Update: 1,700 firefighters battle Portugal wildfires

AMENDOA (Portugal), July 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Planes and helicopters joined nearly 2,000 firefighters in central Portugal to battle huge wildfires in a mountainous region where more than 100 people died in huge blazes in 2017. Some 1,700 firefighters and 400 vehicles were deployed in one of the biggest mobilisations ever seen…

Murders in Mexico surge to record in first half of 2019

MEXICO CITY, July 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Murders in Mexico jumped in the first half of the year to the highest on record, according to official data, underscoring the vast challenges President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador faces in reducing violence in the cartel-ravaged country. There were 14,603 murders from January to…

US accuses Venezuela of aggression in skies over Caribbean

WASHINGTON, July 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A Venezuelan fighter jet “aggressively shadowed” an American intelligence plane over the Caribbean Sea, US defence officials said, slamming the manoeuvre as “unprofessional.” US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) said the Russian-made Venezuelan SU-30 “Flanker” took off from an airfield 320 kilometres east of Caracas on Friday, following…

US Sec of State Pompeo and Mexican counterpart welcome reduced flow of migrants seeking American asylum

MEXICO CITY, July 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo thanked his Mexican counterpart for increased immigration enforcement by the country, which he said is leading to fewer migrants entering the United States. The Sunday meeting confirmed a considerably calmer tone in US-Mexican relations than in early June,…

British PM to hold emergency meeting on seized tanker

LONDON, July 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Prime Minister Theresa May will hold a meeting of Britain’s emergencies committee Monday to discuss Iran’s seizure of a UK-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf. In one of her final important acts as prime minister before resigning on Wednesday, May will chair a meeting of Britain’s…

1,300 firefighters battle Portugal wildfires

LISBON, July 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Planes and helicopters joinedmore than a thousand firefighters in central Portugal Sunday to battle hugewildfires in a mountainous region where over 100 people died in huge blazes in 2017. By 12:30 pm, one of the biggest mobilisations ever seen in thearea — including 1,300 firefighters…

Zelensky party wins record score in Ukraine vote: exit polls

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (R) casts his vote at a polling station during Ukrainian parliamentary elections in Kiev, Ukraine on July 21, 2019. Photo courtesy of Vladimir Shtanko – Anadolu Agency KIEV, July 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Ukrainians gave their comedian-turned-president Volodymyr Zelensky a mandate to reboot the country’s politics on…

Cuba pardons more than 2,600 prisoners

HAVANA, July 21 (NNN-EFE) — Cuba’s government announced that 2,604 inmates – mostly women, young people and the elderly – have been granted pardons and will be released from prisons across the island. The decision was made by the Council of State, a body headed by Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel,…

AU calls for international actions to address DRC Ebola outbreak

ADDIS ABABA, July 21 (NNN-AFRICANEWS) — The African Union called for urgent international actions to tackle the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The call by the AU’s Director for the Africa Centre for Disease Control comes on the back of the World Health Organization’s declaration of the…

Strong contraction of Uruguay’s economy: GDP forecasted to grow 0.6% this year

MONTEVIDEO, July 21 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Uruguay’s Economy minister admitted that the country will end 2019 with a “very modest growth”, in the range of 0.6%, but was confident the economy would pick up in 2020 when the construction of a new pulp mill, with an investment of at least two…