The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) says plans by the Biden administration to expand restrictions on people seeking refuge in the United States are “not in line with refugee law standards”. According to reports, the reforms will deny migrants the chance to seek asylum in the U.S. if they crossed...
WORLD
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday ordered a temporary ceasefire in Ukraine on Orthodox Christmas, celebrated this week by both countries, according to the Kremlin. This is the first time Russia introduced a full ceasefire in Ukraine since the launch of the offensive in February last year. The announcement...
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday announced that the new Zircon hypersonic missile has been put into service as the country’s war effort flounders in Ukraine. Putin in a televised video link from the Kremlin to mark the commissioning of the missiles on the Admiral Gorshkov frigate said: “I...
Taiwan Premier, Su Tseng-chang has announced that the Taiwan government is planning to give cash payouts of nearly $200 to every citizen this year. He said the island’s economic growth will be shared by everyone. Reuters reports that the export-reliant economy, a global tech powerhouse for products including semiconductor...
A total of 1,057 natural disasters hit Vietnam in 2022, leaving 175 persons dead and missing, local media cited the Vietnam Disaster Management Authority as reported on Wednesday. The disasters caused economic losses of some 19.5 trillion Vietnamese dong (825.85 million U.S. dollars) last year, the local newspaper Vietnam...
Egypt announced on Monday that a significant ancient cover of a coffin known as the “Green Coffin” was returned from the United States. The artifact belongs to a priest named Ankh In Maat, which dates from the Late Period (664-332 BC), Egypt’s Tourism and Antiquities Ministry said in a...
Former German archdiocese of Munich and Freising has planned to bid farewell to the late Pope emeritus Benedict XVI with a requiem on Tuesday evening. As Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, he was Archbishop of Munich and Freising from 1977 to 1982. The current incumbent, Cardinal Reinhard Marx, is expected to...
Local authorities said they discovered 25 torture camps in the area surrounding the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv since its liberation from Russian occupation. In the camps, Russian troops had detained and tortured civilians under inhumane conditions, among other things, regional police chief, Volodymyr Timoshko, has said in a...
The UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, on Monday expressed his deep sadness over the reported death of at least 34 people in South Africa fuel tanker explosion. The blast in Boksburg, a suburb of the capital, Johannesburg, on Christmas Eve severely damaged the roof of the emergency department at the...
Former Pope Benedict XVI has died at his Vatican residence, aged 95, almost a decade after he stood down because of ailing health. He led the Catholic Church for less than eight years until, in 2013, he became the first Pope to resign since Gregory XII in 1415. Benedict...
Israel’s hawkish veteran, Benjamin Netanyahu was sworn in as prime minister Thursday after a stint in opposition, heading what analysts call the most right-wing government in the country’s history. Netanyahu, 73, who is fighting corruption charges in court, had already served as premier longer than anyone in Israeli history,...
M23 rebels in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo are holding civilians hostage for suspected collaboration with enemy militias as fighting erupted despite recent peace efforts, local sources told AFP on Monday. The group — one of scores in the volatile region — has conquered swathes of territory from the army and...
Three people have been confirmed dead after a Nigerien military helicopter crashed on return from a routine training flight. The country’s defence ministry said the helicopter crashed while landing at an airport in the capital Niamey on Monday, December 26, killing three people on board including an expatriate instructor. The wreckage burst...
The UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, has expressed his confidence in Ms Barbara Manzi, the most senior UN official in Burkina Faso, who was ordered to leave the country by the government. Guterres, in a statement, said he had full confidence in the UN system in Burkina Faso, as well...
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned the people of his country of further Russian attacks in the few remaining days of 2022. “We must be aware that our enemy will try to make this time dark and difficult for us,” he said in his daily video address on Sunday...
Christians from all over the world celebrated Christmas, the festival marking the birth of Jesus Christ, in the Holy Land on Saturday. The traditional Christmas procession arrived in Bethlehem in the afternoon. The procession to Bethlehem had set off from Jerusalem at noon (1000 GMT), led by the head...
Family members visited the legendary Pele on Saturday at the Sao Paulo hospital where he is suffering from worsening cancer as well as kidney and heart problems, according to a social media post by his daughter. Edinho, Pele’s son — who was recently appointed coach of Serie B football...
By EZEKIEL OBI, Abuja – The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission has condemned the attempted but foiled Coup d’état in the Gambia on Dec. 21, reiterating that ECOWAS’ rejection of unconstitutional change of government. The ECOWAS Commission, in a statement made available to journalists, said that...
South Africa’s ruling ANC party on Monday re-elected President Cyril Ramaphosa as its leader for a second five-year term, despite a brewing scandal over a huge cash theft at his farm. Ramaphosa garnered 2,476 votes for the post of party president against 1,897 for former health minister Zweli Mkhize,...
At least 22 people have died and several others have been hospitalised in India after drinking toxic alcohol, authorities said Thursday. The deaths happened mainly in two villages in the eastern state of Bihar, where the sale and consumption of liquor are prohibited. Such bans are in force in...