In brief: Students in Burundi seek refuge at U.S. embassy

BUJUMBURA, Burundi – About 100 university students in Burundi are in the U.S. embassy’s parking lot seeking refuge amid the country’s political turmoil, an embassy statement confirmed Thursday.

The students had been camping at a construction site adjacent to the embassy grounds after their university was closed on April 30 due to political turmoil. Police persuaded them to leave the site and some went to the embassy’s parking lot, the statement said. Four people suffered minor injuries during the incident, the embassy said.

The students said they fear aggression after violent demonstrations against President Pierre Nkurunziza’s efforts to run for a third term in elections in July.

In Washington, U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said some of the students were starting to leave and that all the embassy workers were safe.

At least 77 people have died in street protests against Nkurunziza’s bid for a third term in the July 15 presidential elections, according to rights activists. Critics say Nkurunziza’s push for another term violates the two-term limit for presidents set by the constitution.

Also Thursday, Burundi’s second vice president, Gervais Rufyikiri, said he fled the country fearing for his life after opposing the president’s effort to extend his time in power that sparked off violent protests in the capital in recent weeks.

Airstrikes, shelling kill civilians in Yemen

SANAA, Yemen – Yemeni security officials say Saudi-led airstrikes and shelling by Shiite rebels have killed nine civilians.

They said five civilians were killed Thursday when airstrikes targeted Shiite rebels, also known as Houthis, in a market in the northern province of Jawf. At least four civilians were killed when the Houthis shelled a residential area in the southern port city of Aden.

Airstrikes hit rebel positions in the southern city of Ataq, the northern rebel stronghold Saada, and Lahj, one of the gateways to Aden.

Officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press.

The fighting in Yemen, the Arab world’s poorest country, has killed more than 1,000 civilians and displaced more than a million people.

Torrential rains flood Olympic site Sochi

MOSCOW – A flood caused by heavy rains has swept Russia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi that hosted the 2014 Winter Games, killing one man and causing major damage and disruptions.

The torrential rains caused rivers flowing through the city to burst banks and sweep the streets of Sochi, smashing fences and garages. Numerous cars were carried away by streams, and some residents could be seen swimming across streets.

The flooding also cut railway traffic and swept the city’s airport, prompting its closure for most of the day Thursday.

Second-generation immigrants recognized

ATHENS, Greece – Greece has adopted legislation granting nationality to the children of foreign nationals living in the country, provided they attend or have attended school in the country.

Lawmakers approved the draft legislation Thursday, in a vote that marked a rift in the country’s governing coalition. The minority partner, the populist right wing Independent Greeks party, rejected the bill that was submitted by the radical left Syriza party.

But the legislation was approved with the support of center-left opposition parties, while the conservative main opposition and the Nazi-inspired Golden Dawn party – Greece’s third-largest – voted against.

The new law is expected to affect up to 200,000 second-generation immigrants, many of whose parents arrived in Greece during a big migratory flow from eastern Europe since the early 1990s.