United Nations, United States (AFP) July 15, 2022 China has asked the United Nations Security Council to vote on banning small arms to Haiti, sanctioning the Caribbean nation’s gang leaders, and even sending a regional police force to the violence-plagued island, diplomatic sources said Thursday. The proposal comes as Council members consider renewing a UN political mission to Haiti which expires on Friday night. And … Continue reading China asks UN Security Council for ban on small arms to Haiti: diplomats

Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Germany (AFP) July 14, 2022 Germany on Thursday paid tribute to more than 180 people killed in severe floods a year ago, as those left behind charged that help with the reconstruction effort has been too slow to arrive. President Frank-Walter Steinmeier embarked on a tour of the Ahr valley, while Chancellor Olaf Scholz joined a human chain in the hard-hit town of … Continue reading Germans demand change a year on from deadly floods

Bogota (AFP) July 14, 2022 At least eight children are believed trapped in northwest Colombia after a landslide buried a school on Thursday, local authorities said. Video footage shared on social media showed dozens of villagers with shovels trying to remove a heap of felled trees and rubble. Daniel Quintero, the mayor of Medellin that is the capital of the Antioquia department where the landslide … Continue reading Eight children trapped after Colombia landslide buries school: officials

Madrid (AFP) July 14, 2022 The heatwave sweeping across southwestern Europe was expected to peak on Thursday in Spain, with blistering temperatures already fuelling wildfires across the Iberian Peninsula and France. The region’s second heat this summer is forecast to hit southern Spain with some of the harshest temperatures. “For Thursday, we expect it to be the hottest day of this heatwave,” said Spain’s statehttp://dlvr.it/STtRtM Continue reading Western Europe heatwave to peak in scorching Spain

Zurich (AFP) July 12, 2022 Residents of Pulau Pari, an Indonesian island threatened by rising sea levels, are suing cement giant Holcim over its carbon dioxide emissions, a Swiss charity said on Tuesday. “Holcim… bears a significant share of the responsibility for the climate crisis as well as for the situation on… Pari,” Yvan Maillard Ardenti, climate expert at Swiss Church Aid (HEKS), said on … Continue reading Indonesian islanders sue cement giant Holcim over climate damage

Dubai, United Arab Emirates (AFP) July 13, 2022 A hardy plant grown using salt water is thriving in the UAE’s desert farms and helping create “healthy” burgers, showing sustainable agriculture’s potential in the toughest conditions. Salicornia, a succulent, is already being used as a salt replacement in burger patties – a rare farming success in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, which imports nearly all of … Continue reading Desert-grown superfood puts ‘healthy’ burgers on UAE menus

Athens (AFP) July 14, 2022 Two people were killed after a firefighting helicopter with four crew members aboard crashed into the sea off Greece, the coastguard and fire service said on Thursday. The two men, from Romania and Moldova, had been recovered unconscious in the water off the island of Samos on Wednesday evening and taken to the hospital there. Efforts to resuscitate them failed, … Continue reading Two killed in Greek firefighting helicopter crash

Moscow (AFP) July 12, 2022 Myanmar junta chief Min Aung Hlaing visited Moscow Tuesday, Russian media reported, as the US vowed to put pressure on his military regime over a 2021 coup. Russia’s embassy in Myanmar told the Interfax news agency that Hlaing was in Moscow on a “private” visit. “He plans to take part in the opening of a Myanmar cultural centre,” it said. … Continue reading Myanmar junta chief visits Moscow

Madrid (AFP) July 13, 2022 Several areas of Spain were put on high alert Wednesday as temperatures were set to rise again with parts of western Europe suffering under a second heatwave in a matter of weeks. Temperatures were set to reach 44 degrees Celsius (111 Fahrenheit) in some parts of Spain, which has been sweltering since the heatwave started at the weekend. It is … Continue reading Spain issues high alert in heatwave-hit areas

Washington (AFP) July 12, 2022 The US Senate on Tuesday confirmed President Joe Biden’s nominee to lead the federal agency overseeing gun regulations, which had lacked a permanent director for over seven years. Steve Dettelbach, 56, will now become the director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), following a series of deadly mass shootings that have shaken the country. The former … Continue reading US gun regulation agency fills empty director post after seven years