VERACRUZ , Mexico (AFP) — Gunmen in Mexico’s Veracruz state shot dead four men on Sunday hours after police killed an alleged criminal elsewhere in the region and another man was kidnapped at church, authorities said. Three armed men stormed into a nightclub called La Madame in the regional capital Xalapa Sunday morning, shooting four victims at a table inside. “Four elderly men were killed,” the state government said in a statement. Several more were […]
International
Iraq announces start of operation to retake Fallujah
by Ammar Karim BAGHDAD , Iraq (AFP) — Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Monday announced the start of a military operation to retake the city of Fallujah from the Islamic State group. The fight to recapture the jihadist bastion, which has been out of government control for nearly two and a half years, will be one of the toughest in Iraq’s war against IS. “We are beginning the operation to liberate Fallujah,” Abadi said […]
Too early to determine reason for EgyptAir plane crash, says investigation committee
The Egyptian investigation committee said Saturday that it’s “too early” to make judgments over the reason behind the crash of EgyptAir flight MS804. The investigators said they have gathered information including data from the plane’s AIRMAN analysis system and ACARS communication and reporting system. The search operations by the Egyptian army and the navy are ongoing. The black box, key to unveiling the truth, is the main target of the search. “If it’s shallow, divers […]
Kerry to meet Suu Kyi as US backs Myanmar reforms
by Phyo Hein KYAW Naypyidaw, Myanmar (AFP) — United States Secretary of State John Kerry is set to meet Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi Sunday for Washington’s first high level talks with her new civilian government, offering backing to her country’s democratic progress after decades of army rule. The meeting in the capital Naypyidaw comes days after the US lifted a host of financial and trade embargoes in recognition of political changes that saw November’s […]
US Navy joins search mission for missing Egyptian aircraft
A P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft from Patrol Squadron from Naval Air Station Sigonella, Sicily conducted a search operation for Egyptair flight MS804 on Friday (May 20). The U.S. Navy is providing resources to support of the Hellenic Armed Forces, the Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Greece, in response to a request by the U.S. Embassy in Athens, Greece for assistance in the search of the missing Egyptian aircraft. Analysis of the debris is likely […]
Netflix recreates drug kingpin Escobar’s death
by Frankie TAGGART Los Angeles, United States (AFP) — Slumped on a terracotta rooftop, Pablo Escobar succumbs to multiple bullet wounds, blood leaching from his chest, signaling the end of the drug lord’s reign of terror in Colombia. The death of the feared Medellin Cartel’s “Don Pablo” has been recreated in painstaking detail by the cast and crew of Netflix hit “Narcos,” its showrunner revealed after filming wrapped on the second season. “Escobar had a photographer who […]
Australian and Dutch climbers die after Everest summit
Kathmandu, Nepal (AFP) — An Australian and a Dutch mountaineer have died of altitude sickness after summitting Mount Everest, expedition organizers said, the latest deaths to hit the Himalayan climbing season. The Australian climber was on her way down from Camp 4 to Camp 3 when she fell ill and died on Saturday afternoon, Pasang Phurba Sherpa, a board director at Seven Summit Treks, told AFP Saturday. “After reaching the summit yesterday she said she […]
Indonesia volcano eruption kills three: official
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AFP) — Three people died and four others were critically injured Saturday after a highly active volcano in western Indonesia erupted violently, shooting hot ash and gases into the atmosphere, an official said. The victims were all farming on the slopes of Mount Sinabung, a rumbling volcano on Sumatra island, when they were consumed by clouds of hot gases, disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said. “Seven people were exposed to the hot […]
Iraq forces killed at least 2 protesters: officials
by Ammar Karim Baghdad, Iraq (AFP) — Iraqi forces killed at least two protesters while defending Baghdad’s Green Zone, officials said on Saturday, as the troubled country’s leaders warned against further escalation. The two supporters of Moqtada al-Sadr were the first casualties of the months-old protest movement started by the young cleric to push for political change. They were interred in the holy city of Najaf, which is home to the world’s largest cemetery where […]
Greek jets scrambled to US plane after EgyptAir crash: source
Greece scrambled fighter jets to monitor a US passenger plane that failed to identify itself when entering Greek airspace this week, an official said Saturday, confirming media reports. The Delta Air Lines aircraft, flying from Paris to Kuwait, entered the Athens Flight Information Region(FIR) at 19.10 (17:10GMT) Thursday, the same day the EgyptAir plane crashed in the Mediterranean shortly after leaving Greek airspace. Its pilots failed to answer to repeated calls from the Greek Civil […]
Five dead, thousands flee as Cyclone Roanu nears Bangladesh
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AFP) — Cyclone Roanu was poised to make landfall in southern Bangladesh Saturday, as strong winds and heavy downpours unleashed by the storm left five people dead and forced tens of thousands to flee their homes. Officials said the cyclone was expected to hit the Bangladesh coast around 12:00 pm local time (0600 GMT) packing winds of 88 kilometres (54 miles) per hour. Authorities took 60,000 people to cyclone shelters following a warning that […]
Historic “INC Reconnect” to be beamed live in 2,900 sites worldwide on May 22
(Eagle News) — The Iglesia Ni Cristo will be holding a big worldwide evangelical event called, “Reconnect: Worldwide Intensive Propagation” on Sunday, May 22, to be officiated by INC Executive Minister Brother Eduardo V. Manalo. It will be beamed live in some 2,900 remote sites all over the world. The event itself, which will start at 8 a.m., will be held at the 55,000-seater Philippine Arena, dubbed as the world’s biggest mixed use indoor theater, […]
