Other News

China to launch cruises to disputed Spratly islands

BEIJING, China (AFP) — Chinese cruise ships will regularly bring tourists to the contested Spratly Islands in the South China Sea by 2020, reports said Wednesday, as tensions mount in the region. Beijing asserts sovereignty over almost all of the strategically vital South China Sea, despite rival claims from Southeast Asian neighbours, and has rapidly built reefs into artificial islands capable of hosting military planes. Chinese companies already operate cruises — for Chinese nationals only […]

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Actor’s death prompts new calls for auto recall fix

  (REUTERS) — “Star Trek” actor Anton Yelchin’s fatal accident involving a recalled 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee is renewing calls from safety advocates to fix flaws in the U.S. recall system. Yelchin was killed when his SUV rolled backward in the steep driveway of his Los Angeles home and pinned him against a brick wall and a fence. The accident is under investigation, and it is not known whether the specific recall defect, which can […]

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Lightning kills at least 67 as monsoon sweeps India

NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — At least 67 people have been killed by lightning in India over the past two days, disaster management officials said Wednesday, as the annual monsoon rains sweep the country. Lightning strikes are relatively common in India during the June-October monsoon, which hit the southern coast earlier this month, but this week’s toll is particularly high. An overnight storm in the eastern state of Bihar killed at least 47 people and […]

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29 Filipinas rescued from trafficking in Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AFP) — Malaysian police have rescued 29 Filipinas who had been trafficked into work in bars, the Philippine embassy in Kuala Lumpur said on Wednesday. The women were rescued from two bars in the town of Bintulu in the Malaysian state of Sarawak on June 9 after the embassy brought reports of trafficked women to Malaysian police, a statement by the embassy said. Also arrested during the raid were three Filipinos who served […]

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Philippines v China: facts about a much-watched legal battle

MANILA, Philippines (AFP) — A UN-backed tribunal is expected to soon deliver a verdict on a Philippine challenge to China’s claims to most of the South China Sea. Spanning three years, two hearings, and nearly 4,000 pages of evidence, the arbitration case at The Hague is complex. In essence, China claims most of the sea, even waters approaching neighbouring countries, based on a vaguely defined “nine-dash” Chinese map dating back to the 1940s. The Philippines […]

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