FAO chief calls for action to improve food security in Africa

A food security session at the annual World Youth Forum in the Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt SHARM EL-SHEIKH (Egypt), Dec 17 (NNN-Xinhua) — The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) chief called for urgent action to tackle challenges facing food security in…

UN envoy says West Africa “shaken by unprecedented violence”

A young girl drinks water in the Bakassi IDP camp, in Maiduguri, Nigeria UNITED NATIONS, Dec 17 (NNN-Xinhua) — The UN envoy for West Africa and the vast Sahel region told the Security Council that in recent months, the region has been “shaken by unprecedented violence.” A “horrific attack against…

Update: British PM starts reshuffle of cabinet after election victory

LONDON, Dec 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson started to re-assemble his front bench team Monday night as deadline of Brexit is approaching. Conservative Nicky Morgan, who decided not to seek re-election in last week’s general election, has been kept on by Johnson as a member of his…

US slaps sanctions on two South Sudan ministers over peace delay

US slaps sanctions on two S.Sudan ministers over peace delay WASHINGTON, Dec 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The United States imposed sanctions on two sitting ministers in South Sudan, accusing them of obstructing the young country’s peace efforts despite promises to form a unity government.The order against Defense Minister Kuol Manyang Juuk…

India says 20 crew kidnapped from tanker off West Africa

An oil tanker NEW DELHI, Dec 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — India’s foreign ministry said that 20 of its nationals had been kidnapped from an oil tanker in West African waters, where piracy has been on the rise.“Our Mission in Abuja has taken up the matter with the Nigerian authorities, as also…

Uruguay: Football fan shot dead during club’s victory celebrations

Nacional won the Uruguayan 2019 football championship Sunday by defeating Penarol 1-0 MONTEVIDEO, Dec 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A 24-year-old football fan was shot dead in Montevideo while celebrating Nacional’s victory in the Uruguayan championship, local media reported. Nacional won the Uruguayan 2019 football championship Sunday by defeating Penarol 1-0. Citing…

US reassures Mexico on USMCA labor inspectors

Canadian Vice-Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland (L), US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer (R) and Mexican negotiator Jesus Seade (C) WASHINGTON, Dec 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US reassured Mexico that it will not station labor inspectors in the country under a new continental trade deal, after the Mexican president accused Washington of…

School’s out for migrants on Greek islands, UN warns

ATHENS, Dec 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — School’s out for all but one percent of some 12,000 migrant children stuck in limbo in desperate conditions at refugee camps on Greek islands, the UN said Monday. “Out of 12,000 children on the islands, only one percent go to formal public school,” said UN…

US Pres Trump says watching North Korea ‘closely’ as talks deadline nears

WASHINGTON, Dec 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — US President Donald Trump said he’d be “disappointed” if North Korea had something “in the works” as a year-end ultimatum from Pyongyang about the fate of their nuclear talks approaches. The nuclear-armed North has issued increasingly strident declarations in recent weeks, even promising an ominous…

Russia, China make UN proposal to ease N.Korea sanctions

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Russia and China on Monday proposed easing sanctions against nuclear-armed North Korea, on condition the regime commits to Security Council resolutions on denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. The proposal, in a draft resolution which surprised several diplomatic missions, came the same day Washington’s top…