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BEIJING:

Fire at a Beijing hospital kills 21

Twenty-one people have died in a fire at a Beijing hospital that forced the evacuation of dozens of patients, Chinese state media reported.

Staff removed 71 patients after the fire broke out yesterday in the inpatient department of Beijing Changfeng Hospital, state media including CGTN reported.

Videos of the fire circulating on social media show black smoke billowing from the building, with some people climbing out of the windows using what appears to be makeshift ropes made out of bedsheets. Others took refuge on air conditioning units outside the windows.

State media said the fire has been extinguished and rescue work has been completed.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, the reports said.

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CAPE TOWN:

Ex-politician murdered in South Africa

A former politician who gained notoriety in South Africa for dumping human faeces in public places as a protest against the living conditions in some of the country's poorest townships was fatally shot Monday while meeting with a group of homeless people, police said.

Loyiso Nkohla was killed by unknown gunmen, who fled the scene of the shooting near the Philippi Railway Station on the outskirts of Cape Town. Three other people were wounded and were taken to the hospital by bystanders, police said.

Police said there was no clear motive for the killing. South African media reported that more than 20 shots were fired, but police didn't confirm those details.

Nkohla, who local media reported was 40 years old, had been addressing people who live in shacks and other informal structures near the railway yard when he was shot.

He served as an elected local councillor for the ruling African National Congress party, but later joined numerous other political parties and continued working as a community activist for the poor after leaving politics last year.

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PESHAWAR:

Chinese national charged for insulting Prophet Muhammad

Pakistani police arrested a Chinese national on blasphemy charges after he allegedly insulted Islam and the Prophet Muhammad, authorities said on Monday. Under Pakistan's controversial blasphemy laws, the offence carries the death penalty.

Police identified the man only as Mr Tian from China and said he was arrested on Sunday night, hours after hundreds of residents and labourers working on a dam project blocked a key highway and rallied to demand his arrest.

The rally took place in the town of Komela - located close to

the site of the Dasu Dam, the biggest hydropower project in Pakistan - in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan, according to local police chief Naseer Khan.

Khan said officers quickly responded to the protests by "rescuing and arresting" the Chinese national. According to Khan, the accusations arose from a workplace disagreement: Tian allegedly became upset and reprimanded two local drivers for taking too much time from work to pray. Other labourers then claimed he had insulted the prophet.

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Russia increases penalty for treason

The lower house of Russia's parliament on Tuesday approved legislation increasing the punishment for treason to life imprisonment and boosting the penalty for terrorism.

The legislation, which advances to the parliament's upper house, represents an escalation of the Kremlin's domestic crackdown. Human rights advocates say charges of treason and terrorism are sometimes used against political critics and opponents. Another aspect of the crackdown reported Tuesday was an allegation of violence brought against imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

The State Duma sent for further approval a proposal to increase the punishment for treason to life imprisonment from the current maximum of 20 years. Punishment for terrorism would be increased from 15 to 20 years in prison. Specifically for international terrorism, punishment will be from 12 years to life imprisonment, up from its current penalty of 10 to 20 years.