RHINOS SLAUGHTERED
The conservation group WWF is calling for more protection for Asian rhinoceros in countries like Indonesia, India and Nepal, where the animals are poached for their horns and their habitat destroyed. At least 86 rhinos have been killed in the past 4 years, they say in a report this week. The Javan and Sumatran rhinos are on the brink of extinction.
FLOODS DEVASTATE EUROPE
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Torrential rain over the past week has devastated much of Europe, flooding major cities including Prague in the Czech Republic and Saltzburg in Austria. At least 70 people have died so far, including 58 on Russia鈥檚 Black Sea coast. Some scientists say the freak weather is being caused by the stirrings of a new El Ni帽o, a periodic upheaval in the global climate.
ILLICIT VIAGRA
Customs officers in Cairo have found 60,000 Viagra tablets in the diplomatic bag of a Burundi embassy attach茅. The Egyptian authorities may ask the Burundi government to withdraw the attach茅, says the news agency AFP. Viagra pills sell for $30 on the black market in Egypt. Last week, the government increased limited supplies available legally on prescription.