Category Archives: headline

headline

SKN: Five Die from Covid in a Week, Officials Urge Vax for All

Five COVID-19 deaths have been reported in the Federation this past week by government health officials. They were all unvaccinated elderly people with pre-existing conditions.

To date the Federation has recorded 33 deaths from the Pandemic. But the Omicron variant has accelerated the infection rate here. There were 23 active cases on Dec. 21, 2021, but this grew to 1,316 by Jan. 14, 2022.

Federation health officials keep encouraging all citizens to get vaccinated as the best way to avoid serious illness.

 

 

 

 

The post SKN: Five Die from Covid in a Week, Officials Urge Vax for All appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

WORLD VIEW: US, Rus, Ukraine in UN Debate, Long Term Covid Effects, Cyber Attacks on US Schools, NK Long Range Missile, More

Jan. 24, 2022

Alternate text
  •  The U.S. and Ukraine will square off at the U.N. over a possible invasion
  • The omicron variant raises concerns over COVID-19’s long-term effect
  • Cyberattacks threaten U.S. schools amid the pandemic
  • North Korea test fires missile capable of hitting Guam
  • The U.A.E. intercepts Houthi missile as the Israeli president visits
  • A pregnant reporter fights the New Zealand government’s COVID-19 entry rules to return home
  • Olympic athletes worry that climate change has impacted the Winter Games
  • Landslides and flooding kill at least 19 people in Brazil
  • Spotify says it will add content advisories before podcasts discussing COVID-19 amid misinformation controversy

Menelaos Hadjicostis

Cyprus Correspondent

The Associated Press

 

The Rundown

I'm an image

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council is scheduled to meet Monday for the first time on Russia’s troop buildup and threatening actions against Ukraine at the request of the United States, and all key players are expected to square off in…Read More

I'm an image

More than a year after a bout with COVID-19, Rebekah Hogan still suffers from severe brain fog, pain and fatigue that leave her unable to do her nursing job or handle household activities. Long COVID has her questioning her worth as a wife and mo…Read More

I'm an image

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — For teachers at a middle school in New Mexico’s largest city, the first inkling of a widespread tech problem came during an early morning staff call. On the video, there were shout-outs for a new custodian for his hard wo…Read More

I'm an image

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea confirmed Monday it test-launched an intermediate-range ballistic missile capable of reaching the U.S. territory of Guam, the North’s most significant weapon launch in years, as Washington plans to respond to …Read More

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The United Arab Emirates intercepted a ballistic missile fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels early Monday as the Israeli president visited the country, authorities said. …Read More

OTHER TOP STORIES

ISLAMABAD (AP) — She reported on the difficult conditions mothers and babies face just to survive in desperate Afghanistan. Now, a pregnant New Zealand reporter has chosen Kab…Read More

BEAVER CREEK, Colo. (AP) — Ski racers settling into the start gate for Alpine World Cup events in the Rocky Mountains in early December squinted through sunshine that carried …Read More

BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) — Landslides caused by heavy rains killed at least 19 people in Brazil’s largest state on Sunday according to local officials, who said flooding forced s…Read More

NEW YORK (AP) — Following protests of Spotify kicked off by Neil Young over the spread of COVID-19 vaccine misinformation, the music streaming service said that it will add co…Read More

The post WORLD VIEW: US, Rus, Ukraine in UN Debate, Long Term Covid Effects, Cyber Attacks on US Schools, NK Long Range Missile, More appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Currency Devaluation: Guyana to Roll Out $2,000 Bill Worth $8US

CNW- In another few weeks, the Government of Guyana will launch a two thousand dollar bill (one Guyana dollar=US$0.004 cents).

Governor of the Bank of Guyana, Dr Gobind Ganga, says the new currency note will go into circulation after all of the administrative procedures such as publication in the Official Gazette, alerting the public about the security features and presenting one of the notes symbolically to President Irfaan Al.

“We are going to do it within three weeks. We are really targeting Mashramani time,” he said, adding that the new currency note was expected to go into circulation to commemorate Guyana’s 55th Independence anniversary but that was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It’s coming out. It’s really nice and it has our logo which is of recent, One Guyana, and it carries our national flower, our national flag. It’s a reflection of our cohesiveness and our natural and national heritage that we want to portray,” he said.

Mashramani, often abbreviated to “Mash”, is an annual festival that celebrates Guyana becoming a Republic on February 23, 1970.

Ganga said the GUY$2,000 note will depict the One Guyana unity theme and is part of plans to commemorate Guyana’s 55th Independence anniversary.

