Breaking News, Latest Philippines Headlines, World, Entertainment, Politics, Weather & Video News
KABUL, June 22, 2022 (AFP) A powerful earthquake struck a remote border region of Afghanistan overnight killing at least 920 people and injuring hundreds more, officials said Wednesday, with the toll expected to rise as rescuers dig through collapsed dwellings. The 5.9 magnitude quake struck hardest in the rugged terrain of the east, where people already live hardscrabble lives in a country in the grip of a humanitarian disaster made worse by the Taliban […]
One imported case, a British flight attendant, confirmed in Singapore; two suspected cases, including a foreign national, reported in South Korea (Eagle News) — Both Singapore and South Korea reported their first suspected monkeypox cases, the first such reported cases in Southeast and East Asia respectively In Singapore, the Ministry of Health has confirmed one imported case of monkeypox infection, a 42-year-old male British national who works as a flight attendant. He was in […]
KABUL, June 22, 2022 (AFP) – A powerful earthquake struck a remote border region of Afghanistan overnight killing at least 255 people and injuring hundreds more, officials said Wednesday, with the toll expected to rise as rescuers dig through collapsed dwellings. The 5.9 magnitude quake struck hardest in the rugged terrain of the east, where people already live hardscrabble lives in a country in the grip of a humanitarian disaster made worse by the Taliban […]
YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — Hearings for the trial of ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi will be moved to a prison compound in the military-built capital Naypyidaw, a source with knowledge of the case said Tuesday. The Nobel laureate, 77, was detained by the military when it ousted her government last year and faces a raft of charges that could see her jailed for more than 150 years. She has since been confined […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — The heaviest rainfall in decades has triggered floods and landslides in southern China, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people, state media reported. The downpours have dangerously swelled waterways in the low-lying Pearl River basin in recent days, threatening manufacturing, shipping and logistics operations at a time when supply chains are already stressed because of China’s strict Covid-19 controls. The average rainfall in Guangdong, Fujian and Guangxi provinces […]
by Beiyi SEOW Many European firms are rethinking their investments in China because of its strict Covid controls, a top business group said Monday, warning that disruptions had pummelled operations. While the rest of the world has steadily removed coronavirus curbs, China has remained committed to its zero-Covid strategy, using lockdowns and mass testing to stamp out all infections. But this strategy has hammered businesses and snarled supply chains — 60 percent of respondents in […]
At least 26 more people have died in monsoon flooding and lightning strikes in India, as millions remained marooned in the country and neighbouring Bangladesh, authorities said Monday. Floods are a regular menace in India and Bangladesh, but experts say climate change is increasing their frequency, ferocity and unpredictability for the two countries’ 1.6 billion people. In India‘s northeastern state of Assam, three people were killed in landslides while six others died in flood waters, […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China’s imports of oil from Russia rose 55 percent in May, customs data showed on Monday, with the West sanctioning fuel imports from Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine. The world’s second-biggest economy imported around 8.42 million tonnes of oil from Russia last month, surpassing its shipments from Saudi Arabia, as Beijing refuses to condemn Moscow’s war. Last week, President Xi Jinping assured Vladimir Putin of China’s support on Russian “sovereignty […]
Sri Lanka closed schools and halted all non-essential government services on Monday, beginning a two-week shutdown to conserve fast-depleting fuel reserves as the International Monetary Fund opened talks with Colombo on a possible bailout. The country of 22 million people is in the grip of its worst economic crisis after running out of dollars to finance even the most essential imports, including fuel. On Monday schools were shut and state offices worked with skeleton staff as […]
by Matthew Walsh Agence France-Presse BEIJING, China (AFP) — Hazmat-suited workers poke plastic swabs down millions of throats in China each day, leaving bins bursting with medical waste that has become the environmental and economic levy of a zero-Covid strategy. China is the last major economy wedded to stamping out infections no matter the cost. Near-daily testing is the most commonly used weapon in an anti-virus arsenal that includes snap lockdowns and forced quarantines when […]
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AFP) — A 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck Monday in Taiwan’s east, 38 kilometers south of Hualien city, the US Geological Survey said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The quake had an estimated depth of 10 kilometers, according to USGS, and struck at 09:05 local time (0105 GMT). An AFP reporter in Taipei felt shaking, and local media said the quake was felt across the island. The Taipei Metro stopped briefly […]
Two Islamic militants accused of kidnapping and killing four foreigners in the restive southern Philippines were detained Friday after surrendering to the military, authorities said. The fugitives were members of the feared kidnap-for-ransom group Abu Sayyaf and have been handed over to police on Jolo island in Sulu province, regional military spokesman Alaric Delos Santos told AFP. “Their surrender does not extinguish their responsibility for these cases. That’s why we turned them over to the […]
