A powerful explosion ripped through a supermarket in Russia. Protests in Myanmar are also continuing after a military coup and imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny will appear again in court. Meanwhile, Beijing banned BBC World News from broadcasting in China. CBS News foreign correspondent Ian Lee joined “CBSN AM” from London with those headlines.
Video transcription
ANNE-MARIE GREEN: Emergency services are on the scene after a powerful explosion ripped through a supermarket in southern Russia, rather in a southern Russian city. Our Ian Lee has followed that story for us, and other international headlines. Ian, you come to us from London. What can you tell us about this?
IAN LEE: Good morning, Anne Marie. It could have been much worse in Russia if that explosion in the supermarket happened hours later when it opened. The aftermath only shows the force of the explosion. The one-story building completely collapsed and continued to smolder. Nearby apartments were also damaged and debris was thrown into the surrounding neighborhood.
Emergency services believe a gas leak caused the explosion. No one is believed to be dead while a security guard sleeping in the building at the time was able to crawl to safety relatively unharmed.
Then we are in Myanmar, where protests continue in the wake of a military coup earlier this month. The generals called for unity, but the people don’t. They want democracy to be restored in the country. Local reports say today has seen the largest turnout of protesters to date.
This, on the same day, more than 23,000 prisoners were released in a gesture of unity. The military is now threatening more repressive measures against protesters if unrest continues.
Then we are in Russia, where the imprisoned opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, will appear again in court today. This time, he is accused of defaming a World War II veteran and supporter of President Putin. Navalny calls the case a made-up attempt to discredit him. And if convicted, the Kremlin critic could face a fine, community service, or imprisonment. The trial comes after a judge sentenced him to nearly three years in prison earlier this month for violation of probation.
To keep his anti-Putin campaign going, the Navalny team is accepting donations, including Bitcoin. So far, he has received nearly $ 300,000 worth of cryptocurrency this year.
Finally we have an argument between the UK and China. It started when British authorities revoked the Chinese state broadcaster’s license for violating regulations after broadcasting an alleged forced confession of a British citizen. Beijing retaliated by banning “BBC World News” from broadcasting in China. Chinese authorities said the British broadcaster has violated guidelines that harm the country’s national interest. Both the UK and US condemned China’s decision, calling it part of a broader campaign to suppress free media in the country.
Anne-Marie, we should note that CBS has a partnership with the BBC. But there is also a lot of concern that China is using its state broadcaster as a cover for espionage. And last weekend, British authorities deported three Chinese journalists accused of espionage.
ANNE-MARIE GREEN: Yes, and I think I don’t know if these are among the three, but I know Beijing is holding at least one Australian anchor and making the same accusation. Being deported seems much better than being held against your will. Ian Lee, thank you very much.