Vatican cardinal sues for defamation in Quebec assault claim
Rome, ItalyAP A Vatican cardinal sued a Canadian woman for defamation in a Canadian court on Tuesday after she accused him of sexual assault while he was Archbishop of Quebec. Cardinal Marc Ouellet, head of the Vatican’s bishops’ office, is seeking $C100,000 in compensatory damages for “injury to his reputation, honor and dignity”, according to […]
This Life: When love came down at Christmas
US columnist CAROL ROUND, in an article first published on ASSIST News Service, writes about the “essence” of the celebration…
Floods kill at least 120 in Congolese capital
Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of CongoReuters At least 120 people have been killed in the Democratic Republic of Congo capital Kinshasa after heavy rains unleashed floods and caused landslides, a government document seen by Reuters showed on Tuesday. Entire neighbourhoods were flooded with muddy water, and houses and roads ripped apart by sinkholes, including the N1 […]
“Enough is enough”: UK PM announces crackdown on illegal immigration
London, UK Reuters Britain on Tuesday said it planned to bring in new legislation to prevent migrants who cross the English Channel from remaining in the country, as the government tries to control a surge in people arriving in small boats on its southern coast. The number of people arriving in England across the Channel […]
Children dying in Somalia as food catastrophe worsens
Mogadishu, MozambiqueReuters More than 200,000 Somalis are suffering catastrophic food shortages and many are dying of hunger, with that number set to rise to over 700,000 next year, according to an analysis by an alliance of UN agencies and aid groups. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), which sets the global standard for determining […]
Ukraine battles Russian push in east as Kyiv allies pledge $US1 billion in aid
Kostiantynivka, Ukraine Reuters Russia and Ukraine pounded each other’s forces in heavy fighting around the small eastern city of Bakhmut on Tuesday, as Kyiv’s allies pledged just over €1 billion ($US1.05 billion) to help Ukrainians survive the freezing winter. Invading Russian forces have fought to seize Bakhmut for months as part of a grinding battle […]
Supporters of Brazil’s defeated Bolsonaro attack police headquarters
Brasilia, BrazilReuters Supporters of far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on Monday attempted to invade the federal police headquarters in the capital Brasilia, in a flash of post-election violence on the day the president’s electoral defeat was certified. Reuters witnesses saw Bolsonaro supporters, many in their trademark yellow national soccer jerseys or draped in Brazilian flags, […]
Some 1,500 migrants crossed Rio Grande into El Paso on Sunday – witness
Ciudad Juarez, MexicoReuters About 1,500 people crossed the Rio Grande overnight from Mexico into El Paso, Texas, a Reuters witness said on Monday, amid an increase in migrant arrivals in the area ahead of the expiry of a pandemic-era order that blocks them at the US-Mexico border. Some of the migrants were clutching bags in […]
Books: Bono’s memoir a fascinating account of an extraordinary life
NILS VON KALM reads Bono’s autobiography, ‘Surrender’…
Virtual reality games offer visceral taste of a climate-changed future
London, UKThomson Reuters Foundation It’s 2040 in Miami, and a powerful hurricane has swamped the low-lying city. You stand alone under a dark, foreboding sky, chest-high waves sloshing around you, an abandoned car floating nearby one of the few objects visible in the expanse of water. A ball-shaped robot then hovers into view, urging you […]