News Headlines - 08 October 2018
▽Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil's far-right presidential candidate wins first round of election - CNN
Far-right congressman Jair Bolsonaro pulled off a thumping win in the first round of Brazil's presidential election following one of the most polarizing campaigns since the country returned to democracy three decades ago.
Bolsonaro won Sunday's poll with 46% of the vote, ahead of left-wing ex-Sao Paulo mayor Fernando Haddad on 29%, according to tweets from the Supreme Electoral Tribunal's official Twitter account.
Bolsonaro's lead, in a field of 13 candidates, left him just short of the 50% needed to win outright and unable to avoid a runoff against Haddad, from the Workers' Party, on October 28.
▽Japan pulls out of naval drills over demands it remove 'rising sun' flag | The Guardian
Japan has withdrawn from an international fleet review this week after rejecting demands that its warship take part without its “rising sun” flag ensign – regarded by many Koreans as a symbol of Japanese militarism and colonial rule.
South Korea – the host nation – had asked all 14 countries sending vessels to the five-day event, which begins on Thursday at a naval base on the island of Jeju, to ensure they display only their national flags and the flag of South Korea.
The rule – in effect a demand for Japan to remove the kyokujitsuki flag from a destroyer due to take part in the exercise – was introduced amid simmering bilateral disputes over Japan’s use of Korean sex slaves during the second world war and ownership of a group of islets called Takeshima in Japan and Dokdo in South Korea.
There may be a second act for Toys R Us, which shut down hundreds of stores over the summer. A group of investors said in a bankruptcy court filing Tuesday that it's scrapping an auction for Toys R Us assets. The investors believe they'll do better by potentially reviving the toy chain, rather than selling it off for parts.
The investors said they'll work with potential partners to develop new ideas for stores in the U.S. and other countries "that could bring back these iconic brands in a new and re-imagined way."
▽More than 250 people have died taking selfies in recent years
The study by researchers at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi found 259 people died while attempting to take a selfie between October 2011 and November 2017.
Researchers pulled together a list of English newspapers worldwide and performed a comprehensive search of key words or phrases such as "selfie deaths" or "selfie accidents." They then attempted to cross-match those search links with links from their list of newspapers.
The results found selfie deaths rose from two reported in 2011 to 98 in 2016. The number of selfie deaths last year dipped to 93, said the study.
▽Tropical cyclone heads towards Oman, forecasters warn of 135 kph gusts
Forecasters say a tropical depression 1,040 km off the coast of southern Oman has developed into a tropical cyclone.
But the India Meteorological Department warned it could develop into a severe cyclonic storm with winds gusting to 135 kph. They still do not know where it will make landfall.
Approximately 1,000 km off the coast of Oman and traveling at 20 kph, forecasters have named the storm Luban – the Arabic word for or “frankincense.”
