International

A string of powerful blasts from the direction of a military airport in Damascus lit up the skies and shook the capital city in the early morning hours on Sunday, residents and state TV reported.   The explosions were seen and heard coming from the direction of the Mezzeh airport, southwest of the capital. The airport has been targeted in ...

A stranded vessel empty of crew and goods that was found in Myanmar’s waters this week was being towed by a ship with 13 Indonesian nationals before it became unmoored, the Myanmar Navy said.   Fishermen came across the rusted and empty vessel, bearing the name “Sam Rataulangi PB 1600”, drifting in the Gulf of Martaban, about 11 kilometres (seven ...

The Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department of Thailand said over 78,000 people were still affected by the floods caused by tropical storm Bebinca and southwest monsoon.   The Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department said on late Saturday that 162,711 people from 55,353 families in 2,318 villages from 18 provinces have been affected by the flooding since Aug. 17.  Director-General of ...

Sao Paulo, Sep 1 : A majority of justices on Brazil’s electoral court voted late Friday to bar ex-President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from running in October’s presidential election, virtually ending any chance that the front-runner will get on the ballot. The decision, while long expected, leaves tens of millions of voters without a candidate and adds uncertainty to ...

Washington, Sep 1 : President Donald Trump “nodded with approval” at the suggestion of a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to a court filing Friday night that seeks leniency for a former campaign aide who lied to the FBI. Lawyers for George Papadopoulos are seeking probation, saying the foreign policy adviser misled agents during a January 2017 interview ...

Charlotte, Sep 1 : President Donald Trump says the prospect of North Carolina drawing new congressional districts just weeks before the November midterm elections is “unfair.” A panel of federal judges this week struck down the state’s congressional map, saying Republican state legislators went too far in using political data to preserve GOP-held seats. The judges raised the possibility of ...

Honolulu, Sep 1 : A can of pepper spray went off inside a plane headed from Oakland, California, to Maui on Friday, requiring emergency help for several people aboard, Hawaiian Airlines said. Twelve passengers and three flight attendants were treated for respiratory issues and released by emergency responders at the airport in Kahului, Hawaii, airline spokesman Alex Da Silva said. ...

Three Bulgarian ministers have resigned in the aftermath of a bus crash that killed 17 people and injured several others.   Prime Minister Boyko Borissov called Friday for the resignations of his interior, transport and regional development ministers over the crash, and Valentin Radev, Ivaylo Moskovki and Nikolay Nankov later agreed they would take political responsibility and resign.  The resignations ...

A Spanish sex workers’ union will hold a news conference Friday to react to the government’s decision to overturn its registration, a move that has reignited a debate among feminists over the legal status of prostitution.   Prostitution is tolerated but unregulated in Spain. There is no punishment for those who offer paid sexual services freely as long as it’s ...

South Korean media say President Moon Jae-in will send an envoy to North Korea next week for talks on a nuclear standoff and to set up a summit planned for next month.   There has been growing worry over the slow pace of getting North Korea to end its nuclear program following President Donald Trump’s landmark summit with North Korean ...