WORLD - The African Mirror

Mar

10

2024

Israel strikes landmark residential tower in southern Rafah as truce talks stall

WORLD

ISRAEL struck one of the largest residential towers in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, residents said, stepping up pressure on the last area of the enclave it has not yet invaded and where over a million displaced Palestinians are sheltering. The 12-floor building was damaged in the strike, and residents said dozens of families were made homeless, though no casualties were reported. Israel's military said the block was being used by Hamas to plan attacks on Israelis. One of the 300 residents of the tower, which is located some 500 metres (1,600 ft) from the border with Egypt, told Reuters…

Mar

10

2024

By The African Mirror

Camorra fugitive arrested in Portugal after 20 years

WORLD

PORTUGAL'S criminal police agency PJ said on Saturday it arrested a member of Italy's Camorra crime group who has been on the run for two decades. PJ said in a statement it made the arrest in the country's northern region and that the member of the Camorra, as the Naples version of the mafia is known, was the target of a European arrest warrant. Twenty years ago, the 69-year-old male was sentenced to 15 years behind bars for drug trafficking but absconded and has been wanted by Italian authorities ever since PJ said. He has appeared before a Portuguese judge…

Mar

09

2024

By The African Mirror

Israeli offensive in Gaza’s Rafah ‘must not be allowed to happen’, UN says

WORLD

THE United Nations human rights office said that an Israeli offensive in Gaza's border town of Rafah could not be allowed to happen because it would cause massive loss of Palestinian lives. "Should Israel launch its threatened military offensive into Rafah, where 1.5 million people have been displaced in deplorable, subhuman conditions, any ground assault on Rafah would incur massive loss of life and would heighten the risk of further atrocity crimes," said Jeremy Laurence, spokesperson for the U.N. Human Rights Office. "This must not be allowed to happen." Defying international calls to halt its military operation, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said…

Mar

09

2024

By HELEN COSTER

At a glance: US presidential nominating contests and delegates counts for March 12

WORLD

PRESIDENT Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump could each net enough delegates in the next round of nominating contests on Tuesday to clinch their parties' nominations. In the Republican race, 161 delegates are up for grabs across the four states holding contests: Georgia, Hawaii, Mississippi and Washington. Trump, the sole remaining Republican candidate, already has secured 1,060 delegates and needs at least 1,215 to win the party’s nomination. On the Democratic side, Biden has faced no serious challenges and also appears likely to clinch his party's nomination after Tuesday's primaries. He has 1,553 delegates so far and needs 1,968…

Mar

09

2024

By MANDY LEONG

Son of Flight MH370 passenger conflicted over honouring the dead

WORLD

EVERY spring, China observes the Qingming tomb-sweeping festival, where families visit and clean the graves of their ancestors, making ritual offerings and paying respects. But for Chinese national Jiang Hui, 50, Qingming presents a dilemma: how to honour his mother, Jiang Cui Yun, who vanished 10 years ago aboard missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370. "It feels wrong to go and pay respects to my mother because she hasn't been declared dead. But if I don't pay respects, I miss her terribly and feel unable to do anything else in her memory," Jiang told Reuters in the Malaysian capital. "There doesn't…

Mar

08

2024

By GRAM SLATTERY and JOSEPH AX

Nikki Haley ends White House bid, clearing path for a Trump-Biden rematch

WORLD

Nikki Haley ended her long-shot challenge to Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump, ensuring the former president will be the party's candidate in a rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden in November's election. Haley, the former South Carolina governor and Trump's ambassador to the United Nations bowed out a day after Super Tuesday when Trump beat her soundly in 14 of 15 Republican nominating contests. "The time has now come to suspend my campaign," Haley told supporters during a speech in Charleston. "I have no regrets." She said it was likely Trump - who repeatedly belittled her candidacy - would be the Republican nominee but did…

Mar

08

2024

By The African Mirror

China to offer visa-free travel to travellers from six countries

WORLD

China will offer visa-free travel to nationals from Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium and Luxembourg from March 14, foreign minister Wang Yi said.

Mar

08

2024

By ANDREW HAY

Jury finds armourer guilty in fatal ‘Rust’ shooting

WORLD

A New Mexico jury found "Rust" armourer Hannah Gutierrez guilty of involuntary manslaughter, ending a trial over Hollywood's first on-set fatal shooting in nearly 30 years. Ten days of testimony had focused on whether the relatively inexperienced armourer endangered fellow crew and cast members in her handling and supervision of firearms on the low-budget production set in New Mexico. Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer ordered that Gutierrez be taken into custody immediately. She faces up to 18 months in state prison. As deputies led her from the courtroom, Gutierrez told her distraught mother, "I'll be okay." Jurors, who reached their decision…

Mar

07

2024

By NATHAN LAYNE and ALEXANDRA ULMER

Trump, Biden dominate Super Tuesday contests as they march toward rematch

WORLD

U.S. President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump swept to victory in statewide nominating contests across the country, setting up a historic rematch in November's general election despite low approval ratings for both candidates. Trump won the Republican votes in 14 of 15 states - including delegate-rich California and Texas - brushing aside former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, his last remaining rival. Haley's only win of the night came in Vermont. Trump's commanding performance on "Super Tuesday", when more than one-third of Republican delegates were up for grabs, means he has all but clinched his third consecutive presidential nomination despite facing a litany…

Mar

07

2024

By KAMAR GHOSSN

Displacement and upheaval in southern Lebanon as Israel intensifies airstrikes

WORLD

AS Israel expands its airstrikes deeper into Lebanon, hitting parts of the country previously considered safe, those already forced to flee the conflict are struggling to get by without jobs or much aid, unsure where to go next if things get even worse. Cross-border tensions between Israel and Hezbollah, the Lebanese political and militant group, have been growing since the outbreak of war in Gaza, with almost daily exchanges of fire. But in the past few weeks, Israel has intensified its attacks on southern Lebanon, hitting targets it says are linked to Hezbollah in the southern city of Nabatieh and…