Germany bans weapons sales to Turkey over Syria offensive

BERLIN, Oct 14 (NNN-AGENCIES) –– Germany said it is halting sales of weapons to Turkey over its widely criticised operation against Kurdish militias in northern Syria. Germany, along with many of its allies, has condemned the offensive that Ankara says is targing the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia —…

US: Firefighters curb southern California blazes

LOS ANGELES, Oct 14 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Wildfires raging across southernCalifornia abated on Saturday with evacuation orders lifted after 100,000people were forced to flee their homes. A fire that had burned rapidly through the San Fernando Valley in greaterLos Angeles was the strongest of several across southern California. By Saturday, it…

Ecuador president orders curfew, military control in Quito

QUITO, Oct 14 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Ecuador President Lenin Morenoordered the capital Quito and surrounding areas placed under curfew andmilitary control, as deadly protests against government austerity measures roiled the city. The order would “facilitate the work of public forces against intolerableoutbreaks of violence,” he announced on Twitter, as clouds of…

Measles deaths in the Democratic Republic of the Congo top 4,000, Unicef rushes medical kits

KINSHASA, Oct 12 (NNN-UNICEF) — UNICEF is vaccinating thousands more children against measles and rushing life-saving medicines to health centers across the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), as deaths from the world’s largest measles outbreak top 4,000. Since January, 203,179 cases of measles have been reported in all 26…

US blockade affects Cuba’s tobacco industry

HAVANA, Oct 12 (NNN-Prensa Latina) — The tightening of the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the United States against Cuba has caused millions in losses to Cuba’s tobacco industry, according to an official source. The Tabacuba Business Group reported that the damages amount to $145 million from April…

Ethiopia converts former torture centre to tourist hotspot

ADDIS ABABA, Oct 12 (NNN-AFRICANEWS) — A palace that once housed Ethiopia’s emperors and also served as a torture site under the communist Derg regime is to open to the public in a controversial government tourism project.The palace compound in Addis Ababa, which Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government has rebranded…

South Africa’s ex-president Zuma to be tried for corruption: court

Ex President Jacob Zuma PRETORIA, Oc5t 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) –The corruption trial of former South African former President Jacob Zuma will hold, following a court decision to deny him a permanent stay of persecution.The Friday ruling by Judge Jerome Mnguni in the Pietermaritzburg High Court paves way for Zuma’s trial on…

Nepal bus crash kills 11, injures over a hundred

KATHMANDU, Oct 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — An overloaded bus plunged down a hill in central Nepal, killing at least 11 and injuring 108 people, an officialsaid Saturday. The packed bus was ferrying passengers — who had been celebrating theHindu festival of Dashain — from Sindhupalchowk to neighbouring Kathmandu. But the crowded…

UN envoy pushes to stop ‘blatant’ embargo violations in Libya

TRIPOLI, Oct 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The UN envoy for Libya said he hopes an international conference next month will produce a Security Council resolution committing foreign powers to stopping an escalating proxy war and an accelerated mechanism to enforce an arms embargo. The conference being organised by Germany is set to…

Journalist’s killing fuels ire of Haiti protesters

People run during a protest to demand the resignation of Haitian president Jovenel Moise PORT-AU-PRINCE, Oct 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The killing of a journalist who had closely covered Haiti’s political and economic crisis fuelled protesters’ anger as they marched by the thousands on the home of President Jovenel Moise to…