News Headlines - 07 August 2016

▽Thai referendum: Military-written constitution approved - BBC News

A clear majority of Thai referendum voters have backed a draft constitution written by an army-appointed committee... The military threw out the old constitution when it took power in 2014, after months of political instability and sporadic violence.

▽Iran Executes Nuclear Scientist For 'Spying'

Iran says it has executed one of its nuclear scientists after he was convicted of spying for the United States.
Shahram Amiri was hanged after allegedly giving America information about the Islamic republic's nuclear programme.

▽Lotte founder accused of W600b tax evasion

Prosecutors raided additional offices of Lotte Group’s policy headquarters Thursday in order to gain evidence regarding alleged tax evasion by group founder Shin Kyuk-ho, officials said Friday.
Shin is now suspected of evading roughly 600 billion won ($540 million) of gift taxes while transferring assets to his common-law wife Seo Mi-kyung and their daughter Shin Yoo-mi.

▽Duterte war on drugs: Has Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte gone too far?

PHILIPPINE President Rodrigo Duterte has identified more than 150 politicians, judges and members of law enforcement agencies allegedly involved in the illegal drugs trade. Duterte said that while the involvement of some officials might not be true, he was making public their names because it was his “sworn duty”.

▽Transparency row drove Stiglitz to quit Panama Papers committee | Daily Mail Online

Nobel-winning US economist Joseph Stiglitz and Swiss anti-corruption expert Mark Pieth said Saturday that a dispute over transparency had prompted them to quit a panel on reforming Panama's finance sector.