3 injured, houses damaged in 6.1-magnitude earthquake in China's Sichuan province
Beijing, Jun 1: Three people were severely injured and several houses were damaged when a 6.1-magnitude earthquake rattled the southwestern Chinese province of Sichuan on Wednesday.
The earthquake struck Lushan county of Ya'an City at 5:00 pm local time. The epicentre, with a depth of 17 km, was monitored at 30.37 degrees north latitude and 102.94 degrees east longitude, the China Earthquake Networks Centre (CENC) said.
At least three people were severely injured in the quake, Chengdu Economic Daily reported, citing Ya'an's health department.
The quake was followed by strong aftershocks.
Three minutes after the quake, Baoxing County was struck by an aftershock of 4.5 magnitude.
Strong tremors were also felt as far as Sichuan's capital city of Chengdu and Chongqing Municipality, the state-run CGTN reported.
Provincial firefighters of over 1,400 people have been mobilised to the sites. Meanwhile, rescue teams of adjacent Guizhou, Yunnan provinces and Chongqing municipality are prepared as reinforcements.
The Sichuan fire department said some houses in Lushan County were partially damaged and it's continuing communicating with relevant counties and towns that have been affected.
The municipal government of Ya'an has activated a Level-II emergency response, the second highest of the four-tier system of emergency responses.
China's ministry of emergency management has also sent a team of experts to Lushan for rescue and relief operations.
Due to the two quakes, China's railway authority has urgently halted relevant sections of train lines.
Sichuan province suffered China's deadliest 7.9 magnitude earthquake in 2008 in which 90,000 people were killed.
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India & Israel elevate ties to special strategic partnership, vow to soon conclude free trade deal
Jerusalem (PTI): India and Israel on Thursday elevated their "time-tested" relationship to a special strategic partnership and agreed to soon firm up a "mutually beneficial" free trade deal even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly backed the Gaza peace initiative, asserting that humanity must never become a victim of conflict.
Following talks between Modi and his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, the two sides inked a plethora of agreements to expand cooperation in areas of trade, agriculture, energy, cyberspace and digital payment.
India and Israel also vowed to expand their already close defence partnership by working towards joint development and joint production of military hardware under the framework of the transfer of technologies.
In his media statement, Modi said India's security interest is linked to peace and stability in the Middle East, adding that New Delhi fully supports the Gaza Peace Initiative.
"India's stance is clear: humanity must never become a victim of conflict. A path to peace has been created through the Gaza Peace Plan. India has fully supported these efforts," he said.
"In the future as well, we will continue dialogue and cooperation with all countries," he said.
PM Modi landed in Israel on Wednesday on a two-day visit. It is his second visit to Israel in nine years.
In his remarks, the prime minister said India and Israel have a united view that there is no place for terrorism in the world and both sides stand shoulder-to-shoulder in countering terrorism and its supporters.
"Our relationship is founded on the strong bedrock of deep trust, shared democratic values, and human sensitivities. Our bond has stood the test of every trial of time," he said.
"Today, we have taken the historic decision to elevate our time-tested partnership to the status of a 'Special Strategic Partnership'," he said.
The prime minister also announced the establishment of an India-Israel critical and emerging technologies partnership to impart a new momentum for cooperation in areas of artificial intelligence, quantum, and critical minerals. "I am pleased that an agreement has been reached for the use of UPI in Israel," he said.
The prime minister, referring to the threat of terrorism, said India and Israel will continue to confront the menace unitedly.
"India and Israel are completely clear that there is no place for terrorism in the world. In any form, in any expression, terrorism cannot be accepted," he said.
"We have stood shoulder-to-shoulder in opposing terrorism and its supporters, and we will continue to do so," he added.
India and Israel also discussed the implementation of the India-Middle East Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) and cooperation under the framework of I2U2 (India-Israel-UAE-USA).
