The engine of a Caracas, Venezuela-bound Boeing 767 caught fire while the plane taxied for departure Thursday at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Florida, a US Federal Aviation Administration official said. The pilot of an aircraft traveling behind Dynamic International Airways Flight 405 reported fuel was leaking from the aircraft before it caught fire, the official said. The fire occurred about 12:30 pm on the airport’s north runway. Passengers evacuated the jet via emergency slides onto the taxiway. The airport was closed as emergency officials responded, airport spokesman Allan Siegel said.(Kaieteur News)…[+]

GERMANY – German Chancellor Angela Merkel is making her eighth visit to China with strengthening economic links atop her agenda. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Merkel witnessed the signing of 13 cooperation agreements after their talks on Thursday, including a deal for China to buy 130 aircraft from Airbus. The planes have a list price of 17 billion U.S. dollars, making the deal one of the largest orders China has ever placed with the European aviation giant. Merkel landed in Beijing earlier on Thursday, becoming the most frequent visitor to China among Western leaders. Since 2005, she had paid seven visits to China as German chancellor and spent time in seven Chinese cities. “The close contact and exchanges of visits between Chinese and German leaders revealed the momentum with which our relations are developing,” said Chinese President Xi Jinping in his meeting with Merkel.(Xinhua)...[+]

US- Rep. Paul Ryan was officially elected as the 54th speaker of the House after he got the votes of 236 members by the full House of Representatives. The vote was largely a formality after House Republicans nominated him for the position on Wednesday. But even some conservatives who did not support Ryan said that after weeks of infighting, they were eager to move on and give Ryan the space to unite the party’s various factions and craft a legislative agenda.(CNN)…[+]