highway in central Pakistan where heavy fog limited visibility, killing 11 people and wounding 20 others. A local motorway police official, Talat Mahmood, says the accident happened Thursday near the town of Khanewal, about 50 kilometers (30 miles) southeast of the city of Multan in the Punjab province. — AP