Lille, France | AFP | Monday 2/6/2023 A mother and her seven children aged two to 14 died after a fire broke out while they slept in their house in northern France on Monday, police and firefighters said. The raging blaze, the deadliest such fire in France in a decade, broke out shortly after midnight in the family home in the town of Charly-sur-Marne, some 80 kilometres (50 miles) east of Paris. The mother and […]
International
In Pictures: 7.8-Magnitude earthquake kills hundreds across Turkey and Syria
A 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit Turkey and Syria early on Monday, killing hundreds of people as they slept, levelling buildings and sending tremors that were felt as far away as the island of Cyprus, Egypt and Iraq. One of the largest quakes to strike Turkey in a century wiped out entire sections of major cities in a region filled with millions of people who have fled the civil war in Syria and other conflicts. The head […]
URGENT: Quake death toll in Turkey soars to 284: official
Istanbul, Turkey | AFP | Monday 2/6/2023 – 08:15 UTC+1 | 57 words At least 284 people died in Turkey from a 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck the country’s southeast on Monday, Vice President Fuat Oktay said, updating earlier figures. The 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck before dawn near the Turkish city of Gaziantep, about 40 kilometres from the Syrian border. It left northwestern Syria “in a state of catastrophe” with “destruction, devastation, and collapse of buildings,” […]
At least 245 dead in Syria after Turkey earthquake
BEIRUT, Lebanon (AFP) — At least 245 people were killed in Syria on Monday as buildings collapsed after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake that had its epicenter in neighboring Turkey, state media and a medical source said. More than 230 people were killed and over 600 injured in government-controlled parts of war-torn Syria, the health ministry said, while a hospital told AFP that eight others were killed in northern areas controlled by pro-Turkish factions. “Six hundred and […]
Indonesian economic growth rises to nine-year high
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AFP) — Indonesia’s economic growth accelerated to a nine-year high in 2022 despite global uncertainty and a final-quarter slowdown, official data showed Monday, owing to soaring commodity prices and easing Covid-19 curbs. Indonesia was badly affected by the coronavirus pandemic, with its exports and tourism-reliant economy taking a massive hit in 2020 as GDP shrunk by 2.07 percent — its first recession since the 1997 Asian financial crisis. But Southeast Asia’s largest economy […]
Scholar, lawmakers and journalist among Hong Kongers on trial
HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Hong Kong’s largest national security trial opened Monday with dozens of pro-democracy figures accused of trying to topple the government in a case critics say reflects the criminalization of dissent in the Chinese territory. The 47 defendants, who include some of the city’s most prominent activists, face up to life in prison if convicted of “conspiracy to commit subversion” for involvement in an unofficial primary election. The group reflects a […]
Major 7.8M earthquake kills dozens across Turkey, Syria
by Dmitry ZAKS and Aya ISKANDARANI in Beirut A powerful 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit Turkey and Syria on Monday, killing dozens, levelling buildings while people were still in their sleep, and sending tremors that were felt as far away as the island of Cyprus. Local officials in Turkey put the initial death toll at 53, although it threatened to climb substantially higher because it caught most people while they were still at home asleep. At least […]
DEVELOPING STORY: At least 53 dead in Turkey after quake: officials
At least 53 people died Monday in Turkey when a major 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck the southeast of the country, local officials said. Officials said 23 people died in the province of Malatya, 17 in Urfa, seven in Osmaniye, and six in Diyarbakir, although the toll threatened to climb much higher because of the heavy damage. © Agence France-Presse
China says US shooting down balloon ‘damaged’ relations
BEIJING, China (AFP) — A US decision to shoot down a Chinese balloon that Beijing claimed had veered off course has “seriously impacted and damaged” relations between the two countries, China’s foreign ministry said Monday. The aircraft, which Washington said was a spy balloon, had spent several days flying over North America, leading the United States to call off a planned visit to Beijing by Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Washington on Saturday said a […]
URGENT: At least 15 dead as 7.8-M quake strikes Turkey: local officials
At least 15 people died in a major 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck southeastern Turkey on Monday, local officials said, although the toll threatened to climb much higher because many buildings were destroyed. Locals officials said five people died in the province of Osmaniye and 10 more in Sanliurfa, which sits near Turkey’s border with Syria. Damaging M7.8 EQ hit southern Turkey near the Syrian border ~4am local time. PAGER is red for this event; […]
Northeast US, Canada gripped by Arctic blast
NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — A “generational” Arctic blast brought dangerously cold temperatures to swaths of the northeastern United States and Canada on Saturday, with forecasters warning that frostbite can occur in just five minutes. Atop Mount Washington in New Hampshire state, the wind-chill factor reached minus 78 degrees Celsius (minus 108 degrees Fahrenheit) overnight, the National Weather Service (NWS) said. That broke the previous low recorded there of minus 74 C, the […]
US sending longer-range precision rockets to Ukraine
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A new $2.2 billion US arms package for Ukraine includes a new rocket-propelled precision bomb that could nearly double Kyiv’s strike range against the Russians, the Pentagon said Friday. Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder said the new package includes the ground-launched small-diameter bombs (GLSDB), a munition that can fly up to 150 kilometers (93 miles), which would threaten Russian positions and depots far behind the front lines. “This gives them a […]
