Catalonia Spain: Barcelona Diada annual march draws smaller crowd

BARCELONA (Spain), Sept 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — About 600,000 people marched in Barcelona in support of Catalan independence on Wednesday, police say, one of the lowest turnouts in the eight-year history of the annual march. The Diada is the anniversary of the city’s fall to Spanish forces in 1714. A march…

Brazil: Killings by police rise as reports of daily rapes recorded the highest since 2009 – researchers

Students protest in front of the University of Fortaleza (UNIFOR) after a rape was reported RIO DE JANEIRO, Sept 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Researchers say there were 57,341 violent deaths in Brazil last year, a nearly 11% drop over the record number of people killed in 2017. The non-profit Brazilian Public…

Mugabe’s body arrives home for burial in divided Zimbabwe

HARARE, Sept 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The body of Zimbabwe’s ex-president, Robert Mugabe, arrived home on Wednesday for burial. Mugabe, a guerrilla leader who rose to power after Zimbabwe’s independence from Britain and governed until he was ousted by the military in November 2017, died on Friday in Singapore, aged 95.…

Spotlight: Pres Bolsonaro’s scorched earth diplomacy could cost Brazil

RIO DE JANEIRO, Sept 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Offending French, German, Norwegian and UN leaders along the way, Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro has embarked on a diplomatic scorched earth policy that is fueling concern over potential long-term damage to Brazil’s global relations. He has made a habit of speaking undiplomatically, wading…

Xenophobia: 400 Nigerians indicate willingness to return from South Africa – Official

PRETORIA, Sept 9 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The Nigerian Mission in South Africa says no fewer than 400 Nigerians have indicated interest and registered to be evacuated from South Africa following the recent xenophobic attacks. Nigeria’s Consul General in Johannesburg, Godwin Adama, said this in a telephone interview with News Agency of…

Canadian military deploys in wake of Dorian to clear roads, restore power

HALIFAX (Nova Scotia,Canada), Sept 9 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Canada’s government authorised hundreds of troops to help clear trees after Storm Dorian tore through the Atlantic coast overnight, leaving almost half a million people in three provinces without power. Dorian, classified as a strong post-tropical storm, hit Nova Scotia hard, leaving more…

French, Russian presidents discussed Ukraine, Iran by phone

PARIS, Sept 9 (NNN-AGENCIES) — French President Emmanuel Macron and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin spoke by phone on Sunday ahead of a meeting of the joint Franco-Russian Council on security issues scheduled for Monday in Moscow, the French presidency said in a statement. They also discussed a recent prisoner…

Russia’s ruling party loses a third of seats in Moscow election after protests – RIA

MOSCOW, Sept 9 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Russia’s ruling United Russia party, which supports President Vladimir Putin, has lost a slew of seats in the Moscow parliament, RIA news agency said on Monday, suggesting a tactical voting strategy pushed by opponents may have worked. Sunday’s poll was one of the most closely…

South Sudan rebel leader to meet president in Juba

Pope Francis kneels to kiss the feet of Kiir and Machar in the Vatican. Photo courtesy Newsision.co.ug JUBA, Sept 9 (NNN-AGENCIES) — South Sudan’s exiled rebel leader Riek Machar is expected to make his first visit to Juba in a year for talks Monday with President Salva Kiir, government and…

One killed in new South Africa xenophobic rioting

JOHANNESBURG, Sept 9 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least one person was killed and five others injured in Johannesburg on Sunday, police said, after security forces clashed with looters in the latest outbreak of xenophobic violence. South Africa’s biggest city and other areas were hit by a surge of attacks against businesses…