Australian search and rescue teams arrive in quake-hit Vanuatu
Sydney, Australia Reuters Australian rescue and medical teams have reached Vanuatu, authorities said on Thursday, where at least 14 people including one French and two Chinese nationals were killed and hundreds were injured in a 7.3 magnitude earthquake two days ago. France’s Ambassador Jean-Baptiste Jeangène Vilmer on Thursday confirmed the death of a French national, […]
Vanuatu earthquake death toll rises to 14 as rescuers continue search
Updated: 11:15am (AEDT) Wellington, New Zealand Reuters Rescuers in Vanuatu on Wednesday searched for people still trapped after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck the Pacific nation’s capital Port Vila on Tuesday, killing 14 people, and damaging reservoirs, commercial buildings, embassies and a hospital. At least 200 people are being treated for injuries at the capital’s […]
Vanuatu urges World Court to recognise climate change harms
The Hague, The Netherlands Reuters Vanuatu on Monday urged the top United Nations court to recognise the harm caused by climate change in its judgment on the legal obligation of countries to fight it and address the consequences of them contributing to global warming. Vanuatu, one of the small island states that has spearheaded the […]
UN votes to ask world court to rule on national climate obligations
Washington DC, US Reuters The United Nations General Assembly voted on Wednesday to pass a resolution asking the world’s top court to define the obligations of states to combat climate change, a legal opinion that could drive countries to take stronger measures and clarify international law. The historic resolution seeking an advisory opinion from the […]
Exodus of healthcare workers from poor countries worsening, WHO says
Geneva, Switzerland Reuters Poorer countries are increasingly losing healthcare workers to wealthier ones as the latter seek to shore up their own staff losses from the COVID-19 pandemic, sometimes through active recruitment, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday. The trend for nurses and other staff to leave parts of Africa or South-East Asia for […]
From Pacific to Red Sea: climate court action gathers wave of support
Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt Reuters A campaign by the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu for the world’s top court to take a stance on protecting people from climate change gained momentum on Friday, winning the support of almost half the nearly 200 countries at a global summit. In total 86 countries, including core nations that […]
COP27: Polluters must pay for climate change, poor nations tell rich
Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt Reuters Leaders from poor countries criticised wealthy governments and oil companies for driving global warming, using their speeches on Tuesday at the COP27 climate summit in Egypt to demand that they pay up for damages being inflicted on their economies. Small island states already buffeted by increasingly violent ocean storms and sea-level […]
“Time is up”: Countries trapped in climate crisis raise alarm at UN
United Nations Reuters Countries on the front lines of the climate crisis are fed up. During the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations this week, low-lying island nation Vanuatu stepped up a fight to get the world to focus on combating global warming by calling for a fossil fuel nonproliferation treaty. “The […]
Vanuatu breaks ground with ‘loss and damage’ costing in new climate plan
Thomson Reuters Foundation Pacific island state Vanuatu has submitted a “groundbreaking” update to its commitments under the Paris climate accord to include phasing out fossil fuels and a costing of how it aims to tackle destruction caused by rising seas and wild weather. Climate experts said that while most national contributions focus on cutting planet-heating […]
Anglican convert and Pacific Island deity: Five faith facts about Prince Philip
RNS Prince Philip, who died Friday at age 99, was married for 73 years to the head of the Church of England, and it’s no surprise he identified for most of his life as an Anglican. But his religious profile was somewhat more complicated. Here are five faith facts to know about Britain’s longest-serving consort. […]