The U.S. recently conducted operations in Madagascar to assist in destroying 13 cyber scam centers operated by Chinese nationals.
A dry bulk carrier named Ocean Melody at Qingdao Beihai Shipyard caught fire during repairs. The blaze was extinguished after about three hours. There were 42 people on board; 12 were safely evacuated, officials said 25 missing persons showed no signs of life, and 5 were injured and taken to hospital. The vessel, built in 2006, is 190 m long with a deadweight of about 55,000 tonnes. At the time of the incident it was registered under Liberia, but the owner is Hui Li Shipping Co., Ltd., and the ship management company is Shanghai Yuyang Kunpeng Ship Management Co., Ltd. The ship arrived at Beihai Shipyard for repairs on August 31; it had previously been detained in Australia for fire safety defects such as emergency fire pumps, CO₂ system remote valves, and engine room fire dampers, and the issues were rectified.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Foreign Ministry, when asked by reporters whether Xi Jinping would attend the BRICS meeting around September 12, responded, “We will speak when there is news, it is not convenient to answer,” implying that Xi Jinping may not travel to India.