He sad it would not have been a good idea to have introduced a higher denomination because of expected currency revaluation in the coming years.

He said Guyana may have to return to one dollar, five dollar and 10 dollar notes because “the currency shouldn’t be depreciating any further.”

Guyana banknotes are in the GUY$20, GUY$50, GUY$100, GUY$500, GUY$1,000, and GUY$5,000 denominations.

CMC/

Advertisement

The post Currency Devaluation: Guyana to Roll Out $2,000 Bill Worth $8US appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

US CG Returns 40 Migrant Boat People to Cuba

MIAMI—The U.S. Coast Guard said it has returned 40 people to Cuba after intercepting two vessels near Florida while two people were being investigated for human smuggling.

The vessels were spotted near the Florida Keys on Jan. 23 and on Jan. 25. Two suspected smugglers were transferred to Homeland Security Investigations, a Coast Guard statement said.

“People illegally entering the U.S. using smugglers put their lives in the hands of criminals,” said Coast Guard Lieutenant Commander Mark Cobb. “Migrant smugglers are ruthless criminals who only care about profit.”

U.S. sanctions and the COVID-19 pandemic, which has reduced international tourism, have hurt Cuba’s economy. The Coast Guard said that its crews have interdicted 690 Cubans since Oct. 1, compared with 838 in the 12 months ending on Sept. 30.

Haitian boat migration is on the rise due to an economic downturn and a spike in gang-related kidnappings that have worsened since the July assassination of President Jovenel Moise.

The Coast Guard on Thursday said it had intercepted a sailing vessel carrying 191 Haitians.

It also called off its search for 34 people who disappeared after a boat carrying 40 people capsized off Florida’s coast. U.S. authorities have not released the nationalities of those on board.

Five bodies were recovered, and there was one survivor. Colombia’s foreign ministry on Friday said it would assist that survivor, a citizen identified as Juan Montoya, who was transferred to a Miami hospital in the custody of immigration authorities. His sister, Maria Montoya, died in the accident.

The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The post US CG Returns 40 Migrant Boat People to Cuba appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Argentine Truckers Stranded at Chilean Border by Slow COVID Testing, Canada Vax Protests, World Covid Stats

wwW
 
Parked trucks are pictured during a protest against new Chilean entry protocols to the country, that demand all drivers test negative for coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at the Argentine border with Chile, in Uspallata, Mendoza, Argentina January 28, 2022. Picture taken with a drone. REUTERS/Maximiliano Rios

Parked trucks are pictured during a protest against new Chilean entry protocols to the country, that demand all drivers test negative for coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at the Argentine border with Chile, in Uspallata, Mendoza, Argentina January 28, 2022. Picture taken with a drone. REUTERS/Maximiliano Rios

Jan 29 (Reuters) – Thousands of truck drivers from Argentina were stuck at the Chilean border on Saturday due to slow COVID-19 testing, as Chile faced its second transport delay crisis.

Since Jan. 21, more than 3,000 trucks have been stranded at the customs checkpoint of Cristo Redentor in Mendoza, according to the Argentinean Federation of Business Entities for Cargo Transport (FADEEAC).

The long wait has put both drivers and some of the trucks to the test, as trucks with refrigerator units must stay running at all times to keep the cargos at cold temperatures.

“This is becoming a real problem,” said Brazilian truck driver Junior Cesar, whose truck is parked in Uspallata, Argentina, near the Chilean border. “The engines are running day and night and they’re starting to fail and affect the cargo.”

Frustrated drivers waited by their trucks, cooking and sharing whatever food they could buy. They showered using buckets of water or a bathroom nearby that charges 300 Argentine pesos ($3) per use.

“I’ve been here for two weeks,” said Ruben Soza, a truck driver from Mendoza. “I have a refrigeration unit as you can see, with garlic, and the gasoline is not enough to run the refrigeration unit.”

A similar problem has occurred at Chile’s northern border in the Tambo Quemado mountain pass, where drivers from Bolivia too face long waits in line for COVID-19 testing.

The FADEEAC has asked Argentina’s foreign ministry to intervene and try to prevent further delays and minimize the economic losses, which according to FADEEAC estimates add up to $700 a day.

On Friday, Chile’s health ministry reported 26,727 new COVID-19 cases. Argentina reported 63,884.

Reporting by Juan Bustamante; writing by Diane Craft; editing by Grant McCool
========================================================

Canada rally against vaccine mandates blocks Ottawa as Trump praises protest

By

OTTAWA, Jan 30 (Reuters) – Dozens of trucks and other vehicles blocked the downtown area of Ottawa for a second day after thousands descended on Canada’s capital city on Saturday to protest against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and COVID-19 vaccine mandates.

