Indonesia bolsters recovery efforts after volcano kills 34

JAKARTA, DEC 7 (REUTERS) - Indonesian President Joko Widodo promised on Tuesday to bolster evacuation efforts and repair damaged homes after visiting the site of a volcanic eruption on Java that has killed at least 34 people. The 3,676-metre Mt. Semeru volcano erupted on Saturday sending a cloud of ash into the sky and dangerous py

UK AFGHAN EVACUATION CHAOTIC AND DYSFUNCTIONAL: WHISTLEBLOWER

Britain’s handling of the evacuation of vulnerable Afghans from Kabul after the Taliban seized power in August was dysfunctional and chaotic, a Foreign Office whistleblower said in evidence disputed by former foreign secretary Dominic Raab.

INDIAN STATE TENSE AFTER 14 CIVILIANS MISTAKENLY KILLED BY SECURITY FORCES

Indians outraged by the security forces’ mistaken killing of 14 civilians in Nagaland state held funeral rites for the dead on Monday amid intense security and sporadic internet outages aimed at damping unrest in the remote northeastern region.

Germany urges Iran to return to nuclear talks with realistic proposals

BERLIN, DEC 6 (REUTERS)- Germany wants Iran to present realistic proposals in talks over its nuclear programme, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said on Monday, adding that offers Tehran made last week almost all violate previously agreed compromises.

Myanmar’s Suu Kyi found guilty in widely-criticised trial

DEC 6 (REUTERS) – A court in military-ruled Myanmar found deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi guilty of charges of incitement and breaching coronavirus restrictions on Monday, drawing international condemnation of what some critics described as a “sham trial”.

China threatens countermeasures if US boycotts Beijing Olympics

BEIJING, Dec 6 (Reuters) – U.S. politicians should stop calling for a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics to avoid hurting bilateral ties and China will take “countermeasures” if necessary, China’s foreign ministry said on Monday.

BIDEN-PUTIN TALKS SET FOR TUESDAY AMID UKRAINE TENSION

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Joe Biden are scheduled to hold talks by video conference on Tuesday, the Kremlin said, as tensions rise over Ukraine.

At Least 14 Dead as Volcano Erupts in Indonesia

SUMBERWULUH, DEC 5 (REUTERS) - The eruption of Indonesia’s Semeru volcano has killed at least 14 people and injured dozens, the disaster mitigation agency (BNPB) said on Sunday, as search teams looked for victims in a landscape covered in deep layers of ash.

Five dead after Myanmar security forces ram car into protest

DEC 5 (REUTERS) - Five people were killed and at least 15 arrested after Myanmar security forces in a car rammed into an anti-coup protest on Sunday morning in Yangon, local news portal Myanmar Now reported. Witnesses on the scene told Reuters dozens had been injured. Photos and videos on social media show a vehicle that crashed through the protesters and bodies lying on the road.

Global leaders condemn Taliban amid allegations of summary killings

More than 20 countries, including the US, Germany, and Britain, have issued a joint statement expressing concern regarding allegations former security force members have disappeared or were executed in Afghanistan.

Omicron ‘quite infectious’, must not panic: WHO chief scientist

The World Health Organization’s chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan told the Reuters Next conference on Friday that while the new coronavirus variant Omicron appeared to be very transmissible, the right response was to be prepared, cautious and not panic.

Large scale Russian offensive possible in January: Ukraine

Russia has massed more than 94,000 troops near Ukraine’s borders and may be gearing up for a large-scale military offensive at the end of January, Ukraine’s defence minister told parliament on Friday, citing intelligence reports.

Heart inflammation risk in Pfizer and Moderna jabs evaluated

The European Medicines Agency’s safety committee has confirmed a “very rare” risk of myocarditis and pericarditis in individuals who’ve had the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna Covid vaccines, having conducted large Europe-wide studies.

UN seeks record $41 bln for aid to hotspots led by Afghanistan, Ethiopia

The United Nations appealed on Thursday for a record $41 billion to provide life-saving assistance next year to 183 million people worldwide caught up in conflict and poverty, led by a tripling of its programme in Afghanistan.

Germany agrees new COVID curbs as Omicron variant spreads across globe

Germany agreed on new COVID-19 restrictions on Thursday and the United States prepared to do the same, while U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the Omicron variant showed the pandemic could be around for “some time”.

Taiwan scrambles to see off Chinese air force 

Taiwan’s air force scrambled again on Sunday to warn away 27 Chinese aircraft that entered its air defence zone, Taiwan’s defence ministry said, the latest increase in tensions across the Taiwan Strait as China’s president met his top generals.

Thirteen cases detected in Netherlands as Omicron variant spreads

The new Omicron coronavirus variant kept spreading around the world on Sunday, with 13 cases found in the Netherlands and two each in Denmark and Australia, even as more countries tried to seal themselves off by imposing travel restrictions.

Indian farmers reinforce protest sites to mark year of demonstrations

Tens of thousands of Indian farmers marched overnight to reinforce protesting colleagues camping on the outskirts of the capital New Delhi to mark a year of sustained demonstrations against three farm laws introduced last year.

New COVID variant triggers global alarm as WHO urges caution

Global authorities reacted with alarm on Friday to a new coronavirus variant detected in South Africa, with the EU and Britain among those tightening border controls as researchers sought to find out if the mutation was vaccine-resistant.

Macron tells UK to ‘get serious’ on migrant crisis

French President Emmanuel Macron told Britain on Friday it needed to “get serious” or remain locked out of discussions over how to curb the flow of migrants escaping war and poverty across the Channel.

11 killed in Russian mining accident

At least 11 miners died in a coal mining accident in Russia’s Siberia on Thursday and an operation to rescue dozens more people stuck underground was suspended due to the risk of an explosion, the region’s governor said.

France beefs up sea rescue work, spars with UK over migrant deaths

France said on Thursday it was mobilising reservists and beefing up sea rescue operations as London and Paris traded blame over the deaths of 27 migrants trying to reach Britain in an inflatable dinghy.

Covid strain ‘worse than Delta’ found in 3 countries

Scientists are sounding the alarm, as what could be the most highly-evolved strain of the coronavirus has been discovered in patients in different parts of the world. Its resistance to vaccines adds to the concerns.

China rejects ‘malicious hypothesis’ over Peng, IOC backlash grows

China’s government has called for the end of speculation surrounding tennis star Peng Shuai, who made sexual assault allegations against a former vice premier and was then not seen for two weeks.

At least 46 killed in bus crash south of Bulgarian capital

At least 46 people including several children have been killed in a bus crash south of the Bulgarian capital Sofia that one regional leader described as a “huge tragedy.”

UN criticises India’s arrest of rights activist in Kashmir

The United Nations and rights groups have criticised the arrest of a prominent activist in Indian-administered Kashmir on terror funding charges.

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India’s Modi backs down on farm reforms in surprise victory for protesters

In a surprise announcement on Friday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he would repeal agriculture laws that farmers have been protesting against for more than a year, sparking celebrations for what farmers called a hard-fought victory.

Belarus trucking migrants back to the frontier despite clearing camps: Poland

Poland accused Belarus on Friday of trucking hundreds of migrants back to the border and pushing them to attempt to cross illegally, only hours after clearing camps at the frontier.

Brazil Amazon deforestation up 22% in a year

Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest rose by almost 22 percent in one year, the highest level in 15 years, according to figures Thursday that cast doubt on promises by President Jair Bolsonaro’s government to reverse the trend with “forceful” action.