JERUSALEM, Undefined (AFP) – Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman has prohibited soldiers from volunteering in their free time with children of migrants who are illegally in the country, sparking fierce debate Monday. Human rights organisations, leftwing opposition politicians and some media condemned the decision as racist, while rightwing supporters said the soldiers should instead help disadvantaged Israelis. Commanders of some units in the army, one of Israel’s most important institutions, encourage their troops to carry out […]
International
Six dead, 20,000 forced to evacuate in Louisiana floods
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) – Floods ravaged the US state of Louisiana Monday, leaving six people dead and thousands more forced to flee rising waters after days of catastrophic rainstorms. More than 20,000 people had to evacuate their homes and as many as 10,000 were living in emergency shelters, officials said, after rains pummeled much of southern Louisiana starting last Thursday evening. Over the weekend, rain accumulations totaled more than 20 inches in five parts […]
PKK bombing kills 7 near Turkey’s Diyarbakir
DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (AFP) – by Ilyas AKENGIN Five Turkish police officers and two civilians were killed on Monday in a car bombing outside the southeastern city of Diyarbakir blamed on Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) rebels, the government said. The blast hit a police traffic control building on a highway leading southeast from Diyarbakir to the city of Batman, killing the seven, a Turkish official said, confirming media reports and asking not to be named. The local […]
Second night of violence in Milwaukee after police shooting
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) – by Olivia HAMPTON Protesters threw rocks and fired shots in a second night of violence in a tense neighborhood of Milwaukee following the deadly police shooting of an armed black man. Police dressed in riot gear moved in on the Sherman Park neighborhood around 11:00 pm on Sunday (0400 GMT Monday) to disperse an angry crowd and restore order. Several police officers have been targeted and shot dead across the nation […]
Kashmir hit by deadly unrest on India Independence Day
SRINAGAR, India (AFP) – by Parvaiz BUKHARI A police paramilitary commander was shot dead in Kashmir’s main city while at least two suspected separatist militants were killed in gun-battles Monday as violence flared in the disputed Himalayan region on Indian Independence Day. The unnamed commander was critically injured in an ambush and died in hospital, a senior officer of India’s Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) confirmed to AFP, adding that two other members of the […]
Factbox: Why the Zika virus is causing alarm
(REUTERS HEALTH) Global health officials are racing to better understand the Zika virus behind a major outbreak that began in Brazil last year and has spread to many countries in the Americas. The following are some questions and answers about the virus and current outbreak: How do people become infected? Zika is transmitted to people through the bite of infected female mosquitoes, primarily the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the same type that spreads dengue, chikungunya […]
Magnitude 5.6 quake hits off northern Japan
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A magnitude 5.6 undersea earthquake struck Japan Monday off the coast of Fukushima prefecture, though there were no immediate reports of damages. The quake struck at about 4:00 pm (0700 GMT) at a depth of some 28 kilometres (17 miles), the US Geological Survey said. There was no threat of a tsunami from the quake, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. The crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, battered by a massive […]
Thailand detains several people for questioning over deadly blasts
(REUTERS) Thailand’s army said on Monday it had detained several people for questioning over a wave of deadly bombings in some of the country’s best known-beach resorts that killed four people and wounded dozens, including tourists. Last week’s blasts came days after Thais voted to accept a military-backed constitution that paves the way for an election at the end of 2017. No group has claimed responsibility, although police and the government have ruled out […]
Obama declares emergency for flooded Louisiana
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) –US President Barack Obama issued Sunday a disaster declaration for flood-devastated Louisiana, where emergency workers have rescued more than 7,000 residents stranded in homes and cars, said the White House. The action makes emergency federal funding available to support rescue crews working nonstop as deadly flooding ravages the state, disastrous weather that has left at least three dead and one missing, said officials. “This is a serious event,” Governor John Bel […]
At least three dead, thousands rescued from deadly Louisiana flood waters
(REUTERS) Emergency crews have rescued more than 7,000 people stranded in Louisiana by historic flooding that has killed at least three people and submerged whole communities, Governor John Bel Edwards said on Sunday (August 14), as the U.S. Gulf Coast braced for more rain and rising waters. Stranded residents have been pulled out of flooded homes and swamped cars in cities and towns across the southern part of the state, said Edwards, who has […]
Police try to disperse Milwaukee crowds after one person shot during protests
(REUTERS) Tensions rose again on Sunday night with one person shot in the Milwaukee neighborhood where the fatal shooting of a suspect by a police officer touched off rioting and arson the previous night and prompted Wisconsin’s governor to activate the National Guard. After small groups of demonstrators gathered earlier in peaceful vigils, Milwaukee police said late Sunday night they began attempting to disperse crowds after shots were fired and objects were thrown by some […]
Wingsuit jumpers join meteor shower in Spanish sky
(Reuters) Joakim Sommer, Armando del Rey, Marco Waltenspiel and Georg Lettner paid a tribute to the celestial event this week, flying over La Palma in the Canary Islands where the sky is considered the cleanest in the North Hemisphere for astronomic observation. The four jumpers joined the Perseids, a prolific meteor shower usually peaking in August. That mid-August night, up to 500 meteors were observed per hour. In fact, the visibility of the Perseids […]
