Kinshasa, DR Congo Mpox cases and deaths are rising in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as the central African country awaits vaccines from the United States and Japan, the health minister said on Monday. The toll this year has risen in a few days from 16,000 cases and 548 deaths to 16,700 cases and “a little more...
Tag: International News
Fear grips east DR Congo as displaced await mpox vaccine
Goma, DR Congo An ever-growing number of patients have been flocking to a Goma hospital in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where a rapidly-spreading epidemic of mpox has erupted in recent months. Five to 20 people are walking each day into Nyiragongo General Referral Hospital in North Kivu to consult overburdened medical teams at an outdoor...
Sweden reports first case of deadly mpox strain outside Africa
Stockholm, Sweden Sweden on Thursday announced the first case outside Africa of the more dangerous variant of mpox, which the WHO has declared a global public health emergency. The country’s public health agency confirmed to AFP that it was the same strain of the virus that has surged in the Democratic Republic of Congo since September...
1.4 mn girls banned from Afghan schools since Taliban return: UNESCO
Paris, France At least 1.4 million girls in Afghanistan have been denied access to secondary education since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, with the future of an entire generation now “in jeopardy”, the United Nations’ cultural agency said Thursday. Access to primary education has also fallen sharply, with 1.1 million fewer girls and boys...
Argentine lithium a boon for some, doom for others
Susques, Argentina Anahi Jorge, 23, works for a lithium extraction company in Argentina, earning four times the salary of a local government worker in her village of Susques. And while she welcomes the income of about $1,700 per month — a fortune for most in economic-crisis-riddled Argentina — she laments the impact on critical water resources...
India blocks Bangladeshis fleeing chaotic regime change
Kolkata, India India has arrested nearly a dozen Bangladeshis attempting to cross the border to escape violence and political tumult following deadly protests that led to the ouster of prime minister Sheikh Hasina, border officials said Monday. Hundreds more are waiting along the frontier pleading for permission to cross, India’s Border Security Force (BSF) said. Hindus...
Greece orders thousands to evacuate as wildfires rage
Athens, Greece Greece on Sunday ordered thousands of people to evacuate as firefighters battled a spate of wildfires, and experts warned of more extreme weather to come next week. Firefighters were battling a “dangerous” fire near Athens on Sunday night, with smoke covering parts of the capital in a dark haze. The emergency services issued evacuation...
US envoy skips Nagasaki memorial after Israel snub
Tokyo, Japan The US ambassador to Japan skipped a ceremony on Friday marking the 79th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki in protest at Israel not being invited. Rahm Emanuel instead attended a prayer meeting at a Tokyo temple with Israeli ambassador Gilad Cohen and Britain’s Julia Longbottom, who also boycotted the Nagasaki event. On...
To Lam: ex-public security minister turned Vietnam top leader
Bangkok, Thailand To Lam, named Vietnam’s top leader on Saturday, is a powerful former public security minister who has been swiftly elevated by a corruption crackdown that swept away other contenders. He was confirmed as general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam after the death of his predecessor Nguyen Phu Trong, Vietnam’s most powerful leader in...
One dead in Colorado blaze as fires ravage US west
Los Angeles, United States One person has died in a Colorado wildfire, officials said Wednesday, as around a hundred infernos continue to blaze across western US states and a dangerous new heat wave looms. The death occurred at a home near the town of Lyons, after a fire broke out Tuesday afternoon and consumed several buildings....