COTONOU -- At least 33 people were killed and three others seriously injured in a fire at a smuggled petrol warehouse on Saturday in Seme Krake, a town on the border with Nigeria, in Benin's southeastern department of Oueme, local authorities said.

Dallys Ahouangbegnon, chief of the local fire brigade, said the fire, which broke out in a warehouse close to the Seme Krake pineapple market, also ignited houses and vehicles parked near the site. (Benin-Fire-Petrol Smuggle)

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UNITED NATIONS -- Laotian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith on Saturday called for collective actions to tackle global challenges, warning against unilateralism.

Today the international community is facing multiple crises at an unprecedented level. Following the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the major challenges facing developing countries vary from poverty, debt, and an unjust international financial architecture to extreme natural calamities, he told the General Debate of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly. (UN-Laos-Multilateralism)

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YANGON -- A 5.1-magnitude earthquake jolted southern Myanmar on Saturday night with no casualties reported, the country's Department of Meteorology and Hydrology announced.

According to the DMH, the quake occurred at about 20:54 local time. The epicenter, with a depth of 10 km, was initially determined to be at 17.23 degrees north latitude and 96.32 degrees east longitude, which is about 12 miles to the southwest of Bago in Bago region. (Myanmar-Earthquake)

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TEHRAN -- Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and his Saudi counterpart Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud met Saturday in New York on the sidelines of the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly to discuss bilateral ties and regional developments.

The ministers expressed satisfaction with the reopening of embassies in Tehran and Riyadh and the arrival of ambassadors in both countries, read a statement from the Iranian Foreign Ministry. (Iran-Saudi Arabia-Ties)