by Daniella Cheslow BEERSHEBA, Israel (AFP) — A man wielding a knife stabbed several people and ran over another in southern Israel on Tuesday, killing four, in one of the deadliest attacks in the country in recent years. The assailant, who Israeli media have identified as a Bedouin man who previously tried to join the Islamic State group, was shot dead by armed locals following the attack in the southern city of Beersheba, police said. […]
Asia
Chinese recovery teams sift debris of crashed China Eastern jet
by Matthew Walsh WUZHOU, China (AFP) — Chinese recovery teams on Tuesday picked through the debris of a crashed China Eastern jet after it inexplicably plummeted from the sky into a mountainside with 132 people on board. Hopes of finding any survivors had all but vanished a day after the Boeing 737-800 passenger jet nosedived into the mountain — likely making it China’s deadliest air crash in nearly three decades. Questions mounted over the cause […]
Japan issues power warning after quake hits supply
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan’s government warned on Tuesday of possible widespread electricity outages for Tokyo and its surrounding regions as power plants hit by last week’s powerful earthquake struggled to meet surging demand caused by a cold snap. Overnight, the government issued its first-ever electricity crunch warning for the capital and other regions, with supply dented because several thermal power plants remain offline after the quake. The industry ministry called on people to conserve […]
China locks down city of 9 million as virus ripples across country
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China locked down an industrial city of nine million people overnight and reported more than 4,000 virus cases on Tuesday, as the nation’s “zero-Covid” strategy is confronted by an Omicron wave. Health authorities reported 4,770 new infections across the country, the bulk in the northeastern province of Jilin, as the city of Shenyang in neighboring Liaoning province was ordered to lockdown late Monday. China has moved fast in recent weeks to […]
Japan protests Russia move to drop peace talks over Ukraine
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan said Tuesday it “strongly protests” Russia’s decision to abandon talks on a World War II peace treaty because of Tokyo’s strong response to the invasion of Ukraine. “The latest situation occurred as a result of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, and Russia’s attempt to shift the issue to Japan-Russia relations is extremely unjustified and absolutely unacceptable,” Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said in parliament. Japan “strongly protests,” he added, condemning Russia for […]
Plane carrying 132 crashes into mountain in southern China
by Matthew WALSH with Laurie CHEN in Beijing Agence France-Presse GUANGZHOU, China (AFP) – A China Eastern passenger jet carrying 132 people crashed into a remote mountainside in southern China on Monday after dropping more than 20,000 feet in just over a minute, sparking a massive fire on impact. The airline acknowledged that some aboard the Boeing 737-800 travelling from the city of Kunming to the southern hub of Guangzhou had died, but did not […]
JUST IN: Plane carrying 133 crashes in China, casualties unknown
BEIJING, China (AFP) — A China Eastern passenger jet carrying 133 people has crashed in southwest China with an unknown number of casualties, state broadcaster CCTV reported Monday. The Boeing 737 plane crashed in the rural countryside near Wuzhou city, Guangxi region and “caused a mountain fire”, CCTV said, adding that rescue teams were dispatched to the scene. © Agence France-Presse
Hong Kong to lift ban on flights from nine countries in April
by Su Xinqi HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Hong Kong is set to resume international flights from the United States, Britain and seven other countries, the government said Monday as it announced a loosening of some of the world’s toughest Covid-19 restrictions. The finance hub has struggled to maintain China’s zero-Covid policy during an Omicron-fuelled outbreak. After the highly transmissible variant fuelled a fresh wave of cases in January, authorities quickly put in place flight […]
Japan presses UAE to pump more oil as Ukraine war spikes prices
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — Japan on Sunday urged the United Arab Emirates to pump more oil to calm markets rocked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the latest major consumer to lobby Gulf producers. The plea by Japan’s Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi came during meetings with Emirati officials which coincided with a visit by Germany’s economy minister, three weeks into the Russian offensive. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson also flew to the UAE and […]
North Korea fires ‘multiple rocket launchers’: Seoul
North Korea fired multiple rocket launchers on Sunday, Seoul said, the latest in a series of provocations by the nuclear-armed nation to heighten tensions in the region. Pyongyang launched a string of banned weaponry this year and tested what it claimed were components of a “reconnaissance satellite” — although Seoul and Washington have described them as a new ICBM system. “There were shots suspected to be from North Korea’s multiple rocket launchers this morning,” said the Joint Chiefs of […]
North Korea fires ‘multiple rocket launchers’: Seoul
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea fired multiple rocket launchers on Sunday, Seoul said, the latest in a series of provocations by the nuclear-armed nation to heighten tensions in the region. Pyongyang launched a string of banned weaponry this year and tested what it claimed were components of a “reconnaissance satellite” — although Seoul and Washington have described them as a new ICBM system. “There were shots suspected to be from North Korea’s […]
Two injured as quake rocks Algeria port city
ALGIERS, ALgeria (AFP) — An earthquake rocked the Algerian port city of Bejaia Saturday injuring two people, emergency services said. The 5.2 magnitude quake hit shortly before 11 am (1000 GMT), with its epicentre offshore 10 kilometres (six miles) under the Mediterranean seabed, according to the US Geological Survey. Two people were injured in the mainly Berber-speaking city, in the Kabylie region some 240 kilometres (150 miles) east of the capital Algiers, emergency services […]





