Other News

UN agency for Palestinian refugees sacks employees for alleged October 7 role

By Didier LAURAS and Mark Anderson JERUSALEM, Jan 26, 2024 (AFP) – The UN agency for Palestinian refugees said Friday it had sacked several employees accused by Israel of involvement in Hamas’s October 7 attack, prompting the United States to suspend critical funding. The head of the agency, Philippe Lazzarini, vowed to hold “accountable, including through criminal prosecution” any UNRWA employee found to have taken part in acts of terror. In response to the firings, […]

Jury orders Trump to pay $83 mn for sex assault defamation

By Gregory WALTON NEW YORK, Jan 26, 2024 (AFP) – A jury in New York ordered former US president and 2024 candidate Donald Trump on Friday to pay $83.3 million to compensate the writer E. Jean Carroll whom he was found to have sexually assaulted and defamed. The civil order, which prompted an audible gasp in the federal court, far exceeds the more than $10 million in damages for defamation that Carroll had sought. Trump […]

4.1-magnitude earthquake strikes off Surigao del Sur early Saturday

(Eagle News)–A 4.1-magnitude earthquake struck off Surigao del Sur early Saturday, Jan. 27. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said the quake, an aftershock of the 7.4-magnitude earthquake that shook the province on December 2, 2023, hit at 5:58 a.m. The epicenter was 128 kilometers northeast of Hinatuan. The depth of focus was 29 kilometers. No damage to property nor aftershocks were reported.  

PAGASA: Northeast monsoon affecting the country

(Eagle News)–The northeast monsoon is affecting the country. According to the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration, as a result, Quezon, Bicol Region, Eastern Visayas, Caraga and Davao Oriental will have cloudy skies with light rains. Metro Manila and the rest of the country will have partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated light rains. Southern Luzon, Visayas, and the northern and eastern sections of Mindanao, meanwhile, will have strong winds and rough coastal […]

Top UN court starts ruling on landmark Israel Gaza case

By Richard CARTER THE HAGUE, Jan 26, 2024 (AFP) – The head of the top United Nations court on Friday began reading the initial decision in the case against Israel over alleged genocide in Gaza, a landmark case that has sparked global interest. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) could in theory order Israel to stop its military campaign in Gaza, sparked by the October 7 attacks by Hamas, or to facilitate humanitarian aid. The […]

China’s top diplomat to discuss Taiwan with US security advisor

BANGKOK, Jan 26, 2024 (AFP) – China’s top diplomat Wang Yi will discuss Taiwan with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan during talks in Thailand this week, Beijing said Friday, as the two powers seek to improve relations after years of tensions. Beijing and Washington have clashed in recent years on flashpoint issues from technology and trade to human rights, as well as over the self-ruled island and competing claims in the South China Sea. […]

NASA helicopter’s mission ends after three years on Mars

By Issam AHMED WASHINGTON, Jan 26, 2024 (AFP) – NASA’s Ingenuity Mars helicopter, which made history by achieving the first powered flight on another world, has officially ended its nearly three-year mission after sustaining rotor damage during its last outing, the space agency said Thursday. The tissue-box sized aircraft, which hitched a ride to the Red Planet under the belly of the Perseverance rover, first lifted off the surface on April 19, 2021. Originally intended […]

Alabama carries out first US execution using nitrogen gas

WASHINGTON, Jan 26, 2024 (AFP) – The southern US state of Alabama on Thursday put to death a convicted murderer using nitrogen gas, the first time the country has used a method that the UN rights chief said may amount to torture. Kenneth Eugene Smith was pronounced dead at 8:25 pm (0225 GMT Friday), according to the state attorney general. “Justice has been served. Tonight, Kenneth Smith was put to death for the heinous act […]

China says jailed British national in 2022 for spying

BEIJING, Jan 26, 2024 (AFP) – China said Friday it had sentenced a British national in 2022 to five years in jail for spying, in its official confirmation of a case that had gone unreported until this week. The Wall Street Journal first broke news of the case of UK businessman Ian Stones on Thursday, reporting, citing his family and other sources, that he had disappeared in 2018 after decades of work in China. Asked […]

Global turbulence the ‘new normal’: EU’s von der Leyen

BERLIN, Jan 26, 2024 (AFP) – European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen warned on Friday that global disruptions and volatility are the “new normal”, with more geo-economic tensions on the horizon. “2024 will be a decisive year, with more geo-economic tensions expected — from the Red Sea to the Taiwan Strait — which also means more frequent disruptions to supply chains and greater volatility on the energy markets,” she told a climate conference in […]

Colombia seeks international aid to combat forest fires edging in on homes

By Alejandro Rincon BOGOTÁ, Jan 26, 2024 (AFP) – Colombia appealed on Thursday for international aid as it battled dozens of forest fires burning vast swathes of the country and encroaching on homes in the capital. For four consecutive days, hundreds of firefighters and volunteers have fought the inferno tearing through the forested mountains above Bogota, some armed with little more than water bottles and face masks. The fires have blanketed the capital in smoke, […]