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by Eric Baradat, with Shaun Tandon and Michael Mathes in Washington Agence France Presse SALT LAKE CITY, United States (AFP) — Democratic vice presidential hopeful Kamala Harris on Wednesday called Donald Trump’s Covid-19 response a historic failure that disqualified him from a second term, in a pointed but mostly civil debate with Mike Pence who sought to portray her as extreme. With Trump’s weekend hospitalization for Covid-19 throwing a new importance on the role […]
BRASILIA, Brazil (AFP) — Brazil surpassed five million coronavirus infections on Wednesday and is approaching 150,000 deaths from the disease, amid optimism the virus is slowing in the hard-hit South American country. The Health Ministry reported 31,553 new infections in the previous 24 hours, registering a total of 5,000,694 cases overall, behind only the United States and India. Home to 212 million people, Brazil also counted 734 new deaths Wednesday, meaning the virus has claimed […]
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russia on Wednesday evacuated more than 2,000 people from nearby villages after a wildfire set off explosions at a munitions depot in the Ryazan region southeast of Moscow, officials said. More than 400 firefighters were battling into the evening to extinguish a blaze that broke out at the depot on Wednesday afternoon, with the authorities saying five people were injured but no one died. The fire was sparked by a wildfire […]
by Yussel Gonzalez CANCUN, Mexico (AFP) — Hurricane Delta tore across Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula Wednesday, toppling trees, ripping down power lines and lashing a string of major beach resorts with winds of up to 110 miles (175 kilometers) per hour. There were widespread power outages after Delta slammed into the country’s Caribbean coast as a Category 2 storm, having lost some of its earlier strength. But the region appeared to have escaped major destruction and […]
KUWAIT CITY, Kuwait (AFP) — Kuwait’s new emir, Sheikh Nawaf, on Wednesday named his half-brother Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmad al-Jaber Al-Sabah, a long-serving top security official, as crown prince. Sheikh Meshal, 80, has been deputy chief of the Kuwait National Guard since 2004, largely staying out of the political scene and away from disputes within the royal family. The Sabah ruling family “blessed” 83-year-old Sheikh Nawaf’s decision, the official Kuwait News Agency said Wednesday, a […]
by Christophe VOGT Agence France Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The UN refugee chief said Wednesday that he had tested positive for Covid-19 after leading the first day of the agency’s main annual meeting in person. Filippo Grandi, who kicked off UNHCR’s week-long Executive Committee meeting in Geneva on Monday, told participants via video-link that he would need to continue following the event from home. “I am engaging with UNHCR’s Executive Committee from home […]
by Sylvie LANTEAUME Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US commander-in-chief has Covid-19 and the top military brass are isolating as the coronavirus pandemic takes a toll on the national security establishment of the most powerful nation in the world. As Covid-19 breached the walls of the Pentagon, the Defense Department was quick to stress on Tuesday that there had been “no change to the operational readiness or mission capability of […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US Food and Drug Administration made public its guidance for issuing emergency approval for a Covid-19 vaccine on Tuesday, making it clear it wants to see follow-up two months after trial volunteers have their second dose. It is therefore unlikely for President Donald Trump’s administration to have a vaccine on the market before the November 3 election, something the president frequently says is on the cards. “Data from Phase […]
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) — Firefighters in New Zealand battling a blaze that razed much of a small alpine village said they were making “good progress” Wednesday as high winds finally eased. The wildfire erupted in a mountain forest on the South Island in the early hours of Sunday morning and swept through the popular tourist spot of Lake Ohau, forcing residents to flee for their lives. Officials said it was miraculous no one was […]
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AFP) — China would not have exclusive access to a Cambodian naval base, Prime Minister Hun Sen said Wednesday, despite Beijing chipping in for upgrades after a US-funded facility was razed at the site last month. The Ream base is strategically located in the Gulf of Thailand, providing ready access to the fiercely contested South China Sea — a key global shipping route. Beijing claims the majority of the resource-rich sea — […]
by Alejandro Castro with Natalia Cano in Mexico City CANCUN, Mexico (AFP) — An “extremely dangerous” hurricane bore down on Mexico’s Caribbean coast Tuesday, triggering the mobilization of thousands of soldiers and the evacuation of residents and tourists in a string of top beach resorts. Hurricane Delta rapidly intensified in the Caribbean to reach Category 4 status, the second-highest, and was on course to hit the Yucatan Peninsula by early Wednesday, US forecasters said. Delta […]
by Francesco Gilioli with Ella Ide in Rome PALESTRO, Italy (AFP) — With a deafening roar, the swollen Sesia river swept down the Alpine valley in northern Italy to engulf the plains below, drowning the country’s so-called “golden triangle” of rice paddies in mud. Storms at the weekend, when the region was lashed by half the yearly average rainfall in just one day, dealt a severe blow to Europe’s biggest rice producer, flooding the marshy […]
