In brief: N. Korea test-fires new ballistic missile

Seoul, South Korea – North Korea said it has successfully test-fired a newly developed ballistic missile from a submarine in what would be the latest display of the country’s advancing military capability.

The official Korean Central News Agency said today that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un personally attended the test launching of what he described as a “world-level strategic weapon.” The report did not reveal the exact timing and location of the launch.

Bollywood star freed on bond after killing man

Mumbai, India – Two days after being convicted for running over and killing a homeless man with his car, Bollywood superstar Salman Khan was freed on bail Friday in a case that has raised questions about special treatment for India’s celebrities.

Khan, 49, was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment but was spared jail time for now while a court decides on his appeal.

Hundreds of fans of the star, among India’s top-grossing actors over the last decade, rallied outside his apartment and near the Bombay High Court and cheered when the decision was announced.

Khan was convicted of culpable homicide, a lesser charge than murder, in a 2002 hit-and-run case when his Toyota Land Cruiser ran over five homeless people sleeping on the pavement in an upmarket section of Mumbai, the capital of India’s film industry known as Bollywood. One person was killed and four others injured.