Plane crashes just after takeoff from Nepal’s capital, killing 18

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — A plane has crashed just after taking off from Nepal’s capital, killing 18 people and injuring a pilot who was the lone survivor. Civil aviation authorities say all the people aboard the plane were Nepali except for one passenger who was a Yemeni national. Police say that authorities have pulled all 18 bodies from the wreckage at Kathmandu’s main airport. Airport officials say that the plane was heading to Nepal’s second-most populous city of Pokhara for maintenance work and most of the passengers aboard were either mechanics or airline employees. Aviation officials say the plane had just taken off Wednesday when it turned right before crashing into the eastern section of the airport.

200,000 people were abused in New Zealand institutions

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Nearly a third of the children and vulnerable adults in state, foster and faith-based care in New Zealand between 1950 and 1999 were physically, sexually, verbally or psychologically harmed. That’s according to a just-released report from New Zealand’s six-year inquiry into abuse, neglect and exploitation. The 3,000-page report released Wednesday says some 200,000 people were abused. It also says some children were tortured, and calls the abuse a national disgrace. The report urged immediate redress for survivors and consequences for abusers, along with far-reaching overhauls of the child welfare system and criminal and civil laws.

Farmers in Africa say their soil is dying and chemical fertilizers are in part to blame

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Farmers in Africa are blaming chemical fertilizers for increasingly acidic soils that have led to production decline. Experts say a return to traditional agricultural practices can save dying soils. About 63% of arable land in Kenya is acidic and has been recording a decline in production of staples such as maize and leading exports of horticulture and tea. The country also recently experienced a fake fertilizer scandal, which has further weakened confidence. The problems with soil health are growing as the African continent struggles to feed itself despite having 65% of the world’s remaining uncultivated arable land.

UN cultural agency rejects plan to place Britain’s Stonehenge on list of heritage sites in danger

LONDON (AP) — The United Nations’ cultural agency has rejected recommendations to place Stonehenge on the list of endangered world heritage sites over concerns that Britain’s plans to build a nearby highway tunnel threaten the landscape around the prehistoric monument. The plans have faced opposition from residents and archaeologists. Britain’s government had argued that efforts to mitigate the planned tunnel’s effects on Stonehenge were sufficient and that the site should not be added to the “in danger” list. Adding Stonehenge to the list would have increased pressure on the government to reconsider the highway plan.