Briefly

AFGHANISTAN

2nd U.S. sailor’s body recovered in Afghanistan

KABUL | A second U.S. sailor who went missing in a dangerous part of eastern Afghanistan was found dead and his body recovered, a senior U.S. military official and Afghan officials said Thursday.

The family of Petty Officer 3rd Class Jarod Newlove, a 25-year-old from the Seattle area, had been notified of his death, the U.S. military official said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to disclose the information.

Petty Officer Newlove and Petty Officer 2nd Class Justin McNeley went missing last Friday in Logar province. NATO recovered the body of Petty Officer McNeley - a 30-year-old father of two from Wheatridge, Colo. - in the area Sunday.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid told the Associated Press in Kabul on Thursday that two days ago the Taliban left the “body of a dead American soldier for the U.S. forces” to recover. The Taliban said Petty Officer McNeley was killed in a firefight and insurgents had captured Petty Officer Newlove.

Mr. Mujahid offered no explanation for Petty Officer Newlove’s death.

NATO officials have not offered an explanation as to why the two service members were in such a dangerous part of eastern Afghanistan.

PAKISTAN

Rain slows hunt for air-crash bodies

ISLAMABAD | Anguished relatives sought the remains of loved ones killed in Pakistan’s worst-ever plane crash, some grieving at a hospital collecting bodies Thursday and others joining the recovery effort at the hillside crash site, laden by heavy rain and mud.

The Airbus A321 plane, operated by Pakistani carrier Airblue, crashed into hills overlooking Islamabad during stormy weather Wednesday, killing all 152 people aboard. Aircraft pieces, bodies and belongings were scattered over the heavily forested slopes.

Rescue workers searched areas of the hills scorched by the crash, but they struggled through the mud and relentless rain.

Helicopters could not fly in the downpour and low clouds, said Ramzan Sajid, a spokesman for the Capital Development Authority, which helps handle emergencies.

The rain caused flooding elsewhere in the country, washing away roads, collapsing homes and killing at least 60 people in the northwest alone, with many others missing.

BANGLADESH

Garment workers’ pay increases 80 percent

DHAKA | Bangladesh has raised minimum monthly wages for its millions of garment workers by about 80 percent after months of violent protests over poor pay and conditions, a government minister said Thursday.

Garment workers in Bangladesh are paid the least in the world and are unable to buy food and arrange shelter on their monthly earnings, according to the International Trade Union Confederation, a Vienna-based labor rights group.

The official minimum wage has been set at 3,000 takas ($45) a month, up from 1662 takas ($25) in the first raise since 2006, Labor Minister Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain said

The new pay structure starts in November and has seven grades - with the highest pay fixed at 9,300 takas ($140).

Workers and labor rights groups have pressed for a monthly wage of 5,000 takas ($73).

From wire dispatches and staff reports