WSJ.com What's News - Worldwide News Briefs for Jun 14

AMERICAN JAILED IN NORTH KOREA RETURNS HOME IN COMA

The White House secretly sent a diplomatic mission to North Korea this week to recover a U.S. citizen who the Trump administration had learned was in a life-threatening coma, senior U.S. officials said, an episode more likely to inflame escalating tensions than not.

TRUMP DELEGATES PENTAGON TO SET AFGHAN TROOP LEVELS

President Trump has given the Pentagon unilateral authority to send thousands of new American troops to Afghanistan at its discretion, clearing the way for the U.S. military to intensify its fight against the Taliban and Islamic State extremists in the region.

TRUMP PLANS ROLLBACK OF OBAMA CUBA POLICY

The Trump administration likely will scale back policy changes it believes have benefited the Cuban government while preserving some of the increased commercial activity that has begun after former President Barack Obama moved to normalize U.S.-Cuban ties, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Tuesday.

LONDON HIGH-RISE FIRE KILLS AT LEAST 12

The death toll from a blaze in west London rose to at least 12 in a high-rise tower that residents had complained was a fire hazard, raising questions about maintenance and safety of low-income housing.

EU'S 'DOOR REMAINS OPEN' TO U.K., MACRON TELLS MAY

French President Emmanuel Macron said the door remains open for the U.K. to stay in the EU, reflecting uncertainties over coming exit talks as weakened U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May scrambles to plot a course out of the bloc.

FEAR AND GREED: WHY ARE AUSTRALIANS SO ANXIOUS ABOUT CHINA?

China's hunger for commodities kept Australia's mines in business through the financial crisis and migrants have brought investment and skills Down Under. What's all the fuss about?

JUDGE SENTENCES EX-RIO GOVERNOR TO 14 YEARS IN CORRUPTION CASE

Former Rio de Janeiro state Gov. Sérgio Cabral was sentenced to 14 years in prison Tuesday for corruption and money laundering, becoming one of the most high-profile Brazilian politicians yet convicted in the sprawling Car Wash probe.

AUSTRALIA TO PAY $53 MILLION SETTLEMENT TO ASYLUM SEEKERS

Settling a class-action lawsuit, Australia will pay $53 million in compensation to hundreds of asylum seekers held in Papua New Guinea, some of whom may soon be heading to the U.S.

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 14, 2017 17:15 ET (21:15 GMT)