Around the World

Japan’s embattled defense minister resigned Tuesday over his comments suggesting the 1945 atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were inevitable. Fumio Kyuma had come under intense criticism from survivors of the bombings, opposition lawmakers and fellow members of the Cabinet following the comments over the weekend. \n---\nA 10-year-old Nepalese girl was stripped of her title as a living goddess because she traveled overseas to promote a documentary about the centuries-old tradition, a news report said Tuesday. Sajani Shakya had her status revoked because she broke with tradition by leaving the country, the state-run National News Agency reported, quoting Narendra Prasad Joshi, chief of the Bhaktapur Taleju Temple where Sajani is based. \n---\nThe U.N. chief, the Afghan president and other top officials gather in Rome this week to discuss how to strengthen Afghanistan’s frail justice system amid the country’s violence. The conference on Monday and Tuesday will examine a legal system largely destroyed by more than 25 years of violence. From reconstructing buildings destroyed by fighting to training magistrates, the challenges to establishing the rule of law in Afghanistan are enormous, experts say.\n---\nA France-bound parcel filled with hundreds of dried beetles and spiders – including endangered species – was confiscated Monday at Thailand’s main international airport, police said. The box, destined for a collector, contained 1,500 beetles including 17 dried Long-arm Chafer beetles and 15 Ground Beetles, which are protected species under Thai law, Police Lt. Col. Thanayot Kengkasikit said. Some 240 spiders, including Tarantulas, were included in the shipment, Thanayot said.\n---\nA baby gorilla from a German zoo was treated at a children’s clinic after her mother’s neglect left her dangerously dehydrated, zoo officials said. Six-week-old Mary Two, who also was suffering from hypothermia, was admitted to the intensive care unit at the University of Muenster’s clinic on Saturday and discharged a day later.\n---\nChinese inspectors found excessive amounts of additives and preservatives in dozens of children’s snacks and seized hundreds of bottles of fake human blood protein from hospitals, officials said Tuesday. China’s dismal health and safety record, both within and outside its borders, has increasingly come under the spotlight as its goods make their way to global markets. Major buyers like the United States, Japan, and the European Union have pushed Beijing to improve inspections.\n---\nTens of thousands of Palestinian civil servants will be paid in full this week for the first time in more than a year after Israel released millions of dollars in tax funds frozen during Hamas rule, officials said Sunday. The transfer of the funds was Israel’s first concrete gesture of support for moderate President Mahmoud Abbas in his battle with Hamas, which violently seized control of the Gaza Strip last month.