Zambia: Victoria Falls shrink to a trickle, feeding climate change fears

A combination picture shows water flowing (top) and low-water levels after a prolonged drought (bottom) at Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe taken January 17, 2019 and December 4, 2019. VICTORIA FALLS (Zambia), Dec 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — For decades Victoria Falls, where southern Africa’s Zambezi river cascade down 100 metres into a gash…

Mexico, US discuss ‘last issues’ in trade pact, faced with new steel demand

WASHINGTON, Dec 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Mexico’s deputy foreign minister for North America, Jesus Seade, said on Friday that negotiators were dealing with the “last issues” that remain in the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) trade deal negotiation. When asked about a possible delay in the talks due to disagreements around steel,…

Huge protest days ahead of contentious Algeria vote

ALGIERS, Dec 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A vast crowd rallied in Algiers on the final on Friday before a contentious presidential election many see as an elite attempt to cling to power despite months of protests. “No to voting, we swear we will not stop!” protesters chanted. “No retreat!” The poll set…

Greece expels Libyan envoy over Turkey maritime deal

Mohamed Younis, Libyan ambassador to Greece (centre), was summoned to the Foreign Ministry in Athens and given a 72-hour deadline to leave the country ATHENS, Dec 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Greece’s foreign ministry on Friday said it was expelling the Libyan ambassador for failing to disclose the contents of a disputed…

Warning Iran, US slaps sanctions on Iraqi militia leaders

Iraqi anti-government protesters burn an Iranian flag during protests in Baghdad WASHINGTON, Dec 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The United States on Friday imposed sanctions on three Iranian-backed Iraqi paramilitary leaders over a deadly crackdown on protests in the country, as it warned Tehran to stay out of its neighbour’s affairs. The move…

In warning to Israel’s Netanyahu, US House endorses two-state solution

WASHINGTON, Dec 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US House of Representatives on Friday threw its weight behind a two-state solution between Israelis and Palestinians, in a warning to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he mulls annexing the West Bank. Passed largely along party lines, the House resolution also marked a shot across…

Pensacola shooting: Saudi airman in training kills three at US Naval Base

The US naval air base in Pensacola, Florida  PENSACOLA (FLORIDA), Dec 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) —The gunman who killed three people at a US naval base in Pensacola, Florida, was a Saudi airman in training at the base, officials say. He has been named as Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani – a Saudi military member in training at…

Germany: Chancellor Merkel expresses “deep shame” during visit to Auschwitz

WARSAW, Dec 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed “deep shame” on Friday during her first visit as chancellor to the former Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland. “I feel deep shame when I think about the barbaric crimes committed here by the Germans. These were crimes and violations that transgressed all imaginable boundaries,”…

Bolivia’s ex-economy minister takes asylum in Mexico

LA PAZ, Dec 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Bolivia’s former economy minister, LuisArce — credited with steering the country through several years of stronggrowth — announced Friday he had joined ex-president Evo Morales in Mexico, where he has been given political asylum. “I thank the Mexican government for granting me political asylum…

Top US court blocks resumption of federal executions — for now

WASHINGTON, Dec 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US Supreme Court on Friday refused to lift a stay on federal executions, temporarily thwarting plans by Donald Trump’s Justice Department to imminently resume capital punishment. There have been just three federal executions since the death penalty wasreinstated by the US government in 1988,…