5.1-Magnitude Quake Hits 38 Km SSE Of Turangi, New Zealand — USGS

NEW YORK, Dec 14 (NNN-XINHUA) – A 5.1-magnitude earthquake jolted 38 km SSE of Turangi, New Zealand, at 0612 GMT on Saturday (today), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said. The epicentre, with a depth of 66.71 km, was initially determined to be at 39.3173 degrees south latitude, and 176.1262 degrees…

Jetstar Plane Gets Stuck At Manila’s Int’l Airport Grassy Portion

MANILA, Dec 14 (NNN-PNA) – A Jetstar Airways plane bound for Japan, veered off a runway and got stuck at the grassy portion of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), before dawn on Saturday (today), airport authorities said. The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), said, all passengers and…

India’s Trade Deficit Widens To 12 Billion USD In Nov

MUMBAI, Dec 14 (NNN-PTI) – India’s trade deficit widened to 12.13 billion U.S. dollars in Nov, from 11 billion in Oct, the commerce ministry said, on Friday. Exports contracted for the fourth straight month in Nov, while the decline in imports eased on sequential basis. However, the deficit narrowed compared…

Java-Bali Electricity Gains More Supply As PLTU Java 7 Starts Operation

BANTEN, Indonesia, Dec 14 (NNN-XINHUA) – Unit 1 of Indonesia’s coal-fired power plant PLTU Java 7, developed by a consortium of Chinese and Indonesian companies, officially kicked off commercial operation on Friday. Unit 1 of PLTU Java 7, is situated in Banten province’s sub-district of Bojonegara. Unit 2 is currently…

Lebanon’s Energy Minister Grants Total, License To Drill Exploratory Well

BEIRUT, Dec 14 (NNN-NNA) – Lebanese Energy Minister, Nada Boustani, announced that, she granted Total the license to drill Lebanon’s first well, in block 4 of the country’s water territories. “The launch of this license and handing it over to the consortium of Total, Eni and Novatek, is the first…

UN Agencies Return Home 5,087 Somali Refugees From Yemen In Two Years

MOGADISHU, Dec 14 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Two UN agencies said, some 5,087 Somali refugees have so far returned home from Yemen, since it started an Assisted Spontaneous Return (ASR) programme, in 2017. The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said, 39 organised departures have taken place,…

Landmine Explosion Kills Three Children In Syria

DAMASCUS, Dec 14 (NNN-SANA) – Three children were killed and four others were injured on Friday, when a landmine exploded, in the southern province of Daraa. The landmine is part of the leftovers of the rebels’ weaponry, in the town of Nasib, located in the countryside of Daraa, said the…

Turkish Foreign Ministry Summons U.S. Ambassador Over Senate Resolution

ANKARA, Dec 14 (NNN-ANADOLU) – Turkish Foreign Ministry, summoned U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, David Satterfield, a day after U.S. Senate voted to recognise the killings of Armenians, during World War I, as “genocide.” Turkey’s deputy Foreign Minister, Sedat Onal, sent Ankara’s opposition to the U.S. Senate resolution, a Foreign Ministry…

U.S. Attempts To Incite Lebanese Anger Against Hezbollah: Nasrallah

BEIRUT, Dec 14 (NNN-NNA) – Hezbollah leader, Sayeed Hassan Nasrallah, slammed the U.S. for attempting to incite anger among the Lebanese against Hezbollah. Nasrallah urged Lebanese officials and citizens, not to trust the U.S., and instead work together to save the country from its current crisis. “Do not trust the…

Iranian Military Commander Warns U.S. Against Sanction Pressures On Iran

TEHRAN, Dec 14 (NNN-TASNIM) – Chief commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), said that, the Iranian nation will not surrender under U.S. pressures, Tehran Times daily reported, on Friday. “We tell you that, if you do not abandon (your pressures), we will set fire onto your interests,” IRGC…