International

Final Colombia mudslide death toll is 33: authorities

BOGOTA, Colombia (AFP) — The final death toll from a mudslide that buried houses in southwestern Colombia is 33, rescue authorities said on Thursday. After five days of digging through the mud, Colombia’s risk and disaster agency said it had recovered the “final” body of an unaccounted person. Rescuers had to remove tons of mud to find the bodies of the 28 adults and five children buried by the mudslide in Rosas, in the department […]

Canada capital declares flooding state of emergency

OTTAWA, Canada (AFP) — Ottawa’s mayor declared a state of emergency in the Canadian capital on Thursday in anticipation of rising flood waters and heavy rains. No homes have been evacuated, but authorities expect waters along the Ottawa River to rise above levels in 2017 that saw the worst floods in Eastern Canada in half a century. Environment Canada issued a special weather statement predicting up to 35 millimeters (1.3 inches) of rain by Saturday […]

N.Korea’s Kim says US acted in ‘bad faith’ at Hanoi talks: KCNA

SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un says the United States acted in “bad faith” when he met with President Donald Trump in Hanoi, and that the situation on the peninsula has reached a “critical point,” state media said Friday. Kim made the comments during his first summit with Russia’s Vladimir Putin on Thursday in Vladivostok, the Korean Central News Agency reported, describing their talks as “unreserved and friendly.” The North […]

Sri Lanka blast toll revised down to 253 as some ‘double-counted’

by Amal Jayasinghe in Colombo and Ammu Kannampilly in Batticaloa COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AFP) — Authorities in Sri Lanka on Thursday lowered the death toll in a spate of Easter bombings by more than 100 to 253, admitting some of the badly mutilated bodies had been erroneously double-counted. The toll revision will boost the pressure on a government already under fire over its apparent failure to act on intelligence about the attacks, and follows the […]

Mozambique braces for Cyclone Kenneth

A powerful cyclone was set to make landfall in northern Mozambique Thursday, barely a month after a super-storm slammed into the country’s centre, leaving hundreds dead and causing devastation. As Cyclone Kenneth barrelled towards to the northeastern coast after swiping the Comoros, the UN warned of flash flooding and landslides. Dozens of schools were closed and all flights between the capital Maputo and Pemba were cancelled. Forecasters at Meteo-France warned that Kenneth could trigger waves […]

All Sri Lanka Catholic church services suspended: senior priest

  COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AFP) – All of Sri Lanka’s Catholic churches have been ordered to stay closed and suspend services until security improves after deadly Easter bombings, a senior priest told AFP Thursday. “On the advice of the security forces we are keeping all churches closed,” the priest said. “There will be no public mass said until further notice.” Security has already been stepped up at churches across the country, government officials said. A […]

Kim, Putin vow to seek closer ties at first talks

  by Maria Panina  VLADIVOSTOK, Russia (AFP) — Russia’s Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un met face-to-face for the first time on Thursday, vowing to seek closer ties as they look to counter US influence. The summit in Russia’s Far Eastern city of Vladivostok came with Kim locked in a nuclear stand-off with Washington and Putin keen to put Moscow forward as a player in another global flashpoint. The two leaders shook hands […]

China vows to battle Belt and Road debt risks

by Ryan McMorrow and Elizabeth Law BEIJING, China (AFP) — China on Thursday rejected “misunderstandings” fuelling concerns about its Belt and Road global infrastructure programme but vowed to tame debt risks as it opened a summit on its signature foreign policy. President Xi Jinping’s pet project is a reboot of the ancient Silk Road to connect Asia to Europe and Africa through massive investments in maritime, road and rail projects. The Belt and Road Initiative […]

Japan court grants $4.5m bail to Carlos Ghosn

by Richard CARTER TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A Japanese court granted Carlos Ghosn bail Thursday, meaning the former Nissan boss could soon walk out of his Tokyo detention center to prepare his defense against multiple charges of financial misconduct. The Tokyo District Court set bail at 500 million yen ($4.5 million) as the 65-year-old auto sector legend faces four charges ranging from concealing part of his salary from shareholders to syphoning off Nissan funds for […]

North Korea’s Kim set for first summit with Putin

VLADIVOSTOK, Russia (AFP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un meet for their first-ever summit Thursday, with the visitor looking for Moscow’s backing in his nuclear stand-off with the United States. The meeting on Russky island near the Pacific port of Vladivostok in Russia will be Kim’s first face-to-face talks with another head of state since returning from his Hanoi summit with US President Donald Trump, which broke down without […]

Pompeo expects N.Korea diplomacy to be ‘bumpy’

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday he expected “bumpy” talks ahead with North Korea but that he still hoped to reach a potentially landmark denuclearization deal. US President Donald Trump in February cut short a summit in Hanoi with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, with Pyongyang later blaming Pompeo for a pushing a hard line and calling for his exclusion from future negotiations. In an interview with […]

51 killed, 1,000 people displaced by floods in S.Africa

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AFP) — Devastating floods in South Africa have left 51 dead and forced more than a thousand people from their homes, according to an updated toll issued Wednesday as President Cyril Ramaphosa flew to the deluged region. Heavy rains have lashed the southeast of the country, tearing down homes and ravaging infrastructure in KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape provinces. Speaking to the affected Amanzimtoti community in Durban, after returning from emergency African Union […]