Indonesia paroles bombmaker in deadly Bali attacks in 2002

AKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — An Islamic militant convicted of making the explosives used in the 2002 Bali bombings that killed over 200 people was paroled Wednesday after serving about half of his original 20-year prison sentence despite strong objections by Australia, which lost scores of citizens in the Indonesian attacks. Hisyam bin Alizein, also known by his alias Umar Patek, was a leading member of the al-Qaida-linked network Jemaah Islamiyah, which was blamed for the blasts at two nightclubs in Kuta Beach.

Suspected German coup plot spawns dozens of arrests

BERLIN (AP) — German police seized dozens of people including a self-styled prince, a retired paratrooper and a former judge on Wednesday, accusing the suspects of discussing the violent overthrow of the government but leaving unclear how concrete the plans were. A German official and a lawmaker said that investigators may have detected real plotting, drunken fantasizing, or both. Regardless, Germany takes any right-wing threat seriously and thousands of police officers carried out pre-dawn raids across much of the country.

Albania’s last captive bear rescued to Austrian sanctuary

TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Albania’s last brown bear in captivity was rescued by an international animal welfare organization Wednesday and will be taken to a sanctuary in Austria. Four Paws began the journey with the 24-year-old bear, named Mark, accompanied by a large file of documents to get him across multiple national borders. Leading veterinarian Julia Bohner sedated Mark before putting him into the van that will take him to the Arbesbach sanctuary, 90 miles west of Vienna.

27 flee plane in Spain after pregnant woman simulates labor

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Spanish police were searching for 14 people who ran from a plane at Barcelona’s airport after it made an emergency landing Wednesday to obtain assistance for a pregnant woman who allegedly simulated that she was about to give birth, authorities said. The office for Spain’s government in the Catalonia region said the incident occurred when a Pegasus Airlines flight from Casablanca, Morocco, to Istanbul with 228 passengers on board requested the emergency landing at Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport. As the woman was getting evacuated from the plane, 27 passengers exited the aircraft without authorization and “tried to flee,” officials said.