7.2 quake hits off Japan coast

Tokyo A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.2 struck off the northeast coast of Japan today, triggering a small tsunami, collapsing buildings, knocking out power and shaking skyscrapers nearly 200 miles away in Tokyo.

A caved-in roof at an indoor pool in the coastal city of Sendai injured 14 people, national broadcaster NHK reported. Two more people were injured in the neighboring state of Iwate, Kyodo News Agency reported.

The quake hit about 11:46 a.m. and was centered 12 miles below the ocean floor, 50 miles off the coast, the Meteorological Agency said.

Peace treaty ends 30 years of fighting

Helsinki, Finland Indonesia and Aceh rebels signed a peace treaty Monday to end nearly 30 years of fighting that killed 15,000 people, but rebel leaders voiced concern about government troops remaining in the region.

The signing ceremony in Helsinki followed seven months of talks mediated by former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari, who spurred the two sides to agreement to help international aid reach Aceh province, which was devastated by last year’s tsunami.

The pact gives amnesty to members of the Free Aceh Movement, or GAM, and allows the oil- and gas-rich region limited self-government. It was signed by Indonesian Justice and Human Rights Minister Hamid Awaluddin and Malik Mahmud, an exiled rebel leader who was briefly jailed in Sweden last year after Indonesia accused him of terrorism.

Both sides agreed to end hostilities immediately after the signing.

Indonesia to prosecute 10 companies for haze

Jakarta, Indonesia Indonesia will prosecute 10 companies – eight of them Malaysian – for illegally lighting fires on Sumatra Island that have enveloped much of Malaysia with smoke.

The widespread haze, which appeared on Aug. 2, has forced the closure of schools and workplaces and dramatically increased respiratory ailments.

“The Environment Ministry has investigated those companies involved in slash-and-burn activities and we will prosecute them,” said Indonesia’s Forestry Minister Malam Kaban. The minister released the list of Malaysian firms but refused to divulge the Indonesian ones.

The haze is caused by fires on Indonesia’s Sumatra island – across a narrow strip of sea from Malaysia – where farmers, plantation owners and miners clear land during dry weather. It blows annually across the strait to Malaysia, which has often complained that Indonesia does little to prevent it.

Car bomb kills two in Chechnya capital

Grozny, Russia A powerful car bomb exploded outside a restaurant in Chechnya’s capital Monday, killing two people – including a child – and wounding at least 11 others, a police spokesman said.

The blast was the latest violence in Grozny, which remains a shattered city some six years after Russian troops invaded the province seeking to end a separatist insurgency.

A 12-year-old boy and a woman were killed in the blast, said Ruslan Atsayev, a spokesman for the region’s interior ministry. The explosion occurred at about 2:45 p.m., just feet from the entrance of Hollywood, a popular restaurant that sits some 655 feet from a heavily fortified compound of government buildings.

Guatemala prison riots leave at least 30 dead

Guatemala City Gang members armed with grenades, guns and knives attacked rivals in at least four Guatemalan prisons Monday, leaving at least 30 dead, authorities said.

Interior Minister Carlos Vielmann told the Associated Press that the riots apparently began with attacks by members of the Mara Salvatrucha gang against rivals of the MS-18 gang. He said the attacks may have been coordinated.

The riots were brought under control shortly after noon, officials said.