by Amelie BARON LES CAYES, Haiti (AFP) — The death toll in Haiti’s powerful earthquake jumped to over 1,200 on Sunday, as crews desperately dug through collapsed buildings for survivors in the Caribbean nation still reeling from its president’s assassination. In Les Cayes, as in other hard-hit cities on the southwestern peninsula, most of the population spent the night sleeping outdoors in front of their houses — or what remained of them — amid fears […]
North America
URGENT: Toll in massive Haiti quake jumps to 724 people dead: govt
At least 724 people were killed in the powerful earthquake that rocked Haiti, authorities said Sunday, updating the toll on the disaster-hit nation. An additional 2,800 people were injured in the 7.2-magnitude tremor that struck early Saturday, the country’s civil protection agency said. amb/jm/bbk © Agence France-Presse
Canada snap elections coming as Trudeau seeks post-pandemic mandate
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Sunday is expected to call snap elections for September 20 to seek a new mandate to steer the nation’s pandemic exit, much to the dismay of his rival parties. In office since 2015, Trudeau and opposition leaders have been crisscrossing the country in recent weeks making election-style announcements in anticipation. On Sunday, he will visit the governor general to ask her to dissolve parliament, triggering a general election that […]
Thousands demonstrate in Montreal against Quebec Covid vaccine passport
Thousands gathered Saturday in the streets of Montreal to protest against the province of Quebec’s Covid-19 vaccine passport, which will go into effect early next month. Holding signs that said “Freedom!” and “We are not laboratory rats,” the demonstrators, many of whom came with their families, paraded peacefully under a blazing sun in downtown Montreal. Quebecers wanting to eat at a restaurant, go to a bar, exercise at the gym or attend a festival will […]
Haiti searches for survivors after quake kills at least 304
Rescue workers scrambled to find survivors after a powerful 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck Haiti early Saturday, killing at least 304 and toppling buildings in the disaster-plagued Caribbean nation still recovering from a devastating 2010 quake. The epicenter of the shaking, which rattled homes and sent terrified locals scrambling for safety starting around 8:30 am (1230 GMT), was about 100 miles (160 kilometers) by road west of the center of the densely populated capital Port-au-Prince. Churches, […]
UPDATED: Powerful Haiti quake kills at least 304
by Amelie Baron Agence France Presse PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AFP) — At least 304 people were killed in a powerful 7.2-magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti early Saturday, toppling buildings in the disaster-plagued Caribbean nation still recovering from a devastating 2010 quake. “We have recorded 160 deaths in the South, 42 in Nippes, 100 in Grand’Anse and two in the Northwest,” said civil protection head Jerry Chandler, breaking down the death toll by department at a […]
Strong 7.2 magnitude earthquake strikes Haiti: USGS
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AFP) — A 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck Haiti on Saturday, the United States Geological Survey said, prompting a tsunami alert and damaging buildings in the west of the disaster-plagued Caribbean nation. The epicenter of the quake was about 100 miles (160 kilometers) by road from central Port-au-Prince, the densely populated capital. The long shock was felt in neighboring countries. The quake damaged schools as well as homes on Haiti’s southwestern peninsula, according to […]
Canada to mandate Covid vaccine for government workers
OTTAWA, Canada (AFP) — The Canadian government announced Friday it will require all federal workers and most commercial rail, air and ship passengers to get vaccinated against Covid-19, amid a surge in virus cases due to the Delta variant. “We know that vaccines are the best way to end this pandemic,” said Dominic LeBlanc, a government minister in charge of Canada’s federal bureaucracy. “We expect federal public servants to want to comply with this mandatory […]
Guatemala declares state of emergency over Delta Covid surge
GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala (AFP) — Guatemala has declared a new state of emergency and will impose an overnight curfew from Sunday to contain a surge in Covid infections due to the Delta variant, President Alejandro Giammattei said. The 30-day state of emergency is being implemented due to a rebound in cases attributed to the “more aggressive” Delta variant, Giammattei said in a televised address on Friday. “The Delta variant is highly contagious. It is causing […]
US issues new terrorism threat warning ahead of 9/11 anniversary
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US Department of Homeland Security issued a new terrorism threat advisory on Friday ahead of the anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks and amid a resurgence of the coronavirus pandemic. The National Terrorism Advisory System Bulletin said the United States faces a “heightened threat environment” from both domestic terrorists “and those inspired or motivated by foreign terrorists and other malign foreign influences.” It cited increased use of “online […]
US authorizes Covid vaccine boosters for those with weakened immune systems
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States on Thursday authorized an extra dose of Covid vaccine for people with weakened immune systems, as the country struggles to thwart the Delta variant. Emergency use authorization for a third injection of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines was granted by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulator. “The country has entered yet another wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the FDA is especially cognizant that immunocompromised […]
Gates offers $1.5 billion in climate help if US takes legislative action
SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates on Thursday said his climate fund would pour $1.5 billion into projects with the United States if the government enacts a program to cut carbon emissions currently working its way through Congress. A $1.2 trillion infrastructure package passed by the US Senate this week would funnel billions of dollars to the Department of Energy for projects battling climate change. If the infrastructure package becomes law, […]





