News in Brief(2023-08-22)

Niger call for three-year transition
'unacceptable': West Africa bloc
LAGOS, Aug 21: A call by Niger's coup leaders for a three-year transition back to democracy is "unacceptable", a representative of the West Africa bloc ECOWAS has said. Niger's General Abdourahamane Tiani-who took power after army officers toppled President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26 -- said over the weekend that a transition of power would not go beyond three years. "The three-year transition is unacceptable," Abdel-Fatau Musah, ECOWAS commissioner for politics and security, told Al Jazeera channel in an interview broadcast on Monday. — AFP
Bus crashes in Turkey leaving 12 dead
ANKARA, Aug 21: A passenger bus veered off the road and crashed into a roadside ditch in central Turkey on Monday, killing 12 people and injuring 19 others, officials said. The driver of the bus lost control of the vehicle, which crossed into the oncoming lane and then plunged into the ditch near the central Turkish city of Yozgat, Gov. Mehmet Ali Ozkan said. The bus was traveling from Sivas - some 240 kilometers (150 miles) east of Yozgat - to Istanbul. — AP
Taiwan proposes record defence budget
TAIPEI, Aug 21: Taiwan's military spending will rise a modest 3.5% year-on-year to hit a fresh record high in 2024, President Tsai Ing-wen said on Monday as she pledged continued efforts to improve defences amid a growing China threat. China, which views democratically-governed Taiwan as its own territory, has ramped up military and political pressure over the past three years to assert those claims, which Taipei strongly rejects. The overall defence budget proposed by Tsai, which will need parliamentary approval, is T$606.8 billion ($19 billion), amounting to 2.5% of the island's GDP. — Reuters
Earthquake shakes parts of California
SAN DIEGO, Aug 21: As people across Southern California sheltered from Hurricane Hilary; another natural disaster hit - a magnitude 5.1 earthquake. Its epicentre was northwest of Los Angeles and #hurriquake was soon trending on social media. It did not cause major damage, and the hurricane has also since been downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said over 100 fire stations were checking buildings for damage. — BBC