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South Korea: ‘Captain was not at the helm of capsized ferry’

A prosecutor investigating the South Korean ferry disaster has said the captain was not at the helm at the time of the accident. The report will fuel growing anger among relatives as the death toll rises further. In a press conference detailing the preliminary findings of the investigation, prosecutor Park Jae-eok revealed that the ferry’s third officer had been in command when the vessel capsized. “The captain was not in command when the accident took […]

South Korea investigates capsized ferry crew, stowage as rescue hampered

By Jungmin Jang and Ju-min Park (Reuters) – A junior officer was steering a South Korean ferry when it capsized two days ago, investigators said on Friday, as rescuers battled strong tides and murky waters to search for hundreds of missing, many of them school children, feared trapped in the vessel. Local media said the Sewol ferry may have made a sharp turn during its journey on Wednesday, which caused its cargo to shift and […]

Pacquiao returns to PHL five days after reclaiming WBO title from Bradley

MANILA, April 18 (PNA) – Filipino boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao returned to the country on Friday morning, five days after reclaiming the WBO welterweight title from erstwhile undefeated American Timothy Bradley in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pacquiao, 35, arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Centennial Terminal on board a Philippine Airlines flight at 4:30 a.m. The Filipino word champion was accompanied by his mother Dionisia, who earned attention of the boxing world after she […]

Nobel winner Garcia Marquez, master of magical realism, dies at 87

By Anahi Rama MEXICO CITY Thu Apr 17, 2014 9:17pm EDT (Reuters) – Gabriel Garcia Marquez, the Colombian author whose beguiling stories of love and longing brought Latin America to life for millions of readers and put magical realism on the literary map, died on Thursday. He was 87. A prolific writer who started out as a newspaper reporter, Garcia Marquez’s masterpiece was “One Hundred Years of Solitude,” a dream-like, dynastic epic that helped him […]

South Korea ferry death toll rises, hopes fade for hundreds missing

By Ju-min Park and Jungmin Jang JINDO, South Korea Thu Apr 17, 2014 8:52pm EDT (Reuters) – The death toll from a capsized South Korean passenger ferry rose to 25 on Friday as parents of missing schoolchildren blamed the ship’s captain for the tragedy after he and shipping company officials made emotional apologies for the loss of life. Of 475 passengers and crew on the Sewol ferry, which capsized in calm seas on Wednesday, 179 […]

Putin calls Russian interference in Ukraine ‘nonsense,’ backs Geneva talks

President Vladimir Putin has called claims Russia is behind eastern Ukraine’s unrest “nonsense.” He has accused the government in Kyiv of raising tensions in the region, while expressing hope for crisis talks. During the beginning of a televised call with the nation on Thursday, Putin said Ukraine’s decision to send armed forces to the country’s restive east rather than establishing a dialogue was a “grave crime.” He also dismissed Western accusations that Russian special forces […]

Obama announces $600 Million (USD) U.S. Job Training Program

  (Reuters) — U.S. President Barack Obama, joined by Vice President Joe Biden, announced an initiative on Wednesday (April 16) to devote $600 million (USD) to address a central challenge of today’s economy: how to train workers for skills they need for jobs that are open but hard to fill. “Today I’m taking two significant actions that don’t require Congress,” Obama announced during a visit to the Community College of Allegheny County in Oakdale, Pennsylvania, on the outskirts of Pittsburgh. “First, we’ve […]

Aquino says death of 4 MILF members in Basilan encounter won’t affect PHL-MILF peace deal

MANILA (PNA) — President Benigno S. Aquino III said Wednesday that the death of four members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in an encounter with the military in Basilan will have no effect on the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB). “Iyong napatay na miyembro nila (MILF) ay hindi nandoon sa engkwentro bilang miyembro ng MILF kundi dahil mga kamag-anak ng mga Abu Sayyaf na hinahabol. Mas personal rather than political or ideological,” […]

Formerly conjoined twins released from Texas hospital, 8 months after surgical separation

(Reuters) — Formerly conjoined twins Owen and Emmett Ezell were released from a children’s hospital in Dallas on Wednesday (April 16). The boys were born last year connected at the abdomen. On August 24, 2013, doctors at Medical City Children’s hospital in Dallas surgically separated the twins. Ever since then, the boys have stayed at the hospital. Now, both boys are breathing on their own with the assistance of a special breathing tube and are receiving food through a tube connected […]

Six-year-old girl rescued from sunken ferry in South Korea; parents and brother remain missing

(Reuters) — A six-year-old girl was rescued from the sunken ferry off South Korea on Wednesday (April 16), but her parents remain missing. Kwon Ji-yeon, who was separated from her family during the ferry sinking, was treated in a hospital in Mokpo near the coastal city of Jindo. Some video footage showed Kwon wearing a life vest being rescued by the coast guard. YTN quoting an official from the hospital said Kwon had no external injuries. Due to the media exposure, many people, […]

“Please save us quickly” — student inside ferry sends text message to father

    (Reuters) – Several people appear to have survived in an air pocket of a capsized South Korean ferry, the father of one of the school children aboard the boat told a Reuters reporter accompanying families out to the scene of the disaster on Thursday. About 290 people are still missing out of 450 passengers on the Sewol ferry, which capsized in still-mysterious circumstances off the Korean peninsula on Wednesday in what could be […]

Deaths due to Ebola in Guinea drop; outbreak nearly under control, says health ministry

(Reuters) – The number of deaths caused by Ebola has slowed dramatically in Guinea and the outbreak is nearly under control, the country’s health ministry said on Tuesday. The spread of Ebola from a remote corner of Guinea to the capital and into neighboring Liberia has killed about 130 people and spread panic across West African nations struggling with weak healthcare systems and porous borders. While Guinea claimed progress in containing the virus, U.S. experts […]