Other News

Deadly mudflows threaten residents near Mayon volcano

  by Ayee Macaraig Agence France Presse LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines (AFP) — Millions of tons of ash and rock from Mayon volcano could bury nearby communities due to heavy rain, authorities said Saturday, as tens of thousands flee over fears of a deadly explosion. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) issued the warning as heavy rains lashed the area surrounding the Mayon volcano, which has been emitting flaming lava and giant clouds of […]

Sereno camp: Gadon filed criminal complaint vs CJ in “wrong office”

Filing shows his “ignorance of law, processes,” a Sereno spokesperson says (Eagle News)–Lawyer Larry Gadon’s filing of a graft complaint against Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno in the “wrong office” only shows his “ignorance of the law and the processes,” her camp said on Saturday. “This is yet another desperate and laughable attempt by Atty. Gadon to push his sinister plot to remove the Chief Justice from office, fully aware that his impeachment complaint has no basis at […]

‘Deportados Brand’: Mexicans stand up to Trump with T-shirts

by Yussel Gonzalez © Agence France-Presse MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AFP) — Few people know gate “N” at Mexico City’s airport but three times a week it is the arrival point for the latest group of Mexican immigrants deported by the United States. Waiting to meet them is Adan Jacome. Jacome, 45, goes to the terminal to offer the support of a group of immigrants also repatriated to Mexico, and who are the brains behind “Deportados Brand,” a small […]

NBA: All-star Cousins could be out for season: report

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — Anthony Davis finished with 27 points as New Orleans edged Houston 115-113 but the Pelicans weren’t celebrating. They learned that DeMarcus Cousins could be out for the rest of the season with a possible Achilles injury. The Pelicans played with composure down the stretch on Friday night despite giving up a 21-point lead as the Rockets staged a furious late rally in the battle between two of the hottest teams in […]

Families voice anger over deadly South Korea hospital fire

by Jung Ha-Won © Agence France-Presse MIRYANG, South Korea (AFP) — Distraught relatives of those killed in a deadly South Korean hospital fire voiced anger Saturday at what they perceived as another man-made disaster in Asia’s fourth largest economy, just as it prepares to host the Winter Olympics. The huge blaze that erupted at the hospital in the southeastern city of Miryang Friday killed at least 37 people including 34 patients — mostly elderly women — and three […]

Paris braces for floods as swollen Seine inches higher

by Amélie Bottollier-Depois © Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Paris was on high alert Saturday as the swollen Seine continued to creep higher, with forecasters warning the river could stay high throughout next week, especially if more rain is dumped on France. Leaks started to appear in some basements Friday, while some residents on the city’s outskirts were forced to travel by boat through waterlogged streets. The Louvre, Musee d’Orsay and Orangerie museums are on high […]

Out on a limb: Vanity Fair’s curious cover

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — The latest cover of prestigious US magazine Vanity Fair features an annual photograph of Hollywood’s elite — with a twist. Reese Witherspoon, Oprah Winfrey, Tom Hanks, Robert de Niro, Nicole Kidman and other stars are grouped for the magazine’s “Hollywood Issue” in a photo lavishly retouched — but forgetting, it seems, to erase an extra leg. “Well…I guess everybody knows now…I have 3 legs,” Witherspoon joked on Twitter. “I […]

Leading Hong Kong democracy activist banned from vote

HONG KONG, China (AFP) — One of Hong Kong’s best-known democracy activists was banned Saturday from standing as lawmaker in upcoming elections, the latest blow to freedoms in the city as Beijing tightens its grip. Agnes Chow, 21, a former leader of the mass Umbrella Movement protests of 2014 that called for political reform, had her nomination rejected because she supports self-determination for the semi-autonomous city, the government said. It comes as fears grow that […]

Germany asks US court to drop Namibian genocide suit

BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — The German government said Friday it had asked a US court to throw out a lawsuit brought by indigenous groups from Namibia seeking reparations for the genocide of their peoples under German colonial rule. It was the first time Berlin has formally responded to the class-action suit launched by the Herero and Nama people last year over the tens of thousands killed in the 1904-1908 massacres. Berlin’s position “is that the […]

Chinese volunteers spend 200 days on virtual ‘moon base’

BEIJING, China (AFP) — Chinese students spent 200 continuous days in a “lunar lab” in Beijing, state media said Friday, as the country prepares for its long-term goal of putting people on the moon. Four students crammed into a 160-square-metre (1,720-square-foot) cabin called “Yuegong-1” — Lunar Palace — on the campus of Beihang University, testing the limits of humans’ ability to live in a self-contained space, the official Xinhua news agency said. The volunteers lived […]

Dutch police launch biggest-ever DNA hunt for boy’s killer

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AFP) — Dutch police on Friday launched the country’s biggest ever DNA search, asking over 20,000 men to come forward as they seek to resolve the 1998 murder of a young boy. “Some 21,500 men will receive a personal invitation in February to voluntarily give DNA samples,” police said in a statement. “It’s the largest such DNA investigation in search of family ties ever carried out in The Netherlands.” Eleven-year-old Nicky Verstappen […]

California wants 5 million ‘green’ cars on roads by 2030

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — California Governor Jerry Brown Friday signed an executive order detailing aims to have five million electric cars on the state’s roads by 2030 — by accelerating the production of such vehicles using financial incentives and rebates. The $2.5 billion, eight-year plan also involves the installation of 250,000 electric vehicle charging stations and 200 hydrogen fueling stations by 2025. “To continue to meet California’s climate goals and clean air standards, […]