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TAIPEI, Taiwan (AFP) — Typhoon Chanthu unleashed powerful winds and heavy rain on eastern Taiwan Sunday, disrupting travel links and cutting electricity to some homes but sparing the island a direct hit. Downgraded from a super typhoon since its rapid formation last week, the outer edges of Chanthu pounded the eastern coastline. But the centre of the storm remained out to sea as it moved north, the central weather bureau said. The eastern regions […]
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AFP) — Sri Lankan women were urged to delay getting pregnant after more than 40 expectant mothers died of Covid-19 in four months, the health ministry said Thursday. The island nation, which recorded its first maternal coronavirus death in May, is battling a spike in Delta variant infections after travel restrictions were eased for local new year celebrations in mid-April. “Usually, we have 90 to 100 maternal deaths a year, but since […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping told his American counterpart that US policies towards Beijing have caused “serious difficulties” and that putting ties back on track was critical “to the destiny of the world”, state media reported Friday. Ties between Beijing and Washington have been strained in recent years by a bruising trade war and America’s tough stand on China’s human rights track record — while competition over tech dominance and disputes over […]
A super typhoon that rapidly formed in just 48 hours is threatening both the Philippines and Taiwan with destructive winds and torrential rains over the coming days. Chanthu was about 580 kilometres (360 miles) southeast of Taiwan’s southernmost tip on Friday morning, packing gusts of up to 234 kilometres (145 miles) an hour, according to Taiwan’s central weather bureau. The Philippine state weather agency said the typhoon was expected to graze the northeastern tip of […]
by James EDGAR KABUL, Afghanistan (AFP) — Just over 100 passengers, including some Americans, left Kabul airport on Thursday on the first flight carrying foreigners out of the Afghan capital since a US-led evacuation ended on August 30. The first international flight came as the Taliban continue their transition from insurgents to governing power, less than a month after they marched into Kabul and ousted president Ashraf Ghani. More than 100 passengers were on the […]
by Joris FIORITI PARIS, France (AFP) — When thousands of Afghans hoping to escape the incoming Taliban regime were cut off from Kabul airport last month, many started searching for alternative ways to flee. Hundreds made a daring dash for the airport at Mazar-i-Sharif — a city some 300 kilometers (185 miles) to the north on a route that had become punctuated with Taliban checkpoints. Some managed to board charter planes crowdfunded by individuals and […]
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea put tractors and fire engines on show rather than the more usual tanks and missiles at a parade in Pyongyang early Thursday, the nuclear-armed nation’s third procession in less than a year. Pyongyang has continued to pursue its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs — for which it is internationally sanctioned — during the diplomatic engagement of recent years and often uses military parades to show off its […]
by Didier Lauras DOHA, Qatar (AFP) — Qatar said the Taliban have demonstrated “pragmatism” and should be judged on their actions as the undisputed rulers of Afghanistan, but stopped short of announcing formal recognition of the Islamists. Qatari Assistant Foreign Minister Lolwah al-Khater told AFP in an exclusive interview that it would be up to the Afghans to determine their future, not the international community. Doha was the central intermediary between the Taliban, who opened […]
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Saudi Arabia said Tuesday it was lifting a ban on travel to three countries including the UAE after imposing the restrictions to stop the spread of Covid-19. The kingdom would reopen on Wednesday its land, sea and air ports to the United Arab Emirates, South Africa and Argentina, the official SPA news agency reported, citing an interior ministry source. The UAE, and especially Dubai, is a key leisure destination for […]
by James EDGAR KABUL, Afghanistan (AFP) — The Taliban announced their government on Tuesday, with a UN-blacklisted veteran of the hardline movement in the top role, weeks after they swept to power and toppled the US-backed president. But as the Taliban transitions from militant force to governing power of Afghanistan, security officials grappled with a growing number of protests against its rule, with two people shot dead in the western city of Herat. Mullah Mohammad […]
by James EDGAR KABUL, Afghanistan (AFP) — The Taliban on Tuesday fired shots into the air to disperse crowds who had gathered for an anti-Pakistan rally in the capital, the latest protest since the hardline Islamist movement swept to power last month. The Islamists have yet to announce a government, but Afghans — fearful of a repeat of the group’s previous brutal reign between 1996 and 2001 — have staged small, isolated demonstrations in cities […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan has agreed to buy 150 million doses of Novavax’s coronavirus vaccine, with Japanese firm Takeda expecting to manufacture the formula for distribution early next year, the drugmaker said Tuesday. The cost of the deal was not announced, and it is contingent on the vaccine being approved in Japan. Takeda will be in charge of carrying out local clinical trials. So far, Japan has approved the Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca jabs, […]
