News in Brief(27-02-2018)

Michelle Obama to release memoir in November
NEW YORK, Feb 26: Michelle Obama's memoir, one of the most highly anticipated books in recent years, is coming out Nov 13. The former first lady tweeted Sunday that the book, to come out a week after the 2018 midterm elections, is called "Becoming." By Sunday night, her memoir was in the top 20 on Amazon.com. "Writing 'Becoming' has been a deeply personal experience," she said in a statement. "It has allowed me, for the very first time, the space to honestly reflect on the unexpected trajectory of my life. In this book, I talk about my roots and how a little girl from the South Side of Chicago found her voice and developed the strength to use it to empower others. — AP

Bird flu outbreak at Dutch farm
THE HAGUE, Feb 26: More than 36,000 animals have been slaughtered after an outbreak of highly contagious bird flu was detected at a Dutch poultry farm, the agriculture ministry said on Monday. "An outbreak of a variant of H5 bird flu has been detected in a poultry farm in Oldekerk, Groningen province," the ministry said in a statement, adding that it is "likely a highly pathogenic variant". — AFP

Israel arrests family member of jailed Palestinian teen
RAMALLAH, Feb 26: Israel's army has arrested nine Palestinians from the West Bank home village of jailed teenager Ahed Tamimi, including a relative shot in the head in December, the military and witnesses said Monday. The overnight arrests were in Nabi Saleh in the occupied West Bank and included four minors, witnesses said. — AFP

Snow falls in Rome
ROME, Feb 26: Rome woke to its first snowfall in six years on Monday as chilling winds from Siberia swept across Europe, bringing freezing temperatures that have claimed at least four lives, closed schools and disrupted travel. The "Beast from the East", as the phenomenon has been dubbed by the British media, is expected to bring cold air from Russia over the next few days that will make it feel even chillier than thermometers indicate. Rome saw its first snowfall since February 2012, with about three to four centimetres (1.2 to 1.6 inches) settling on the ground Sunday. - AFP

Djibouti ruling party claims landslide parliamentary win
DJIBOUTI, Feb 26: President Ismael Omar Guelleh's ruling party claimed a resounding victory in Friday's parliamentary elections in Djibouti, taking nearly 90 per cent of seats after the opposition largely boycotted the poll. Mohamed Abdallah Mahyoub, a senior member of Guelleh's UMP party and campaign spokesman, said the party had won 58 out of 65 parliamentary seats, an increase of three since the last vote in 2013. — AFP