UNITED STATES: Police car chases have led to at least eight deaths in under a week amid calls by experts to curb high-speed pursuits that cause hundreds of fatalities every year.

In Texas, a man fleeing from police died on Sunday. In Alabama, four people were killed when a car being pursued hit a tree on Friday. In California, three people were killed in separate crashes during police pursuits last week.

A think tank called in 2023 for car chases to be avoided unless violence has been committed and there is an imminent threat.

SOUTH KOREA: National Intelligence Service director Lee Jong-seok said today that it’s now fair to view the teenage daughter of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as his heir.

The girl, described by state media as Mr Kim’s “most beloved” or “respected” child, has accompanied him to many high-profile events since late 2022, sparking outside speculation that she’s being groomed as his successor.

CHINA: A French citizen convicted of drug-trafficking has been executed after more than 15 years on death row, according to the French Foreign Ministry.

Chan Thao Phoumy, 62, was put to death in the southern city of Guangzhou, despite French authorities’ clemency pleas, the ministry said in a statement expressing “consternation” on Saturday night. A court had sentenced him to death in 2010.

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: The nation has become the latest in Africa to agree to accept migrants deported from the United States.

The deportees will start arriving this month, the Congolese Ministry of Communications said in a statement, describing the arrangement as “temporary.”