MELBOURNE, Australia (AFP) — A second pregnant woman has been diagnosed with the mosquito-borne Zika virus in Australia, officials said Friday, adding that the disease was acquired overseas and there was no public health risk. The confirmation comes after a pregnant woman in the northern state of Queensland was diagnosed on Tuesday with the virus suspected of causing a surge in brain-damaged babies in Brazil. The latest case involves a woman from the state of Victoria […]
International
Parched Earth soaks up water, slowing sea level rise – study
As glaciers melt due to climate change, the increasingly hot and parched Earth is absorbing some of that water inland, slowing sea level rise, NASA experts said Thursday. Satellite measurements over the past decade show for the first time that the Earth’s continents have soaked up and stored an extra 3.2 trillion tons of water in soils, lakes and underground aquifers, the experts said in a study in the journal Science. This has temporarily slowed […]
Einstein’s gravitational waves detected in landmark discovery
Scientists for the first time have detected gravitational waves, ripples in space and time hypothesised by Albert Einstein a century ago, in a landmark discovery announced on Thursday that opens a new window for studying the cosmos. The researchers said they identified gravitational waves coming from two distant black holes – extraordinarily dense objects whose existence also was foreseen by Einstein – that orbited one another, spiraled inward and smashed together at high speed to […]
BREAKING NEWS: Major powers agree on Syria ceasefire plan
Major powers agreed on Friday to a plan aimed at breaking the deadlock in Syria by introducing a gradual cessation of hostilities and quick humanitarian aid with a view to creating conditions to revive peace talks, a diplomatic source said. “We did not get a deal on the immediate end of Russian bombings, but we have a commitment to a process that if it works would change the situation,” a Western diplomatic source said. Reuters
Dollar sinks in Asia as Fed boss dampens chance of rate hike
SINGAPORE, Singapore (AFP) — The dollar retreated across the board in Asia Thursday after comments from Federal Reserve boss Janet Yellen on the weak global economy suggested the central bank will not hike interest rates any time soon. The greenback also sank to late 2014 levels against the yen on the back of a flight to safe investments as markets from Asia to the Americas are buffeted by worries over the global outlook. Testifying before Congress on […]
Man charged with allegedly attacking two female backpackers in Australia
COORONG NATIONAL PARK, Australia (Reuters) — A man was charged with the alleged rape, assault and attempted murder of two female foreign backpackers on Wednesday (February 10), local media reported. The attack happened on a remote stretch of beach at Coorong National Park on Wednesday, about 156 kilometers (97 miles) from the South Australian state capital city of Adelaide. According to local media, one of the women escaped from the attacker and was spotted by […]
Amazing scenes in Japan
(Eagle News) — These photos taken by Eagle News correspondent Fleur Amora show the picturesque Kyoto Pavillion in Kyoto, and the Shinagawa Kumin Park in Tokyo, Japan. The Kyoto Pavillion is one of the most popular buildings in Japan which attract many tourists yearly. It is designated as a National Special Historic Site and a National Special Landscape in Japan. The Shinagawa Kumin Park in Tokyo is a large, naturally landscaped retreat which is over a kilometer […]
Calls for safety overhaul in Taiwan after quake disaster
TAIWAN (AFP) — As rescuers continue the grim task of digging bodies from the rubble of an apartment complex that collapsed in a Taiwan earthquake, anger is growing over the shoddy construction of the building and the island’s questionable safety record. The Wei-kuan building was the only high-rise to crumble completely in the 6.4 magnitude earthquake that shook the southern city of Tainan before dawn Saturday, with 55 confirmed dead so far, mostly from the […]
Egypt train crash leaves more than 100 injured – local media
BENI SUEF, Egypt (Reuters) — Over 100 people were wounded when a train crashed into concrete south of Cairo in the early hours of Thursday morning (February 11), according to Al-Ahram state media. Tens of ambulances were rushed to the scene to treat the wounded, however local news reports said that the injuries were minimal. The train was headed from Aswan to the capital Cairo. The train collided with a concrete block which led it […]
Republican White House field narrows as campaign moves south
WASHINGTON, USA (AFP) — Two more Republicans ended their White House runs Wednesday, whittling down the field as the party’s remaining candidates and Democrat Hillary Clinton look to blunt the momentum of Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders down south. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and former Hewlett-Packard chief executive Carly Fiorina both called time on their presidential bids, one day after finishing sixth and seventh, respectively, in the New Hampshire primary. Trump and Sanders — […]
South Korean workers head for Kaesong to start pull out
PAJU, South Korea (Reuters) — South Korean staff on Thursday (February 11) headed for the Kaesong Industrial Complex to help with a pull-out of workers a day after the government decided to suspend operations at a jointly run factory park just inside North Korea following the North’s long-range rocket launch. South Korean Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo said on Wednesday (February 10) North Korea was suspected of spending funds from the complex on advancing its nuclear […]
Robert Kennedy assassin Sirhan Sirhan denied parole
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA (AFP) — Authorities on Wednesday denied parole for the 15th time to Sirhan Sirhan, the man behind the 1968 assassination of US presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy. The 71-year-old Palestinian appeared before the California parole panel for about three hours, saying he could not recall the shooting that took place at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles after Kennedy had won the California presidential primary. Sirhan, who is serving a […]
