World Briefing

THE PHILIPPINES

Typhoon slams into main island

The third typhoon to hit the Philippines in five weeks slammed into the main island of Luzon, uprooting trees and toppling power lines, but there were no immediate reports of widespread damage.

Authorities canceled about 180 flights from Manila while some ferry and bus lines were out of service, leaving thousands stranded and stopping people from returning to their home provinces for the All Saints’ Day weekend.

Two typhoons killed more than 900 people in recent weeks. Parts of the capital, Manila, were still underwater.

Typhoon Mirinae weakened as it cut through coconut-growing provinces south of the capital, the weather bureau said. The rainfall was not as heavy as had been feared, especially along the densely populated west coast of Luzon.

BRAZIL

Airplane crash survivors rescued

Nine people survived a crash landing on a river in Brazil’s Amazon rain forest after an indigenous tribe alerted authorities, who dispatched rescuers, the government said.

The small military plane was carrying four crew members and seven health officials on a vaccination campaign in remote areas. One person is presumed dead and another missing after setting out for help. The C-98 Cessna landed on the Itui river, a tributary to the Javari river, in the far western Amazon region. It was not immediately clear what caused the crash.

Members of the Matis tribe spotted the wreckage and notified local authorities. The site is close to where Brazil, Colombia and Peru meet.

CONGO

Police reported killed in melee

A U.N.-run radio station says 47 police officers have been killed amid fighting in the northern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Villagers from two different communities were involved in a fishing dispute and the police tried to intervene but were attacked, according to Col. Joly Limengo, the police inspector for Equateur province.

The fighting took place between residents of Iyele and Muzaya, Limengo told the Associated Press. He said among the villagers there were ex-combatants from rebel movements and those demobilized from the army.

U.N.-run Radio Okapi reported that an unspecified number of civilians also died.

IRAQ

Noncombat injuries kill 2 GIs

Two American soldiers in Iraq died of noncombat-related injuries in separate incidents, the U.S. military said.

The military said a soldier from Multi-National Division-Baghdad died after a vehicle accident. A soldier assigned to Multi-National Division-South died from noncombat-related injuries, the military said, without elaborating. Both incidents are under investigation.

-- times wire reports