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by Carlos Fabal, with Allison Jackson in Rio de Janeiro Agence France Presse PORTO VELHO, Brazil (AFP) — President Jair Bolsonaro on Friday authorized the deployment of Brazil’s armed forces to help combat fires raging in the Amazon rainforest, as a growing global outcry over the blazes sparks protests and threatens a huge trade deal. Plumes of thick smoke rose into the sky above dense forest in the northwestern state of Rondonia, where bright […]
HANOI, Vietnam (AFP) — Australia’s prime minister on Friday urged nations in Asia to stand up for their “independence and sovereignty”, with tensions high in the disputed South China Sea where Beijing is under fire for increasingly bullish behavior. Scott Morrison’s comments came after the United States slammed China for its “escalation” in the waterway, a key global shipping route where Beijing is accused of deploying warships, arming outposts and ramming fishing vessels. Morrison was […]
by Giovanna FLEITAS / with Jorge SVARTZMAN in Rio de Janeiro SALVADOR, Brazil (AFP) — Paris and the United Nations called Thursday for the protection of the fire-plagued Amazon rainforest as Brazil’s right-wing president accused his French counterpart of having a “colonialist mentality” over the issue. Official figures show nearly 73,000 forest fires were recorded in Brazil in the first eight months of the year — the highest number for any year since 2013. Most […]
by Glenn CHAPMAN SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Google on Thursday said it disabled a series of YouTube channels that appeared to be part of a coordinated influence campaign against pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. The announcement by YouTube’s parent company came after Twitter and Facebook accused the Chinese government of backing a social media campaign to discredit Hong Kong’s protest movement and sow political discord in the city. Google disabled 210 YouTube channels […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States on Thursday sharpened its criticism of China’s activities in disputed areas of the South China Sea, slamming an “escalation” in efforts to intimidate other claimants” such as Vietnam. China redeployed a government-owned survey vessel — with armed escorts — into the waters off Vietnam earlier this month, the US said. Hanoi says those waters are part of its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The move could reignite a […]
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — South Korea said Thursday it will terminate its military intelligence-sharing pact with Japan amid intensifying trade and diplomatic disputes with Tokyo. The decision comes as Seoul and Tokyo are locked in a tit-for-tat trade and diplomatic dispute following a series of South Korean court rulings against Japanese firms, requiring them to pay for forced labor during World War II. Japan had removed South Korea from a so-called white list of […]
SAO PAULO, Brazil (AFP) — The number of forest fires in Brazil surged in the first eight months of 2019, official data show, as President Jair Bolsonaro faces growing criticism over rampant destruction of the Amazon. Nearly 73,000 fires were recorded between January and August, compared with 39,759 in the first eight months of 2018, the embattled National Institute for Space Research (INPE) said late Monday. That is the highest number of forest fires for […]
WARSAW, Poland (AFP) — At least five people, including two children, were killed and more than 100 others were injured Thursday during a sudden thunderstorm in Poland and Slovakia’s Tatra mountains, according to rescuers and officials. Most of the victims were on the Polish side, where lightning struck a large metal cross on top of Mount Giewont and a metal chain near the summit, rescuers said. One person died in Slovakia. “There were a lot […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A Texas man convicted of raping and strangling a 19-year-old college student was executed by lethal injection Wednesday, the fourth in the state so far this year. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice confirmed the death of Larry Swearingen at 6:47 pm local time at the state prison in Huntsville. According to US media, the 48-year-old maintained his innocence until death, with his lawyers arguing that DNA under the victim’s […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — Nine people have died and 35 are still missing after a series of mudslides in an autonomous region of China’s southwestern Sichuan province, local authorities said Thursday. A 33-year-old firefighter was among those killed by a flash flood that tipped over an emergency response vehicle as they went to help people affected by a mudslide in Wenchuan county, according to local officials. State news agency Xinhua said another firefighter was […]
GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) – The World Health Organization (WHO) said Thursday the level of microplastics in drinking-water is not yet dangerous for humans but called for more research into potential future risk. In its first report into the effects of microplastics on human health, WHO looked into the specific impact of microplastics in tap and bottled water. “The headline messages to reassure drinking water consumers around the world, that based on this assessment, our assessment […]
MADRID, Spain (AFP) – Most residents in the Spanish holiday island of Gran Canaria who were evacuated over a raging wildfire were able to return home Wednesday after firefighters aided by cooler temperatures and calmer winds managed to stabilise the blaze, local officials said. Flames as high as 50 metres (160 feet) had complicated the battle against the blaze burning since Saturday on the western slopes of the volcanic island located off northwest Africa, prompting […]
