News in Brief
IAEA chief criticized over Fukushima water release
AP – South Korean opposition lawmakers sharply criticized the head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog on Sunday for its approval of Japanese plans to release treated wastewater from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant.
They met with Rafael Grossi, the International Atomic Energy Agency’s director general, in a tense meeting in Seoul that took place while protesters screamed outside the door.
The IAEA last week approved the Japanese discharge plans, saying the process would meet international safety standards and pose negligible environmental and health impacts. South Korea’s government has also endorsed the safety of the Japanese plans.
At least 15 dead in India monsoon floods
AFP – At least 15 people were killed in floods and landslides triggered by monsoon rains that battered northern India, with New Delhi receiving the most rainfall in decades, reports and officials said Sunday.
Roads in several parts of the capital were submerged in knee-deep water as it was inundated with 153 millimetres of rain, the highest precipitation in a single day in July in 40 years.
BBC suspends presenter over sexual misconduct allegations
Reuters – Britain’s BBC suspended a male member of staff on Sunday following an allegation that one of its star presenters paid a teenager thousands of pounds to pose for sexually explicit photos, beginning when they were 17 years old.
The broadcaster said it first became aware of a complaint in May, but new allegations of a different nature were made to it on Thursday, and it had informed “external authorities”. BBC News said it understood that referred to the police.