North Korea said Sunday it had successfully placed a satellite in orbit, with a rocket launch widely condemned as a ballistic missile test for a weapons delivery system to strike the US mainland. A state television announcer said the launch, personally ordered by leader Kim Jong-Un, had “successfully put our Earth observation satellite Kwangmyong 4 … into orbit.” jhw-gh/mtp © 1994-2016 Agence France-Presse
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Eagle News Kaohsiung correspondent recounts Taiwan quake experience
Eagle News Kaohsiung correspondent Lalaine Millendez recounts her experience of the powerful 6.4 magnitudeTaiwan quake that shook the city via skype interview during the program, Eagle News International on Saturday, February 6, 2015. (Eagle News Service)
N. Korea launches space rocket in defiance of sanctions threats
by Jung Ha-Won Agence France Press NORTH Korea launched a long-range rocket on Sunday, violating UN resolutions and doubling down against an international community already determined to punish Pyongyang for a nuclear test last month. North Korea had labelled the launch part of a purely scientific space programme, but most of the world viewed it as a disguised ballistic missile test and the nuclear-armed state’s latest step towards a weapons delivery system capable of […]
Fourteen dead, 150 missing after Taiwan quake fells buildings
(AFP) — Relatives of residents trapped in a 16-storey apartment complex felled by a powerful earthquake in Taiwan that killed 14 people were praying for miracles Saturday as rescuers sought survivors, with more than 150 missing in the quake zone. The cluster of buildings in the historic southern city of Tainan were full of families who had gathered for Lunar New Year celebrations when it collapsed and the death toll is rising. The national […]
Rescue efforts continue as night falls in Taiwan
(Reuters) — After hours of searching for quake survivors amongst the rubble of a 17-storey collapsed building in southern Taiwan, five people were still missing on Saturday (February 6) as darkness fell. A powerful 6.4 magnitude earthquake hit Tainan at around 4 a.m. on Saturday (2000 GMT Friday, February 5), the start of a Lunar New Year holiday. At least eight people were killed. Buildings in nine other locations in the city of 2 […]
DFA says no Filipinos among reported casualties in Taiwan
(Eagle News) — The Department of Foreign Affairs said that there were no Filipinos among the reported casualties so far in Taiwan following the 6.4 magnitude earthquake that hit Southern Taiwan. Foreign Affairs Spokesman Charles Jose said that they have not yet received reports of any Filipino casualties in the powerful quake that shook Tainan where eight had been reported killed Eagle News correspondents in Taiwan Michael Suarez and Lalaine Millendez also reported that there […]
Over 800 soldiers search for quake survivors in Taiwan; at least 8 deaths reported
(Reuters) — Over 800 soldiers searched for survivors in southern Taiwan after it was hit by a powerful earthquake of 6.4 magnitude that has killed at least eight people on Saturday (February 6). Six of the dead were found in a 17-storey apartment building that collapsed, with five people still missing in the ruins of the complex as darkness fell. One victim was a 10-day-old girl. Footage from the Military News Agency under the […]
Taiwan rescuers focus on toppled apartment block
(Reuters) — Rescue workers raced against the clock and searched for survivors at a site where a 17-storey apartment building toppled during an earthquake that has killed at least five in southern Taiwan on Saturday (February 6). Among the bodies found in the collapsed building in Tainan was a 10-day-old girl. Rescue workers continued to search for about 35 people feared trapped inside. Authorities said there were 92 households and 256 people living in […]
Hotel fire in Iraqi Kurdistan kills 21, including 15 Filipinos
FIFTEEN Filipinos were killed in a fire at a hotel in the capital of Iraq’s Kurdistan region that killed 21 people and injured dozens of others on Friday (February 5), the governor of Erbil told a local media network. While Reuters reported the initial death toll at 17, an Al Jazeera report said those killed were at least 21 people, and that 15 of them were Filipinos. The Al Jazeera report said that the […]
South Korean defence ministry holds an emergency meeting over North’s planned missile launch
South Korean Defence Minister Han Min-koo presided over an emergency meeting on Friday (February 5) in Seoul with military officials over North Korea’s planned missile launch. Han said his army is capable of detecting the missile launch. “Our Aegis destroyer has proved its capacity and readiness by firstly detecting North Korea’s missile launches three times in the past,” said Han at the meeting. The North notified U.N. agencies late on Tuesday (February 2) of its […]
China’s mass migration numbers expected to hit a record high ahead of Lunar New Year’s eve
China’s mass migration, which is often described as the world’s largest annual migration of people, was expected to hit a record high on Friday (February 5) two days before the eve of Lunar New Year. People, dragging luggage and carrying bags on their shoulders, rushed to the Beijing Railway Station to catch trains, making their way back home. The 40-day travel frenzy surrounding the week-long Lunar New Year holiday began on January 24 this year, […]
Syrian refugees welcome Syria donors conference in London
Syrian refugees welcome the Syria donors conference which was held in London on Thursday, in the hope of being lifted out of dilemma by funds raised in the conference . The donors conference – Supporting Syria & the Region – in London where representatives of 70 nations met has managed to pledge over ten billion U.S. dollars that will get urgent medical care, nutrition needs and job creation for refugees affected by the ongoing crisis […]