International

Biden vows immediate, science-based action on virus

  WILMINGTON, United States (AFP) — President-elect Joe Biden vowed Saturday immediate action to contain the United States’ coronavirus crisis, signalling science would dominate the national response once Donald Trump leaves the White House. Biden’s pledge, in his first national address since defeating Trump, followed three days of record infections in the United States and came as the nation’s death toll surpassed 237,000. Europe’s second-wave woes also deepened, with Greece becoming the latest European nation […]

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Biden to name virus team as worldwide cases top 50 million

  WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The global tally of people infected by the coronavirus shot past 50 million on Monday, as United States President-elect Joe Biden geared up to name the scientists who will lead the country’s response to its disastrous outbreak. The incoming leader made the pledge in his first speech since being projected as the winner of the presidential election, signaling he plans to prioritize the pandemic from the outset. Covid-19 has […]

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Maduro hopes to resume ‘decent’ dialogue with Biden administration

CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro said Sunday that he will work to resume “decent, sincere” political dialogue with the United States, a country with which his government maintains tense relations, once Joe Biden assumes the presidency. “In time,… we will work, hopefully, to resume decent, sincere, direct channels of dialogue between the future government of Joe Biden” and Venezuela, the leftist leader said in a televised speech. Maduro had said Saturday he […]

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George Bush toasts Biden, urges Americans to ‘come together’

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Former US president George W. Bush has offered his “warm congratulations” to President-elect Joe Biden, calling the Democrat “a good man, who has won his opportunity to lead and unify our country.” The two-term Republican, in a statement issued by his presidential center in Dallas, also congratulated loser Donald Trump for his “extraordinary political achievement” in winning 70 million votes. Bush’s statement made him one of the country’s most prominent […]

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Eta tracks toward Florida Keys after lashing Cuba

by Carlos Batista HAVANA, Cuba (AFP) — Tropical Storm Eta headed towards Florida on Sunday and was set to strengthen into a hurricane again after slamming Cuba and earlier cutting a deadly path through Central America and southern Mexico. As the storm left Cuba, the US National Hurricane Center said it was “forecast to become a hurricane as it moves near or over the Florida Keys tonight and early Monday.” The NHC warned of dangerous […]

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Making history, VP-elect Harris tells women she won’t be last

  WILMINGTON, United States (AFP) — Kamala Harris on Saturday shattered barriers to become the first woman vice president and, in a symbolism-heavy victory speech, told girls she would not be the last. Introducing President-elect Joe Biden in an optimism-fueled outdoor rally, Harris — also the first Black woman and Indian-American as vice president — sported a white suit in recognition of the suffragist movement that fought to give US women the vote a century […]

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World leaders congratulate Biden, focus on unity

Agence France Presse World leaders rushed to congratulate US president-elect Joe Biden, with many expressing hopes of unity and cooperation following four years of explosive Donald Trump diplomacy. While Trump refused to accept the results of the election, many world leaders made it clear they backed the announcement that Biden had won with running mate Kamala Harris: – Germany – “Congratulations!” said Chancellor Angela Merkel. “I wish luck and success from the bottom of my […]

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Japan’s Suga pledges to work with Biden on Indo-Pacific peace, freedom

  TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan’s Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Saturday congratulated Joe Biden on winning the White House, pledging to work together to ensure “peace, freedom and prosperity” in the Indo-Pacific region that is increasingly dominated by China. Beijing’s expanding military presence in the region has worried several of its neighbors, and Washington has vowed to stand up against its territorial claims. Japan is also caught in the tensions between the United States […]

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Storm Eta death tolls rise in Mexico, Honduras

  TUXTLA GUTIÉRREZ, Mexico, (AFP) — Torrential rain and a bitter cold front linked to storm system Eta have claimed at least 20 lives in the southern Mexican state of Chiapas, officials said Saturday. And authorities in Honduras said flooding in the north and northwest caused by torrential downpours had now left 23 people dead after another 10 people lost their lives on Friday. The government of Chiapas — which borders Guatemala, where about 150 […]

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Historic’: Congratulations, reactions across US after Biden win

  WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Joe Biden’s victory in the US presidential election, bringing an end to Donald Trump’s turbulent four years in office, set off a flood of congratulations and reactions. Here is a selection: – Barack Obama: ‘Historic and decisive’ – “In this election, under circumstances never experienced, Americans turned out in numbers never seen. And once every vote is counted, President-Elect Biden and Vice President-Elect Harris will have won a historic […]

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Joe Biden vows to unite America after ‘convincing’ victory

  WILMINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President-elect Joe Biden promised Saturday to unite Americans and seek to heal divisions after what he called a “convincing” victory over Donald Trump. “This is the time to heal in America,” an ebullient Biden told supporters at an outdoor rally in his home city of Wilmington, Delaware. “I pledge to be a president who seeks not to divide but unify,” Biden said, drawing a sharp contrast to nearly […]

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‘Waiting for this day’: Americans erupt with joy to Biden win

  by Issam Ahmed with Andrew Marszal in Los Angeles, Julia Benarrous in Phoenix and Leila Macor in Miami Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — From coast to coast, Americans jubilant over Joe Biden’s presidential win on Saturday rushed into the streets, dancing, hooting, honking horns and singing on a day many had longed for after four turbulent years under President Donald Trump. In spontaneous outbursts after news broke of the Democrat’s win […]

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