Trucks remained parked on the streets near parliament on Sunday, a day before lawmakers are due to resume work after the holiday break. Hundreds of protesters were out on Sunday, too. Some truckers said they will not leave until the mandate is overturned.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump, speaking at a rally in Texas on Saturday, praised the Canadian protesters for “resisting bravely these lawless mandates”, in a sign the politicization of the pandemic seen mostly south of the border has spread north.

In solidarity with the Ottawa rally, truckers and protesters have blocked a Canada-U.S. border crossing in southern Alberta, police said on Twitter.

In Ottawa, thousands gathered peacefully on Saturday and there were no arrests, though several incidents are now being investigated by police.

“Several criminal investigations are underway,” Ottawa police said on Twitter, including for the “desecration of the National War Memorial” and “threatening/illegal/intimidating behaviour to police/city workers and other individuals”.

One protester was filmed dancing on the war memorial – the tomb of the unknown soldier – and flags bearing swastikas were seen in the crowd. A downtown mall shut down because protesters refused to wear masks.

=============================================

WORLD COVID STATS

375,569,894

Deaths:

5,682,934

Recovered:

296,720,469
Highlighted in green
= all cases have recovered from the infection
Highlighted in grey
= all cases have had an outcome (there are no active cases)

 

The post Argentine Truckers Stranded at Chilean Border by Slow COVID Testing, Canada Vax Protests, World Covid Stats appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Heavy Rains Cause Landslides, Flooding in São Paulo, Killing 19

BRASILIA, Jan 30 (Reuters) – Landslides and flooding from heavy rains in Sao Paulo state have killed at least 19 people since Friday, including seven children, public safety officials said on Sunday.

According to São Paulo state authorities, nine other people were injured in the rains and four more were missing, while some 500 families were left homeless across the state.

Sao Paulo Governor João Doria flew over the flooded areas on Sunday and said he had authorized 15 million reais ($2.79 million) of emergency aid for the affected cities.

A bulldozer carries people across a flooded street after heavy rains in Caieiras, Brazil January 30, 2022. REUTERS/Carla Carniel

The federal government said in a statement from the Ministry of Regional Development that it is monitoring the situation.

The hardest-hit municipalities around greater São Paulo included Aruja, Francisco Morato, Embu das Artes and Franco da Rocha.

The storms also caused damages upstate in Varzea Paulista, Campo Limpo Paulista, Jau, Capivari, Montemor and Rafard, state officials said.

Since December, heavy rains have triggered deadly floods in northeast Brazil, threatened to delay harvests in the midwest and briefly forced the suspension of mining operations in the state of Minas Gerais.

Reporting by Marcela Ayres; Editing by Sandra Maler

The post Heavy Rains Cause Landslides, Flooding in São Paulo, Killing 19 appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Thirteen People Die in Mexico Highway Accident

An emergency crew members, including a forensic worker and a firefighter, work next to a damaged vehicle at the site of an accident after a van overturned and flipped into a ditch on a highway in central Mexico, near the city of Lagos de Moreno, Mexico January 29, 2022. REUTERS/Liberto Urena

MEXICO CITY, Jan 29 (Reuters) – Thirteen people were killed when their van overturned and flipped into a ditch on a highway in central Mexico, leaving another 10 people injured, officials said on Saturday.

Seven of the victims who died were initially trapped inside the car, the emergency services agency from Jalisco state said on Twitter.

The accident occurred near the city of Lagos de Moreno, on a highway that links the central states of Guanajuato and Jalisco, during a season in which Catholic pilgrims often visit a shrine in the nearby town of San Juan de los Lagos.

Photos from the emergency services agency show a large black van toppled onto its side in a deep rut along the highway, with what appears to be a shattered windshield.

The agency said 12 people lost their lives at the scene of the accident, including two children, and another person later died in hospital.

Reporting by Daina Beth Solomon; Editing by Diane Craft and Daniel Wallis

The post Thirteen People Die in Mexico Highway Accident appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Chile Anti-Migrant Protesters Destroy Camps in Tense North

By

SANTIAGO, Jan 30 (Reuters) – Chilean protesters marched against immigration and crime in the Andean country’s far north on Sunday, with some violent factions destroying belongings from migrant camps in the streets amid growing tension in the region over border controls.

Photos showed protesters, many carrying Chilean flags, breaking up tent structures and bedding in the northern city of Iquique and putting it into a big pile, an echo of angry protests in September last year when camps were burned.

