In brief: Pakistan sends copter home to India

NEW DELHI – An Indian army helicopter flying in bad weather strayed into Pakistani controlled territory in the disputed area of Kashmir on Sunday and was briefly detained.

In a rare case of cooperation between the two wary neighbors, however, the issue was resolved quickly and efficiently as Pakistan refueled the Indian Cheetah helicopter and allowed its crew to return to Indian territory, all within about five hours.

The Indian crew was reportedly made up of a colonel, two majors and a junior commissioned officer, but Pakistan was evidently convinced the intrusion was accidental after questioning the crew and finding nothing more than routine engineering equipment aboard.

President trounces challengers

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina – President Cristina Fernandez was re-elected in a landslide Sunday, winning with the widest victory margin in Argentina’s history after her government spread the wealth of a booming economy.

Fernandez had 53 percent of the vote after 58 percent of the polling stations reported nationwide. Her nearest challenger got just 17 percent.

Drivers arrested in toddler’s death

BEIJING – Police formally arrested two drivers suspected of running over a toddler who died a week after she was struck on a busy market street in southern China and was ignored by passers-by, newspapers reported Sunday.

The Beijing News and other outlets said Sunday police in the city of Foshan concluded their initial investigation and ordered the two men arrested.

Governor warns of more flooding

BANGKOK – The governor of Bangkok issued a dramatic late-night warning Sunday to residents of the Thai capital to prepare for floodwaters to roll deeper into the city from suburban areas already choking under the deluge.

Gov. Sukhumbhand Paribatra said a massive amount of water has moved faster than anticipated and was expected to flood the Don Muang area just north of the city proper – where Bangkok’s old airport is located and now being used as headquarters for the anti-flood effort as well as a shelter for evacuees. He said it would threaten five other districts as well.

Satellite’s crash site remains unclear

BERLIN – A defunct German research satellite crashed to earth somewhere in Southeast Asia on Sunday, a U.S. scientist said – but no one is still quite sure where.

Most parts of the minivan-size ROSAT research satellite were expected to burn up as they hit the atmosphere at speeds up to 280 mph, but up to 30 fragments weighing a total of 1.9 tons could have crashed, the German Aerospace Center said.

Jonathan McDowell of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Mass., said the satellite appears to have gone down over Southeast Asia.