PHILADELPHIA, July 22: A Nazi war crimes suspect has been hospitalised while awaiting an extradition hearing in Philadelphia.
A court order issued yesterday notes 89-year-old Johann Breyer has been hospitalised but doesn’t cite his condition.
Breyer’s attorney hasn’t returned a call seeking comment. His lawyers have said he’s in frail health.
Breyer has been in federal custody since his arrest last month at his longtime home in Philadelphia.
German authorities hope to try him on accessory-to-murder charges for his guard service at the Auschwitz death camp in 1944.
The retired toolmaker has denied taking part in the mass killing of Jews and others.
US Magistrate Judge Timothy Rice cancelled an extradition hearing scheduled for Thursday, citing Breyer’s hospitalisation. He says he’ll make a decision based on written arguments. (AGENCIES)

WASHINGTON, July 22:  The gas pipeline crisscrossing Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India (TAPI) has the potential to transform the future of the entire region, both South and Central Asia, the United States has said.
“The United States supports TAPI because we believe it has the potential to be transformative for the future of the entire region.”
“The TAPI pipeline project is a true multinational effort and, if realised, can serve as an important example of the benefits of greater regional economic connectivity,” a State Department Spokesperson told PTI.
Welcoming the signing of the TAPI operation agreement by these four countries in Ashgabat last week, the US has urged them to rope in an international energy company now to take the project forward.
The representative nations signed an Operations Agreement for the TAPI pipeline at the July 8 TAPI Steering Committee Meeting in Ashgabat.
The spokesperson said the United States is pleased to see continuing progress on TAPI, and expressed hope the project can succeed if it is done on a commercially viable, economically-sustainable basis.
“We encourage the TAPI parties to bring an international energy company into the project to work in cooperation with Turkmengaz in the development of the gas supply and serve as commercial champion for the project,” the spokesperson said. (PTI)

UNITED NATIONS, July 22:  The United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution calling for an international investigation into the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight (MH17) in eastern Ukraine and demanded that armed groups allow investigators “full and unrestricted” access to the crash site.
The 15-nation Council adopted the Australian-drafted resolution yesterday and condemned “in the strongest terms” the downing of MH17 on July 17 in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, which resulted in the tragic loss of 298 lives.
Russia, a veto-wielding permanent member, also supported the resolution after intense negotiations resulted in some changes to the text, including terming the incident as “downing” of the airliner instead of “shooting down.
“The resolution supported efforts to establish ‘a full, thorough and independent international investigation’ into the incident in accordance with international civil aviation guidelines.”
Expressing “grave concern” at reports of “insufficient and limited access” to the crash site, the resolution demanded that the armed groups in control of the crash site and the surrounding area “refrain from any actions that may compromise the integrity of the crash site.
“The Council members also insisted on the “dignified, respectful and professional” treatment and recovery of the bodies of the victims.
It also demanded that all military activities, including by armed groups, be immediately ceased in the area surrounding the crash site to allow for security and safety of the international investigation.
The Council demanded that those responsible for this incident to held accountable and all nations cooperate fully with efforts to establish accountability.
Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN Vitaly Churkin said he voted in favour of the resolution as he supported a swift and thorough investigation.
He stressed that his country had already acted to facilitate the investigation and was offering to provide experts.
However, he stressed that there could be no jumping to conclusions or accusations.
Churkin said that all elements of the truth should be brought to light, such as through the black boxes provided to investigators.
He added that Kyiv was attempting to draw on the shock of the international community, while its indiscriminate air strikes were hitting cities and killing civilians. (PTI)
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UNITED NATIONS, July 22:  India has the sixth highest prevalence of child marriage in the world with one in every three child bride living in India, a United Nations report said.
Child marriage among girls is most common in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa and India is among the top 10 countries with the highest rates of child marriage, UNICEF said in a report titled “Ending Child Marriage – Progress and prospects.”
“South Asia is home to almost half (42 per cent) of all child brides worldwide; India alone accounts for one third of the global total,” the report said.
Worldwide, more than 700 million women alive today were married as children or before their 18th birthday.
More than one in three – about 250 million – entered into union before age 15, the report said.
The 10 countries with the highest rates of child marriage are Niger, Bangladesh, Chad, Mali, Central African Republic, India, Guinea, Ethiopia, Burkina Faso and Nepal respectively.
In India, about 27 per cent of women aged 20 to 49 years were married before age 15.
About 31 per cent of women in that age group were married after age 15 but before they turned 18.
The report added that in India, the median age at first marriage is 19.
7 years for women in the richest quintile compared to 15.4 for the poorest women.
In the Dominican Republic and India, the wealthiest women marry about four years later than the poorest women.
UNICEF said that Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and child marriage are the two practices that affect millions of girls across the globe.
It said while prevalence has decreased slightly over the past three decades, rates of progress need to be scaled up dramatically to offset population growth in the countries where the practices are most common.
“Female genital mutilation and child marriage profoundly and permanently harm girls, denying them their right to make their own decisions and to reach their full potential.”
“They are detriments to the girls themselves, their families, and their societies,” UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake said.
“Girls are not property; they have the right to determine their destiny. When they do so, everyone benefits.” (PTI)

WASHINGTON, July 22:  The United States has urged its citizens to defer their non-essential travel to Israel and the West Bank in view of the ongoing hostilities in Gaza.
“The Department of State recommends that U citizens consider the deferral of non-essential travel to Israel and the West Bank and reaffirms the longstanding strong warning to US citizens against any travel to the Gaza Strip,” the State Department said yesterday.
Noting that the security environment remains complex in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza, the travel advisory said US citizens need to be aware of the risks of travel to these areas because of the current conflict between Hamas and Israel.
“The Department of State continues its longstanding strong warning to US citizens against travel to the Gaza Strip; US government employees are not allowed to conduct official or personal travel there,” it said.
In light of the ongoing rocket attacks, US citizen visitors to and US citizen residents of Israel and the West Bank should familiarise themselves with the location of the nearest bomb shelter or other hardened site, if available, it said.
Travellers should avoid areas of Israel in the vicinity of the Gaza Strip due to the real risks presented by small arms fire, anti-tank weapons, rockets, and mortars, as attacks from Gaza can come with little or no warning, it said. (PTI)

MEXICO CITY, July 22:  Authorities in the northern Mexico state of Sinaloa say they have found the bodies of five men in a clandestine burial site.
An official of the state prosecutor’s office who was not authorised to be quoted by name said yesterday that the bodies were found one day earlier in a wooded area near a village. The official says the bodies were all males and none have yet been identified.
Sinaloa is home to the drug cartel of the same name, which is considered Mexico’s most powerful.
Drug cartels frequently dispose of their victims in clandestine graves as do kidnap gangs. (AGENCIES)