SEOUL,South Korea (AFP) — North Korea has released a video appeal by the parents of one of 12 waitresses that Pyongyang insists were kidnapped by South Korean agents from the restaurant where they were working in China. In the footage, uploaded Wednesday to the North’s propaganda website Uriminzokkiri, the parents wept and demanded the South return their daughter, So Gyong-A. So and 11 other waitresses from the same restaurant arrived in South Korea earlier this […]
Other News
Yen soars as BoJ holds off fresh stimulus, delays inflation target
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — The yen soared against the dollar Thursday after the Bank of Japan surprised markets by holding off fresh stimulus while it pushed back its timeline for hitting a 2.0 percent inflation target. The dollar plunged to 109.15 yen just after the announcement from above 111 yen. Markets had widely expected new measures to counter a downturn in the world’s number three-economy. Speculation had picked up pace after Japan published another set […]
Report on China’s plan to build outpost on Panatag Shoal needs to be confirmed
MANILA, April 28 – Malacañang is seeking to confirm a report that China will establish an outpost on the Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, which is 230 kilometers off the coast of the Philippines, a Palace official said on Wednesday. “The alleged move of establishing an outpost within the EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone) of the Philippines came from a news report, which needs appropriate validation and confirmation,” Communication Secretary Herminio Coloma, Jr. said in a statement. “The Philippines […]
Early smartphone launch boosts Samsung profits
SEOUL South Korea (AFP) Wednesday 4/27/2016 –Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest smartphone maker, reported a better-than-expected jump in net profits Thursday, boosted by the successful early release of its new flagship Galaxy handset. The result will encourage shareholders after a disappointing 2015 that saw the firm lose more than $8.0 billion in market value, with its smartphone business sandwiched by top-end rivals such as Apple’s iPhone and lower-end devices from fast-growing Chinese outfits Huawei and Xiaomi. In […]
Obama looking for laughs one last time
by Jérôme CARTILLIER WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Once a year, the US president attends a party he can’t avoid and is asked to make Washington laugh. When Barack Obama steps onto the stage of the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on Saturday, he will carry out that ritual for the eighth and final time. The clips will be played again and again and endlessly dissected by pundits — so finding the right tone and […]
Villar: PH should enhance organic farming capability
MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Cynthia Villar is convinced that one of the areas that would give the country an advantage over its ASEAN neighbors is the area of organic agriculture. During the 16th National Convention cum Seminar/Workshop of the League of Municipal Agricultural Officers, Municipal/City Agriculturists of the Philippines (LeMMCAP) in Pasay City recently, Villar said this competitive edge should be enhanced especially now that the implementation of the regional economic integration under the ASEAN […]
Australia warned of ‘eroding’ gun laws, 20 years after massacre
SYDNEY , Australia (AFP) — Australia marked 20 years since its last mass shooting Thursday as campaigners warned its gun laws, which were severely tightened after the massacre, are being eroded. Thirty-five people died at the historic Tasmanian colonial convict site of Port Arthur in 1996 as lone gunman Martin Bryant, armed with semi-automatic weapons, went on the rampage. Now aged 48, he remains in jail after being sentenced to 35 life sentences without parole. […]
Iglesia Ni Cristo to hold record-breaking “Aid to Humanity” outreach event in Tondo on Friday
Repacking of relief goods at Isabelo Delos Reyes Elementary School, Tondo, Manila (Photo courtesy of Brother Arvin Joel D. Zamora, from the district of Metro Manila West) THE Iglesia Ni Cristo will once again hold a big “Lingap-Pamamahayag” or “Aid to Humanity” activity on Friday, April 29, in Moriones, Tondo, Manila. In this activity, the INC will be giving out used clothes, shoes, and also hold a big medical and dental check-up for […]
Syria ceasefire should be ‘revitalised’ before peace talks resume: UN envoy
GENEVA , Switzerland (AFP) — The UN’s Syria envoy said Thursday he planned to hold another round of peace talks next month, but called for a stuttering ceasefire to be “revitalized” before setting a date, as at least 20 civilians were killed in second city Aleppo. Staffan de Mistura made the comments after briefing the United Nations Security Council on the talks, which he said had made gains despite escalating violence on the ground that […]
Former U.S. House Speaker Hastert gets 15 months in prison
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, United States (Reuters) — Former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert was sentenced on Wednesday (April 27) to 15 months in federal prison, followed by two years of probation and sex-offender treatment for a financial crime related to his sexual abuse of high school wrestlers decades ago. U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Durkin called Hastert a serial sex abuser in handing down the sentence, which was longer than the zero to six months recommended by […]
US F-22 fighter jets land in Lithuania amid Russia tensions
SIAULIAI, Lithuania (AFP) — Two American stealth F-22 fighter jets landed in Lithuania on Wednesday in an apparent show of force, after tensions with Moscow flared this month when a Russian aircraft buzzed an American warship in the Baltic Sea. The US air force’s most advanced planes landed at the Siauliai air base which currently also hosts Spanish jets from NATO’s air policing mission, created to help small Baltic members protect their borders with Russia. […]
UAAP Volleyball: Ateneo rides Valdez on comeback against La Salle to force a do-or-die game
PASAY CITY, Philippines (Eagle News) – The Ateneo Blue Eagles pulled in a miraculous escape from a 0-2 deficit to win and survive Game 2 against the De La Salle University Lady Spilkers, 18-25, 26,-28, 25-17, 25-16, 15-11, to force the finals series to a do-or-die game to determine the 2016 UAAP Women’s Seniors Volleyball champions. The Lady Spikers woke up a sleeping giant by pushing them in a brink of elimination during the third […]
