17-02-2023 COLUMBIANA COUNTY, OHIO: A public meeting that was meant to ease fears about a toxic chemical spill in an Ohio town only heightened anger when the rail firm at the heart of the disaster failed to show up. Representatives of the Norfolk Southern railway company, whose train carrying the …
Read More »Ukraine shoots down Russian ‘reconnaissance’ balloons
17-02-2023 KYIV: Six Russian balloons were spotted over Kyiv and most were shot down after being engaged by air defences, the Ukrainian capital’s military administration said. The balloons may have been carrying corner reflectors and reconnaissance equipment, but officials did not specify when they flew over the capital, although air …
Read More »North Korea’s Kim breaks ground for 10,000 apartments
17-02-2023 PYONGYANG: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has broken ground for a greenhouse farm and 10,000 apartments in the capital, Pyongyang, state media reported, as the country grapples with tough economic conditions amid sanctions and deepening isolation. Kim “personally pressed the blast button” and gave “warm encouragement” to construction workers …
Read More »Blinken to pledge quake support on first Turkey visit
17-02-2023 WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel Sunday to Turkey to discuss support after a massive earthquake, his first trip to the NATO ally which has had turbulent relations with Washington. Blinken will visit Incirlik air base, through which the United States has shipped aid, and then …
Read More »Hundreds protest in China over health insurance reforms
17-02-2023 BEIJING/ SHANGHAI: Hundreds of retirees staged protests in the Chinese cities of Wuhan and Dalian on Wednesday against reforms to the public health insurance system, according to witnesses and images on social media. Protests are rare in China, where authorities strictly enforce public order laws and opposition is quickly …
Read More »US man freed 28 years after wrongful conviction
16-02-2023 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report + Agencies HOUSTON/ MISSOURI/ NEW YORK: Once again, the entire ‘American Judicial System’ and complete so-called social, ethical, moral, liberal and modern values have been exposed when another innocent detainee released by court yesterday but neither none of one accepted the responsibility of …
Read More »Hundreds rescued from rooftops after NZ cyclone
16-02-2023 WELLINGTON: New Zealand officials say at least four people, including a child, have died in the devastation of Cyclone Gabrielle, which has caused significant flooding and landslides across the North Island. On Wednesday, officials confirmed a child’s body was found in Hawke’s Bay, one of the worst-affected regions. Rescue …
Read More »Russian journalist jailed for theatre attack post
16-02-2023 MOSCOW: Russian journalist Maria Ponomarenko has been jailed for six years for posting on social media about a deadly attack by Russian warplanes on a theatre in Ukraine. The court in Barnaul in Siberia found her guilty of spreading “fake news”, under laws introduced aimed at stifling dissent about …
Read More »Australia cocaine haul sparks hunt for rescued men
16-02-2023 Bureau Report + Agencies MELBOURNE/ SYDNEY: One of three men who are being investigated for suspected drug trafficking two weeks after they were rescued at sea has been arrested. The 36-year-old man was apprehended in Darwin and was due to appear in court on Thursday, police said. The trio …
Read More »Boy who survived Thai cave rescue dies in UK
16-02-2023 LONDON: Duangpetch Promthep, one of the 12 boys who was rescued from a Thai cave in 2018, has died in the UK. The 17-year-old was found unconscious in his dorm in Leicestershire on Sunday and taken to hospital, where he died on Tuesday, the BBC has been told. He …
Read More »