Mali’s interim leader Bah N’daw meets with French Pres Macron in Paris

Mali’s transitional president, Bah N’Daw with French president Emmanuel Macron PARIS, Jan 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) –Mali’s transitional president, Bah N’Daw has met with French president Emmanuel Macron in Paris to discuss bilateral cooperation.N’daw was received by Macron on Wednesday for a working lunch and discussed the transition in Mali and the…

US calls for withdrawal of Russian, Turkish forces from Libya

UNITED NATIONS, Jan 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) – The United Statescalled for the immediate withdrawal of Russian and Turkish forcesfrom Libya, after a deadline for them to leave was ignored. This appeal marked a firmer expression of US policy toward oil-rich Libyaunder the new administration of President Joe Biden. “We call on…

Dutch court rules on Shell Nigeria oil spill case

THE HAGUE, Jan 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A Dutch court will hand down itsverdict on Friday in a long-running case pitting oil giant Shell against fourNigerian farmers who accuse it of causing widespread pollution. After 13 years of legal wrangling, an appeals court in The Hague will ruleon the farmers’ demands…

Covid-19: German vaccine commission recommends AstraZeneca jabs for under-65s only

BERLIN, Jan 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Germany’s vaccine commission STIKO said it was recommending the use of AstraZeneca’s coronavirusvaccine only for under-65-year-olds, due to insufficient data on itseffectiveness on older people. The panel of scientific experts said the vaccine, jointly developed withthe University of Oxford, should only be used for “persons…

US freezes giant UAE jet package, Saudi arms for review

WASHINGTON, Jan 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) – US President Joe Biden’s administration has temporarily frozen for review a massive package of F-35 jets to the United Arab Emirates and arms to Saudi Arabia, officials said. The nearly week-old administration has already signaled it plans to end support for the Saudi-led, UAE-backed offensive…

Covid-19: Too early to ease curbs in Europe, says WHO

COPENHAGEN, Jan 29 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The World Health Organization’sEuropean branch said it is too early to ease virus restrictionsin Europe despite a drop in new cases in most countries. Hans Kluge, the WHO’s regional director for Europe, said 30 of the WHOEuropean region’s 53 countries had “seen a significant decrease…

Covid-19: Botswana to vaccinate all citizens, says president

GABORONE, Jan 29 (NNN-Xinhua) – Botswana plans to vaccinate every citizen in the nation against the deadly COVID-19 pandemic once available, President Mokgweetsi Masisi said. “The country’s real and long term solution in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic is to vaccinate the whole population (of Botswana) against the deadly disease,”…

Covid-19: WHO team ends quarantine, starts Wuhan probe under global glare

WUHAN (China), Jan 28 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A team of experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) left quarantine in Wuhan on Thursday (Jan 28) to begin a heavily scrutinised probe into the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. The group started a two-week quarantine on arrival on Jan 14 in the central…

Covid-19: Record 18,000 daily toll worldwide

Relatives of a Covid-19 victim pray over a coffin at the General Cemetery in the central city of Huanuco, 370 kilometers northeast of Lima PARIS, Jan 28 (NNN-AGENCIES) — More than 18,000 people worldwide died of coronavirus over the past 24 hours, a new grim record amid the battle to…

UN calls for unification of Libyan electoral authorities

Stephanie Turco Williams, Acting Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya TRIPOLI, Jan 28 (NNN-Xinhua) — The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) called for the unification of the country’s electoral authorities for the municipal council elections. UNSMIL in a statement…