Nuclear contamination found on worker at weapons lab

Technicians practice the remediated nitrate salt (RNS) treatment procedure using a mockup glovebox at Los Alamos. Photo / AP

United States: Reports from an independent safety panel show radioactive contamination was found on a worker's hands and other places at a nuclear weapons lab in New Mexico — the latest safety lapse at the facility as it ramps up work with nuclear material. All pipefitting work was paused after a crew had to be stripped and decontaminated on May 16 because of the discovery at Los Alamos National Laboratory, the birthplace of the atomic bomb, according to weekly briefings from the Defence Nuclear Facilities Safety Board. Contamination also was found on the crew's protective clothing and in a work area, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported. The briefings also show members of another crew placed plutonium salts in a prohibited area. Lab spokesman Matt Nerzig said the workers were thoroughly decontaminated — mostly by washing off the contamination with water. None received any measurable dose of radiation, he said. Nerzig also said the incident with the plutonium salts did not result in a significant safety risk to workers or the public.

Turkey: A Turkish court has accepted an indictment charging the father of NBA player Enes Kanter with "membership in a terror group," the country's official news agency reported. The indictment followed an investigation of Mehmet Kanter, and prosecutors planned to seek his conviction and a prison term of five to 10 years at trial, Anadolu Agency said. It's unclear when the trial in western Tekirdag province would begin. Enes Kanter, who plays for the New York Knicks, is a follower of a US-based Turkish cleric who the government accuses of masterminding a failed military coup in 2016. Cleric Fethullah Gulen has denied the allegation, but tens of thousands of people suspected of ties to his network have been arrested or fired. The elder Kanter, a professor, was purged from public service after the coup attempt and detained for five days last year.

Gambia: Police say two environmental activists were killed during protests against a sand mining company as they clashed with paramilitary forces. The Inspector General of Police said that clashes erupted between Gambian forces and activists in the town of Faraba Banta, about 50km south of the capital, Banjul. It said the discord led to the "regrettable death" of two activists and that the use of firearms by security personnel at the protest hadn't been authorised. Activists have been calling on the government to close down Julakay sand mining, alleging it is causing environmental damage. Many residents say the mining destroys their rice fields and farms, threatening their livelihoods.

I stopped this vehicle today for a left lane violation on I-65. The driver had approximately 20 cars slowed behind her because she would not move back to the right lane.

Again...if there are vehicles behind you, you must move to the right lane to allow them to pass. pic.twitter.com/tePjJ1Xigy

— Sgt. Stephen Wheeles (@ISPVersailles) June 16, 2018

United States: An Indiana State Police trooper who tweeted a photo of a vehicle he stopped for driving too slowly in the left lane says he's overwhelmed by the widespread praise he's receiving online. Sergeant Stephen Wheeles stopped the driver on Interstate 65 about 55km south of Indianapolis after about 20 vehicles had slowed behind her. Wheeles says she was traveling under the speed limit. Indiana law requires drivers to move to the right lane to allow faster traffic to pass.

Spain: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said he wants to remove the remains of the late dictator General Francisco Franco from a controversial mausoleum and turn the site into a monument for reconciliation. Sanchez told national broadcaster TVE that Spain "cannot afford symbols that separate Spaniards" and that he wants to turn the Valley of the Fallen into "a memorial about the fight against fascism." More than 33,000 dead from both sides of Spain's 1936-1939 civil war are buried alongside Franco's remains at the neoclassical mausoleum northwest of Madrid.

So we have told you the interview with Pedro Sánchez, the President of the Government | Spain https://t.co/ksbWZKjgwg pic.twitter.com/VPJ8WbcgKx

— 247Newsbeat.com (@247Newsbeat) June 18, 2018

Greece: Greek police say they have arrested one suspected extreme nationalist and are seeking a second as suspects in a pair of attacks on immigrants in Athens. A police statement said the suspects allegedly attacked two Pakistanis, stole a mobile phone and cash, and beat them while berating them with racist comments. In the second attack, another immigrant whose nationality was not made public was beaten while being verbally abused.

Mexico: Mexico City authorities said that street-level drug dealing was probably involved in the killing of two men whose dismembered remains were found scattered on a major boulevard. The city prosecutors' office said the hacked-up body parts were found with a banner of the kind often used by drug gangs to send threatening messages to rivals. Investigators identified one of the victims as a 42-year old man with criminal record. Scattering bodies on roadways or hanging them from overpasses has occurred in other parts of the country, but seldom in Mexico City.

-AP