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SEOUL, South (AFP) — The influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Friday said it was “admirable” of the South to propose a formal end to the Korean War but demanded Seoul first drop its “hostile policies” towards Pyongyang. Kim Yo Jong’s remarks, carried by Pyongyang’s official KCNA news agency, were in response to South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s recent calls for declaring an official end to the 1950-53 conflict that ended […]
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AFP) — A high-profile shaman who tried to end Sri Lanka’s Covid-19 outbreak with “blessed” water has died of the virus, his family said Thursday. Eliyantha White, 48, who treated sports stars and top politicians including the country’s prime minister, claimed in November he could end the pandemic in Sri Lanka and neighbouring India by pouring pots of his “blessed” water into rivers. Health minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi endorsed the water treatment, but […]
by Sebastian Smith WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States is shipping another 2.5 million Covid vaccine doses to hard-hit Bangladesh, a White House official told AFP on Thursday, after the Biden administration announced a ramping up of global donations. The latest shipment — 2,508,480 Pfizer doses — brings the total of US shots to the country above nine million. Packing was underway and first deliveries, made through the World Health Organization’s Covax program, […]
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AFP) — China on Thursday voiced opposition to Taiwan joining a major trans-Pacific trade deal as it flew 24 planes including two nuclear-capable bombers into the self-ruled island’s air defence zone, the biggest incursion in weeks, Taiwanese officials said. Last week Beijing submitted its own application to become a member of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). Taiwan has lobbied for years to join and announced on Thursday that it […]
by Hashem Osseiran BEIRUT, Lebanon (AFP) — The phones at Lebanon’s only suicide hotline hardly ever stop ringing as people grow more and more desperate in the face of a financial downturn that has spurred a mental health crisis. In one call, a father says he is thinking of taking his own life because he is unable to feed his children, and in another, a man recently made homeless says he has lost all hope. […]
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AFP) — Taiwan has applied to join a major trans-Pacific trade deal, officials confirmed Thursday, days after China said it also wanted to become a member of the agreement. Signed by 11 Asia-Pacific countries in 2018, the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) is the region’s biggest free-trade pact and accounts for around 13.5 percent of the global economy. “Most of (the CPTPP’s) member countries are Taiwan’s key trade partners, accounting […]
by Catherine Lai SINGAPORE, Singapore (AFP)Two fluffy white terriers wearing neckerchiefs pant quietly as their owner waves a treat and snaps a photo for the dogs’ tens of thousands of Instagram followers. They are among a growing number of pet influencers on social media in Singapore, a trend fuelled by a rise in online shopping and pet ownership during the coronavirus pandemic. Sasha and Piper make regular appearances on their “Lomodoggies” Instagram account, often wearing […]
TEHRAN, Iran (AFP) — Iran is considering the purchase of two million doses of the US-German Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine, an official said Tuesday, as the country continues to battle the Middle East’s deadliest outbreak. “A contract is being drawn up with the Iranian foreign exchange office for the import within one to two months of two million doses of the Pfizer vaccine produced in Belgium,” said senior health official Mohammad-Reza Shanehsaz. “At present, six vaccines […]
KABUL, Afghanistan (AFP) — Girls in Afghanistan will be allowed to return to school as soon as possible, the Taliban said Tuesday, after announcing the remaining positions in its all-male cabinet. “We are finalising things… it will happen as soon as possible,” spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on girls’ education. It comes after the education ministry ordered male teachers and students back to secondary school at the weekend, but made no mention of the country’s women […]
A student opened fire on a university campus in central Russia on Monday killing at least eight people, investigators said, in the second mass shooting at an education facility this year. Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said several people were also injured in the attack at Perm State University and that the suspect had been wounded while being detained. Investigators previously said that five people were killed and another six wounded. Russia has relatively […]
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea’s foreign ministry on Monday said a new US alliance in the Indo-Pacific and recent US submarine contract with Australia could trigger a “nuclear arms race” in the region. Last week the United States announced a new three-way security pact with Australia and Britain, as part of a strategic partnership under which US nuclear submarines will be supplied to Canberra. “These are extremely undesirable and dangerous acts which will […]
The leader of an Islamic State-linked militant network in Indonesia was killed in a shootout with security forces, police said Sunday. Ali Kalora, head of the East Indonesia Mujahideen (MIT), was shot dead Saturday in Sulawesi island’s jungle along with another member identified as Jaka Ramadhan. Police said they have launched a manhunt for four more MIT militants. “We will keep looking until we get them,” Rudy Sufahriadi, police chief of Central Sulawesi province, said […]
