Tag: US

US warns China on force at sea, again rejects claims

  WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States on Friday warned China against the use of force in disputed waters as it reaffirmed its view that Beijing’s assertive campaign in the South China Sea is illegal. The State Department voiced “concern” about new legislation enacted by China that authorizes its coast guard to use weapons against foreign ships that Beijing considers to be unlawfully entering its waters. The text “strongly implies this law can […]

90-year old US woman treks miles in snow to get vaccinated

  WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A 90-year-old American woman trudged six miles in a foot of snow with two walking sticks to get her coronavirus vaccination. Fran Goldman, of Seattle, had been trying frantically to get an appointment for her first shot, working the phones every day in vain, reports said. When she finally got one for last Sunday, Goldman was determined to keep her appointment — several inches of snow on the ground […]

Touchdown: NASA’s Perseverance rover ready to search for life on Mars

  by Issam Ahmed and Lucie Aubourg Agence France Presse After seven months in space, NASA’s Perseverance rover survived a nail-biting landing phase to touch down gently on the surface of Mars on Thursday, ready to embark on its mission to search for the signs of ancient microbial life. “Touchdown confirmed,” said operations lead Swati Mohan at around 3:55 pm Eastern Time (2055 GMT), as mission control at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena erupted […]

Biden pledges $4bn for global Covid-19 vaccine program

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Joe Biden will pledge $4 billion in US aid to the Covax global Covid-19 vaccination program during his virtual meeting with other G7 leaders on Friday, White House officials said. An initial $2 billion will be released “by the end of this month,” with the rest coming over the next two years, said a senior White House official, who asked not to be identified, on Thursday. Covax is a […]

Record breaking arctic weather in Texas leaves millions without power

  (Eagle News) — In Texas, a rare arctic cold front has left Texas buried in snow and enduring frigid temperature. The weather has left millions of people without power. Travel is not being advised. We have details on this major storm from Eagle News correspondent Jane Kathleen Gregorio in San Antonio in this Feb. 16 report on Eagle News America.

Deadly winter storm blankets eastern US in snow

by Peter Hutchison with Francois Picard in Houston NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — A deadly winter weather system that brought record-busting cold to the southern and central United States, knocking out power for millions in oil-rich Texas, was blanketing the East Coast in snow Thursday, disrupting coronavirus vaccinations. The historic frigid blast has over the past week seen Arctic cold envelope a US heartland unfamiliar with such extremes, leaving dozens of dead in its […]

UN urges global Covid vaccine plan, warns of dangerous inequity

  by Philippe Rater with Shaun Tandon in Washington Agence France Presse UNITED Nations (AFP) — The United Nations on Wednesday led calls for a coordinated global effort to vaccinate against Covid-19, warning that gaping inequities in initial efforts put the whole planet at risk. Foreign ministers met virtually for a first-ever UN Security Council session on vaccinations called by current chair Britain, which said the world had a “moral duty” to act together against […]

Behind the power crisis in petroleum center Texas

by John BIERS and Daniel HOFFMAN Agence France-Presse NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Some 2.7 million households in Texas were still without power as of Wednesday morning in the wake of extremely cold weather buffeting the region. But while the unusual Arctic air mass has lashed numerous states with snow and sleet with more on the way Thursday, Texas, the heart of the country’s oil industry, has seen the worst of the power outages. […]

US warns of Ebola threat after Africa outbreaks

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States on Tuesday warned that, despite the Covid-19 pandemic, the world “cannot afford to turn the other way” after cases of Ebola were confirmed in Guinea and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Five people have died of Ebola virus in Guinea — the first outbreak in West Africa since a 2013-2016 epidemic that left more than 11,300 people dead in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. The Democratic Republic […]

NASA wants to fly a helicopter on Mars for the first time

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — More than a century after the first powered flight on Earth, NASA intends to prove it’s possible to replicate the feat on another world. Transported aboard the Mars 2020 spacecraft that arrives at the Red Planet on Thursday, the small Ingenuity helicopter will have several challenges to overcome — the biggest being the rarefied Martian atmosphere, which is just one percent the density of Earth’s. – Ultralight – It might […]

US vows to ‘hold accountable those responsible’ for Arbil attack

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called Monday for an investigation into a rocket attack on an airbase in Iraq’s Kurdistan region and promised to “hold accountable those responsible.” A volley of rockets targeting the base late Monday killed a foreign civilian contractor and wounded five others and a US soldier, the US-led coalition said. “We are outraged by today’s rocket attack in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region,” Blinken said in […]

Frigid Arctic air, winter storms grip much of US

  by Francois Picard with Chris Lefkow in Washington Agence France Presse HOUSTON, United States (AFP) — Much of the United States was in the icy grip of an “unprecedented” winter storm on Monday as frigid Arctic air sent temperatures plunging, forcing hundreds of flight cancellations, making driving hazardous and leaving millions without power in Texas. Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration for the southern state, and the National Weather Service (NWS) said […]