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NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — At least 19 people were killed and dozens hurt in a blast at a firecracker factory in India, authorities said Saturday. The blast on Friday afternoon in Virudhunagar district was one of the worst such incidents in years in the southern state of Tamil Nadu. Local official R Kannan told AFP that the death toll was likely to go up in the next few hours. “So far 34 people […]
by Paul HANDLEY / Jerome CARTILLIER Joe Biden pressed Chinese leader Xi Jinping over human rights in Hong Kong and Xinjiang late Wednesday in their first call since the new US president took office on January 20, according to the White House. Setting the stage for what could extend the contentious relationship between the two superpowers, Biden offered Xi his “greetings and wellwishes” for the Chinese people on the occasion of the Lunar New Year […]
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russia officially surpassed four million coronavirus infections Wednesday, days after the country dramatically revised upwards its fatality rate, cementing its place as one of the world’s worst-hit nations. A government tally showed infections had reached 4,012,710, which is the fourth-highest rate globally after the United States, India and Brazil. But Russia has come under fire for its official virus statistics and the government’s stated death toll of 78,134 in particular […]
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AFP) — A preliminary report on last month’s deadly crash of an Indonesian passenger jet was due to be released Wednesday, as the hunt continued for the plane’s still-missing cockpit voice recorder. All 62 passengers and crew, including nearly a dozen children, were killed when the Sriwijaya Air Boeing 737-500 plunged around 10,000 feet (3,000 meters) and crashed into waters off Jakarta on January 9. The 26-year-old plane — previously flown by US-based […]
YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — Myanmar’s military raided the Yangon headquarters of ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s party late Tuesday, officials said, as the United States joined the UN in “strongly” condemning violence against protesters demanding a return to democracy. The latest assault on Myanmar’s civilian leadership came as anger at last week’s coup and the detention of Suu Kyi by the generals has driven hundreds of thousands of people into the streets, defying a […]
WUHAN, China (AFP) — The WHO mission to China to uncover the origins of the coronavirus has failed to identify the animal source, scientists said Tuesday. Experts believe the disease — which has gone on to kill more than 2.3 million people worldwide — originated in bats and could have been transmitted to humans via another mammal. While transmission from animals was the likely route, so far “the reservoir hosts remain to be identified”, Liang Wannian, […]
by Jalees ANDRABI TAPOVAN, India (AFP) — Indian rescue workers battled through tonnes of rock and mud Tuesday searching for survivors in a choked Himalayan tunnel after a deadly flood — apparently triggered by a glacial burst — smashed through two mountain dam projects. More than 170 people were still missing, two days after a wall of water and debris hurtled down a valley in the northern state of Uttarakhand, destroying bridges and roads, hitting […]
TEHRAN, Iran (AFP) — Iran began its vaccination campaign against Covid-19 on Tuesday to fight the Middle East’s deadliest outbreak of the illness, images broadcast by state television showed. “We begin our national vaccination against the Covid-19 virus… (in) memory of the martyrdom of health workers,” Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said at a ceremony at a Tehran hospital, referring to medical personnel who have died from the disease. Iran’s inoculation effort for its 80-million-plus population […]
TAIYUAN, China (AFP) –The CEO and founder of Chinese telecom giant Huawei called Tuesday for an open approach from new US President Joe Biden, after the firm was battered by sanctions imposed by Donald Trump’s administration. Ren Zhengfei said his “confidence in Huawei’s ability to survive has grown” despite its travails across much of the western world where it is maligned as a potential security threat. After saying the firm’s “production capacity can be expanded”, […]
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — Dubai has begun the mass vaccination of public transport workers, with the Gulf emirate aiming to remain open to international tourism despite a surge in cases. The United Arab Emirates, which includes Dubai and six other emirates and has a population of nearly 10 million, has administered 4.4 million doses — one of the best vaccination rates per capita in the world, and second to Israel. The UAE has […]
by Jalees ANDRABI TAPOVAN, India (AFP) — Emergency workers in India on Monday raced against time to dig through mud and rocks choking a Himalayan tunnel after a devastating flash flood — thought to have been caused by a chunk of glacier breaking off — killed at least 26 people. More than 170 others were listed as missing after a wall of water and debris barrelled down a tight valley in India’s north early Sunday, […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan said Monday it has protested to China over two incursions into Japanese territorial waters that come after Beijing enacted legislation toughening its response to violations of its maritime territory. Japan and China dispute ownership of the uninhabited islets in the East China Sea that Tokyo calls the Senkakus and Beijing the Diaoyu. The rocky islets are administered by Tokyo, which has regularly protested what it calls the violation of its […]
