WorldSep 23, 2020
Series of attacks on security checkpoints by Taliban, 28 Afghan policemen killed
Officials say the Taliban have killed 28 Afghan policemen in a series of attacks on security checkpoints in southern Uruzgan province. A Taliban spokesman says the group has claimed responsibility for the attacks. He says the attacks were carried out late on Tuesday after the police refused to surrender. The violence comes even as Taliban leaders and Afghan government-appointed negotiators are holding historic peace talks in Qatar, a Mideast country where the Taliban have set up a political office after the U.S. led invasion toppled them from power in Afghanistan. The negotiations are meant t
WorldSep 22, 2020
US crosses grim milestone of 200,000 deaths linked to COVID-19
In the eight months since the first COVID-19 cases were confirmed in the U-S, there have been more than 200-thousand deaths linked to the virus. The grim milestone was confirmed today by Johns Hopkins University, which has been keeping a tally on both deaths and cases of COVID-19 recorded around the world. It is by far the highest confirmed death toll from the virus in the world, with Brazil in second place with 137,272, followed by India with 88,935. But experts say the true number is likely even higher, given thatmany COVID-19 deaths were likely recorded as the result of other causes.
WorldSep 19, 2020
Mexico sees fentanyl seizures up 465%
Mexican authorities say seizures of the synthetic opioid fentanyl so far this year are 465% higher than in 2019, but progress against the other big Mexican export to the U.S. market, methamphetamines, is slower. The Defence Department said seizures of meth in Mexico rose by only 32.8% between Jan. 1 and Sept. 16, but busts of meth labs dropped 51% compared to the same period of last year. In a similar pattern, Mexico's seizures of cocaine rose by 46%, but seizures of key transport methods like boats and clandestine landing strips were down by 64% and 79%, respectively.
WorldSep 18, 2020
Firefighter dies battling wildfire sparked by gender reveal
A firefighter has died battling a wildfire in California that officials say was sparked by a device used to reveal a baby's gender. The U.S. Forest Service says the death happened Thursday in the San Bernardino National Forest as crews battled the El Dorado Fire.The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, has said that wildfire was sparked by a smoke-generating pyrotechnic device used for a gender reveal party. The identity of the firefighter is being withheld until family members are notified. The cause of the death is under investigation. Wildfires in California
WorldSep 18, 2020
U.S. border closure extended to Oct. 21
Public Safety Minister Bill Blair says the partial closure of the border with the United States is being extended another month, to Oct. 21. Crossings of the border have been largely restricted to trade goods, essential workers and citizens returning home since March, in an attempt to limit the spread of COVID-19. Blair and his American counterpart, acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf, each tweeted the latest one-month extension of the closure agreement this morning. The pandemic has raged in the United States throughout the spring and summer, and cases in Canada have recently starte
WorldSep 16, 2020
Yoshihide Suga named Japan's prime minister, succeeding Abe
Japan's Parliament has elected Yoshihide Suga as prime minister, replacing long-serving leader Shinzo Abe with his right-hand man. Suga bowed deeply several times when the results were announced in parliament's powerful lower house. Suga, who was chief Cabinet secretary and the top government spokesman under Abe, selected a Cabinet that is a mix of fresh faces and current or former ministers. He has promised to serve the interests of ordinary people and rural communities. Suga says he will pursue Abe's unfinished policies and that his priorities will be fighting the coronavirus and turning ar
WorldSep 16, 2020
President Trump issues disaster declaration for Oregon wildfires
President Donald Trump has issued an emergency declaration for Oregon due to the deadly wildfires that have burned across the state and federal officials have also declared a public health emergency as dangerous, smoky conditions continue. The major disaster declaration, issued late Tuesday, allows a range of federal help for people and public infrastructure affected by the blazes. The public health emergency declaration will give hospitals and other organizations in Oregon more flexibility in meeting the needs of people who are on Medicare and Medicaid. Authorities say more than 1,140 reside
WorldSep 15, 2020
Hurricane Sally crawling towards northern Gulf Coast, Alabama Gov. urges people to flee low-lying areas
The US National Hurricane Center says parts of Alabama and the Florida panhandle could see historic flooding when hurricane Sally makes landfall near the Alabama-Mississippi state line sometime today or early tomorrow. The Category 1 storm is crawling toward the northern Gulf Coast at just three kilometres per hour. Forecasters say some places could be inundated with almost two metres of water. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey is urging residents near Mobile Bay and low-lying areas near rivers to evacuate if conditions still permit a safe escape from Hurricane Sally.
WorldSep 15, 2020
Canada's impression of U.S. reaches lowest level in nearly 20 years: new Pew poll
Donald Trump's tenure in the White House and his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic have dragged Canadians' view of the United States to its lowest level in nearly 20 years, a new poll suggests.The Pew Research Center report released Tuesday finds a favourable view of the U.S. among only 35 per cent of Canadians surveyed, the lowest level recorded since Pew began polling north of the Canada-U. S. border in 2002. The finding tracks an identical trend among all 13 countries involved in the poll record lows were also recorded in the U.K., France, Germany, Japan and Australia."Overall, what we see
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