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At least 14 migrants drown off Turkey after a chase ends in a deadly collision

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — At least 14 migrants drowned on Monday after a boat carrying them collided with a coast guard boat off Turkey’s Mediterranean coast during a chase, officials said.

The incident occurred near the coast of Demre, in Antalya province, as the vessel carrying Afghans ignored calls to stop and attempted maneuvers at high-speed to escape the coast guard boats, the state-run Anadolu Agency quoted Gov. Hulusi Sahin as saying.

Seven people were rescued from the sea by coast guard teams and given immediate medical care, Sahin said. Fourteen others who reached the shore were detained by gendarmerie units.

Search and rescue operations were continuing by land, sea and air to locate any remaining people who may still be missing.

Authorities have launched both a judicial and an administrative investigation into the incident, Anadolu said.

Beijing bans 4 New Zealand lawmakers from entering China because they visited Taiwan

By WTOP Staff
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Beijing banned four New Zealand lawmakers from traveling to China for a year and demanded they apologize because they visited Taiwan on a parliamentary trip, according to a message from the Chinese embassy conveyed via parliamentary officials and shown to The Associated Press on Thursday. China has hit lawmakers from other countries with sanctions related to contact with Taiwan before, but it's the first time for New Zealand parliamentarians, the government in Wellington said. Beijing has been increasing pressure in recent years on the democratically governed island that it claims as its own territory. Two lawmakers reached by the AP on Thursday rejected the demand for an apology, while the other two could not be immediately reached. New Zealand's government said it would express concern about the travel bans to Beijing. The elected officials visited Taipei in May, as New Zealand parliamentarians have done “for decades,” a spokesperson for Foreign Minister Winston Peters said in a statement.
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