[originaltext]Berlin, Germany German officials say growing numbers of pregn

Berlin, Germany
    German officials say growing numbers of pregnant immigrant women are paying German men to pose as fathers so that they can qualify for residency. German broadcaster RBB found up to 700 cases in Berlin alone. "There are many unreported cases," said Ole Schrader, a top interior ministry official.
    Some pregnant immigrant women are reported to have paid fake fathers and solicitors as much as 5,000 to get paternity registered. Once that is done, the baby automatically becomes a German citizen and the mother has the right to stay.
    Martin Steltner, a state prosecutor in Berlin,? told ARD television? there were signs of widespread abuse involving paternity, for example one man claiming to be the father of 10 children. The fake fathers rarely pay any child support, as many are living off social welfare, ARD reports.
    Immigration is a major issue ahead of parliamentary elections in September. The influx hit some local authorities especially hard, as they struggled to house and integrate the newcomers. (163)
Redding, California
    A northern California mother of two who? vanished nearly a month ago? is safe after being found bound alongside an interstate, Shasta County sheriff’s officials reported Thursday. Sherri Papini, 34, disappeared on Nov. 2 after leaving home to jog, her family said. Police and dozens of volunteers previously searched an area around Mountain Gate, an unincorporated community near Redding.
    Shasta County sheriff Tom Bosenko said investigators now believe Papini was abducted. Bosenko said she was released by her captor or captors early on Thanksgiving Day along 1-5 in northern Yolo County. Papini was taken to a local hospital where she was treated for non-life-threatening injuries and released.
    Bosenko said investigators have not located a suspect or suspects. He said he didn’t know a possible motive or whether the abduction was targeted or random.
New Delhi, India
    India’s crown is slipping: It can no longer claim to be the fastest growing major economy in the world. The annual rate of growth slumped to 6.1% in the quarter ended March 31, down from 7% in the previous quarter. That was much weaker than economists had forecast and means India has again fallen behind China, which recorded growth of 6.9% in the same quarter. Indian government figures released Wednesday showed that growth for the 2016-17 fiscal year slowed to 7.1%, from 8% the year before.
    The weaker GDP numbers suggest Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision to scrap 86% of India’s paper currency late last year might have halted India’s economic boom in its tracks.
    In a bid to crack down on tax evaders, Modi abruptly banned all 500 and 1,000 rupee notes— the two largest denominations at the time—on Nov.8.
Kapoeta, South Sudan
    At least 15 children have died in South Sudan from a botched attempt to immunise them against measles, officials say. They were vaccinated with the same unsterilised syringe, and the vaccine was not stored properly, according to an investigation into the deaths. The same needle was used over and over again, without sterilisation. As a result, the immunisation campaign caused severe infection and sepsis. The team administering the vaccinations was "neither qualified nor trained" to do so, the health minister said. About 300 people were vaccinated during the campaign in the Kapoeta region, including 32 other children who fell ill, but survived, Riek Gai Kok added.
    Measles outbreaks in the country are a key target of the United Nations Children’s fund (UNICET), which is aiming to vaccinate 1.2 million children this year.
    Sepsis is a potentially deadly immune response triggered by an infection which spreads quickly in the body. It can lead to multiple organ failure and death.
London, United Kingdom
    Net migration to the UK was estimated to be 248,000 in 2016—a fall of 84,000 from 2015, figures show. The Office for National Statistics said the change was driven by "a statistically significant" increase of 40,000 people leaving the country. These were mostly EU citizens—117,000 emigrated, up 31,000 from 2015.
    The ONS report from 2016 includes six months of data following the EU referendum. Its figures for the year estimated immigration at 588,000, with emigration of 339,000. The difference between the two gives the total for net migration. For the overall figures, the last time net migration was below 250,000 was in the year of March 2014.
    Work remains the most common reason for international migration, with 275,000 people coming into the UK for work in 2016—down 33,000 from 2015.

Question No. 6  Why do some pregnant immigrant women pay German men to pose as fathers?
Question No. 7  What happened to Sherri Papini when she was out jogging on Nov.2?
Question No. 8  What is India’s annual growth rate in the first quarter of 2017?
Question No. 9  What caused severe infection and sepsis in South Sudan?
Question No. 10  What was the estimated figure for net migration to the UK in 2016?