Brussels, Belgium | AFP | A US firm pursuing a lawsuit against Monsanto is urging the European Parliament to examine its claims that the agro giant has hidden the dangers of its weedkiller, according to a letter obtained by AFP on Thursday. The letter from the Los Angeles-based firm comes amid …
Read More »Facebook ‘context’ button is latest effort to fight fake news
Washington, United States | AFP | Facebook said Thursday it was testing a new “button” to allow users to get more context about a news source, in the latest move by the leading social network to curb misinformation. The new feature will allow users to get context on the source of …
Read More »UN battles mounting illness in Rohingya camps
Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh | AFP | Relief agencies on Tuesday fought to contain a diarrhoea outbreak around camps in Bangladesh where more than 500,000 Rohingya have taken shelter in the past five weeks. The United Nations said meanwhile it would seek $430 million to increase operations in the camps along the …
Read More »Zimbabwe arrests journalist over Grace Mugabe ‘used’ underwear
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Zimbabwe police have arrested a journalist at a privately-owned daily over a story claiming that President Robert Mugabe’s wife, Grace had donated second-hand underwear to supporters, lawyers said Tuesday. Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) said that Kenneth Nyangani, a NewsDay journalist, was arrested on Monday …
Read More »DR Congo violence pushes thousands into Zambia
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | Several thousand people have fled to Zambia in the past month to escape violence in Democratic Republic of Congo, the UN said Tuesday. The UN refugee agency said 3,360 people from DR Congo’s conflict-wracked southeast had entered Zambia since August 30, the largest influx of its …
Read More »Risk of Madagascar plague outbreak spreading in region: WHO
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | The World Health Organization said Tuesday there was a “moderate risk” that a plague outbreak in Madagascar would spread to other countries in the region, but advised against travel restrictions. The outbreak of both bubonic plague, which is spread by infected rats via flea bites, and …
Read More »Vigilantes kill six suspected ‘vampires’ in Malawi
Blantyre, Malawi | AFP | Vigilantes in Malawi have killed six people suspected of trying to obtain and drink human blood as part of magic rituals since mid-September, police told AFP on Tuesday. Malawi, where witchcraft is widely believed and education standards are low, is regularly dogged by rumours of “vampire” …
Read More »UN chief asks Cameroon to probe attacks on anglophones
United Nations, United States | AFP | UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has called on Cameroon to probe deadly attacks in the country’s restless English-speaking region after protests leading to a symbolic declaration of independence. At least 17 people were killed in weekend attacks in mostly French-speaking Cameroon’s southwest, a …
Read More »Zimbabwe’s Tsvangirai discharged from S.Africa hospital
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Zimbabwe’s main opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, has been discharged from a South African hospital were he had been receiving medical treatment, his spokesman said Tuesday. “He was discharged last week (on) Monday. He is now fine, he is out of danger,” Luke Tamborinyoka told AFP. Tamborinyoka …
Read More »Home-made bomb explodes in restive Cameroon region
Yaoundé, Cameroon | AFP | A home-made device exploded overnight near a police station in Cameroon’s restless English-speaking region, where separatist leaders have launched a campaign for independence, concurring sources said Tuesday. There were no reported casualties, they said. The bomb detonated near a police unit called the Mobile Intervention Group …
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