Algeria: Pres Bouteflika heads to Switzerland for medical checks

ALGIERS, Feb 22 (NNN-AFRICANEWS) — Ahead of Algeria’s presidential elections in April, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who is seeking a fifth term in April elections, will head to Switzerland for “routine medical checks”, his office said.The 81-year-old will have a “short” stay in Geneva, it said in a statement carried by…

South Africa: National Assembly to dissolve to pave way for May elections

PRETORIA, Feb 22 (NNN-SANEWS) — South Africa’s National Assembly has adopted a resolution to dissolve the Fifth Parliament, whose five-year term ends on May 10. This is in line with section 50 of the Constitution, which deals specifically with the “dissolution of National Assembly before the expiry of its term”. By…

Ecuador due to receive $10 bn in aid: IMF

WASHINGTON, Feb 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Ecuador has agreed to receive $10 billion in financial aid from global development bodies over three years, the International Monetary Fund said. The IMF said a staff-level agreement had been reached with Quito for $4.2billion in loans, with the remainder coming from the Development Bank…

Brazil’s Vale to pay US$3,200 to residents to compensate for dam burst that killed 300

SAO PAULO, Feb 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Miner Vale SA said it would pay adult residents in the Brazilian town of Brumadinho a total of 12,000 reais (US$3,227.02) as compensation for the damage from a dam that collapsed and killed over 300 people in January. The payment is the equivalent of…

Vietnam tightens security at border station ahead of Kim Jong Un visit

HANOI, Feb 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Vietnamese police have stepped up security at a remote rail station on the Chinese border where North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is expected to enter the country by train next week ahead of a summit with US President Donald Trump. Vietnam is preparing for Kim…

Mexico: Pres Obrador says no more Pemex oil joint ventures for now

MEXICO CITY, Feb 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said Mexico will not offer more oil joint ventures between private companies and state energy company Pemex indefinitely, raising doubts about auctions set for October. In reply to a question about the contracts, known in the industry as “farm-outs,”…

US, Canada, Mexico work to prevent swine fever reaching region

ARLINGTON (US), Feb 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The United States, Canada and Mexico are coordinating efforts to prevent the arrival of a highly contagious swine disease that has swept through China’s hog herd and parts of Europe, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said. The disease, African swine fever, can cause death…

IOC urges India isolation after Pakistani athletes denied visas

ZURICH/NEW DELHI, Feb 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The International Olympic Committee have suspended all Indian applications to host future events and urged international sports federations not to stage competitions in the country after two Pakistanis were denied visas to compete in New Delhi. The denial of entry visas for two shooters…

Syria war: Largest Daesh mass grave yet found outside Raqqa

RAQQA (Syria), Feb 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Two feet deep, below a plot of farmland outside the Syrian city of Raqqa, lies a large and deadly legacy of the Daesh group: a mass grave holding an estimated 3,500 people. First responders learned of the burial site in the al-Fukheikha agricultural suburb…

Spain: Road blocks, strike in Catalonia against separatists’ trial

BARCELONA, Feb 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Activists blocked roads and rail lines in Catalonia on Thursday as a region-wide strike began against the trial of separatist leaders for their role in a failed 2017 secession attempt. Called by a small pro-independence union, Intersindical CSC, but without the backing of larger unions, the…