Malawi court suspends ‘colonial’ wigs, robes due to high temperatures

LILONGWE, Nov 3 (NNN-AFRICANEWS) — Malawi’s constitutional court has suspended its requirement that lawyers and judges wear traditional white wigs and black robes in the courtroom as an early season heatwave sweeps the southern African nation. Temperatures in some parts of the country have hit 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees…

Botswana president takes oath of office for first term

GABORONE, Nov 3 (NNN-AFRICANEWS) — Dr Mokgweetsi Eric Keabetswe Masisi was sworn in as Botswana’s fifth president. Masisi and the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) emerged victorious in last week’s general election. The ceremony took place in the parliament in the capital Gaborone. In his acceptance speech, the president pledged…

Protesters in Haiti streets say their barricades are their future

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Nov 3 (NNN-EFE) — A large tree trunk, branches, boulders and wrought iron piled in the middle of Delmas 75 street, not far from the Canadian Embassy, is one of the barricades that have blocked traffic every day for a month and a half in the Haitian capital. Under…

Argentina: Official transition with incoming administration takes off next week

BUENOS AIRES, Nov 3 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Argentina’s official transition in anticipation of Dec 10 when elected president Alberto Fernandez takes office, is scheduled to begin Wednesday when Fernandez returns from his first overseas trip to Mexico. According to sources from the president elect office, Fernandez next week will make a…

‘No proof’ Greek tanker involved in oil spill off Brazil coast, says operator

SAO PAULO/ATHENS,Nov 3 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The manager of an oil tanker being probed by Brazilian authorities in connection with an oil spill off the country’s coast has found “no proof” of the vessel conducting activities that may have led to leaks on a journey between Venezuela and Malaysia. In a…

Update: Teams make progress against latest major California blaze

LOS ANGELES, Nov 3 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Firefighters in California madeprogress containing a sizable new blaze in the southern part of thestate as they continued to battle a much larger fire in the north. The so-called Maria Fire broke out Thursday in bone-dry conditions inVentura County, 105 kilometers northwest of Los…

Nicaraguan police seize more than 340 kgs of abandoned cocaine

MANAGUA, Nov 3 (NNN-Prensa Latina) — The Nicaraguan National Police reported on Saturday they confiscated a shipment of 344 kilograms of cocaine that drug traffickers abandoned on a beach in the western department of Chinandega. After being informed about suspicious movements on Los Clavos beach, in the municipality of El…

Cuba: Havana gets ready to celebrate its 500th anniversary

Renovation at the Capitolio Nacional is complete and ready for Havana’s 500th anniversary HAVANA, Nov 3 (NNN-Prensa Latina) — In a few days Havana’s 500th celebrations will have as main stages emblematic sites of the capital, and its main protagonists will be the local population and visitors. According to the…

Libya: East-based army launches airstrikes on UN-backed gov’t forces

TRIPOLI, Nov 3 (NNN-Xinhua) — The air force of Libya’s east-based army on Saturday targeted the forces of the UN-backed government in western Libya, as the armed conflict between the two rivals continues. A military camp located near the western city of Zolton, some 140 west of the capital Tripoli,…

Presidential election campaigns start in Guinea-Bissau amid political instability

BISSAU, Nov 3 (NNN-Xinhua) — The 21-day campaigns for presidential election scheduled for Nov 24 in Guinea-Bissau started Saturday as the country is going through yet another wave of political instability with two prime ministers and two governments. The first government, formed by Aristides Gomes after the last legislative elections…