President Marcos embarks on his first official visit to Australia, strengthening ties and discussing important global issues. See more photos here:
Tag: philippines
President Marcos: Philippines on ‘frontline’ of maritime disputes, ‘will not yield’
CANBERRA, Feb 29, 2024 (AFP) – Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos told Australia’s parliament his country was on the “frontline” of a battle for regional peace Thursday, pledging resolve as he sought support in maritime disputes with China. With Beijing’s warships loitering in waters off his country’s coast, Marcos told Australian lawmakers that “the Philippines now finds itself on the frontline against actions that undermine regional peace, erode regional stability, and threaten regional success”. He vowed […]
Six soldiers killed, one militant dead in Mindanao as hunt for bombers continues
MANILA, Feb 19, 2024 (AFP) – Six soldiers and at least one Islamist militant have been killed in the southern Philippines, an army spokesman said Monday, as security forces hunted down fighters believed to have bombed a Catholic mass last December. The clashes took place Sunday in the jungle near the town of Munai on Mindanao island, Philippine army spokesman Colonel Louie Dema-ala told AFP. “This is part of the operation against the Dawlah Islamiyah. […]
Philippines to file charges against sunken oil tanker owners
MANILA, Feb 14, 2024 (AFP) – The Philippine government said Wednesday it will file criminal charges against the owners of an oil tanker that sank off a central island nearly a year ago, causing severe marine pollution. More than half of the vessel’s 800,000-litre (211,000-gallon) oil cargo spilled into the sea over hundreds of kilometres off Mindoro island, famed for having some of the world’s most diverse marine life. A justice department statement said it […]
Philippine Coast Guard accuses Chinese vessels of ‘dangerous’ maneuvers
MANILA, Feb 11, 2024 (AFP) – The Philippine Coast Guard on Sunday accused Chinese vessels of “dangerous” manoeuvres during a nine-day patrol near a reef off the coast of the Southeast Asian country. The Philippine vessel BRP Teresa Magbanua was deployed in early February to patrol the waters around Scarborough Shoal, a rich fishing ground in the South China Sea, and “ensure the safety of Filipino fishermen in the area”. The reef has […]
Quake halts search at Philippines landslide disaster site
MANILA, Feb 10, 2024 (AFP) – A strong earthquake in the southern Philipppines on Saturday halted a search for scores of people believed buried in a deadly landslide, forcing rescuers to vacate the area, officials said. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage from the magnitude 5.8 quake that shook the Mindanao region at 11:22 am (0322 GMT), but rescuers were ordered to stop their search in the remote gold-mining village of Masara. […]
World’s biggest flying lab takes off in Asia, fighting air pollution for millions
CLARK, Philippines, Feb 9, 2024 (AFP) – NASA has kicked off a series of marathon flights in Asia with the world’s biggest flying laboratory, in an ambitious mission to improve the models that help to forecast and fight air pollution. Millions of deaths each year are linked to air pollution, and improving the ability to identify its sources and behaviour can lead to more accurate warning systems for the public. Starting this week in the […]
Child rescued after almost 60 hours in Philippine landslide
MANILA, Feb 9, 2024 (AFP) – The rescue of a child on Friday nearly 60 hours after a landslide hit a gold-mining village in the southern Philippines has been hailed as a “miracle” after searchers had given up hope of finding anyone alive. The girl, whose age has not been disclosed, had been among the more than 100 people missing after the rain-induced landslide hit the village, killing at least 15 people. She was found […]
Rescuers use bare hands to search for Philippine landslide survivors
MANILA, Feb 8, 2024 (AFP) – Rescuers used their bare hands and shovels to dig through mud on Thursday in a desperate search for survivors of a landslide in the Philippines as the number of missing nearly doubled to 90, an official said. Two days after the rain-induced landslide hit the mountainous gold-mining village of Masara on southern Mindanao island, searchers were in a race against time and weather. At least seven people were killed […]
Philippines thwarts cyber attacks on Marcos, government agencies
MANILA, Feb 6, 2024 (AFP) – The Philippines has thwarted thousands of “sophisticated” cyberattacks targeting the websites of President Ferdinand Marcos, the Philippine Coast Guard and other government agencies, an official said Tuesday. Hackers began the attacks last year and an investigation was underway to determine if the perpetrators were based in China, undersecretary Jeffrey Ian Dy of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) told a congressional hearing. Dy said the attackers used […]
Living in extraordinary times! – ASEAN in Focus February 5, 2024
Death toll from Philippine landslides, floods rises to 14
MANILA, Feb 3, 2024 (AFP) – The death toll from landslides and floods triggered by torrential rain in the southern Philippines in the past week has risen to 14, official tallies showed Saturday. Rain has pounded parts of Mindanao, the country’s second-largest island, on and off for weeks and forced tens of thousands of people into emergency shelters. At least 10 people died in recent days in the mountainous gold mining province of Davao de […]
