Air force plane crashes in sea
Air force plane crashes in sea
MALAYSIA: An air force training plane crashed off peninsular
Malaysia's east coast on Wednesday, a defense ministry official
in Kuala Lumpur said.
The plane's sole occupant was believed to be its pilot, said
Tengku Sariffuddin Tengku Ahmad, an aide to the defense minister.
The cause of the crash had not yet been determined.
Tengku Sariffuddin said that the pilot had been rushed to a
hospital in the eastern state of Pahang.
A hospital official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said
that the pilot remained conscious and was expected to live,
although he suffered serious injuries, including some backbone
fractures.
The Pilatus PC7 aircraft crash occurred at about noon local
time in Malaysian waters off Pahang, about 13 nautical miles (21
kilometers) off Beserah beach. --AP
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Aglance-Thailand-RI-visit
Thailand PM Thaksin to visit Indonesia Jan 17-18
JP/9/ASEAN
PM Thaksin to visit Jakarta this month
THAILAND: Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is due to arrive in
Jakarta on Jan. 17 for a two-day visit, Thai officials in Bangkok
said on Wednesday.
The trip follows Indonesian President Megawati Soekarnoputri's
visit to Bangkok last August.
Details of Thaksin's trip were not immediately available.
During Megawati's visit last year, part of a whistle-stop tour
of all nine fellow members of the Association of South East Asian
Nations (ASEAN), Thailand and Indonesia discussed political
stability, security and boosting investment. --Reuters
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Aglance-RP-earthquake
Moderate earthquake shakes southern Philippine province of South
JP/9/ASEAN
Moderate earthquake shakes RP
PHILIPPINES: A moderate earthquake rattled southern Philippine
provinces but caused no injuries or damage, seismologists in
Manila said on Wednesday.
The magnitude 5.6 quake at 7:34 p.m. (6:34 p.m. Jakarta)
Tuesday was centered in the Mindanao Sea 76 kilometers southeast
of General Santos City in the province of South Cotabato, the
Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said.
The institute said the tectonic quake was focused below the
Mindanao Sea at a moderate depth of 125 kilometers. No
aftershocks were expected.
The quake could be felt at intensity 4 in the city of General
Santos but there were no reports of damage. It could be felt at
lower intensities in several provinces nearby. --AP
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Aglance-Malaysia-politics
Malaysian officials schedule Jan. 19 for state by-election
JP/9/ASEAN
KL sets date for state by-election
MALAYSIA: Officials set Jan. 19 for a Malaysian state by-election
that is expected to underscore the dominance of Prime Minister
Mahathir Mohamad's government.
Mahathir's ruling National Front coalition hopes to retain the
northern Perlis state assembly seat of Indera Kayangan by an
increased majority compared to a 1999 election, when it captured
nearly two-thirds of the vote.
The seat fell vacant Dec. 19 when assemblyman Khor Liang Tee
died of cancer. Khor was a member of the Malaysian Chinese
Association, the largest ally of Mahathir's United Malays
National Organization.
Announcing the by-election Wednesday, Abdul Rashid Abdul
Rahman, chairman of the national election commission, said that
7,976 people were eligible to vote. There are an almost equal
number of ethnic Malays and ethnic Chinese voters. --AP