Washington, United States (AFP) by Issam AHMED NASA will on Monday attempt a feat humanity has never before accomplished: deliberately smacking a spacecraft into an asteroid to slightly deflect its orbit, in a key test of our ability to stop cosmic objects from devastating life on Earth. The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spaceship launched from California last November and is fast approaching its target, which it will strike at roughly 14,000 miles (22,500 kilometers) […]
International
Ian strengthens to Category 1 hurricane as it nears Cuba: NHC
9/26 5 AM- The latest NHC advisory is out with Ian officially upgraded to a hurricane. The center of the storm currently sits west of Jamaica and is forecast to strengthen further in the short term. Several watches and warnings are already out, mainly for Gulf coast areas. #flwx pic.twitter.com/FSOJ5z21NY — NWS Miami (@NWSMiami) September 26, 2022 Here are the 5 am Monday Key Messages for Hurricane #Ian. Latest information at https://t.co/tW4KeGdBFb pic.twitter.com/536aVhLwl5 — National […]
Rare pink diamond to go under hammer in Geneva
GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) – The Fortune Pink, an exceptionally rare giant gemstone, will be auctioned in Geneva in November when it is expected to go for up to $35 million (36 million euros), auctioneers said Monday. At over 18 carats, the vividly coloured gem is the largest pear-shaped pink diamond of its quality ever to be offered for sale at auction, the Christie’s auction house said. The diamond, which goes under the hammer for the […]
URGENT: At least six dead in Russia school shooting, attacker kills self: officials
Moscow, Russia (AFP) At least six people were dead and some 20 wounded after a gunman opened fire in a school in the central Russian city of Izhevsk, the interior ministry said Monday. “The body of the man who opened fire has now been found by police. According to reports, he committed suicide. At the moment, there are six dead and around 20 injured by his actions,” the ministry said on Telegram, with the region’s […]
Six people killed in Philippine typhoon
San Ildefonso, Philippines |(AFP) by Ron LOPEZ The strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year left at least six people dead, authorities said Monday, after heavy rain and fierce winds battered the country’s most populous island. Typhoon Noru toppled trees, knocked out power and flooded low-lying communities as it swept across Luzon on Sunday and Monday. There have so far been no reports of widespread severe damage from the storm, which hit the country […]
Death toll from Venezuela floods rises to eight
CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — The death toll from floods that swept away a group of people at a religious retreat in western Venezuela has risen to eight, authorities said on Sunday, as the search for two more missing people continued. Around 40 members of a Methodist church had gathered in Tachira state on Friday when heavy rains caused flooding, state governor Freddy Bernal tweeted. Some of the worshippers were bathing in the river when the […]
Japan to lift Covid restrictions on foreign tourists from October
New York, United States (AFP) — Japan announced Thursday that it will lift tough Covid restrictions on foreign tourists, reopening the borders after two and a half years. Speaking at the New York Stock Exchange, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the pandemic had interrupted the free flow of people, goods and capital that had helped the nation flourish. “But from October 11, Japan will relax border control measures to be on par with the US, […]
Queues build up at Mongolian border as people flee Russia call-up
Altanbulag, Mongolia (AFP) Long lines of vehicles were seen at a border crossing between Mongolia and Russia on Sunday as people fled the Kremlin’s call-up of hundreds of thousands of reservists for the war in Ukraine. The head of a checkpoint in the town of Altanbulag told AFP that more than 3,000 Russians had entered Mongolia via the crossing since Wednesday, most of them men. Queues of people holding Russian passports were also seen […]
Floods kill seven at Venezuela religious gathering
Caracas, Venezuela (AFP) At least seven people were killed in western Venezuela after heavy rains swept away a group of people at a religious gathering, the state’s governor said Saturday. Around 40 members of the Methodist Church, a Protestant religious group, had gathered in Tachira state on Friday when heavy rains suddenly caused flooding, governor Freddy Bernal said on Twitter. Some of the worshippers were bathing in the river when the rains came down, suddenly […]
UPDATE: Super Typhoon Noru slams into the Philippines
by Ron Lopez and Mikhail Flores Super Typhoon Noru slammed into the Philippines Sunday, battering the heavily populated main island of Luzon with strong winds and heavy rain that have forced thousands of people to flee their homes. The storm was packing maximum sustained winds of 195 kilometres (121 miles) an hour as it charged towards the archipelago nation after an unprecedented “explosive intensification”, the state weather forecaster said. Noru, the strongest storm […]
Mayweather scores KO in front of watching Pacquiao
Tokyo, Japan (AFP) Floyd Mayweather knocked out mixed martial arts fighter Mikuru Asakura in the second round on Sunday in Japan in the latest of the retired boxing great’s post-retirement exhibitions. The 45-year-old Mayweather floored his opponent with a right hand as his former welterweight foe Manny Pacquiao watched ringside in Saitama. The American Mayweather, who retired in 2017 with an unbeaten 50-0 record, afterwards dismissed any prospect of a fight with the similarly […]
Storm Fiona slams eastern Canada, knocking out power and ripping off roofs
Montreal, Canada (AFP) by Mathiew LEISER Powerful storm Fiona lashed into eastern Canada on Saturday, cutting power to thousands and washing houses into the sea as it pummeled the area with fierce winds and rains “like nothing we’ve ever seen,” police said. Two women were swept into the ocean in Newfoundland, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said. One was rescued, and investigators were looking into the second case. Mayor Brian Button of Channel-Port aux Basques, […]





