by Dan Martin SHANGHAI, China (AFP) — Shanghai authorities on Wednesday called for calm as worried citizens swamped online grocery platforms to stock up on food over fears of impending lockdowns in a city struggling to halt a Covid spike. China is experiencing its worst Covid-19 outbreak since the start of the pandemic more than two years ago, with Shanghai posting record-high case counts as the highly transmissible Omicron variant frustrates authorities. China’s biggest city […]
Other News
As Ukraine sowing season starts, fuel shortages threaten food supply
by Selim SAHEB ETTABA Agence France-Presse Bahaté, Ukraine (AFP) – In an endless field in southwest Ukraine, farmers began to plant sunflower seeds at the start of the sowing season, but a fuel shortage threatens production in the war-torn country, whose land feeds millions around the world. The world’s top producer of sunflower oil and a major exporter of wheat is a breadbasket of the world under threat from the Russian invasion. This means the […]
DFA: 13 more Filipino seafarers evacuated from Ukraine now back in PHL
(Eagle News) — Thirteen more seafarers who were evacuated from Ukraine have arrived in the Philippines, the Department of Foreign Affairs said. According to the DFA, the seafarers who were part of the MV Ithaca Prospect crew arrived on March 26 at Clark International Airport. “The evacuation of the seafarers was a big challenge because of the need for them to disembark the ship through small boats that would bring them safely to shore,” Philippine […]
Taal volcano registered 3 phreatomagmatic bursts, 8 quakes in 24 hours: PHIVOLCS
(Eagle News) — Three more phreatomagmatic bursts were recorded in Taal in 24 hours, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said on Tuesday, March 29. According to PHIVOLCS, eight volcanic earthquakes including 1 volcanic tremor that lasted for five minutes long were also monitored at the volcano, which remains on alert level 3. Sulfur dioxide was pegged at 4273 tons on March 28. A plume rising 2400 meters high was also observed. Entry into […]
Cloudy skies, rains expected in parts of PHL
(Eagle News) — Cloudy skies and rains are expected in parts of the Philippines on Tuesday, March 29. According to the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration, cloudy skies with scattered rain showers and thunderstorms are expected in Palawan due to the Low Pressure Area (LPA) estimated 390 km northwest of Zamboanga City or 95 km southeast of Puerto Princesa City. Flash floods or landslides due to scattered light to moderate to at times […]
Rio launches clean-up of gorgeous, filthy bay — again
by Joshua Howat Berger Agence France-Presse RIO DE JANERIRO, Brazil (AFP) – Cold beer in hand, the sun shining, Edson Rocha seems to have everything for a beautiful day at the beach. In front of him, emerald hills cascade into Rio de Janeiro’s Guanabara Bay; to the right is the Brazilian seaside city’s majestic Sugarloaf Mountain; above, the iconic Christ the Redeemer statue outstretches his arms, as if to embrace the perfect beauty of it […]
Bolsonaro ousts Petrobras president after fuel increases: official
BRASILIA, Brazil (AFP) — Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro decided on Monday to change the president of state-owned Petrobras, Joaquim Silva e Luna, amid strong pressure due to recurrent increases in fuel prices. The information, leaked by the Brazilian press, was confirmed in the evening by the Ministry of Mines and Energy, which proposed economist Adriano Pires, a specialist in the oil and gas field, as the candidate to replace him. The appointment must be approved […]
Ukraine says 5,000 dead in ‘catastrophic’ Mariupol siege
by Danny KEMP Agence France Presse KYIV, Ukraine (AFP) — Ukraine said Monday that at least 5,000 people have died in the “catastrophic” humanitarian crisis gripping pulverized Mariupol, as fighting raged around Kyiv including in a strategic suburb where defenders claim to have driven out Russian invaders. Multiple cities in Ukraine remained under crushing Russian bombardment on the eve of new face-to-face peace negotiations Tuesday in Turkey, as Kyiv — and its allies in […]
Australia’s flood-ravaged east braces for more storms
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Thousands of people across eastern Australia have been told to leave their homes as storms bear down on cities and towns still recovering from record deadly flooding just weeks ago. Multiple evacuation orders were issued for the town of Lismore, which was devastated last month when record-high 14.3-meter (47 feet) floodwaters engulfed homes, swept away cars, and stranded locals on the roofs of their homes. Hundreds of people had to be […]
Will big biodiversity ambitions be enough to save nature?
by Laure FILLON Agence France-Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) – After the world missed almost all of its targets to protect fast-dwindling nature for the last decade, observers following a new round of negotiations are focusing as much on how goals will be put in place as the headline targets. Nearly 200 nations are taking part in talks until Tuesday, aimed at fine-tuning a draft text to preserve biodiversity by 2050, with key milestones at 2030, […]
Will Smith apologizes to Chris Rock over Oscars slap
LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) – Actor Will Smith apologized Monday to Chris Rock for hitting the comedian during the live broadcast of the glitzy Oscar ceremony in Hollywood. “I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be,” the winner of the best actor Oscar wrote on Instagram. View this […]
Russian invasion of Ukraine a ‘repeat’ of Syrian war: Amnesty
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AFP) – Russia’s assault on Ukraine is similar to its actions in the Syrian war, Amnesty International said Tuesday, raising concerns of “war crimes” as the civilian toll grows a month after Moscow’s invasion. “What is happening in Ukraine is a repetition of what we have seen in Syria,” Agnes Callamard, secretary general of the global rights watchdog, told AFP. She was speaking in Johannesburg at the launch of the group’s annual […]





