International

Stunning upset as President Erdogan’s AKP party suffers defeat in Turkey’s two main cities

  by Raziye Akkoc / Luana Sarmini-Buonaccorsi Agence France Presse ANKARA, Turkey (AFP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party suffered a major upset on Monday after local election results showed it lost the capital Ankara and Istanbul after a decade and half in power. Losing the country’s two major cities would be a stunning defeat for Erdogan, a former Istanbul mayor himself, whose ability to win at the ballot box has been unparalleled […]

Top Venezuela court calls to strip Guaido’s immunity

CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — Venezuela’s top court called on the ruling Constituent Assembly Monday to strip opposition leader Juan Guaido of parliamentary immunity. The decision by the Supreme Court of Justice could open the way for President Nicolas Maduro’s rival Guaido, recognized as interim president by more than 50 countries, to be prosecuted. The court ruling cited Guaido’s violation of a ban on his travel outside Venezuela when he visited Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and […]

Cholera cases mount to over 1,000 in cyclone-hit Mozambique

MAPUTO, Mozambique (AFP) — Cholera has infected at least 1,052 people in Mozambique’s cyclone-hit region, the health ministry said Monday in a new report, marking a massive increase from 139 cases reported four days ago. The mounting cases represent on average more than 200 cases of new infections each day. Although hundreds have been taken ill with cholera since last week, only one death has been reported so far, tallies compiled by the ministry showed. […]

British MPs vote against all Brexit alternative plans

LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British MPs voted against four possible alternative plans for Brexit on Monday after also rejecting the government’s deal with the EU three times. Proposed alternatives for retaining much closer economic ties after leaving the European Union, holding a second referendum or stopping Brexit to prevent a no-deal departure all failed to win a majority of votes in parliament. The second referendum proposal garnered the most votes in favour — 280 […]

Major Arena Soccer: Playoff-bound KC Comets soar over the Florida Tropics, win 6-2

By Melissa Sarmiento Allen EBC Florida Bureau LAKELAND, Florida (Eagle News) – With the final weeks of the Major Arena Soccer League’s (MASL) regular season underway, the Kansas City Comets prevailed over the Florida Tropics, beating them 6-2 on their home turf at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland on Saturday. Just the night before, the Comets clinched a spot in the Ron Numan Cup playoffs with their close win over the Orlando Seawolves. In […]

At least 15 killed in Myanmar bus crash

YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — At least 15 people were killed in Myanmar after the bus they were travelling in plunged into a gorge, police and state media said Monday. The deadly accident happened in Bago region north of the commercial capital Yangon on Saturday evening. The bus was carrying 40 people when it hit a road sign and careered off the road plummeting 60 metres (200 feet), state-run Global New Light of Myanmar reported. A […]

26 firefighters die battling China forest fire

  BEIJING, China (AFP) — At least 26 firefighters died after they were sent to tackle a forest blaze in remote mountains in southwest China’s Sichuan province at the weekend, authorities said Monday. Hundreds of firefighters were deployed to battle the fire, which broke out on Saturday evening on steep terrain at an altitude of around 4,000 metres (13,000 feet) in Muli County, according to the ministry of emergency management. Authorities lost contact with 30 […]

Freak Nepal storm kills 27, injures hundreds

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AFP) — At least 27 people have been killed and hundreds injured after a freak storm hit southern Nepal, destroying houses, uprooting trees and toppling electricity poles, officials said. The thunderstorm swept through the district of Bara and adjoining areas late Sunday killing at least 27 people and injuring more than 600, according to the home ministry. “The winds took away everything, my home and my family,” Ram Babu Patel, 45, who lost […]

At least 20 dead in Peru bus fire: emergency services

LIMA, Peru (AFP) — At least 20 people were killed and about a dozen injured Sunday night in a bus fire at a Peruvian transport terminal, the emergency services said. Initial reports said an electrical fault at the rear of the vehicle triggered the blaze. “The fire led to the deaths of at least 20 people,” said Lewis Mejia, a fire department official. The blaze erupted at the Fiori terminal in Lima’s northern San Martin […]

Japan reveals new ‘era’ name ahead of emperor’s abdication

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan on Monday announced its new imperial era, which will begin next month after Emperor Akihito abdicates, will be known as “Reiwa”, a word that includes the character for “harmony”. The name consists of two characters: “Rei”, which can have meanings related to “order” but also “auspicious” and “Wa”, usually translated as “peace” or “harmony”. The government is expected to explain the official meaning as well as the English spelling for […]

British MPs seek new path for Brexit after deal rejected again

by James PHEBY LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British MPs will attempt to chart a new Brexit path on Monday after rejecting Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal for a third time, leaving her strategy in tatters and the country in limbo. With less than two weeks to go until the day Britain risks crashing out of the European Union, MPs will hold a series of votes to try and find a majority-backed plan to […]

Venezuela cuts workday, extends school cancelation over blackouts

CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — Venezuela’s government announced Sunday that it is reducing the length of the workday and keeping schools closed due to devastating electricity blackouts plaguing the country. Crippled infrastructure, little investment in the power grid and poor maintenance mean that the widespread blackouts that have hit Venezuela throughout the month of March are likely here to stay. Add to that the country’s economic deep crisis, eye-popping inflation rate and the “brain drain” of […]