Other News

Brazil’s health official tests positive for Covid-19 at UN gathering

BRASILIA, Brazil (AFP) — Brazil’s Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga tested positive for Covid-19 Tuesday after attending the UN General Assembly in New York that was inaugurated by his president, Jair Bolsonaro, according to an official statement. “The other members of the delegation have been tested and are negative,” said the official Brazilian government press release. Queiroga, who had received a Covid-19 vaccine, was the second member of Bolsonaro’s entourage to test positive for the virus […]

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Climate: summer wildfires emit record amount of CO2

by Marlowe HOOD Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) – Wildfires in Siberia, North America and around the Mediterranean caused record levels of planet-warming CO2 emissions this summer, the EU’s Earth monitoring service said Tuesday. Globally, forests going up in flames emitted more than 2.5 billion tonnes of CO2 — equivalent to India’s annual emissions from all sources — in July and August alone, the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) reported. More than half of CO2 […]

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ADB cuts Asia growth forecast on slow Covid vaccine rollout

MANILA, Philippines (AFP) — The Asian Development Bank warned of “lasting scars” from the coronavirus pandemic as it cut its 2021 growth forecast for developing Asia on slow vaccination rates, surging infections and crippling lockdowns. A shortage of doses, which has hampered efforts to inoculate the vast region stretching from the Cook Islands in the Pacific to Kazakhstan in Central Asia, could worsen as evidence of waning vaccine protection increases demand for booster shots, the […]

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P1.53 billion damage to agriculture left by typhoon Jolina, says NDRRMC’s updated report

Updated number of casualties at 20 (Eagle News) — Disaster officials said that typhoon Jolina (international name Conson) left at least P1.53 billion damage to agriculture and P63.676 million damage to infrastructure. In its latest report as of Wednesday, Sept. 22, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) also updated the number of casualties and injuries left by the typhoon. In its latest update, it said the typhoon left 20 people dead and […]

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Rare Australia earthquake triggers panic in Melbourne

by William WEST MELBOURNE, Australia (AFP) — A rare quake rattled southeastern Australia early Wednesday, shaking buildings, knocking down walls and sending panicked Melbourne residents running into the streets. The shallow tremor hit east of the country’s second-largest city just after 9:00am local time (2300 GMT) and was felt hundreds of kilometres (miles) away. The US Geological Survey put the magnitude of the quake at 5.8, later revised up to 5.9, and said it struck […]

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Iran says to buy 2 million doses of Pfizer vaccine

TEHRAN, Iran (AFP) — Iran is considering the purchase of two million doses of the US-German Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine, an official said Tuesday, as the country continues to battle the Middle East’s deadliest outbreak. “A contract is being drawn up with the Iranian foreign exchange office for the import within one to two months of two million doses of the Pfizer vaccine produced in Belgium,” said senior health official Mohammad-Reza Shanehsaz. “At present, six vaccines […]

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4.9-magnitude quake hits Occidental Mindoro early Wednesday, Sept. 22

(Eagle News) — A 4.9-magnitude earthquake struck Occidental Mindoro early Wednesday, Sept. 22. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said the quake struck at 12:43 a.m. It had its epicenter 10 kilometers northwest of Mamburao. The depth of focus was 25 kilometers. The following intensities and instrumental intensities were reported: Reported Intensities: Intensity IV – Mamburao, Abra de Ilog, and Paluan, Occidental Mindoro; Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro Intesity III – Mabini, Malvar, and Tingloy, […]

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President Duterte reiterates call for abolition of kafala system

(Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte reiterated his call for the abolition of the kafala system, which allows employers in some Middle Eastern countries to control the employment and migration status of foreign employees. In his pre-recorded speech aired before the High-Level General Debate of the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, the President noted that the “behemoth” system “chains the weak, the desperate and the voiceless..to an existence of unimaginable suffering.” He […]

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In UN General Assembly message, President Duterte assails talk of COVID-19 booster shots in rich countries while poor countries “wait for trickles”

It’s “shocking beyond belief and must be condemned for what it is, a selfish act that can neither be justified rationally nor morally,” he says (Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday (Philippine time) assailed talk of COVID-19 booster shots in rich countries even as poor countries “wait for trickles” amid the COVID-19 pandemic. “The now talk of booster shots while developing countries consider half doses just to get by — this is shocking […]

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In climate landmark, China promises to end coal funding overseas

by Shaun Tandon with Issam Ahmed in Washington Agence France-Presse UNITED NATIONS, United States (AFP) – China will stop funding coal projects overseas, President Xi Jinping announced Tuesday, all but ending the flow of public aid for the dirty energy contributing to the climate crisis. Xi made his announcement at the UN General Assembly where US President Joe Biden, seeking to show leadership in a growing competition with China, promised to double Washington’s contribution to […]

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Cloudy skies, rain showers expected in parts of PHL due to ITCZ, LPA

(Eagle News) — Cloudy skies and rain showers are still expected in parts of the country on Wednesday, Sept. 22. The Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said MIMAROPA, Western Visayas, and Zamboanga Peninsula, in particular, will have cloudy skies with scattered rain showers and thunderstorms. PAGASA said the conditions were due to the low pressure area (LPA) estimated 205 km east northeast of Pagasa Island, Palawan, and  the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) affecting […]

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MIAA releases list of operational commercial flights for Wednesday, Sept. 22

(Eagle News) — The Manila International Airport Authority has released its list of operational commercial flights for Wednesday, September 22: MIAA advised passengers to coordinate with their airlines prior to the scheduled travel as flight schedules are subject to changes. The Philippines has imposed a travel ban on nine countries under its “red list” but this was supposed to have lapsed on Sept. 18. It later announced the red list had been updated to include […]

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