Thousands march for the end of a monarchy – Police get the croc that killed a NT man – Did conservative media cause death threats against the parents of a POW – And a lot more in your CareerSpot World News Briefs:

Thousands of protesters in Madrid marched with the Republican banners of Red, Gold, and Purple and demanded a referendum on whether Spain should continue to have a monarchy after the abdication of King Juan Carlos.  The royal family was installed only since 1975 as an ultra-conservative scheme to maintain authority after the death of fascist dictator Francisco Franco.  But now, growing numbers of Spanish believe it’s their right to determine the head of state.

Tens of thousands of Basques in Spain’s north formed a 123-kilometer human chain in a demonstration to demand an independence vote from Madrid.  Stretching from Durango to Pamplona, the Basque cited not only their unique culture and language, but also the long economic crisis and political corruption scandals that in wanting to go it alone.  Catalonia is pressing ahead with its own independence vote in November, which Madrid insists is illegal.

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is vowing to tackle “terrorism” and restore security following his inauguration on Sunday.  While promising to cooperate with groups motivated by Egyptian patriotism, he says the banned Muslim Brotherhood has “no place” in the country’s “march forward”. 

Despite more gunfire heard at Jinnah International Airport at Karachi, Pakistani officials insist the siege at is over.  In all 23 people were killed, ten of them having been gunmen.  Army commandos were called in, and gunfire continued for hours overnight.

In the Northern Territory, police shot and killed two saltwater crocodiles, and one of them – more than four and a half meters long – was the beast that snatched a 62-year old man out of boat in a billabong in Kakadu National Park.  The man’s horrified family witnessed the attack.  It’s believed the family is from Darwin and had been to Kakadu in the past without incident.

Canada is widening the intense manhunt for three inmates who broke out of a prison in Quebec using a helicopter.  All three are charged with offenses such as murder, drug trafficking, and are believed to have ties to the Hells Angels motorcycle gang.  A regular jail was presumed too lightweight to hold them, and they were being housed in the medium-security prison during their trials.

The American FBI is investigating death threats made against the family of released US prisoner of war Bowe Bergdahl.  Agents are not revealing who made the threats, but it follows a week of relentlessly negative news coverage from Rupert Murdoch’s network and other conservative outlets in the US, reports that accused the 28-year old soldier of desertion prior to his being captured by the Taliban.  Bergdahl’s father, a conservative Republican, was accused of being a Muslim (which isn’t illegal, btw) because he grew his beard out while his son was missing.  Meanwhile, officials revealed that Bergdahl was tortured and beaten for trying to escape his Taliban captors, and was locked in a darkened cage for weeks at a time.

Jennifer Lopez has pulled out of the opening ceremonies of the 2014 World Cup in Sao Paulo, Brazil on Thursday.  FIFA is citing “production issues”.  Lopez was supposed to appear alongside Pitbull and the Brazilian star Claudia Leitte for a performance of “We are one (Ole Ola)”, the official song of the tournament.