INDONESIA
Sumatra rattled by quake
A strong, shallow earthquake hit near the coast of Sumatra Island yesterday, killing two people and injuring 20, damaging buildings and panicking people on Sumatra island and in neighboring Malaysia and Singapore. The US Geological Survey said the earthquake measured 6.2 in magnitude, 12km below the Earth’s surface, about 66km north-northwest of Bukittinggi, a hilly town in West Sumatra Province. Two people were reportedly killed in West Pasaman district, the closest area to the epicenter, and 20 others were injured as dozens of houses and buildings reportedly collapsed. A landslide was also reported in the district.
SOMALIA
Elections again delayed
Somalian leaders agreed to extend parliamentary elections until March 15, once more postponing a long-delayed presidential vote. The government had set a deadline for the parliamentary ballot to be completed yesterday. Lawmakers failed to meet the deadline because of a lack of funding and insecurity, the prime minister’s office said in a statement on Thursday. Elections began in November to elect lawmakers who are then to choose a new president. So far, only about two-thirds of the 275 seats in the nation’s bicameral parliament have been filled. Somalia is struggling to rebuild its economy after more than two decades of civil war. It failed to hold an election in February last year, and lawmakers instead extended President Mohamed Abdullahi’s mandate.
UNITED STATES
Supreme court pick chosen
President Joe Biden has decided on his first Supreme Court nominee, US media reported on Thursday. However, the name was not being released until after press time last night. The president promised during his 2020 campaign to elevate the first black woman to the country’s highest bench, which he can now do since Justice Stephen Breyer, 83, announced his retirement last month. CNN first reported that Biden had made his decision, which was confirmed by CBS News, both citing sources familiar with the process. The White House has been tight-lipped about who it might choose to replace Breyer, a liberal stalwart who plans to retire in June at the end of the court’s current term. Among the favorites are US Circuit Court judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, South Carolina judge Michelle Childs and California Supreme Court judge Leondra Kruger.
ARGENTINA
Fires endanger wildlife
Wildfires in Argentina’s north are forcing local species of wildlife, including capybaras, marsh deer and anteaters, to flee ahead of the flames, with many animals killed or injured in their attempt to escape the spread of the fires. The blazes in Corrientes Province, which borders Paraguay, have burned through nearly 900,000 hectares of forest and pasture land, some 12 percent of the region, including destroying habitats in the biodiverse Ibera Park wetlands. “There are sectors of the Ibera where animals have been trapped,” said Sofia Heinonen, executive director of Rewilding Argentina, a foundation that works to protect at-risk species. “They usually have water as a refuge area, they always have the mountains, but in this case the extraordinary recent drought has caused many of the ravines, many of the lagoons and a large part of the mountains to be dry,” Heinonen said.
BACKLASH: The National Party quit its decades-long partnership with the Liberal Party after their election loss to center-left Labor, which won a historic third term Australia’s National Party has split from its conservative coalition partner of more than 60 years, the Liberal Party, citing policy differences over renewable energy and after a resounding loss at a national election this month. “Its time to have a break,” Nationals leader David Littleproud told reporters yesterday. The split shows the pressure on Australia’s conservative parties after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s center-left Labor party won a historic second term in the May 3 election, powered by a voter backlash against US President Donald Trump’s policies. Under the long-standing partnership in state and federal politics, the Liberal and National coalition had shared power
A Croatian town has come up with a novel solution to solve the issue of working parents when there are no public childcare spaces available: pay grandparents to do it. Samobor, near the capital, Zagreb, has become the first in the country to run a “Grandmother-Grandfather Service,” which pays 360 euros (US$400) a month per child. The scheme allows grandparents to top up their pension, but the authorities also hope it will boost family ties and tackle social isolation as the population ages. “The benefits are multiple,” Samobor Mayor Petra Skrobot told reporters. “Pensions are rather low and for parents it is sometimes
CONTROVERSY: During the performance of Israel’s entrant Yuval Raphael’s song ‘New Day Will Rise,’ loud whistles were heard and two people tried to get on stage Austria’s JJ yesterday won the Eurovision Song Contest, with his operatic song Wasted Love triumphing at the world’s biggest live music television event. After votes from national juries around Europe and viewers from across the continent and beyond, JJ gave Austria its first victory since bearded drag performer Conchita Wurst’s 2014 triumph. After the nail-biting drama as the votes were revealed running into yesterday morning, Austria finished with 436 points, ahead of Israel — whose participation drew protests — on 357 and Estonia on 356. “Thank you to you, Europe, for making my dreams come true,” 24-year-old countertenor JJ, whose
Two people died and 19 others were injured after a Mexican Navy training ship hit the Brooklyn Bridge, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said yesterday. The ship snapped all three of its masts as it collided with the New York City landmark late on Saturday, while onlookers enjoying the balmy spring evening watched in horror. “At this time, of the 277 on board, 19 sustained injuries, 2 of which remain in critical condition, and 2 more have sadly passed away from their injuries,” Adams posted on X. Footage shared online showed the Mexican Navy ship Cuauhtemoc, its sails furled
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