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The subtropical island arc is situated northeast of New Zealand’s North Island. The region is located in the Ring of Fire, a seismically active zone that is regularly shaken by powerful earthquakes. A 6.0-magnitude earthquake has hit the Kermadec Islands region in the Pacific Ocean at 12:51:28.4 UTC, EMSC reported …

Outbreaks of a drug-resistant “superbug” fungus spread among patients in hospitals and long-term care facilities in Texas and Washington, D.C., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday. The fungus, Candida Auris, preys on people with weakened immune systems. The CDC said evidence suggests these cases involved person-to-person transmission, …

Afghanistan has imposed a night-time curfew to limit the movements of the Taliban across the country, a day after the group demanded the removal of President Ashraf Ghani. “To curb violence and limit the Taliban movements, a night curfew has been imposed in 31 provinces across the country,” the Afghan …

The Miami-Dade County fire and rescue department on Friday declared an end to its search for human remains in the rubble of a Florida condominium tower that collapsed on June 24, killing at least 97 people. Authorities said one victim was still believed to be unaccounted for. The Miami-Dade Police …

Billionaire businessman and former Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati are set to be designated to form a new government next week, with President Michel Aoun planning to consult with parliamentary blocs amid an economic crisis. Political sources familiar with the matter said Aoun is going to hold consultations with parliamentary …

Lawmakers vote to abolish the death penalty more than 20 years after the country’s last execution. Human rights campaigners have hailed a “historic” decision by Sierra Leone’s Parliament to unanimously vote to abolish the death penalty, more than 20 years after the West African country carried out its last execution. …

The US is preparing to evacuate thousands of Afghan special visa applicants who are at risk from the Taliban. US President Joe Biden has authorized up to $100m from an emergency fund to meet “unexpected urgent” refugee needs stemming from the situation in Afghanistan, including for Afghan special immigration visa …

Thousands take to the streets of the Australian city to protest against lockdown restrictions amid a surge in cases. Thousands of anti-lockdown activists marched through major Australian cities on Saturday, following an extension of Covid-19 restrictions. Multiple people were arrested and dozens charged with offenses after brawls broke out. Protesters …

Bali, along with the main island of Java and 15 other regions, is under tight COVID-19 restrictions as cases and deaths surge in the archipelago nation. The Indonesian island of Bali is running out of oxygen for its COVID-19 patients as infections surge, the chief of its health agency has …

Philippine authorities moved thousands of residents in the capital, Manila, out of low-lying communities on Saturday as heavy monsoon rains, compounded by a tropical storm, flooded the city and nearby provinces. The national disaster agency said about 15,000 people, most of them from a flood-prone Manila suburb, had moved into …

The sound of gunfire has interrupted the funeral of the late Haitian President, Jovenel Moïse, who was shot dead two weeks ago. The US and other delegations left early after the shooting rang out as the event got underway. Protesters blamed some of those at the service for the leader’s …

The US is in the midst of a drug overdose epidemic as a fresh report claimed that the number of people who died from an overdose in 2020 rose by almost 30% year-on-year to more than 93,000, and experts said that the isolation and mental health pressures caused by the …

The EU’s medicines regulator has given its backing for Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine to be administered to minors aged between 12 and 17, citing positive results in trials involving 3,732 participants. In a statement on Friday, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) gave its recommendation for the Spikevax Covid-19 shot to be …

Scores of Palestinians have been injured in clashes with Israeli forces in the West Bank town of Beita, medics said. Protests there have been ongoing for several months since Israel installed an outpost settlement in the area. At least 146 Palestinians were “injured by live and rubber bullets and tear …

The audit is focused on Maricopa County, Arizona’s largest, where then-Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden won by more than 2 percentage points in the November 2020 election, slammed by former President Donald Trump as “the most corrupt” vote in US history. Ex-US President Donald Trump has lashed out at Arizona …

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to India next week, the State Department said on Friday, in the top US diplomat’s first visit to the world’s largest democracy and an important US ally in Asia. Blinken will also visit Kuwait and meet senior officials there at the end …

 At least 112 people have died in the western Indian state of Maharashtra, authorities said on Friday, after torrential monsoon rains caused landslides and flooded low-lying areas, cutting off hundreds of villages. Parts of India’s west coast received up to 594 mm (23 inches) of rainfall over 24 hours, forcing …

Former United Nations human rights chief Navi Pillay will head an international commission of inquiry into war crimes committed by the Israeli regime against impoverished Palestinians in the Gaza Strip during its latest onslaught on the besieged coastal enclave in May. The Human Rights Council said in a statement on …

The FBI failed to fully investigate sexual misconduct allegations against now-Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh when he was nominated to the court in 2018, according to newly released materials. Seven Democratic senators on Thursday said a letter they had received from the FBI last month shows it gathered over 4,500 …

Let the bodies pile on high in their thousands a sentence seared into the memories of Britain’s allegedly uttered by the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, as he reluctantly approved the second England wide lockdown late last year. Faced with fury from relatives of the bereaved, Johnson and his senior …