Brazil out to elect new Mayors, 13 of them in the state of São Paulo

BRASILIA, Oct 4 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Brazilian voters are to go out Sunday to choose 19 new Mayors in six states after the Electoral Court has banned those chosen in 2020 to take office, citing legal grounds.  Sunday’s outcome is believed to yield some concrete evidence on the country’s current political…

Controversial Swedish cartoonist dies in crash

The scene after an accident killing controversial Swedish artist Lars Vilks and two police officers STOCKHOLM, Oct 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks, who lived under police protection after his 2007 depiction of the Prophet Mohammed prompted death threats, died Sunday in a car accident. The 75-year-old and two…

Libya detains 4,000 people in major anti-migrant crackdown

Rescued migrants rest near the city of Khoms, around 120 kilometres east of Tripoli TRIPOLI, Oct 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A major crackdown in western Libya has resulted in the detention of 4,000 migrants, including hundreds of women and children, according to officials. The raids took place in the western town…

Post-BREXIT crisis: UK rejects ‘uncontrolled immigration’ despite labour shortages

The absence of foreign workers has sown disarray in some sectors of the British economy, including fuel deliveries LONDON, Oct 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The United Kingdom will not return to “uncontrolled immigration” to solve fuel, gas and food crises, officials have said, suggesting such strains were part of a period…

Libya says ‘very modest start’ to withdrawal of foreign fighters

The UN estimates 20,000 mercenaries and foreign fighters are deployed in the country TRIPOLI, Oct 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Libyan Foreign Minister Najla al-Mangoush has announced a “very modest start” to the withdrawal of foreign fighters from the war-torn North African country. Oil-rich Libya is seeking to emerge from a decade…

Covid-19: Silent disco helps South Africans beat virus blues

   JOHANNESBURG, Oct 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Watching the sun go down on a warm spring day while listening to soundtracks playing on headphones, dozens of people danced in a mountain top park in South Africa’s economiccapital of Johannesburg.    It’s a budding urban craze spawned by the coronavirus pandemic lockdown…

Libya kicks off construction of oil refinery

 TRIPOLI, Oct 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Libya said work has begun on the construction of an oil refinery in the south of the conflict-ridden desert country.   The project will cost between $500 million and $600 million and become operational within three years, according to the head of Libya’s state oil…

Covid-19: Daily cases in Cuba continue to drop

HAVANA, Oct 4 (NNN-Xinhua) — The numbers of daily COVID-19 cases, deaths, and hospitalizations in Cuba continue to decline amid the government’s efforts to slow the spread of the pandemic. On Sunday, the Caribbean nation added 4,097 new coronavirus cases and 46 deaths, marking the country’s lowest daily numbers of…

Spanish PM pledges 200-million-euro aid as volcano increases activity

MADRID, Oct 4 (NNN-Xinhua) — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez promised an aid package of 206 million euros to help the island of La Palma overcome the effects of the ongoing eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano. The aid package, which is aimed at supporting infrastructure, tourism and water supplies,…

US: Massive oil spill off Southern California coast a “potential ecological disaster,” warn officials

Oil stains the Huntington Beach in Orange County, California LOS ANGELES, Oct 4 (NNN-Xinhua) — A massive oil spill off the Orange County coast in Southern California prompted the closure of a 9-kilometer long beachfront area on Sunday, and crews from California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) are cleaning…