Short circuit likely behind deadly bus fire in West Sumatra

Police say that a short circuit likely triggered the fire that killed 13 people on board a bus in Hulu Air in Harau district, Limapuluh Kota regency, West Sumatra, on Tuesday. “Witnesses said that the bus suddenly caught fire while passing along Jl. Negara West Sumatra-Riau at Kilometer 30 before entering Payakumbuh. Many of the passengers were trapped inside the bus,” West Sumatra Police spokesman, Adj. Sr. Comr. Mainar Sugiarto, said on Tuesday. Five of the victims, all residents of Agam regency, have been identified as Dariman, 75; Nurhayati, 45; Riski, 7; Rosida, 60; and Yasnimas, 41. Identification of the victims, comprising five women, three men, four children and a toddler, has been hindered due to the conditions of the bodies. Twelve passengers who suffered burns and bone fractures are currently being treated at Adnan Hospital in Payakumbuh, while a further 10 passengers were treated and then released. About 48 people were...

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Ferry disaster: 13 bodies recovered, toll mounts to 122

Rescuers found bodies of 13 victims of Monday’s deadly ferry disaster here pushing the toll to 122 on Thursday while Bangladesh assured Indian authorities of assistance in recovery and repatriation...

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Visegrad Genocide Memories

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Visegrad genocide. For a more easier and quick way of understanding what occurred in 1992, we decided to publish a booklet about the Visegrad genocide. This booklet is entitled: “The memory remains: 20 years since the Visegrad genocide”. The booklet (pdf) can be downloaded h...

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81 men and 3 women were shot in one night in February 1937 What is believed to be the second largest mass grave of people shot by the Franco troops in the Civil War has been revealed in the Málaga village of Teba. The largest such grave is in the San Rafael Cemetery in Málaga. It’s estimated that the grave contains at least 125 bodies, and so far the remains of 35 people have been recovered. The 35 were shot between 1936 and 1949 in Teba. Identification of the bodies is complicated given that the remains have just been dumped on top of each other. It has been decided to construct a pantheon to lay the bodies finally at rest at a site where those who want to pay their respects can do so. This will only happen when the bodies are indentified with DNA, to give the families the chance to bury their loved ones where they wish. Between September 12 and 14 1936, the Franco troops took Teba. Many locals fled looking for the republican front...

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CIUDAD JUAREZ - The identities of nearly 800 skeletal remains found between 2007 and December last year in the state of Chihuahua - 135 in this city - continue to be an unsolved mystery, state authorities said on Tuesday. During a tour of the state's forensic services department in Juárez, technicians said they have obtained genetic profiles of each one of the remains, but they still haven't been able to determine their identities because none of the 791 victims has matched the genetic material samples provided by relatives searching for missing people in the state. The lack of positive matches in these cases means the victims came from other states or countries, or that their relatives never provided a sample of genetic material. Daniel Ricardo Jaramillo, general director of the state's forensic services department, said he has shared the genetic database of the unidentified victims with Mexico's National Human Rights Commission, or...

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