Floods, landslides threaten Caraga due to continuous rain

Floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains since Wednesday are threatening parts of the Caraga region which is still reeling from a magnitude 6.7 earthquake that jolted Surigao City last week. The Davao City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office reported around 100 families evacuated along the city’s rivers when heavy rains threatened to flood homes.

Islamic State suicide bombing at Pakistan shrine kills 75

An Islamic State suicide bomber struck inside a famed shrine in southern Pakistan on Thursday, killing at least 75 people in the deadliest attack in the country in more than two years. The bomber entered the main hall of the shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sehwan and detonated his payload amid dozens of worshippers, according to three security officials, who said at least 20 women and nine children were among the dead.

4 policemen killed, 1 injured in Pakistan attack The incident…

Peshawar, Feb 17 : At least four policemen were killed and another injured when unidentified gunmen opened fire on their van in this restive Pakistani city. The incident occurred late last night in Dera Ismail Khan district in northwestern Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering volatile South Waziristan tribal agency.

Getting ready for tourism boom

To illustrate what Punlaan has done to hundreds of lives, let me quote a testimonial that appeared on its official newsletter called Punlaan Waves. One of its alumnae, Mary Ann Garcia Agajanian, currently pastry jr.

Priyanka Gandhi finally gets on campaign trail in UP, to accompany…

Raebareli, Feb 17: Congress star campaigner Priyanka Gandhi will finally get on the campaign trail on Friday in Uttar Pradesh. She will accompany her brother and Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi at his election rally in Raebareli, which will go to polls in the fifth phase of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections on February 27. Senior Congress leader Akhilesh Singh’s daughter Aditi Singh is contesting from the Raebareli seat in the assembly polls.

US under pressure on Syria stance ahead of Geneva talks12 min ago

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson today faces a grilling by global peers seeking clarity about Washington’s position on the Syria conflict ahead of crunch UN peace talks in Geneva. On the sidelines of a G20 gathering in Germany, Tillerson will join a group of countries supporting the Syrian opposition for talks pushing a political solution to the nearly six-year war.

UN condemns deadly terror attack on Sufi shrine in Pak15 min ago

United Nations, Feb 17 The United Nations today condemned the terrorist attack inside a crowded Sufi shrine in Pakistan’s Sindh province that left over 75 people dead and called for the perpetrators to be brought to justices swiftly. “We extend our condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government and people of Pakistan, and wish a speedy recovery to the injured.

Defense ministers from 27 nations to hold meeting on anti-Daesh campaign in fall

News selected on topics and regions – oil and gas, business, politics, IT, the South Caucasus, the Caspian Sea region, Central Asia Ranking of the Azerbaijani banking sector The defense ministers from 27 countries participating in the counter-Daesh campaign agreed to meet once again in the fall of 2017 to discuss the state of the campaign, US Secretary of Defense Spokesperson Cmdr. Sarah Higgins said, Sputnik reported.

Symphony to play dance music

The Okanagan Symphony Orchestra is issuing an invitation to get up and dance during their weekend concerts in Kelowna, Penticton and Vernon. “Our musicians are going to step outside the classical zone and step into a sparkling concert full of Latin rhythms, fantastic cross-rhythms and lots of percussion onstage,” commented Rosemary Thomson, music director.

Warm, wet weather to dampen smorgasbord of Wellington events

Wellingtonians will be spoiled for choice with a haul of events around the region expected under warm but wet skies this weekend. Start at the Island Bay Festival then head for the Petone Rotary Fair in Lower Hutt, BrewDay in Trentham, Wings over Wairarapa near Masterton, and then hit the Art Deco Festival in Napier.

South Korean court approves arrest of Samsung heir

A South Korean court approved on Friday the arrest of a billionaire heir to Samsung accused of bribery and other charges in connection to a massive corruption scandal. The Seoul Central District Court’s decision to issue a warrant to arrest Lee Jae-yong, 48, a vice chairman at Samsung Electronics and the only son of Samsung chair Lee Kun-hee, makes him the first leader in Samsung’s history to be arrested on criminal charges.

