Australia dismisses North Korea letter as rant against Trump
Australia's prime minister has dismissed an extraordinary letter from North Korea to the Australian Parliament and other countries as a "rant" against President Donald Trump and a sign that Pyongyang is "starting to feel the squeeze" of escalated sanctions. The letter was sent to many countries including Australia.
Turkey orders arrest of 110 people over Gulen links
Turkish authorities issued arrest warrants for 110 people from a seized company over alleged links to the US-based cleric who Ankara says orchestrated last year's attempted coup. More than 50,000 people have been jailed pending trial over alleged links to Gulen, while 150,000 people have been sacked or suspended from jobs in the military, public and private sectors.
NASA extends Dawn mission at dwarf planet Ceres
NASA has approved a second extension of the Dawn mission at Ceres, allowing the spacecraft to get a closer look at the largest object in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The spacecraft also will take visible-light images of Ceres' surface geology with its camera, as well as measurements of Ceres mineralogy with its visible and infrared mapping spectrometer.
Peru approves medicinal use of marijuana
The Peruvian Congress has approved a bill that authorises the medicinal and therapeutic use of cannabis and its derivatives in the country. The bill will legalise the medicinal use of marijuana and its derivatives, such as cannabis oil, to alleviate the symptoms of diseases such as cancer, epilepsy and Parkinson's disease.
US Senate passes $4tn budget blueprint
The US Senate has approved a multi-trillion dollar budget that President Donald Trump has called a "first step towards massive tax cuts". It is being seen as a largely symbolic move that sets the stage for Republicans to rewrite the American tax code without a single Democratic vote.
Top S Korean, US nuke envoys meet
Top nuclear envoys of South Korea and the US met to discuss issues concerning the North Korean nuclear programme. During the bilateral meeting, they shared a view that Seoul and Washington would need to cooperate with major countries based on close US-South Korea coordination.
Pakistan Taliban confirms US drone kills leader
A Pakistani Taliban group confirmed that its leader Omar Khalid Khorasani has been killed in a recent US drone strike on the Afghan side of the border. Khorasani has died of wounds after he was injured in a drone strike in Paktiya province on Tuesday. Pakistan army also confirmed on Tuesday that military operations were conducted in Afghanistan's eastern Khost and Paktiya provinces over the past few days.