OTTAWA, Canada (AFP) — Canada said Thursday it was allowing Boeing to submit a bid to replace the country’s ageing F-18 fleet, after an earlier trade dispute between the American manufacturer and Ottawa. The announcement came a month after the US International Trade Commission rejected a complaint filed by Boeing against its Canadian rival Bombardier, demanding nearly 300 percent anti-dumping duties on the C Series passenger plane. Boeing, which makes the Super Hornet, is one […]
Other News
Woods ‘very pleased’ after even-par opening round
MIAMI, United States (AFP) — Tiger Woods said he was “very pleased” with an even-par 70 in the first round of the Honda Classic that left him four shots behind clubhouse leader Alex Noren of Sweden on Thursday. Woods called it the best ball-striking round of his latest comeback, which has included a tie for 23rd at Torrey Pines last month and a missed cut at Riviera in Los Angeles last week. “I’m very pleased,” […]
US joblessness remains near 45-year low amid scarce labor
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — New claims for US unemployment benefits dropped last week, remaining near their lowest level in 45 years as employers struggle to fill open positions, according to government data released Thursday. Though the weekly figures are volatile, the data is consistent with reports from the Federal Reserve and business groups indicating the supply of available workers is drying up as the unemployment rate reaches historic lows. The result also pointed to […]
Hong Kong harbour gets star attraction with sculpture park
HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Hong Kong’s harbourfront is known for glistening skyscrapers and the sight of containerships navigating busy shipping lanes — but a new art project has added a giant pumpkin, a map of the stars and a pair of disembodied legs to the famous skyline. The Harbour Arts Sculpture Park, which officially opened on Thursday, is a collection of works by 19 local and international artists including Britain’s Antony Gormley and Tracey […]
All the wild horses are extinct: study
by Kerry SHERIDAN Agence France-Presse MIAMI, United States (AFP) — All the world’s wild horses have gone extinct, according to a study Thursday that unexpectedly rewrites the horse family tree based on a new DNA analysis of their ancestry. What most people thought were the last remaining wild horses on Earth — known as Przewalski’s horses — were actually domesticated horses that escaped their owners, said the report in the journal Science. “This was a […]
Five-day death toll in Syria rebel enclave tops 400: monitor
BEIRUT, Lebanon (AFP) — The death toll for five days of bombardment by the Syrian regime and its allies on the rebel-held enclave of Eastern Ghouta passed the 400 mark Thursday, a monitor said. “Five days of air strikes and intense artillery fire by the regime and its Russian ally have killed 403 civilians, including 95 children,” the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The head of the Britain-based Observatory, Rami Abdel Rahman, said 46 […]
Large vessels are fishing 55 percent of world’s oceans
by Kerry SHERIDAN Agence France-Presse MIAMI, United States (AFP) — More than half the world’s oceans are being fished by large commercial vessels, particularly from China, according to the first view from space of global fishing practices published Thursday. The report in the journal Science used satellite data to track industrial fishing and found that 55 percent of the world’s oceans — and possibly more — are being exploited by big fishing operations. Some parts […]
UNICEF number two resigns after complaints of inappropriate behavior
UNITED NATIONS, United States (AFP) — UNICEF deputy director Justin Forsyth on Thursday resigned from the UN children’s agency following complaints of inappropriate behavior towards female staff in his previous post as head of British charity Save The Children. He apologized again for his past “mistakes”, but said his decision to step down from the top role was driven by concern that the scandal would hurt both organisations. “I want to make clear I am […]
Space-X lobs Spanish military satellite into orbit
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Elon Musk’s Space-X sent a Spanish military satellite into orbit Thursday in a hitch-less liftoff from California, extending the private space company’s record of successful launches. Space-X, which proved the utility of its massive Falcon Heavy rocket earlier this month, put up the Paz imaging satellite and two of the company’s own test internet communications satellites on a smaller Falcon 9 rocket. “Successful deployment of PAZ satellite to low-Earth orbit […]
North Korea calls UN chief ‘henchman’ of the US
UNITED NATIONS, United States (AFP) — North Korea on Thursday accused UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres of being a “kind of henchman who is representing the United States” after the UN chief said sanctions were essential to pressure Pyongyang. North Korea’s mission to the United Nations released a statement complaining of “reckless remarks” by Guterres during the Munich Security Conference last week. At the conference, Guterres praised the Security Council for succeeding in putting “through sanctions […]
‘Girl with Pearl Earring’ to undergo public examination
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AFP) — One of the world’s most famous paintings “Girl with a Pearl Earring” is to undergo a two-week scientific examination in front of curious visitors to the Dutch museum where it lives. The luminescent tableau painted by Dutch master Johannes Vermeer around 1665 was last examined in 1994 during a conservation treatment at the Mauritshuis museum in the centre of The Hague. “Although further restoration is not yet required, major advances […]
President Duterte personally condoles with Demafelis family, extends P500k in financial assistance
(Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte personally extended his condolences to the family of Joanna Demafelis, the overseas Filipino worker (OFW) who was killed in Kuwait, when he visited the latter’s wake in Sara, Iloilo. The President also gave Joanna’s family half a million pesos in financial and burial assistance, and also promised the parents of the slain OFW that he will be the one to shoulder the expenses needed to complete the reconstruction of […]





