In Brief

In Brief

Guards die in Niger jail attack

GUNMEN killed two guards and wounded around 10 other people in an attack on a prison in Niger's capital Niamey yesterday, a week after al-Qaeda-linked groups raided a uranium mine and an army barracks.

Local residents said the assault began at around 3pm when a group of attackers opened fire on guards at the entrance to the prison. They said they also heard a loud explosion.

Ila Yaye, who lives near the prison, said she saw several of the guards fall and not get back up. It was not immediately clear who had carried out the attack.

"There are two dead and about 10 others wounded ... but this death toll could go up because several were seriously wounded," said an officer in the police's intelligence division, asking not to be named. A city official confirmed the toll. - Reuters

O patria mia! 'Aida' cast strike in Egypt

DEMONSTRATIONS against the rule of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, always full of drama, have taken to the stage.

The cast of Verdi's Egyptian-themed opera Aida appeared together at curtain-up this week to announce that they were going on strike in protest at the sacking of their director by the new minister of culture, Alaa Abdelaziz. Abdelaziz, who is not a Brotherhood member, has issued statements to Egyptian newspapers defending his actions, saying he wanted to "express the January 25th revolution" by injecting new blood into the arts. - ©The Daily Telegraph, London

Bon Jovi gives a hand to Spaniards

US SINGER Jon Bon Jovi has waived his performance fees for a concert in Madrid next month in sympathy with Spain's financial crisis.

The gesture allowed Bon Jovi's Spanish fans to buy cheaper tickets for the tour, which starts in Denmark this week. Tickets that normally cost à76 were made available for between à18 and à39 for the concert in the Spanish capital on June 27.

Tickets have sold out. - ©The Daily Telegraph, London