HAIFA, Israel (AFP) – by Jonah Mandel Raging bushfires forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people from parts of Israel’s third city Haifa on Thursday as firefighters struggled to control blazes across the country. Some residents were trapped in their homes as the army called up reservists to help cope with a third day of fires which authorities speculated could have been started deliberately. Haifa municipality spokeswoman Or Doron told AFP that 50,000 […]
International
Peruvian farmer sues German energy giant over climate change
ESSEN, Germany (AFP) – by Richard HEISTER A German court began hearing Thursday a complaint by a Peruvian farmer who accuses energy giant RWE of contributing to climate change that has caused glacial melting in the Andes, threatening his home and livelihood. Saul Luciano Lliuya argues that RWE, as a major historic emitter of greenhouse gases, should share in the cost of protecting his hometown Huaraz from a nearby glacial lake that is at risk of […]
IS truck bomb in Iraq sows carnage among Shiite pilgrims
HILLA, Iraq (AFP) – by Abbas al-Ani with Max Delany in Mosul A suicide bombing claimed by the Islamic State group killed at least 70 people, mainly Shiite pilgrims, south of Baghdad Thursday, in the latest jihadist attack as Iraqi forces battle to retake Mosul. The huge truck bomb blast ripped through a petrol station where buses packed with faithful returning from the Arbaeen commemoration in Karbala were parked, officials said. Most of the victims […]
5.6 magnitude na lindol, muling yumanig sa northeastern, Japan
Isang magnitude 5.6 na lindol ang muling yumanig sa northeastern Japan. Naganap ito, dalawang araw pa lamang ang nakalilipas makaraang tumama sa naturang rehiyon ang malakas na magnitude 6.9 na lindol na nag-generate ng lokal na tsunami. Nilinaw naman ng Japan Meteorological Agency na walang panganib na masundan ng tsunami ang kagaganap na lindol. Ang lindol ay naramdaman alas sais beinte tres ng umaga –oras sa Japan. Ang epicenter nito ay sa layong 210 km […]
Thousands of Rohingya flee Myanmar violence
TEKNAF, Bangladesh (AFP) – by Munir UZ ZAMAN Sam JAHAN Horrifying stories of gang rape, torture and murder are emerging from among the thousands of desperate Rohingya migrants who have pushed into Bangladesh in the past few days to escape unfolding chaos in Myanmar. Up to 30,000 of the impoverished ethnic group have fled their homes, the United Nations says, after troops poured into the narrow strip where they live earlier this month. Bangladesh has resisted […]
Rescue operation underway after construction accident in China kills at least 40
JIANGXI PROVINCE, China (CCTV) – A rescue operation was underway after a platform under construction at a power plant’s cooling tower collapsed in eastern China’s Jiangxi province on Thursday (November 24), state media reported. Aerial shots carried on China’s state television CCTV showed the accident site where at least 40 workers have reportedly been killed. CCTV said there were over 60 workers at the site when the accident happened in Fengcheng at around 7:30 a.m. […]
Dutch prime minister meets his Singaporean counterpart in the city state
SINGAPORE(Reuters)– Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte met with his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong on Thursday (November) on his first visit to the city state since taking office in 2010. After an official welcoming ceremony, the two heads of state sat for a meeting reaffirming their good relations and the need to continue working together in the face of global challenges. “At a time when many countries are turning inwards seeking to repudiate globalisation […]
China power plant collapse kills at least 40: Xinhua
BEIJING, China (AFP) — At least 40 people were killed when part of a power station under construction in China collapsed Thursday, the official Xinhua news agency reported, the latest industrial accident in a country with a dismal safety record. A cooling tower platform plunged to the ground in the early hours, trapping an unknown number of people beneath it, Xinhua said. Pictures of the scene in Fengcheng, in the central province of Jiangxi, showed […]
Clinton leads Trump by over two million in popular vote
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Hillary Clinton is now more than two million votes ahead of President-elect Donald Trump in the popular vote count for the US presidential elections, a tally compiled by the Cook Political Report showed Wednesday. The Democratic candidate’s 1.5 percent lead in the popular vote makes no difference to the outcome of the November 8 election, which Trump won by taking a majority of electoral votes. Clinton conceded the following day. […]
5.6 quake shakes Japan, no tsunami risk
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A 5.6-magnitude earthquake shook northeast Japan early Thursday, the US Geological Survey said, two days after a powerful tremor triggered a tsunami near the stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant. There were no risks of seismic waves or immediate reports of damage from Thursday’s quake, which struck at 6:23 am (2123 GMT) off Fukushima prefecture some 210 kilometers (130 miles) northeast of Tokyo, Japanese authorities said. The quake did not cause any […]
Trump urges unity in Thanksgiving message
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President-elect Donald Trump acknowledged that a “long and bruising” presidential campaign had left emotions raw and tensions high Wednesday but urged America to come together on its Thanksgiving holiday. In a video address from his Florida golf resort, the 70-year-old tycoon said: “It is my prayer, that on this Thanksgiving, we begin to heal our divisions and move forward as one country, strengthened by a shared purpose and very, very […]
Obama spares turkeys ‘Tater’ and ‘Tot’ from the Thanksgiving table
WASHINGTON, D.C., United States (Reuters) — For the last time in a time-honored tradition, outgoing U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday (November 23) pardoned the National Thanksgiving Turkey and its alternate at a ceremony in the Rose Garden. Obama spared Tater and Tot, both 18-week old, 40-pound turkeys raised in raised in Northwest Iowa, from being dressed and turned into a Thanksgiving feast. The names for this year’s lucky birds were chosen by Iowa schoolchildren […]