At least 10 killed as cyclone sweeps through Madagascar

ANTANANARIVO, Feb 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least 10 people have been killed and nearly 48,000 forced from their homes after Cyclone Batsirai struck Madagascar overnight, according to the island country’s office of disaster and risk management. The agency reported the deaths in a bulletin late on Sunday while state radio…

Mali: German Defense Minister ‘skeptical’ about continuing military mission under EU/UN

German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht BERLIN, Feb 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Germany’s defense minister on Sunday expressed doubt as to whether Germany’s military mission in Mali can continue. Christine Lambrecht told German broadcaster ZDF: “I am currently very skeptical about whether we can actually continue to be involved on the ground. I don’t…

Somali army kills 7 al-Shabaab terrorists

MOGADISHU, Feb 7 (NNN-Xinhua) — The Somali National Army (SNA) killed seven al-Shabaab terrorists in a security operation in the country’s southern state of Jubbaland on Sunday, local media reported. The special forces also destroyed the militant group’s hideouts in four villages in the state, SNA commanders who led the…

Ecuador capital flooding toll raised to 28

  QUITO, Feb 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The heaviest flooding to hit Ecuador in two decades claimed 28 lives in the capital Quito this week and left 52 people injured, the city’s mayor said.   The floods inundated homes, carried off cars and swept away volleyball players and spectators on a sports…

Mexico bus crash leaves eight dead, 15 hurt

  CANCUN (Mexico), Feb 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least eight people died and another 15 were injured in a bus accident Sunday near the popular Mexican resort of Cancun, authorities said.    The ADO company bus was carrying around 45 passengers, several of them foreign nationals, according to local media.    The…

Senegal declares national holiday to celebrate Cup of Nations win

  DAKAR, Feb 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Senegal’s President Macky Sall declared Monday a public holiday to celebrate the national football team’s first ever African Cup of Nations crown following their victory against Egypt, public television announced.    Sall, who had been due to visit Comoros at the end of a trip…

Morocco to bury ‘little Rayan’ who died trapped in well

GHRANE (Morocco), Feb 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Morocco prepared on Monday to bury “little Rayan”, the five-year-old boy who died trapped in a well despite a days-long rescue operation that gripped the world. The child’s fate drew global attention after he fell down a narrow, 32m dry well last Tuesday, and sparked an…

Baby dies in Trinidad coast guard migrant interception

SCARBOROUGH (Trinidad and Tobago), Feb 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A baby died in her mother’s arms after the Trinidad and Tobago coast guard fired on a boat carrying migrants from Venezuela, authorities said. The Caribbean nation’s coast guard ship TTS Scarborough attempted to intercept a boat that illegally entered the country’s…

Ecuador looking to increase China trade by 35per cent, minister says

Ecuadorean President Guillermo Lasso QUITO, Feb 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Ecuador is expecting a planned trade deal with China to increase commerce between the two countries by about 35per cent, though the South American country will seek to protect some local industry, Exterior Commerce Minister Julio Jose Prado said. The two…

Tunisian judges accuse president of seeking control, setting up new struggle

TUNIS, Feb 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Tunisian judges rejected President Kais Saied’s moves to disband the council that oversees them, a move they see as undermining their independence, setting up a new struggle over his consolidation of power. Saied announced overnight he was dissolving the Supreme Judicial Council, one of the…