WHO chief poised for second term after rough ride

GENEVA, Jan 26 (NNN-AGENCIES) — World Health Organization (WHO) director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has been nominated for a second term by its executive board. Dr Tedros will be the only candidate for the election in May. No WHO director general has had a rougher ride than him – the…

Tropical storm kills 34 in Madagascar

ANTANANARIVO, Jan 26 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A tropical storm has caused havoc in southern Africa, killing at least 34 people in Madagascar and three more in Mozambique and knocking out power in most parts of Malawi. The authorities in Madagascar said 65,000 people have been made homeless. Parts of the capital,…

Covid-19: France posts new daily case record

PARIS, Jan 26 (NNN-AGENCIES) — France posted 501,635 new cases of coronavirus for the past 24 hours on Tuesday, a new daily record and the first time the headline number has surpassed half a million.    The country is currently recording the highest daily infection rates of any major European nation,…

US approves $2.56 billion in military sales to Egypt

WASHINGTON, Jan 26 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US State Department approved two major military equipment sales to Egypt of transport aircraft and radar systems, despite ongoing concerns in Washington over Cairo’s human rightsrecord.    The sale of 12 C-130 J Super Hercules transports and accompanying equipment is worth $2.2 billion.   …

IMF urges El Salvador to remove bitcoin as legal tender

  WASHINGTON, Jan 26 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The IMF called on El Salvador to change course and stop using bitcoin as legal tender, citing “large risks” posed by the cryptocurrency.   The small Central American nation in September became the first country in the world to embrace the digital money, allowing…

Covid-19: Brazil registers 487 deaths in 24 hours

BRASILIA, Jan 26 (NNN-Xinhua) — Brazil registered 487 more deaths from COVID-19 in 24 hours Tuesday, bringing the pandemic death toll to 623,843, the Health Ministry said. According to the ministry’s daily pandemic report, tests detected 183,722 new COVID-19 infections in the same period, raising the accumulated caseload to 24,311,317.…

2nd ballot to elect Italy’s president fails, but strong candidatures start emerging

ROME, Jan 26 (NNN-Xinhua) — A second ballot to elect Italy’s new president took place in the parliament on Tuesday, delivering no results as it occurred in the first round the previous day. Out of 976 votes totally cast, 527 were blank ballots. Yet, talks within and between the two…

Nigerian president optimistic about Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics

Only a few African countries, including Eritrea, Ghana, Madagascar, Morocco and Nigeria, are taking part in the Winter Games in Beijing ABUJA, Jan 26 (NNN-Xinhua) — Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari expressed his optimism that the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics will be a success. “With China’s rich experience in organizing international…

UN experts land in Peru to help clean up oil spill

Oil Spill In Peru LIMA, Jan 26 (NNN-Xinhua) — A team of UN experts on environmental disasters arrived in Peru to assist the cleanup of the oil spill that occurred near capital Lima on Jan 15 at a refinery operated by Spanish energy company Repsol. “The team of United Nations…

US Coast Guard searching for 39 missing off Florida

A man, who says he was one of 40 people who left Bimini, Bahamas, on Saturday before encountering severe weather, sits on a capsized boat off the coast of Fort Pierce Inlet, Florida WASHINGTON, Jan 26 (NNN-Xinhua) — The US Coast Guard said it is searching for 39 people who…