International

Lifting of ban on HK journalists sought

  Malacañang has requested the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to review the blacklist order issued against nine Hong Kong television and radio journalists who allegedly heckled President Benigno Aquino III last year. “Ang amin pong kahilingan sa BI, dahil sila po ang nag-isyu ng Denial of Entry, ay ire-assess po nila iyong situwasyon,” Presidential Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said in a radio interview. (We will request the BI, because they […]

Iran nuclear talks expected to resume next month

(Reuters) – Iran and six world powers are expected to adjourn nuclear negotiations on Monday and reconvene next month after the latest round of talks failed to clinch a final deal, a source close to the talks said. Details about the adjournment and resumption of negotiations were still being worked out, though the source said on condition of anonymity that Iran could not expect any new sanctions relief for the time being. Possible venues include Vienna and Oman, the […]

Multi-national crew blasts off for space station

A Russian Soyuz rocket blasted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazahkstan on Sunday to deliver three new crew members to the International Space Station, including Italy’s first female astronaut. A Soyuz capsule holding incoming station commander Terry Virts, with the U.S. space agency NASA, Soyuz commander Anton Shkaplerov, with the Russian Federal Space Agency, and first-time flier Samantha Cristoforetti, with the European Space Agency, lifted off at 4:01 p.m. EST (2101 GMT). They were […]

Filipinos celebrate Pacquiao’s win VS. Algieri

(Reuters) – Filipinos erupted in jubilation as the country’s boxing hero Manny Pacquiao outclassed American challenger Chris Algieri to retain his WBO welterweight title in Macau on Sunday. Cinemas, hotels, public parks and even army bases across the Philippines witnessed celebration as Pacquiao, the only boxer to win world titles in eight weight divisions, dominated the inexperienced New York-based former kickboxer. “The fire is back, the old deadly form is back,” said Mario Santos, a boxing […]

Pacquiao scores six knockdowns in title defense

(Reuters) – Manny Pacquiao knocked down American challenger Chris Algieri six times to retain his WBO welterweight championship in Macau on Sunday morning. The first knockdown, in the second round, was a combination of a Pacquiao punch and Algieri slipping on the canvas but in the sixth round Algieri tumbled head over heels after a Pacquiao barrage and went down again in the same round from a right hook. A fierce left cross in the […]

Ebola death toll rises to 5,459; Cuban doctor ‘stable’

(Reuters) – The death toll in the Ebola epidemic has risen to 5,459 out of 15,351 cases identified in eight countries by the end of Nov. 18, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday. The figures showed an increase of 39 recorded deaths and 106 new cases since those issued on Wednesday. “Transmission remains intense in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone,” the WHO said, referring to the three hardest-hit West African countries that account […]

Protesters clash with police in Mexico City

Protesters threw Molotov cocktails and clashed with riot police outside Mexico City’s National Palace on Thursday (November 20) as thousands protested against President Enrique Pena Nieto’s handling of the apparent massacre of 43 trainee school teachers. Hundreds of police in riot gear blocked access to the palace in the capital’s main square, the Zocalo, where thousands of protesters had gathered in support of the students, apparently murdered after their abduction by corrupt police on September 26. Three marches had […]

Martial law to stay in Thailand – minister

(Reuters) – Thailand’s martial law will not be lifted for the foreseeable future, the justice minister said on Friday, despite an earlier pledge to lift the law in some provinces to help the tourism industry which has struggled since a military coup in May. The announcement comes as Thailand prepares to enter its peak tourism season, over the Christmas and New Year period. The tourism sector accounts for nearly 10 percent of GDP.Thailand expects around 25 million tourists […]

Russia warns U.S. vs. arms to Ukraine as Biden due in Kiev

(Reuters) – Russia warned the United States on Thursday against supplying arms to Ukrainian forces fighting pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine, hours before U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden was due to arrive in Kiev. Ukraine accused President Vladimir Putin of treating its territory like a “playing field”, trying to unleash a full-scale war that would pose a broader threat to NATO countries. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said in Moscow that a U.S. official’s suggestion Washington should consider sending […]

Exclusive: U.S. increasing non-lethal military aid to Ukraine

(Reuters) – The United States plans to increase non-lethal military assistance to Ukraine, including deliveries of the first Humvee vehicles, having decided for now not to provide weapons, U.S. officials said. The increase in non-lethal aid to Ukraine, which is grappling with a Russian-backed separatist movement in its east, is expected to be announced on Thursday during a visit to Kiev by Vice President Joe Biden. The officials, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, described […]

Obama unveils U.S. immigration reform, setting up fight with Republicans

(Reuters) – President Barack Obama imposed the most sweeping immigration reform in a generation on Thursday, easing the threat of deportation for some 4.7 million undocumented immigrants and setting up a clash with Republicans who vow to fight his moves. In a White House speech, Obama rejected Republican arguments that his decision to bypass Congress and take executive action was tantamount to amnesty for illegal immigrants. It was his biggest use of executive actions in a year […]