AWARDS: The Teesdale Business Awards 2016 were held at The Witham, in Barnard Castle

BUSINESSES were celebrated last night as the annual Teesdale Business Awards were held during a glittering awards ceremony in Barnard Castle . The Teesdale Business Awards 2016 was organised by the town’s Enterprise House and had more than 200 nominations for the annual celebration which showcases the best of Teesdale business activity recognising Teesdale businesses, social enterprises and individuals that have been successful in their own field of activity.

Lawmakers push for answers on Trump teama s Russia ties

A crisis over the relationship between President Donald Trump’s aides and Russia deepened as a growing number of Trump’s fellow Republicans demanded expanded congressional inquiries into the matter. Trump sought to focus attention on what he called criminal intelligence leaks about his ousted national security adviser, Michael Flynn.

Australia open to doing more in war on Islamic State

Defence Minister Marise Payne has left open the possibility of bolstering Australia’s commitment to the fight the Islamic State group. The United States wants to “accelerate” the campaign to crush the terrorist organisation and there have been reports that could mean more foreign soldiers and military assets deployed in the Middle East.

NEC Chairman Jerome Korkoya Must Stop Casting Blame and Deceiving The Liberian People

The statement by NEC Chairman Jerome Korkoya that the United Nations Development Program is to blame for the purchase of faulty camera equipment for the Voters Registration Exercise, the shortage of Optical Marked Recognition forms as well as his disclosure to Prime FM reporter that NEC, in the face of overwhelming problems, had registered about a million voters in the space of one-week, cannot go without comment.

Assad lashes out at Hollande before polls

Syrian President Bashar Assad lashed out at his French counterpart on Thursday, accusing Francois Hollande of sponsoring terror in Syria and encouraging Western nations to reset their relations with his pariah government, after six years of civil war. The comments, which came in an interview with to French media outlets Europe 1 and TF1, were the latest in a string of Assad’s public remarks aimed at revamping his image in the West in the wake of military victories on the ground in Syria.

Trump charts new Mideast course; maybe no separate Palestine

President Donald Trump listens as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during their joint news conference Wednesday in the East Room of the White House. WASHINGTON – Charting a striking new course for the Middle East, President Donald Trump on Wednesday withheld clear support for an independent Palestine and declared he could endorse a one-nation solution to the long and deep dispute between Palestinians and Israel.

Thousands of steam enthusiasts go loco for Darlington-built Tornado

A LEGACY of North-East engineering has seen the romance of steam returning to the railways for the first scheduled steam train mainline service in half a century. Tornado, which was built from scratch in Darlington by the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust, carried hundreds of passengers as it carved its way through snow-capped scenery in the Yorkshire Dales and Cumbria yesterday.

Politics is local, interest-based, race-based and ethnicity-based

Politics is local, interest-based, race-based and ethnicity-based. If not, why do the Gios and Manos in Nimba County always vote for Senator Prince Johnson; the poor for George Weah and his CDC; and why do we say that Grand Bassa is expected to go to Charles Brumskine; Lofa will go to VP Joe Boakai; and Bong may go to Weah-Taylor or to Cummings-Sulunteh if Sulunteh is VP to Cummings, etc? The same reason Congua were afraid and denied the native majority to right to vote and to form their own political parties from 1847 to 1980.

Civity UK Express Trains to be Delivered with TSA Motors

TSA was awarded by CAF, Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, S.A. in Spain, to design and deliver traction motors for Civity UK, a low floor train solution which was developed for commuter and regional services. The train operator Civity UK will strengthen its service by purchasing 43 Civity electric trains which can reach a maximum speed of 160 km/h.

