DR Congo machete attack toll rises to 62

BULE (DR Congo), Feb 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The toll of a machete attack at a camp for displaced people in eastern DR Congo this week has increased to 62 people killed, including 17 children, an official said Friday at a mass funeral.    Grief-stricken relatives cried as men shovelled orange…

Argentina: Death toll from laced cocaine climbs to 24

   BUENOS AIRES, Feb 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The death toll among dozens of people who consumed cocaine likely laced with opioids in Buenos Aires rose to 24 on Friday, with 23 still in hospital, health officials said.    Eight of the hospitalized are in serious condition and on mechanical ventilation.…

US waives sanctions for Iran civil nuclear program

WASHINGTON, Feb 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US State Department is waiving sanctions on Iran’s civilian nuclear program in a technical step necessary to return to the 2015 nuclear agreement, a senior official said.    The resumption of the waiver, ended by the Donald Trump administration in 2020, “would be essential…

Peru president sacks PM accused of domestic violence, just 3 days after appointment

 LIMA, Feb 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Peruvian President Pedro Castillo dumped his prime minister Friday just three days after appointing him, amid outrage over revelations he was accused of domestic violence in 2016.    “I have decided to recompose the cabinet,” the president said, meaning Prime Minister Hector Valer Pinto is…

Covid-19: Ottawa police promise crackdown against ‘dangerous’ trucker protest against vaccine mandate

OTTAWA, Feb 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Ottawa police vowed to crack down on an “increasingly dangerous” protest by hundreds of truckers who have shut down the center of the Canadian capital for eight days to demand an end to COVID-19 vaccine mandates. The well-organised blockade – which police say has relied…

Covid-19: Austrian vaccine mandate come into force Saturday

 lowest rates in western Europe Reuters+ FOLLOW Published: 1:23am, 5 Feb, 2022Why you can trust SCMP TOP PICKShttps://8f92eaa6c0024e7f14bb70b3e66cf7e3.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.htmlCoronavirusHong Kong to buy millions of rapid tests amid ‘worst wave’ of Covid-19 cases5 Feb 2022NewsIs Hong Kong heading for ‘living with Covid’ after latest strategy changes?5 Feb 2022CoronavirusHong Kong urged to tackle…

Colombian charged in Haiti president’s killing pleads not guilty in US court

MIAMI, Feb 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A former Colombian soldier charged in the United States with participating in the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise pleaded not guilty Friday, his lawyer in Miami said. Accused by the US courts of having participated in the “conspiracy to kidnap or assassinate” Moise, Mario…

Mali: Thousands take to the streets of Bamako in anti-French protest

Supporters participate in a demonstration called by Yerewolo Debout sur les remparts, an anti-France political movement, in Bamako BAMAKO, Feb 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Thousands of anti-French protesters took to the streets of Mali’s capital on Friday waving Russian flags and burning cardboard cut-outs of French President Emmanuel Macron in celebration…

Burkina Faso junta says it will work with regional bloc

OUAGADOUGOU, Feb 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The army officer who seized power in Burkina Faso at the helm of a military coup last week has promised that he will work with the region’s main political and economic bloc towards a return to constitutional order. A delegation from the Economic Community of…

Seven dead as tourist plane crashes near Peru’s Nazca lines

There were no survivors among the seven on board LIMA, Feb 5 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Five tourists and two crew died Friday when their plane crashed on a trip to view Peru’s famous Nazca lines, the transport ministry said. The Cessna 207 single-engine plane belonging to the Aerosantos tourism company came…