Briefly World

The police detained unlicensed welders Tuesday on suspicion of accidentally starting a fire that engulfed a high-rise apartment building under renovation in Shanghai

Welders held in China high-rise fire,toll 53

SHANGHAI: The police detained unlicensed welders Tuesday on suspicion of accidentally starting a fire that engulfed a high-rise apartment building under renovation in Shanghai ,killing at least 53 people. A preliminary investigation showed four welders improperly operated their equipment,sparking Mondays blaze in Shanghai,the city government said on its website. Police investigating the disaster said eight people had been detained. Shanghais fire chief said the fire started on the 10th floor and spread quickly to scaffolding and nylon nets covering the 28-storey building.

Thailand to extradite arms dealer to US

BANGKOK: The Thai government agreed on Tuesday to extradite accused Russian arms trafficker Viktor Bout to the US,where he faces terrorism charges. Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said that the Thai Cabinet sided with an earlier Appeals Court decision that Bout,alleged to be one of the worlds major arms dealers,could be extradited. Abhisit said Bout would be sent as soon as the US was ready to receive him,even suggesting that the suspect might already be on his way.

First stem cell trial for stroke victims

LONDON: In what is being claimed as the worlds first stem cell trial for stroke victims,British doctors have injected cells into the brain of a patient in a ground-breaking surgery. A team at the Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology in Glasgow carried out the pioneering procedure on a patient who will be closely monitored for two years,The Daily Telegraph reported. The research will test whether implanting stem cells can treat damaged brain areas and improve quality of life.

S Korea: Gamer,15,kills self,mom

SEOUL: South Korean police say a 15-year-old boy has committed suicide after killing his mother in a fight over Internet games. The police said on Tuesday that the student hanged himself. Jung says the boys mother had been strangled in their home in the city of Busan. The student said in a suicide note that he killed his mother during a fight about Internet games. His younger sister said her brother had been playing violent Internet games for the past two to three years.

Gunmen kill 2 Christians in Iraq

BAGHDAD: Gunmen killed two Christians in Iraqs northern city of Mosul in the latest assault on the countrys dwindling Christian community,officials said on Tuesday. In Mosul,360 km northwest of Baghdad,two Christian men were sitting in their living room when gunmen broke into the house last night and shot them,a police officer in the northern city said. Another house belonging to a Christian family in a different neighborhood of eastern Mosul was also bombed overnight.