Gaza ceasefire deal takes effect and fighting halts after delay
Updated: 10:15pm (AEDT) Jerusalem/Cairo, Egypt Reuters A ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip took effect on Sunday after a nearly three-hour delay, pausing a 15-month-old war that has brought devastation and seismic political change to the Middle East. Residents and a medical worker in Gaza said that they had heard no […]
“Bombed from the sky”: Nigerians decry another deadly airstrike on civilians
Abuja, Nigeria Reuters When vigilantes in north-western Nigeria’s Tungar Kara town prepared to go after an armed gang in a nearby forest last Saturday, residents cheered and prayed for their safe return. But before they set off on their mission, the town was bombed in an airstrike by the Nigerian Air Force (NAF), which it […]
Indonesia needs $US6 billion more in budget to fast-track free meals program
Jakarta, Indonesia Reuters Indonesia needs 100 trillion rupiah ($US6.11 billion) in additional budget to expand its free nutritious meals program to reach more than a quarter of its population by year-end, the head of the agency overseeing the program said on Friday. Dadan Hindayana said President Prabowo Subianto is considering ways to reach nearly 83 […]
South Korean court extends President Yoon’s detention, angering supporters
Seoul, South Korea Reuters A South Korean court on Sunday extended President Yoon Suk Yeol’s detention for up to 20 days, citing concern he could destroy evidence in a criminal probe into his short-lived declaration of martial law in early December. Yoon on Wednesday became the first sitting South Korean President to be arrested as […]
Russian strikes kill six in Ukraine including in Kyiv, officials say
Kyiv, Ukraine Reuters Russian forces unleashed a combined drone and missile strike on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early on Saturday, killing three people, while two other attacks in the country’s south killed three more, officials said. In Kyiv, explosions boomed across the pre-dawn sky as air defences activated against the attack, which also wounded three […]
White House: Under Biden, faith-based office bookended by COVID-19, war in Gaza
ADELLE M BANKS and JACK JENKINS, of Religion News Service, report on the work of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships during Biden’s presidency…
Immigrant US farmworkers prepare for Trump mass deportation plan
Reuters Immigrant farmworkers are preparing for incoming US President Donald Trump’s promise of mass deportations, including by assigning guardians for their children if they are detained, according to groups providing them legal support. Rising demand for such legal services reflects anxiety that Trump will follow through on a campaign vow to deport millions of undocumented […]
Thousands gather in Washington to protest Trump inauguration
Washington DC, US Reuters Thousands of people gathered in Washington on Saturday to protest President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, as activists for women’s rights, racial justice and other causes rallied against incoming policies they say will threaten their constitutional rights during the Republican’s second term. Some in the crowd wore the pink hats that marked the […]
Fuel tanker truck blast kills at least 70 in Nigeria
Maiduguri, Nigeria Reuters At least 70 people were killed and more injured in northern Nigeria on Saturday when a petrol tanker truck overturned, spilling fuel that exploded, the country’s national emergency agency said. The accident in Niger state follows a similar blast in Jigawa state last October that killed 147 people, one of the worst […]
Migrants set fire in midnight camp raid in northern Mexico
Chihuahua, Mexico Reuters Migrants trying to avoid arrest set fire to blankets and mattresses at a camp in the northern Mexican city of Chihuahua during a raid by government forces to clear the site in the early hours of Saturday. The enforcement action near the US border come just ahead of the inauguration on Monday […]