International

Volcano that wiped out town in Colombia is active again

BOGOTA, Colombia (AFP) — A volcano that destroyed an entire town in Colombia with the death of some 25,000 people spewed ash and gas this weekend on the 36th anniversary of that devastating eruption. The Nevado del Ruiz volcano showed “noticeable” activity starting Saturday, the Colombian Geological Service said. The Nevado del Ruiz in western Colombia is one of the many volcanoes on the Ring of Fire, a path around the Pacific basin characterized by […]

Three dead in fire on coronavirus ward in Bulgaria

  SOFIA, Bulgaria (AFP) — Three patients died in a fire that broke out early Sunday on a coronavirus ward in a hospital in southeast Bulgaria, the rescue services said. The three male patients, aged 66, 70 and 81, were all ill with Covid-19 and died on the fourth floor of a hospital in the city of Sliven, the head of the local rescue services, Vladimir Demirev, told Bulgarian television. Six other patients on neighbouring […]

Two Qaeda suspects among three killed in Yemen drone strike

  DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — A suspected US drone strike on Sunday killed three people in central Yemen, including two alleged Al-Qaeda jihadists, local government officials said. “A drone that is believed to be American targeted a car carrying a man, who is likely an Al-Qaeda member, and his wife, resulting in the injury of both,” a government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told AFP. “Three people, a civilian and two […]

Fresh Dutch Covid lockdown as 10 EU states at ‘high concern’

European governments on Friday eyed unpopular Covid curbs, with the Netherlands opting for Western Europe’s first partial lockdown of the winter as EU experts said 10 countries in the bloc were causing “very high concern”. Dutch premier Mark Rutte announced at least three weeks of lockdown measures targeting restaurants, shops and sporting events to curb a record spike in coronavirus infections. The “annoying and far-reaching” measures came as the EU’s diseases agency said 10 countries […]

Covid pandemic speeds up in Europe, Latin America

  PARIS, France (AFP) — The Covid-19 pandemic continued to pick up speed across Europe this week and also began to accelerate in Latin America. Here is the global state of play based on an AFP database. – Global rise – The number of new daily cases increased globally for a fourth week in a row, jumping eight percent compared to last week, with an average of 472,800 daily infections, according to an AFP tally […]

WHO urges more targeted vaccination as Covid cases surge in Europe

  GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — As Covid-19 cases balloon again in Europe, the World Health Organization called Friday for more targeted vaccination efforts to ensure the most vulnerable worldwide get the jabs. The UN health agency said Europe, once again at the epicentre of the pandemic, registered nearly two million Covid cases last week. That is “the most in a single week in the region since the pandemic started,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told […]

APEC meeting to put climate rhetoric to the test

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) — Pacific Rim leaders will begin a virtual summit Friday, facing pressure to back up ambitious rhetoric on climate change and chart a path to pandemic recovery. The annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit brings together leaders from 21 nations, including US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. Xi is among those who have talked on the sidelines of the New Zealand-hosted event, stressing the need for the […]

Top Chinese Communist Party members pass historic resolution

  by Helen Roxburgh and Laurie Chen Agence France Presse BEIJING, China (AFP) — Top Communist Party leaders wrapped up a key meeting in Beijing by passing an important resolution on the party’s past, state media said Thursday, which is expected to cement President Xi Jinping’s legacy in Chinese history books. Xi, the uncontested leader of the world’s most populous nation, has been heading a pivotal plenary of the ruling party’s top figures since Monday […]

Baldwin sued over fatal ‘Rust’ shooting

  LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — US actor Alec Baldwin is being sued by a “Rust” crew member over the fatal on-set shooting of a cinematographer last month, lawyers said Wednesday. The negligence suit also names armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who claimed through her legal representatives that she was being “framed” for the death of Halyna Hutchins. The low-budget movie’s chief lighting technician Serge Svetnoy says in the lawsuit that the accidental killing “was caused […]

Israel holds ‘war drill’ in case of new Covid strain

JERUSALEM, Undefined (AFP) — In what it called a world first, Israel on Thursday held a “war game drill” in case of an outbreak of a new lethal variant of Covid-19. Civilian and military officials took part in the exercises, named “Omega” after the supposed strain, held at Jerusalem’s nuclear blast-proof National Management Center. The simulation covered different aspects of a crisis, including mass inoculation, ordering curfews and imposing a flight ban, Prime Minister Naftali […]

Indian Covid vaccine ‘highly efficacious’: study

PARIS, France (AFP) — Covaxin, the first Covid-19 vaccine developed in India, is “highly efficacious” and presents no safety concerns, according to a study published in the Lancet on Thursday. Covaxin, developed by Bharat Biotech, gained emergency approval from the World Health Organization last week and has already been cleared for use in 17 countries. The UN body has described it as “extremely suitable for low- and middle-income countries due to easy storage requirements”. Some […]

Biden, Xi expected to hold virtual summit on Monday: US media

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Joe Biden is expected to hold a hotly awaited virtual summit with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on Monday, US media reported, as tensions mount over Taiwan, human rights and trade. Both CNN and Politico, citing unnamed sources, said the meeting was tentatively scheduled for Monday. Relations between the world’s two largest economies have deteriorated in recent weeks, in particular over Taiwan, a self-ruling democracy claimed by China, […]