Azerbaijan president cements grip on power after Karabakh win

BAKU, Feb 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev secured a fifth consecutive term in elections on Wednesday, official results showed, an expected outcome after his country’s historic victory over Armenian separatists last year. Tallies showed that Aliyev won the election with 92 percent of the vote after nearly all…

Cuba: Huge waves and high winds hurl jellyfish and seaweed into the streets of Havana

An old American car passes along the flooded Malecón esplanade in Havana HAVANA, Feb 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — An unusually strong cold front slammed Cuba’s north coast, with white-capped waves flooding streets with seawater, causing scattered power outages and littering the capital Havana with blowing trash and downed branches. Gusts soared…

Zimbabwe’s cabinet backs abolition of death penalty

Zimbabwe’s cabinet has supported proposed legislation to end the death penalty HARARE, Feb 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Zimbabwe’s cabinet has supported proposed legislation to end the death penalty, marking a pivotal point in abolishing capital punishment in the southern African country.Information Minister Jenfan Muswere on Tuesday said that the cabinet’s decision…

Nobody is dying of hunger in Ethiopia – PM

Abiy Ahmed says people may have died due to illnesses associated with malnutrition ADDIS ABABA, Feb 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has denied that people were dying of hunger in the conflict-hit regions of Tigray and Amhara, which are grappling with a food crisis.“There are no people…

Cholera outbreak kills 14 soldiers in south-east DR Congo

At least 14 soldiers have died in the DRC and 500 others have been affected by a cholera outbreak KINSHASA, Feb 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — At least 14 soldiers have died in the Democratic Republic of Congo and 500 others have been affected by a cholera outbreak in south-eastern Haut-Katanga Province,…

Deal to take copper by rail from Congo to Angola

KINSHASA, Feb 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Two multinational companies – Trafigura from Singapore and Ivanhoe Mines from Canada – have signed a major deal to export copper along a railway from the Democratic Republic of Congo.The corridor to the Angolan port of Lobito has been part-funded by the United States to…

Brazil starts mass vaccination amid upsurge in dengue fever

BRASILIA, Feb 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Dengue fever has surged in Brazil’s hot rainy season, forcing health authorities to take emergency measures and start mass vaccination against the mosquito-borne illness. In the first five weeks of this year, 364,855 cases of infection have been reported, the health ministry said, four times…

South Africa: President Ramaphosa expected to announce Election Day within 15 days

PRETORIA, Feb 8 (NNN-SANEWS) — President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to announce the date for the 2024 national elections within 15 days of the State of the Nation Address, which is to be delivered Thursday evening. “We look forward to the President delivering the State of the Nation Address tomorrow…

Peru reaches historic export record at US$64.355 billion in 2023

LIMA, Feb 8 (NNN-ANDINA) — Foreign Trade and Tourism Minister Juan Carlos Mathews announced that Peruvian exports value once again, and for the third consecutive year, achieved a historic record by having exceeded US$64 billion in 2023. Peruvian shipments to the world arrived at 180 markets, with China being the main destination…

UN says $4 bn needed to aid those impacted by Sudan war

GENEVA, Feb 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The United Nations appealed for $4.1 billion to provide desperately needed aid to civilians in war-ravaged Sudan and those who have fled as refugees, warning the conflict had fuelled “epic suffering”. The brutal conflict that erupted in April last year has caused a humanitarian collapse…