North America

US president invites bullied boy named Trump to his State of the Union speech in Congress

  WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — When US President Donald Trump delivers his second State of the Union speech to Congress on Tuesday, his guests will include Joshua Trump, a sixth grader passionate about science and animals. The youngster isn’t a member of the president’s family, but instead a boy from Wilmington, Delaware, who has been bullied in school as a result of his last name, according to a short statement issued the White House. […]

Death toll in Cuba tornado rises to six

HAVANA, Cuba (AFP) — The number of people killed in the powerful tornado that ripped through part of Havana last week has risen to six, authorities said Sunday. Public Health Minister Jose Angel Portal Miranda said in state media that “sadly, two people have died among the 13 who were in critical condition.” The earlier death toll was four. The storm which hit Havana area towns including Regla, Guanabacoa, San Miguel de Padron and 10 […]

Mexico fuel theft tragedy death toll rises to 125

MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AFP) — The death toll from a fiery pipeline explosion in central Mexico last month reached 125, the government announced Sunday. Another 22 people remain in hospital, many of them with burns covering at least 80 percent of their bodies, the social security office IMSS reported. On January 18, the fuel-line in Hidalgo state was deliberately punctured, drawing hundreds of people looking to gather gasoline before it ignited. The disaster occurred as […]

US to send 3,750 more troops to Mexico border: Pentagon

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States will send an additional 3,750 troops to its border with Mexico, the Pentagon said Sunday, bringing the total number of active duty forces to 4,350. “The Department of Defense will deploy approximately 3,750 additional US forces to provide the additional support to CBP (Customs and Border Protection) at the southwest border that Acting Secretary of Defense Shanahan approved Jan. 11,” it said. © Agence France-Presse

At least 21 dead as US thaws from Arctic freeze; lowest temperature drop reported at negative 53 Celsius

  by Nova SAFO Agence France Presse CHICAGO, United States (AFP) — A brutal cold spell that paralyzed the US Midwest, freezing water mains, causing power outages and canceling flights, eased on Friday, with forecasts predicting a rapid thaw. The two days of intense cold from the so-called polar vortex that descended on the US Midwest and Northeast will go down in memory for its scenes of winter at its most bitter. Blocks of ice […]

Knicks fans react to Porzingis trade to Mavs

By Tennie Sumague EBC New York Bureau NEW YORK, NY (Eagle News) – It is news more colder than Thursday’s frigid New York weather. A trade that no one saw coming and moreso, shocking to many beloved New York Knicks fans as the ‘unicorn’ will no longer create magic at the world’s famous arena in a blue and orange uniform. The Knicks organization made a surprising move by dealing All-Star Forward Kristaps Porzingis, Tim Hardaway […]

US bishops release names of 300 Texas clergy accused of abuse

by Nova Safo / with Javier Tovar in Los Angeles Agence France Presse CHICAGO, United States (AFP) — Catholic officials in the US state of Texas on Thursday released the names of approximately 300 clergy who have been accused of sexual abuse dating back 70 years. The revelations — which came on the same day that a law firm said that more than 80 priests sexually abused minors in a California diocese over a period […]

Florida sinkhole leads to secret tunnel to bank

MIAMI, United States (AFP) — Road workers in Florida sent out to repair a sinkhole got a surprise this week when they discovered it was caused by a tunnel leading to a nearby bank. The FBI posted pictures of the narrow underground tunnel leading to a branch of Chase Bank in Pembroke Pines, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) north of Miami. Police and the FBI were called in Tuesday night after the road workers realized […]

Trump says US-China trade talks ‘going well’

by Douglas Gillison Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump on Thursday touted the chances of success of US-China trade negotiations as the talks entered a second day, saying Beijing was eager to make a deal. In a morning series of tweets, he also said a final deal would leave “NOTHING” unresolved but a bargain could only be struck after he meets with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping “in the near […]

Deadly Arctic cold strains resources in US Midwest

By Nova SAFO (AFP) — Frozen water mains and strained natural gas supplies left the US Midwest struggling Thursday as a deadly Arctic air mass had tens of millions of Americans shivering for a second day. Ten deaths have been attributed to the extreme weather since the weekend. Schools and businesses remained closed in several midwestern states, people were encouraged to stay home, and travellers were stranded by grounded flights and halted trains. Natural gas […]

Seven migrants dead, 23 missing in Colombia shipwreck

BOGOTA, Colombia (AFP) — Seven migrants are dead and 23 missing after their boat capsized in the Caribbean Sea off northwestern Colombia, officials said Wednesday. The vessel carrying 18 adults and 14 children was upended by a wave early Monday that left passengers “adrift in the sea,” said Lilia Cordoba, the mayor of the Colombian coastal town of Acandi. Seven bodies, including a child, were recovered on Tuesday and Wednesday along two beaches in the […]