IN BRIEF (Page 8)

Spain

Crash probe focus on driver

The focus of a probe into a horrific train derailment in northwestern Spain that killed 80 people turned on Friday to the injured driver, who reportedly boasted of his love for speed online. The 52-year-old driver, identified by local media as Francisco Jose Garzon Amo, was under police surveillance in the hospital after the train hurtled off the tracks on Wednesday while going at twice the legal speed limit in one of Spain's worst rail disasters ever.

Japan

Haiku poet arrested

Police on Friday arrested a man who left a haiku, a Japanese short poem, when he disappeared after five people were murdered in a tiny mountain village. Investigators found Kosei Homi, 63, dressed only in his underwear early on Friday in mountains near the hamlet in western Yamaguchi prefecture, police and reports said. The manhunt began on Sunday after officers found three corpses inside two burned-out houses. They subsequently uncovered two more bodies in separate homes.

Pakistan

Opposition party to boycott vote

Pakistan's main opposition party announced on Friday it would boycott next week's presidential election because it claims the vote is being brought forward without consultation. The Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that the ballot would be held on July 30 instead of Aug 6 after the main ruling party complained that the original date clashed with the end of Ramadan.

China

Fleet confronts Japanese ships

A Chinese coast guard fleet confronted Japanese patrol vessels in waters surrounding the Diaoyu Islands on Friday. The Chinese fleet declared China's sovereignty over the islands, according to the State Oceanic Administration. "Our ships sternly declared China's sovereignty over the islands and demanded the Japanese boats leave the area," the administration said on its website.

Qinzhou hosts business forum

The China Public Diplomacy Association hosted a Chinese business forum called "Going Global" in Qinzhou, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, on July 26. The association's vice-chairman, Ma Zhengang, and general consuls from the Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia consulates in Nanning, the capital of Guangxi, attended the forum with about 100 Chinese entrepreneurs in the construction and engineering industries.

AFP-AP-China Daily-Xinhua

(China Daily 07/27/2013 page8)