Top News Stories –

Italy earthquake: Death toll rises to at least 159 –
At least 159 people have been killed and 368 injured in an earthquake that hit a mountainous area of central Italy, civil protection officials say. The magnitude-6.2 quake struck at 03:36 (01:36 GMT), 100km (65 miles) north-east of Rome, not far from Perugia. At least 86 of the dead were in the historic town of Amatrice, where the mayor said three-quarters of the town was destroyed, and in nearby Accumoli.
Many people are still believed to be buried under rubble. [BBC]

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Other News Stories –

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Syrian civil war
  • The Turkish Armed Forces and US-backed Syrian rebels launch an initially successful campaign to capture the town of Jarabulus from ISIL. The Turkish Land Forces are also shelling YPG positions to prevent them from capturing areas that ISIL will retreat from. (AP via NBC News) (AP) (ABC News)
• War in Afghanistan (2015–present)
  • The American University of Afghanistan in Kabul is attacked by suspected Taliban militants, resulting in at least 13 deaths and 30 injured. (CNN) (Fox News)

Disasters and accidents

• 2016 Central Italy earthquake
  • A 6.2 magnitude earthquake occurs in central Italy near the city of Perugia. The mayor of the town of Amatrice reports that residents are buried under rubble. (The Telegraph) (USGS) (AP via San Diego Union Tribune)
  • At least 159 people have been reported dead. (BBC News), (ANSA)
• August 2016 Myanmar earthquake
  • A 6.8 magnitude earthquake hits central Myanmar, 25km west of the town of Chauk, and was also felt in Thailand, Bangladesh and India, according to reports. At least three people are killed. (BBC)
• The world’s largest aircraft, Hybrid Air Vehicles HAV 304 Airlander 10, crashes at RAF Cardington, Bedfordshire, during its second test flight. (The Guardian)

International relations

• Japan–North Korea relations, North Korea and weapons of mass destruction
  • North Korea launches a missile from a submarine off the port city of Sinpo in the Sea of Japan, according to U.S. and South Korean officials. This missile, the third sub-based attempt this year, flew about 500 kilometers (311 miles) and landed in waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. The first test exploded and the second traveled 30 km (18½ miles). (NBC News) (AP)

Law and crime

• 2016 Home Hill stabbings
  • One British woman is killed and two others are wounded in a stabbing attack on a North Queensland backpacker hostel, Australia. (News.com) (ABC News Australia)

• A police officer from Bethel, Alaska, will be sentenced to prison for charges related to police brutality in a 2014 case involving an intoxicated man. The charges followed an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigations civil rights division. The former officer, Andrew Reid, was found to have used excessive force and lying on official police reports. The victim suffered a separated shoulder and other injuries.(Alaska Dispatch News)

Politics and elections

• Colombian conflict
  • The government of Colombia and FARC finalise a peace deal ending 50 years of conflict. (Xinhua)

Science and technology

• Proxima Centauri b is discovered as the closest exoplanet to Earth that may be habitable. (BBC)

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