BANGKOK

Thailand’s military junta lifts nationwide curfew

Thailand’s military government announced that it has fully lifted a nationwide curfew it imposed after seizing power last month, saying there is no threat of violence and that tourism needs to be revived.

Political protests and criticism of the coup, however, remain banned by the junta, which said a return to elected civilian rule cannot be expected for at least 15 months.

The curfew had earlier been reduced to four hours from seven hours, and had been lifted in several resort areas popular with tourists after complaints from the tourism industry over the financial damage it was causing.

WILMINGTON, Del.

Transportation chief pushes for federal highway funds

The closure of a major bridge in Delaware due to tilting support columns is a national issue, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, who used a visit to the site Friday to push Congress to replenish diminishing federal highway funds.

The Interstate 495 bridge over the Christina River in Wilmington was closed June 2. Traffic is being shunted onto I-95 through Wilmington as crews begin a repair project that officials hope will have the bridge at least partially reopened by Labor Day.

“This isn’t just a Delaware issue, it’s a national issue,” Foxx said. “When this bridge goes down, the ability of folks to travel all the way south into Miami, all the way up the Eastern Seaboard, is impacted. So it is a big deal that we get this bridge back up and going.”

– From news service reports