South Sudan ‘ready to mediate between Sudan, Ethiopia’ to end border conflict

South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir JUBA, Jan 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir has expressed readiness to mediate between Sudan and Ethiopia to end their border conflict, said Sudan’s Sovereign Council.Chairman of Sudan’s Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan on Thursday met with Tut Gatluak, South Sudan’s presidential adviser…

Ugandan President Museveni wins re-election in vote his rival says was rigged

President Yoweri Museveni KAMPALA, Jan 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Uganda’s longtime leader Yoweri Museveni has been re-elected for a sixth term amid allegations of fraud and lack of transparency around the vote count.The country’s election commission said Museveni won 58.64% of the nearly 10 million ballots cast, while opposition leader Bobi…

Pres Abbas announces long-awaited Palestinian elections

RAMALLAH, Jan 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas announced dates for the first Palestinian elections in more than 15 years, setting legislative polls for May 22 and a July 31 presidential vote. Abbas’s Fatah party, which controls the Palestinian Authority based in the occupied West Bank, and the Hamas…

Covid-19: US researchers discover two new variants

WASHINGTON, Jan 17 (NNN-XINHUA) — US researchers at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and College of Medicine have discovered two new COVID-19 variants likely originated in the United States. The findings include a new variant that carries a mutation identical to the strain found in Britain, and the…

Covid-19: Denmark leads EU in vaccinations with smooth roll-out

ROSKILDE (Denmark), Jan 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Denmark leads the EU invaccinations against the novel coronavirus thanks to a swift and smooth roll-out, and even more people would have got the jab if it had more available doses. So far, 2.2 percent of Denmark’s population of 5.8 million has beenvaccinated since…

Thousands of US-bound Honduran migrants reach Guatemala

EL FLORIDO (Guatemala), Jan 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least 4,500 Honduran migrants headed north to the United States in hopes of a better life crossed into Guatemala Friday night, with border agents putting up no resistance. The estimate of the number of people crossing over came from a Guatemalan police…

Morocco-Israel normalisation: Outgoing Pres Trump fetes, award rare military award to Morocco king, rallies behind claim

WASHINGTON, Jan 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — US President Donald Trump, in a last-minute push to solidify Morocco’s normalization with Israel, bestowed a rare award Friday on its king as his administration rallied international support in a regional dispute. Trump, who sees Arab recognition of Israel as a key overseas achievementof his…

Morocco Jews ‘already packing’ for direct Israel flights

CASABLANCA, Jan 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Fanny Mergui has no doubt:Moroccan Jews “are already packing their suitcases” to board direct flightsto Israel after the kingdom normalised ties with the Jewish state. Morocco, home to North Africa’s biggest Jewish community and the ancestral homeland of some 700,000 Israelis, is also hoping for…

Covid-19: Mexico hit by deadliest week of pandemic yet

MEXICO CITY, Jan 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Mexico reeled from its worstweek of the pandemic yet, with deaths averaging nearly 1,000 a day and ahealth system that was close to reaching a breaking point. The Latin American country has seen a spike in infections and fatalitiesfollowing the Christmas and New Year…

Outgoing Pres Trump to leave town early Wednesday before Biden inauguration

WASHINGTON, Jan 17 (NNN-AGENCIES) — By the time Joe Biden is sworn in as the 46th US president Wednesday, his scandal-tainted predecessor Donald Trump will already be far away, having helicoptered out of the White House a last time earlier that morning. Trump will be the first president in a…