North America

2,500 unaccounted for in hurricane-hit Bahamas: official

NASSAU, Bahamas (AFP) — About 2,500 people are unaccounted for in the Bahamas following Hurricane Dorian, the archipelago’s National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said Wednesday. NEMA spokesman Carl Smith told reporters that some of the missing people may eventually be located. “At this point, there are approximately 2,500 individuals registered on the Bahamian government register (of missing people),” Smith said. “This list has not yet been checked against government records of who is staying in […]

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Top US court allows Trump asylum restrictions to take effect

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed asylum restrictions by President Donald Trump’s administration to take effect, preventing most Central American migrants from applying at the US border. The top court stayed a decision by a lower court two days earlier that had blocked the restrictions, which require migrants seeking asylum in the United States to make their request in a country along their route. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, dissenting from […]

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Trump vows to hit Taliban ‘harder’ than ever as US marks 9/11

by Peter Hutchison with Sebastian Smith in Washington NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump pledged to hit the Taliban “harder” than ever as America on Wednesday marked the 18th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks that led the country into war in Afghanistan. Trump’s remarks came after he aborted what would have been a historic Afghanistan peace summit, and as relatives remembered the victims of the deadliest terror attacks on US soil at […]

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New York remembers 9/11 attacks, 18 years on

NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — New York honored Wednesday the almost 3,000 people killed on September 11, 2001 in a solemn ceremony at Ground Zero where hijacked Al-Qaeda planes brought down the Twin Towers. Relatives of victims, police officers, firefighters and city leaders gathered at the National September 11 Memorial to mark the 18th anniversary of the deadliest single attack on US soil. They held poignant moments of silence at 8:46 am (1246 GMT) […]

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Eyes on Biden as Democrats ready for third 2020 debate

  WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Ten Democrats seeking the White House will gather Thursday for their party’s third debate of the 2020 cycle, with frontrunner Joe Biden sharing the stage with top rival Elizabeth Warren for the first time. The televised showdown in Houston will be the longest to date in the primary contest, a three-hour marathon that will give voters their first opportunity to see all the leading candidates onstage together. The previous […]

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Pentagon to keep 5,500 troops at Mexico border

  WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US Defense Department said Tuesday that it would keep up to 5,500 troops deployed at the Mexican border for the coming year to help combat illegal immigration. A week after announcing it would divert $3.6 billion in funds for the construction of an anti-migrant wall on the frontier, the Pentagon said it had also approved a request from the Department of Homeland Security to maintain a troop presence […]

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Trump fires national security chief Bolton

  WASHINGTON, DC (AFP) — President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced the firing of his hawkish national security advisor John Bolton, saying he disagreed “strongly” with his positions, in the latest upheaval for US foreign policy. “I asked John for his resignation, which was given to me this morning,” Trump announced on Twitter, saying he would name a replacement next week. Bolton, who had been due to give a press conference at the White House […]

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One week after Dorian, Bahamians struggle amid the ruins

by Cyril JULIEN NASSAU, Bahamas (AFP) — One week after Hurricane Dorian devastated the Bahamas, residents struggled amid the ruins Sunday, with many forced to seek refuge far from their shattered homes as the death toll from the top-intensity storm hit 44 in the islands. Dorian, now classified as a post-tropical storm, caused “severe damage” in eastern Canada and was expected to move soon into the North Atlantic after cutting a destructive swath through the […]

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US job creation cools in August as Trump hammers Fed

  by Douglas Gillison WASHINGTON, United States | AFP America’s jobs engine downshifted in August as employers unexpectedly held back hiring across major industries, another sign that the world’s largest economy is cooling off, government data showed Friday. As the numbers were released early Friday, President Donald Trump, whose record as a job creator could pale ahead of next year’s election, renewed his attacks on the US central bank, which he blames for failing to […]

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Hurricane Dorian weakens to Category 1: US meteorologists

CHARLESTON, United States (AFP) — Hurricane Dorian weakened to a Category 1 storm early Friday as it closed in on the coast of North Carolina, US meteorologists said. Dorian was packing maximum sustained winds of near 90 mph (150 kilometers per hour), down from 100 miles per hour, according to the latest update from the Miami-based National Hurricane Center. “Slow weakening is expected during the next few days. However, Dorian should remain a powerful hurricane […]

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N.Korea wants reduced UN aid presence

UNITED NATIONS, United States (AFP) — The United Nations said Thursday it is negotiating with impoverished North Korea over its aid presence, which Pyongyang alleges has been politicized and wants reduced. North Korea requested in a letter last month that the UN reduce its involvement in the isolated country, spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a daily press conference without giving details. The letter, obtained by AFP, asked that the drawdown occur before the end of […]

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Dorian leaves 30 dead in Bahamas: prime minister

NASSAU, Bahamas (AFP) — The death toll from Hurricane Dorian has risen to 30 in the Bahamas, Prime Minister Hubert Minnis told American network CNN on Thursday. Authorities had previously reported 20 dead, but have warned that the final figure is sure to be far higher. Minnis has said that the storm caused “generational devastation.” The United Nations said 70,000 people in the Bahamas were in “immediate need” of aid. Dorian, currently a Category 2 […]

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