Fire in shop kills 35 people

At least 35 people were killed in southeastern Benin on Saturday after a fire broke out at a shop where witnesses said gasoline was being unloaded, a justice ministry representative said. The fire broke out at 0930 local time in Seme-Podji municipality, near the border with Nigeria. "The fire burned down the store and according to an initial assessment resulted in 35 deaths including one child," said Prosecutor Abdoubaki Adam-Bongle in a ministry statement, adding that an investigation had been opened to determine the cause.