PHILIPPINES
US-bound Afghans arrive
A group of Afghan nationals yesterday arrived to process special immigrant visas for their resettlement in the US, as part of an agreement between Manila and Washington. The Philippines agreed in July last year to temporarily host a US immigrant visa processing center for a limited number of Afghan nationals aspiring to resettle in the US. Department of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Teresita Daza said the US government would cover the costs for the Afghan nationals’ stay in the Philippines, including their food, housing, security, medical and transportation expenses, she said.
Photo: US embassy manila via AFP
INDONESIA
Rohingya refugees land
More than 260 Rohingya refugees, including women and children, arrived in the westernmost province of Aceh after floating at sea for days, an official said yesterday. East Aceh official Iskandar said that 117 men and 147 women, as well as about 30 children, arrived in West Peureulak on Sunday night. He said they had initially been on two boats, one of which had sunk off the coast while the second managed to move closer to shore, allowing them to walk ashore when the tide was low. “They told me they were rejected in Malaysia,” Iskandar said, adding that the local government has not decided where to move the refugees.
Photo: AFP
CHINA
Beijing to address dementia
The government has launched a national plan to address the rapidly growing prevalence of dementia, which authorities said is becoming “a widespread societal concern” and poses “significant challenges” to the well-being of the elderly and their families. A continuous “prevention and control system for dementia, covering prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation and care, will be established by 2030,” Xinhua news agency said, adding that the growth of dementia would be controlled through widespread cognitive screenings, with early intervention. More than 16 million Chinese have dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, the most common type, an official report released last year showed.
RUSSIA
Oil spill kills dolphins: group
Thirty-two dolphins have died since fuel oil spilled out of two storm-stricken tankers three weeks ago in the Kerch Strait, which separates the Russia-occupied Crimean Peninsula from Russia’s southern Krasnodar region, an animal rescue group said on Sunday. The Delfa Dolphin Rescue and Research Center said the deaths are “most likely related to the fuel oil spill.” The center wrote on the messaging app Telegram that 61 dead cetaceans had been recorded since the emergency, but the condition of the bodies suggested that 29 had died before the spill.
ISRAEL
Soldier helped out of Brazil
The government helped a former soldier leave Brazil after legal action was initiated against him by a group accusing Israelis of war crimes in the Gaza Strip based in part on soldiers’ social media posts. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday said it had helped the former soldier safely leave Brazil on a commercial flight after what it described as “anti-Israel elements” sought an investigation. It warned Israelis against posting on social media about their military service. The Hind Rajab Foundation said Brazilian authorities had launched an investigation into the soldier after it filed a complaint based on video footage, geolocation data and photographs showing the soldier participating in the demolition of civilian homes.
Four contenders are squaring up to succeed Antonio Guterres as secretary-general of the UN, which faces unprecedented global instability, wars and its own crushing budget crisis. Chile’s Michelle Bachelet, Argentina’s Rafael Grossi, Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan and Senegal’s Macky Sall are each to face grillings by 193 member states and non-governmental organizations for three hours today and tomorrow. It is only the second time the UN has held a public question-and-answer, a format created in 2016 to boost transparency. Ultimately the five permanent members of the UN’s top body, the Security Council, hold the power, wielding vetoes over who leads the
A humanoid robot that won a half-marathon race for robots in Beijing on Sunday ran faster than the human world record in a show of China’s technological leaps. The winner from Honor, a Chinese smartphone maker, completed the 21km race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, said a WeChat post by the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, also known as Beijing E-Town, where the race began. That was faster than the human world record holder, Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo, who finished the same distance in about 57 minutes in March at the Lisbon road race. The performance by the robot marked a significant step forward
An earthquake registering a preliminary magnitude of 7.7 off northern Japan on Monday prompted a short-lived tsunami alert and the advisory of a higher risk of a possible mega-quake for coastal areas there. The Cabinet Office and the Japan Meteorological Agency said there was a 1% chance for a mega-quake, compared to a 0.1% chance during normal times, in the next week or so following the powerful quake near the Chishima and Japan trenches. Officials said the advisory was not a quake prediction but urged residents in 182 towns along the northeastern coasts to raise their preparedness while continuing their daily lives. Prime
HAZARDOUS CONDITION: The typhoon’s sheer size, with winds extending 443km from its center, slowed down the ability of responders to help communities, an official said The US Coast Guard was searching for six people after losing contact with their disabled boat off the coast of Guam following Typhoon Sinlaku. The crew of the 44m dry cargo vessel, the US-registered Mariana, on Wednesday notified the coast guard that the boat had lost its starboard engine and needed assistance, Petty Officer 3rd Class Avery Tibbets said yesterday. The coast guard set up a one-hour communication schedule with the vessel, but lost contact on Thursday. A Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules aircraft was launched to search for the six people on board, but it had to return to Guam because of
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