Trump on US retaliation to Iran, 24 dead in Indonesia fire — top world news for today

At least 24 dead in fire at Indonesia matchstick factory

A number of people including children were killed in the fire that swept through a house that doubled as a match factory, a disaster official said Friday. (AP Photo)

At least 24 people died on Friday in a fire at a small factory producing matchsticks in Indonesia’s North Sumatra province, authorities said. The blaze broke out at midday in the makeshift facility located in a residential area, killing 21 adults and three children, said Riadil Akhir Lubis, head of the provincial disaster mitigation agency. The cause of the fire was not immediately known. READ MORE

South African plane grounded after abandoned foetus discovered in toilet

FlySafair executive Kirby Gordon thanked the customers for their patience and said, “We will be doing everything within our power to aid authorities in the necessary investigations.” (Twitter @FlySafair/ Representational)

An abandoned foetus was found on board FlySafair aircraft FA 411, which was scheduled to depart from Durban on Friday morning at 6:15 to Johanessburg, reported AFP. Cleaners found the foetus blocking the toilet as the plane was being prepared for take off, forcing the airline to offload the passengers and carry out a police investigation. READ MORE

Pentagon is without a chief as US faces many global threats

The Pentagon is seen in this aerial view in Washington. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)

It’s a difficult time for the Pentagon to be without a permanent US defence secretary. The Trump administration is grappling with an escalating crisis with Iran, an unusual and controversial deployment of troops to the US-Mexico border, the nearly two-decade-old war in Afghanistan and stalled talks with North Korea over its nuclear weapons program. READ MORE

‘I Love Thee, China’: North Korea woos Xi Jinping in lavish state visit

The visit comes a week before Xi and US President Donald Trump are due to meet at a G20 summit in Japan amid a trade dispute that has rattled global financial markets. (Photo: Reuters)

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Chinese President Xi Jinping have agreed that strengthening bilateral ties, at a time of “serious and complicated” international affairs, is good for regional peace, North Korean state media said on Friday. Xi left the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, on Friday after a two-day visit, the first by a Chinese leader in 14 years, during which he got a lavish reception that included thousands of people holding up placards that formed a picture of Xi’s face and the Chinese flag, and a performance of the song “I Love Thee, China”. READ MORE