Other News

US military moves command center as Hurricane Michael bears down

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US Air Force shuttered a command-and-control center as Hurricane Michael tore into the Florida coast, a top general said Wednesday, as the military mobilized thousands of troops to help tackle the monster storm’s impact. Tyndall Air Force Base, located in Panama City on the coast of the Florida Panhandle, was fully evacuated Tuesday night, just before the Michael made landfall, said Air Force General Terrence O’Shaughnessy, commander of North […]

Britons among 10 dead in Majorca flash floods

by Alvaro VILLALOBOS Agence France Presse SANT LLORENC DES CARDASSAR, Spain (AFP) — At least 10 people died, including two Britons, and a boy remained missing Wednesday after flash floods hit the Spanish holiday island of Majorca, tearing through village streets and sweeping away cars. Muddy waters rushed down roads, houses were flooded and vehicles piled up on top of each other after the Mediterranean island was pounded with rain in just a few hours, […]

6.0-magnitude quake rocks Indonesia’s Java, Bali

JAVA, Indonesia (AFP) — A shallow 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of the Indonesian islands of Java and Bali early Thursday, the United States Geological Survey said, causing panicked people to flee their homes. The head of Indonesia’s geophysics agency said there had been no reports of casualties or damage, although information was still being gathered in East Java province. “The quake didn’t trigger any tsunami for sure,” Dwikorita Karnawati told AFP. The strong […]

World must slash meat consumption to save climate: study

by Patrick GALEY Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — The world must drastically reduce its meat consumption in order to avoid devastating climate change, scientists said Wednesday in the most thorough study so far on how what we eat affects the environment. As humanity grapples with tough choices to offset a rapidly heating planet, the research suggests that the Western world would need to slash its meat intake by 90 percent to avoid crippling […]

Wall Street suffers ugly day as fears mount over interest rates

by John BIERS Agence France Presse NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Wall Street stocks plummeted Wednesday as worries about surging US interest rates and the impact of trade disputes prompted a broad-based selloff that slashed more than three percent from major indices. The rout in US shares came on the heels of substantial losses on European bourses, due in part to tensions between Brussels and Rome over Italian budget plans that have revived fears […]

US pressures Saudi prince over missing journalist

by Sebastian Smith Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump on Wednesday demanded Saudi Arabia provide answers over the disappearance of respected journalist Jamal Khashoggi, whom Turkish officials suspect was murdered after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. The Trump administration sharply upped the pressure, reversing an initially low key response after Washington Post contributor Khashoggi vanished on October 2. Trump said he had talked “more than once” and “at […]

UPDATED: Tsunami threat as 7.0-magnitude quake hits Papua New Guinea

SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — A major 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Papua New Guinea’s New Britain island on Thursday, triggering a tsunami warning. Hazardous tsunami waves were forecast for some coasts, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said. Tsunami waves were forecast to be less than 0.3 metres (one foot) high for the coasts of PNG and Solomon Islands, it said, adding that wave amplitudes could vary between regions. A spokesman for PNG’s National Disaster Management Office in Port […]

Butler makes emotional return to Timberwolves practice

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — The saga of disgruntled Minnesota Timberwolves guard Jimmy Butler shows no sign of ending with the start of the NBA season less than a week away. Timberwolves players confirmed Wednesday that Butler, still technically part of the team since requesting a trade almost a month ago, practiced with the team for the first time since then — although they shied away from commenting on an ESPN report that Butler […]

Duterte report links active, former PNP, Customs, PDEA officials to illegal drug trade

(Eagle News) — A report which President Rodrigo Duterte ordered declassified implicated current and former officials of the Philippine National Police, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and the Bureau of Customs to the illegal drug trade. Among those linked to drug-related activities were former PDEA deputy director general for administration Ismael Fajardo Jr., former head of the PNP’s now-defunct Anti-Illegal Drugs Group ex-Sr. Supt. Eduardo Acierto, and Bureau of Customs intelligence officer Jimmy Guban. According to the report, Fajardo, who was fired by PDEA […]

Bolt looking to his first football start in Sydney

SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Sprint superstar Usain Bolt looks set to make his first start as a professional footballer Friday, a challenge he said could determine if he has a future in the sport of his boyhood dreams. Bolt said the coach of his Central Coast Mariners, Mike Mulvey, had indicated he would be in the starting line-up in a friendly against Macarthur South West United in Sydney. “For me, that’s always a good step, […]

Cayetano hints at running for seat in House of Representatives

(Eagle News) — Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano on Wednesday, Oct. 10, hinted at running for a seat in the House of Representatives in 2019. “It is time for me to come home to Taguig and Pateros. Although I never left and continue to live in Bagumbayan, Taguig, I have missed the daily intertwined life with my neighbors and brothers and sisters in Taguig and Pateros. I thank the many members of the Senate […]

Hurricane Michael strengthens to ‘extremely dangerous’ Category 4: US forecasters

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Michael has strengthened to an “extremely dangerous” Category Four hurricane as it rumbles toward the Gulf Coast of Florida, the National Hurricane Center said Wednesday. It said the storm is now packing maximum wind gusts of 130 mph (210 kilometers), could grow even more and is expected to make landfall later in the day along the Florida Panhandle or Big Bend area as a “life-threatening event”. A storm surge of […]