Flooding kills at least 11 people in Ecuador capital

 QUITO, Feb 1 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least 11 people were killed and 32 injured on Monday after the heaviest flooding to hit Ecuador in nearly two decades triggered a massive landslide in capital Quito, authorities said. Torrents of water carrying stones and mud swept down an avenue in the Ecuadorian…

US lacks moral authority to criticise rights abuses, says Cuba

An old American car drives near a banner reading ‘As the virus, the United States blockade isolates’, in Havana HAVANA, Feb 1 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Cuba, marking six decades under American sanctions this week, has lashed out at US “cruelty” against the island nation and said Washington lacked the moral authority…

US: All federal prisons locked down after deadly gang fight

The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) wrote in an emailed statement that two prisoners died in hospital near the prison in Beaumont, Texas, where the violence erupted WASHINGTON, Feb 1 (NNN-AGENCIES) — All federal prisons in the United States were locked down on Tuesday after a deadly gang brawl involving several…

Haiti storm: Thousands of homes flooded, rivers swell amid heavy rains

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Feb 1 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Thousands of homes were flooded and some 2,500 families displaced in Haiti as torrential rain caused rivers to burst their banks, and rescue teams have begun evacuating people in high-risk zones, the civil protection authority said. Nearly 36 hours of rain caused flooding, primarily in…

Tanzanian jihadist killed in Mozambique – police

MAPUTO, Feb 1 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A suspected Tanzanian jihadist leader has been killed in Mozambique, two weeks after another militant leader from the East African country was captured by military forces. Tuahil Muhidim is accused of leading jihadist operations to occupy Mocimboa da Praia on the northern coast of Cabo…

Kenya, Portugal pledge deeper ties to improve health sectors

NAIROBI, Feb 1 (NNN-KBC) — Kenya and Portugal have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen collaboration in the health sector in the wake of sustained efforts by Kenya to advance the Universal Health Coverage agenda. A meeting between Health CS Mutahi Kagwe and the head of mission at the Portuguese Embassy…

Kenya elections: IEBC begins enlisting voters in UAE, Canada

NAIROBI, Feb 1 (NNN-KBC) — Kenya’s Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), Monday commenced Enhanced Continuous Voter Registration (ECVR) in United Arab Emirates and Canada. In UAE the exercise is taking place at the Kenya Embassy in Abu Dhabi and Kenya Consulate in Dubai. While in Canada the exercise kicks…

Kenya deports two fugitives wanted in UK for murder

NAIROBI, Feb 1 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Two murder fugitives who were arrested by Kenyan detectives last Wednesday have been extradited to face trial in the United Kingdom. Mohamud Siyad Abdihakim and Monteiro Tariq Kennedy Mangal, both British nationals, were arrested by Kenya’s Directorate of Criminal Investigations -Transnational Organized Crime Unit, in…

US urges direct nuclear talks with Iran, says time running out

 WASHINGTON, Feb 1 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A senior US official said that time was running out for nuclear negotiations with Iran and urged Tehran to agree to direct talks to help forge a deal.    Speaking on background, the official said that Iran’s nuclear program was nearing “breakout” toward nuclear weapons…

UN Myanmar investigators probing post-coup ‘crimes against humanity’

 GENEVA, Feb 1 (NNN-AGENCIES) — UN investigators said that more than a thousand people may have been killed in crimes against humanity and war crimes since Myanmar’s military coup one year ago.    “Tragically, reports received over the last year suggest that well over a thousand individuals have been killed…