In brief: Mine explosion kills at least 24; 9 missing

Donetsk, Ukraine – A rebel-held city scarred by months of conflict in eastern Ukraine suffered more tragedy Wednesday when a methane gas explosion in a coal mine killed at least 24 workers and left nine missing.

As rescue efforts stretched past sundown, separatist authorities were accused by Ukraine’s government of failing to do enough to save the lives of the miners.

The blast occurred before dawn more than 3,000 feet underground at the Zasyadko mine in the city of Donetsk in the coal-rich Donbass region. Nearly a year of bitter fighting by pro-Moscow rebels and Ukrainian troops in the east has killed more than 6,000 people.

Libya pleads for U.N. to lift arms embargo

United Nations – Libya made an urgent appeal Wednesday to the U.N. Security Council to either lift an arms embargo completely or allow exemptions so that its army can fight the rising threat of the Islamic State and other militant groups.

Diplomats said Libya has made a sizeable request in the past few days for dozens of fighter jets, tanks, helicopters and grenade launchers.

The oil-rich north African country is deeply divided between two rival governments, one that is Western-backed and another that is backed by Islamist groups who deny the involvement of militants allied with the Islamic State group. Some council members say Libya should have a national unity government before the chaotic country receives more weapons.

Former dictator’s family forfeits $1.2M

Los Angeles – Relatives of South Korea’s corrupt former dictator agreed Wednesday to forfeit $1.2 million in bribery proceeds laundered in the U.S., federal prosecutors said.

With the settlement filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, the U.S. and South Korea have collected $28.7 million in a joint investigation into bribes that ex-President Chun Doo-hwan tried to hide, the Department of Justice said.

Chun, a former army general who seized power in a 1979 coup and ruled the country with an iron fist until 1988, was arrested in 1995 and sentenced to death for corruption, mutiny and treason. He was pardoned in 1997 and ordered to pay back about $203 million in bribes he collected from businessmen. But he only returned a portion because he said he was broke.