International

Australian student detained in North Korea ‘released, safe’

  SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — A 29-year-old Australian student detained in North Korea surfaced in Beijing airport on Thursday, saying he was in “very good” spirits after being released. Alek Sigley — one of a handful of Westerners living and studying in North Korea — disappeared without a trace around June 23, prompting a week of deep concern and frantic speculation about his fate. For days Sigley’s family received no word about his whereabouts or […]

One tourist killed in Stromboli volcano eruption

by Charles ONIANS ROME, Italy (AFP) — A volcano on the Italian island of Stromboli erupted dramatically on Wednesday, killing a hiker and sending tourists fleeing into the sea. The volcano is known to be active but on Wednesday there were two particularly powerful explosions. “Unfortunately one man is dead, there are a few injured, but none seriously,” emergency worker Calogero Foti told RAI television. The dead man was a 35-year-old from Messina in Sicily […]

Tornado kills 6, injures nearly 200 in China

BEIJING, China (AFP) — A tornado has left six people dead and nearly 200 injured after ripping through a northeastern Chinese city, local authorities said Thursday. The tornado hit Kaiyuan in Liaoning province on Wednesday afternoon, tearing down trees and electricity poles, smashing the windows of apartment buildings, and knocking down some brick walls. More than 190 people were injured and 43 of them were hospitalized, the Kaiyuan public security bureau said on the Weibo […]

More than a million ordered to shelters in rain-hit Japan

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japanese authorities have issued evacuation orders for more than one million people in southern parts of the country hit by heavy rains, a year after deadly floods that killed more than 200 people. Small landslides were already being reported in parts of the affected area, public broadcaster NHK reported. It said a total of 1.1 million people in Kagoshima and Miyazaki prefectures, on the island of Kyushu, had been ordered to […]

Deadly air strike on Libya migrant center sparks outrage

by Imed LAMLOUM TRIPOLI, Libya (AFP) — Outrage and calls for an independent probe mounted Wednesday as 44 migrants were killed in an air strike on a detention center in Libya that the UN said could constitute a war crime. UN chief Antonio Guterres denounced the “horrendous” attack and demanded an independent investigation as the Security Council said it would hold urgent talks about the situation in the country. Libya’s internationally-recognized government and its arch-foe […]

26 dead as fishing boat sinks off Honduras: official

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AFP) — At least 26 people died Wednesday when their fishing boat sank off the Caribbean coast of Honduras, the country’s military said. Armed forces spokesman Jose Meza said that 47 people however survived when the vessel sank off the remote coastal Mosquitia region. Meza said the  boat, the 70-tonne “Wallie,” set sail from Cabo Gracias a Dios — on the country’s easternmost point bordering Nicaragua — packed with fisherman after a seasonal […]

China tells UK to ‘refrain’ from Hong Kong ‘interference’

  LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — China warned Britain on Wednesday that it must “refrain from further interference” in Hong Kong’s protests or risk “further damaging” its relationship with Beijing. China has appeared irked by Britain’s public rebukes over the unprecedented anti-Beijing demonstrations that have rocked Hong Kong in recent weeks. “I do hope that the British government will realize the consequences and… refrain from further interference, from further damaging the relationship,” China’s UK ambassador […]

Oh, the people you’ll meet … at BookCon

By Joanne Soriano EBC New York Bureau NEW YORK (Eagle News) — Long lines and crowds wrapped around the different booths within the main hall of the convention center. The scene was typical for a designer sample sale with young women hauling tote bags and backpacks filled to capacity. However, instead of carrying designer goods, their cargo was much more precious to these customers. These readers were acquiring books. BookCon, hailed as the literary event […]

European Parliament chooses new president, completing top EU jobs

  by Cédric SIMON Agence France Presse STRASBOURG, France (AFP) — The European Parliament on Wednesday elected an Italian social democrat as its new president, filling the final top EU job a day after Brussels named two women to key posts for the first time. Italy’s David Sassoli, a 63-year-old former journalist, won the absolute majority of ballots he needed at the second round of voting, seeing off German Green Ska Keller, far-left Spaniard Sira […]

Nearly 40 killed in air strike on Libya migrant center

  by Imed LAMLOUM Agence France Presse TRIPOLI, Libya (AFP) — Nearly 40 migrants were killed in an air strike Tuesday night on their detention centre in a Tripoli suburb blamed on Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar, who has been trying for three months to seize the capital. At least 70 were also wounded in the raid on Tajoura, an emergency services spokesman told AFP. “This is a preliminary assessment and the toll could rise,” said […]

Six dead, 18 missing after Indian dam breached

MUMBAI, India (AFP) — Six people were killed and at least 18 were missing on Wednesday after the heaviest monsoon rains in a decade breached a dam in the western Indian state of Maharashtra, authorities said. “Using drones, we have located six dead bodies and over 18 people are still missing,” Alok Awasthy, spokesman for India’s National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), told AFP. “We have deployed two teams after the Tiware dam breach occurred last […]

Mexico deports 33% more migrants after deal with US

MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AFP) — Mexico deported 33 percent more foreigners month-on-month in June, officials said Tuesday, after the country agreed to take “unprecedented” steps to reduce migration in order to avoid US President Donald Trump’s threatened tariffs. The total number of deportations from Mexico in June was 21,912, up from 16,507 in May, according to preliminary figures from the national migration authority. The upswing came after Trump threatened in May to impose tariffs on […]