Despite pandemic restrictions in recent years, many migrants from Venezuela and elsewhere have kept trying to reach Chile, one of the wealthiest countries in the region, which has been rocked in recent years by protests over entrenched inequality.

“This can’t go on,” read one protest banner from Sunday’s march in the coastal city by several thousand people, who were complaining about what they called a spike in illegal immigration and an increase in crime.

Local media reported that a group of protesters had attacked one migrant man. Videos on social networks showed the man lying on the ground surrounded by police officers while protesters, waving Chilean flags and holding saucepans, shouted at him.

The call to protest came after a group of Venezuelan migrants recently attacked police officers at a checkpoint, for which they were detained. Protesters on social media also called for strike action in the city over the situation.

Migration and crime were a big voter concern in presidential elections late last year, which were won by Gabriel Boric, 35, a leftist lawmaker and former student protest leader who comes into office in March.

Reporting by Fabian Cambero; Writing Adam Jourdan; Editing by Sandra Maler

The post Chile Anti-Migrant Protesters Destroy Camps in Tense North appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

DR Congo Issues Death Sentences for 2017 Murder of UN Investigators

BBC- Dozens of militia members have been sentenced to death in the Democratic Republic of Congo for their involvement in the murder of two UN investigative experts.

Swedish-Chilean Zaida Catalan and American Michael Sharp were abducted and killed in the Kasai region in 2017.

They were investigating alleged mass graves after fighting broke out between government forces and a militia group.

Their interpreter, Betu Tshintela, was also killed. Their bodies were found 16 days after being kidnapped.

Catalan had been beheaded.

The UN was shocked by the murders and at the time, and Secretary General António Guterres said the organisation “would do everything possible to ensure that justice is done”.

Hundreds of people died in the conflict in Kasai which ended in 2017. Over a million people were displaced by the fighting, which began after a traditional leader, Kamwina Sapu, was killed in August 2016.

The guilty verdicts were handed down by a military court at the end of a four-year trial.

Out of the dozens of defendants, 51, almost all militia members, were sentenced to death. But as DR Congo has declared a moratorium on executions, the sentences are likely to end up being life imprisonment.

They had faced a variety of charges, from terrorism and murder to the act of a war crime through mutilation, the AFP news agency reports.

Col Jean de Dieu Mambweni, who received the 10-year sentence, was accused of violating orders. Two others – a journalist and a police officer – were acquitted.

However, Human Rights Watch says this trial has not uncovered what really happened. It wants another investigation to find out if the orders to kill the UN investigators came from higher up the military chain of command.

The post DR Congo Issues Death Sentences for 2017 Murder of UN Investigators appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

headline

Peru Oil Spill After Tonga Eruption Bigger than Peviously Thought

An oil spill off the Peruvian coast earlier this month was twice as big as previously reported, according to the country’s government.

Environment Minister Ruben Ramirez said Friday that almost 12,000 barrels of oil leaked into the sea on 15 January.

Officials described the spill as an “ecological disaster” to blame for the deaths of local fish and seabirds.

It happened when tanker at the La Pampilla refinery was hit by waves linked to a volcanic eruption on Tonga.

The site, about 30km (19 miles) north of Lima, is owned by Spanish oil company Repsol.

Peru has demanded compensation and prosecutors have opened an investigation into Repsol’s role in the incident.

A judge granted a request on Friday to bar four executives from the firm leaving the country for 18 months amid the ongoing probe.

In a statement to the AFP news agency, Repsol said it would “fully cooperate with any criminal investigation” and said it was already aiding in the preliminary stages.

“Our main concern is cleaning up the environment. Repsol is putting all its efforts into cleaning up as quickly as possible,” the company added.

Repsol said it had calculated the oil spilled to be equivalent to 10,396 barrels, after a revised government estimate that put the number at 11,900 – up from the 6,000 previously reported.

In an update on Friday, the environment ministry said a third of the spilled oil has been recovered from the ocean and across 20 beaches.

Some local fisherman have staged protests because they are unable to go out to sea and work because of the disaster.

Repsol previously blamed the leak on unusual waves triggered by a massive volcanic eruption in Tonga, more than 10,000km away.

The Mare Doricum, the Italian-flagged tanker involved in the spill, has also been banned from setting sail.

La Pampilla is built just off the town of Ventanilla in the Lima region and is Peru’s largest refinery. It provides for more than half of the local fuel market.

The post Peru Oil Spill After Tonga Eruption Bigger than Peviously Thought appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.