There Will Be No Palestinian State Under Netanyahu’s Watch

President Trump should not be swayed by Netanyahu’s duplicitous argument, however convincing it might sound, that he is committed to a two-state solution when in fact he has opposed and will continue to reject in principle the creation of an independent Palestinian state under any circumstances. Netanyahu’s repeated assertions that he is ready to negotiate with the Palestinians unconditionally is hollow because he knows that President Abbas will not enter into negotiations unless Israel suspends the continuing expansion of settlements and the creeping annexation of Palestinian land, which prevents the Palestinians from establishing their own viable state.

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Security and emergency services put their training in use on Thursday during an anti-terrorist exercise ‘DEIMOS 2017’ at the Mall of Cyprus in Nicosia. The exercise was used to evaluate security and emergency services response to the asymmetrical threat of a blind terrorist attack directed at unsuspecting members of the public.

Vauxhall has plants in Ellesmere Port and Luton employing 4,500 staff

Business secretary Greg Clark will meet with Peugeot executives and the French government as he scrambles to secure thousands of British jobs at takeover target Vauxhall. The Press Association understands Mr Clark will travel by Eurostar to Paris tonight for separate meetings with French industry minister Christophe Sirugue and board members of PSA Group, which is in talks to acquire General Motors’ loss-making European operation.

Police hunt for two men after attack outside pub

Officers say they want to speak to the pair in connection with an assault outside Airfield Tavern pub in Horley High Street in the early hours of Wednesday January 11. Surrey Police say that the victim, a 38-year-old man, was reportedly walking into the pub at around 1am when he was assaulted and suffered a fractured jaw. PC George Willie from Reigate area Patrol Team said: “I would like to speak to the men in these images as I believe they have information which could assist ongoing enquiries.

Woman arrested in killing of N. Korean leader’s half brother

FILE – In this May 4, 2001, file photo, a man believed to be Kim Jong Nam, the eldest son of then North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, looks at a battery of photographers as he exits a police van to board a plane to Beij… . A police officer controls traffic in front of a hospital’s forensic department in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017.

As Islamic State loses territory, it seeks to survive online

Al-Qaida’s main affiliate in Iraq avoided extinction at the hands of U.S. and Iraqi forces a decade ago by backing away from military engagements and moving the remnants of its network underground until its reemergence as the Islamic State. That successor organization, now confronting its own eventual fall, is devising a modified survival strategy that may involve surrendering control of its “caliphate” in Iraq and Syria but seeks to preserve a virtual version of it online.

More questions than answers in assassination of Jim Jong Un’s half brother

It looks like a perfectly staged assassination, straight out of the pages of a spy novel: Kim Jong Nam, the estranged, exiled half brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, falls ill at a Malaysian airport, complains of being sprayed with some sort of chemical, and drops dead. A look at what officials are trying to piece together as they work to reconstruct what appears to be one of the most audacious, mysterious assassinations in recent Asian history: Kim Jong Nam, a jovial, overweight gambler and playboy, had embarrassed Pyongyang before – he tried to sneak into Tokyo Disneyland; he criticized his half brother – but he’s been generally seen more as an annoyance than an existential threat to North Korea’s stability.

NATO poised to open new Naples anti-terrorism hub

NATO was set to approve a plan Wednesday for a new anti-terrorism hub in Naples, Italy, which will serve as a focal point for monitoring threats growing along the alliance’s southern doorstep, NATO’s top official said. “This will help us to coordinate information on crisis countries such as Libya and Iraq, and help us address terrorism and other challenges stemming from the region,” Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said at the start of two days talks with NATO defense ministers.

Nervous NATO allies put on brave face for Trump era

Nervous European allies put a brave face on the troubled debut of President Donald Trump’s administration, expressing confidence in U.S. engagement with NATO as they prepared to hear from Trump’s defence chief at talks in Brussels on Wednesday. The meeting at NATO headquarters is seen as an opportunity for Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to reaffirm U.S. commitment to European security after an election campaign in which Trump appeared to question the value of the alliance.