JUBA, South Sudan

South Sudan rebels killed hundreds, U.N. mission says

South Sudanese rebels allied to former Vice President Riek Machar who seized the city of Bentiu last week killed hundreds of civilians seeking shelter there, after determining their ethnicity or nationality, the United Nations said.

“These atrocities must be fully investigated and the perpetrators and their commanders shall be held accountable,” Raisedon Zenenga, the officer in charge of the U.N. mission in South Sudan, said in a statement on its website late Monday.

Rebel forces said on April 15 that they had gained control of Bentiu, the capital of oil-rich Unity state, after clashes with government forces.

The conflict between factions loyal to President Salva Kiir and his former deputy Machar erupted in December and has left thousands of people dead and driven a million from their homes, according to the U.N.

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As many as 7 million people are at risk of severe food insecurity in the coming year unless they get more help, development charity Oxfam said Tuesday.

DAKAR, Senegal

Ebola in West Africa leaves more than 140 people dead

The World Health Organization says the current Ebola outbreak in West Africa has killed more than 140 people.

The Ebola disease causes a high fever and internal and external bleeding. There is no cure and no vaccine and it has a high fatality rate.

The U.N. health agency said Tuesday at least 230 suspected or confirmed cases of Ebola have been recorded so far in Guinea and Liberia. Most of the cases are in Guinea.

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The U.N. statement said 129 deaths in Guinea and 13 in Liberia have been linked to the disease.

The outbreak is highly unusual as the disease is typically found in central or eastern Africa.

HONOLULU

Surveillance video shows boy on airfield for hours

A law enforcement official says surveillance video from San Jose International Airport shows the boy who survived a flight to Hawaii in a plane’s wheel well was on the airfield seven hours before the jet departed.

The official was not authorized to speak publicly about the case and spoke Tuesday on condition of anonymity.

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The official said the 15-year-old stowaway from Santa Clara, Calif., got on the airfield a little after 1 a.m. Sunday and went undetected for hours in what is supposed to be a secured area of the airport.

The boy popped out of the wheel well after the Boeing 767 landed in Maui and was resting Tuesday at a Honolulu hospital. Child welfare officials are working to return him to Northern California.

– From news service reports

 


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