Uruguay joins Venezuela, recommends travellers visiting US to take extreme precautions because of violence and hate crimes

MONTEVIDEO, Aug 7 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — After the weekend shootings in El Paso and Dayton, Ohio, which left more than 31 dead, Uruguay followed Venezuela and warned their citizens to exercise caution when traveling in the United States. Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza advised citizens to “take extreme precautions or postpone…

Libya: UN-backed government steps up defence spending as war drags on

TRIPOLI, Aug 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Libya’s internationally recognised government has allocated 40 million Libyan dinars for its defence ministry, stepping up spending to fend off an eastern offensive as the war enters a fifth month. The government also granted each of its soldiers 3,000 dinars as a reward for fighting…

Poland to hold parliamentary election on Oct 13

WARSAW, Aug 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Polish president’s office confirmed that the country will hold its parliamentary election on Oct 13, which most pollsters expect the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party to win thanks to generous social spending and robust economic growth. Since coming to power in 2015 PiS has…

Zimbabwe to legalise growing of industrial hemp

HARARE, Aug 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Zimbabwe will change its laws to allow farmers to grow industrial hemp for export, cabinet ministers said, adding that the government saw the plant as a future substitute for tobacco, the country’s biggest export earning crop. Industrial hemp is a strain of a cannabis species…

Brazil: Supreme Court denies extradition of Turkey’s Erdogan opponent

BRASILIA, Aug 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Brazil’s Supreme Court rejected a request for the extradition of an opponent of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan saying there was no guarantee he would get a fair trial in Turkey. Ali Sipahi, a businessman and owner of restaurants in Sao Paulo, is a member of…

Thousands protest against Honduran president after drug link surfaces

Honduras’ President Juan Orlando Hernandez TEGUCIGALPA, Aug 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Thousands of protesters took to the streets of the capital on Tuesday to urge Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez to step down, just days after he was forced to deny taking money from drug gangs to secure his election in…

UN launches new Zimbabwe appeal as millions face food crisis

HARARE, Aug 7 (NNN-NEW VISION) — The UN food agency launched a $331-million appeal for aid donations to feed millions of people in crisis-hit Zimbabwe, which is reeling from a drought and the high cost of food.  Around five million people, or a third of the 16 million Zimbabweans, are…

Kenya, Jamaica commit to deepen trade, people-to-people ties

KINGSTON, Aug 7 (NNN-KBC) — Kenya and Jamaica have pledged to deepen bilateral and people-to-people ties for the benefit of the two countries. The commitment came as President Uhuru Kenyatta, who is in Jamaica for a historic state visit, held bilateral talks with his host Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness…

Kenya launches “Ivory Trade is a Rip Off” campaign

NAIROBI, Aug 7 (NNN-KBC) — In a fresh effort to raise awareness and curb the illegal trade in ivory, Kenya has launched a new wildlife conservation campaign dubbed “Ivory Trade is a Rip Off”. The campaign calls for the listing of the African Elephant in Appendix I of the Convention…

Kenya: Arrests made following the abduction of Cuban doctors

NAIROBI, Aug 7 (NNN-KBC) — Kenya’s Inspector-General of Police Hillary Mutyambai says that arrests have been made following the abduction of two Cuban doctors stationed in Mandera by suspected Al-Shabaab militia in April this year.  Mutyambai says police are still pursuing crucial leads on the whereabouts of the abducted doctors despite…