Brazil economy minister lost two more top deputies as ‘stampede’ of resignations continues

BRASILIA, Aug 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Brazilian economy minister Paulo Guedes said two of his top deputies had resigned in a “stampede,” news that could rattle market confidence in his reform agenda for Latin America’s biggest economy. Guedes, the powerful free-market guru to far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, is battling to steer…

US Pres Trump says coronavirus changed ‘great’ relationship with China’s Xi

WASHINGTON, Aug 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — US President Donald Trump said his relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping has frayed in the wake of the novel coronavirus pandemic and that he has not spoken to his Chinese counterpart for a long time. “I used to have a very good relationship with…

Anxious Mauritians use hair to stem Japanese ship’s oil spill

A satellite image shows the MV Wakashio ship and the oil spill off the southeast coast of Mauritius NAIROBI, Aug 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Mauritians are making floating booms of human hair and leaves in a round-the-clock scramble to mop up oil leaking from a grounded Japanese ship onto their pristine…

Tunisia PM designate to form technocratic govt without parties

Tunisia’s Prime Minister-designate Hichem Mechichi TUNIS, Aug 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Tunisia’s prime minister-designate said he would form a purely technocratic government following wrangling among political parties over the formation of the country’s next administration. The decision by Hichem Mechichi will likely put him in confrontation with the moderate Ennahda Party,…

At least 10 dead in Ethiopia protests over autonomy – health officials

ADDIS ABABA, Aug 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least 10 people died in clashes between protesters and security forces in Ethiopia’s southern region, health officials said, the latest violence as myriad ethnic groups clamour for more autonomy. The protests were sparked by Sunday’s arrest of local officials and activists seeking a…

Niger expands emergency across region where aid workers were killed

NIAMEY, Aug 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Niger’s government has extended a state of emergency to the entire region that surrounds the capital Niamey and suspended access to the giraffe reserve where six French aid workers and two Nigeriens were shot dead. Attackers on motorbikes ambushed the group on Sunday while they…

Covid-19: Dozens of Mexican centenarians beat coronavirus

MEXICO CITY, Aug 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Experts agree that the elderly areat greater risk of dying from the coronavirus, but in Mexico dozens ofcentenarians have beaten the odds and overcome the disease, authorities say. While the Latin American country has registered 53,000 deaths from thevirus, the survivors include at least…

Belarus crisis: Election challenger Tikhanovskaya in Lithuania after nights of clashes – minister

VILNIUS, Aug 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Belarus opposition challenger Svetlana Tikhanovskaya is in Lithuania, the foreign minister said, following nights of clashes in the authoritarian former Soviet republic after a disputed election. “She arrived in Lithuania and is safe,” Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius said. The minister did not provide further details.…

In Mali’s largest prison, coronavirus kept at bay

BAMAKO, Aug 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Mali’s largest jail is a squalid andovercrowded colonial-era throwback that in theory is an open invitation tocoronavirus. Instead, staff at Bamako Central Prison say that so far they have kept thedreaded virus at bay, thanks to time-honoured techniques of hygiene and self-help. Outside the penitentiary’s…

US: Democratic presidential hopeful Biden picks Kamala Harris to be his running mate, first black woman as VP

WASHINGTON, Aug 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Presidential hopeful Joe Biden named Senator Kamala Harris, a former rival in the White House race, as his running mate, marking a historic first for American women of color. Biden’s announcement capped a months-long search for a Democratic partner to challenge President Donald Trump in…