MV Asphalt Princess: Suspected hijackers leave ship off UAE

The MV Asphalt Princess was reportedly boarded by up to nine armed men  DUBAI, Aug 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Men who boarded and seized a ship in the Gulf of Oman have left the vessel and all those remaining on board are safe, officials say. A UK maritime security agency said…

Migrant channel crossings: 281 people reach the UK

Border Force officials intercepted seven boats on Tuesday LONDON, Aug 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Small boats carrying 281 people were intercepted trying to cross the Channel on Tuesday. Border Force officials stopped seven boats, while French authorities intercepted one crossing carrying a further 20 migrants. So far this year more than 9,700…

Lalibela: Ethiopia’s Tigray rebels take Unesco World Heritage town

The rock-hewn churches of Lalibela are a Unesco world heritage site  LALIBELA (Ethiopia), Aug 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Rebels from Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region have taken control of the town of Lalibela, a Unesco world heritage site in neighbouring Amhara region. Lalibela, home to 13th Century churches hewn from rock, is…

US urges Iran’s new president Ebrahim Raisi to resume nuclear talks

Ebrahim Raisi was sworn into office on Thursday  WASHINGTON, Aug 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US has called on Iran’s new president to return to talks on reviving a historic nuclear deal. The window for diplomacy would not remain open forever, a spokesman for the US state department warned. Tensions between…

US to allow visitors from Hong Kong to stay for 18 months

WASHINGTON, Aug 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Thousands of Hong Kong residents are to be offered a temporary “safe haven” in the US, President Joe Biden says. Biden said that because Hong Kong’s freedoms were being violated by China, the US would allow visitors to stay for a period of 18 months. Thousands…

Indonesia, US hold largest joint military drills

Major General Heri Wiranto (left) meeting with US Captain David Moats JAKARTA, Aug 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Thousands of military personnel from Indonesia and the United States are participating in joint drills for two weeks described as the largest ever between the two countries. The exercises, focused on island defence, are…

US wildfires: California urges people to flee communities in Dixie fire path

 SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Officials in northern California warned residents of two communities in the path of the raging Dixie fire to evacuate immediately as high winds whipped the flames onwards. Authorities issued the alerts to residents still in the communities of Greenville and Chester, as winds of…

At least 10 suspected illegal migrants dead in road Texas crash near Mexico border

 HOUSTON, Aug 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least 10 people were killed in a Texas road accident involving a truck that authorities suspect was transporting some 30 undocumented migrants, US media said. “Troopers are investigating a major crash” near Falfurrias, a few miles from the Mexican border, the Texas Department of…

115 killed in military crackdown in Nigeria: Amnesty

 ABUJA, Aug 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Amnesty International on Thursday accused Nigerian security forces of using excessive force and killing at least 115 people in a crackdown on separatist agitators in the country’s restive southeast. Violence has flared in Nigeria’s southeastern states this year, claiming the lives of at least 127…

Covid-19: Australia’s Sydney posts record cases as lockdown is widened

 SYDNEY, Aug 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Sydney reported a record number of new Covid-19 cases and five virus deaths Thursday, as authorities expanded the lockdown in Australia’s largest city to neighbouring regions. Six weeks after Sydney’s five million residents were told to stay home, the number of new infections in New…