HANOI, VIETNAM — Typhoon Yagi severely damaged a large number of factories and flooded warehouses in northern Vietnam's export-oriented industrial hubs, forcing plants to shut, with some expected to take weeks to resume full operations, executives said. The typhoon, the strongest in Asia this year, made landfall in Vietnam's northern coast on Saturday and was still causing deadly floods and landslides on Wednesday, killing dozens and ravaging key infrastructure, including power networks and roads. Читать дальше...
JAKARTA, INDONESIA — During his three-day visit to Indonesia last week, Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church, urged Indonesians to live up to the promise represented by the nation’s own motto — “Unity in Diversity.” While praising Indonesia’s constitution, which guarantees religious freedom, Francis also warned in an address following a meeting with President Joko Widodo that the diversity of the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation can also lead to conflict. Francis emphasized the... Читать дальше...
Abuja, Nigeria — The Nigerian secret police released labor union leader Joe Ajaero on Tuesday after hours of interrogation over alleged terrorism financing. Ajaero's arrest Monday sparked criticism about what critics see as a government crackdown on dissent. Ajaero, was released by the Department of State Services, or DSS, after he was arrested at the Abuja airport while on his way to the United Kingdom to attend a labor conference. He said Tuesday that DSS kept his passport. He said... Читать дальше...
HANOI, Vietnam — The death toll in Vietnam from Typhoon Yagi has risen to 141, the government said on Wednesday as it warned that flood waters were causing the Red River to rise rapidly and threaten to inundate downtown districts of the capital Hanoi. Heavy rains brought by Typhoon Yagi have triggered deadly landslides and floods throughout northern Vietnam, killing 141 people with 59 others missing, the disaster management agency said. There has also been severe property damage and disruption to business and industry. Читать дальше...
Mekelle/Addis Ababa, Ethiopia — The leader of Tigray People's Liberation Front Debretsion Gebremichael has reported previously undisclosed talks between his region and the leaders of Eritrea. Speaking at a press conference in the regional capital Mekelle, Ethiopia, on Tuesday, Debretsion said the first round of talks took place about six months ago in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. He told reporters that Getachew Reda, the president of the Tigray Interim Regional Administration, represented the TPLF at the talks in Dubai. Читать дальше...
Investigations by international human rights groups and witness testimonies provide evidence of government agencies' involvement in the disappearances of at least three prominent opposition figures as well as mass arrests.
SINGAPORE — An Australian think tank that tracks tech competitiveness says China is now the world leader in research on almost 90% of critical technologies. In a newly released report, the research group adds there is also a high risk of Beijing securing a monopoly on defense-related tech, including drones, satellites and collaborative robots — those that can work safely alongside humans. Analysts say the huge leap forward for China is the result of heavy state investment over the past two decades. Читать дальше...
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday presented Congress' highest honor — the Congressional Gold Medal — to 13 U.S. service members who were killed during the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, even as the politics of a presidential election swirled around the event. Both Democrats and Republicans supported the legislation to posthumously honor the 13 U.S. troops, who were killed along with more than 170 Afghans in a suicide bombing at the Abbey Gate at Kabul's airport in August 2021. Читать дальше...
washington — House Speaker Mike Johnson vowed Tuesday to press ahead with requiring proof of citizenship for new voters as part of a bill to avoid a partial government shutdown in three weeks, though the measure appeared likely to be voted down. Democrats overwhelmingly oppose the measure. Enough Republicans were also coming out against the bill, though for different reasons, that its prospects of passing the House appeared dim. Even if it does pass the House on Wednesday, the bill would go nowhere in the Senate. Читать дальше...
washington — More than a year after China's former foreign minister, Qin Gang, disappeared from public view, raising a host of questions, the Chinese government remains silent on his whereabouts. A new report this week from The Washington Post, citing two former U.S. government officials, suggests Qin has been spared any jail time and now is nominally holding a low-ranking position at a publishing house under the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Earlier reports speculated that he was sentenced... Читать дальше...
LONDON — Google lost its last bid to overturn a European Union antitrust penalty, after the bloc's top court ruled against it Tuesday in a case that came with a whopping fine and helped jumpstart an era of intensifying scrutiny for Big Tech companies. The European Union's top court rejected Google's appeal against the $2.7 billion penalty from the European Commission, the 27-nation bloc's top antitrust enforcer, for violating antitrust rules with its comparison shopping service. Also Tuesday... Читать дальше...
WASHINGTON — A controversial law on “foreign influence transparency” is heading toward full implementation in Georgia, even though the country aspires to join the European Union and North Atlantic Treaty Organization. September 2 was the deadline for Georgian nongovernmental organizations and media organizations receiving more than one-fifth of their funding from abroad to register as “organizations serving the interests of a foreign power.” Only 1.6% of the country’s organizations chose to do so. Читать дальше...
JEFFERSON CITY, Missouri — An amendment to restore abortion rights in Missouri will be on the ballot, the state's Supreme Court ruled Tuesday. The proposal to enshrine abortion rights in the constitution is expected to widely undo the state's 2022 near-total abortion ban if passed. Judges ruled hours before the Tuesday deadline for changes to be made to the November ballot. Supreme Court judges ordered Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft to put the measure back on the ballot. He had... Читать дальше...
