Category: LATEST NEWS

More than 500 people have died from heat-related illnesses during the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca amid extreme temperatures, it was being reported on Wednesday.

Saudi Arabia’s state TV reported that temperatures rose to 51.8 degrees Celsius in the shade at the Grand Mosque in the Islam’s holiest city on Monday.

Medics and officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they believed that the death toll could be as high as 600.

While Saudi Arabia has not given an official death toll, and the cause of death on the lists circulating is not named, families said many of them were due to extreme heat.

Most of the Hajj rituals take place outdoors and requires walking considerable distances between the sites.

To manage the intense heat over the five-day pilgrimage, which got underway on Friday, Saudi authorities implemented various safety measures, including misting towers, cooling stations, medical tents, and hydration points.

To prevent heatstroke, minimizing exposure to direct sunlight in the Holy Sites is best.#Hajj_1445H#Ease_and_Tranquility pic.twitter.com/ogrL4NHZG4

— Ministry of Hajj and Umrah (@MoHU_En) June 16, 2024

Officials advised pilgrims to use umbrellas and keep themselves hydrated, to stay out of the sun in the middle of the day, and to take rest periods between rituals to avoid heat fatigue.

But despite all the precautions, the death toll from the heat is expected to rise. On Wednesday, hundreds of people continued searching for missing relatives at Saudi hospitals.

Last year, more than 8,400 pilgrims were treated for heat exhaustion or heat stroke, with nearly half of them hospitalised.

All Muslims are required to make the Hajj once in their lifetime if they are physically and financially able to do so.

More than 1.83 million Muslims performed the Hajj in 2024, including more than 1.6 million pilgrims from 22 countries, according to the Saudi Hajj authorities.

Saudi Arabia has spent billions of dollars on crowd control and safety measures for those attending the annual five-day pilgrimage, but the sheer number of participants makes ensuring their safety difficult.

Four people were killed and 120 others injured in an earthquake in northeastern Iran on Tuesday, officials said.

Iran’s state TV reported the magnitude 5.0 quake jolted the town of Kashmar, some 800 km (500 miles) east of the capital Tehran.

Rescue teams have been deployed to the region, and three temporary camps have been set up, according to Red Crescent officials.

The Kashmar earthquake caused four deaths and 120 people were wounded.  

The Red Crescent ambulances transported 35 injured individuals to hospitals, while others received outpatient treatment from aid workers. https://t.co/uGNhkJDAPQ pic.twitter.com/r8V4RCQCNO

— Iranian Red Crescent Society (@Iran_RCS) June 18, 2024

Russian President Vladimir Putin is making a rare foreign trip to North Korea, a visit intended to further cement ties with an old ally that supports Moscow’s war in Ukraine.

North Korean media reported on Monday that Putin would visit North Korea on June 18-19.

Ahead of Putin’s visit, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un praised the expanding ties between Moscow and Pyongyang in a June 12 message congratulating Russia on its National Day, describing the countries’ “unbreakable relationship of comrades-in-arms.”

Kim traveled to Russia’s Far East in September to meet Putin and visit several military sites, sparking Western concerns about an arms alliance between the two. Russian and North Korean officials said that boosting defense ties between the two countries was discussed during the visit but they didn’t disclose any specific steps.

Russia and North Korea are locked in separate confrontations with the United States — Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and North Korea over its advancing nuclear program.

Both North Korea and Russia have denied allegations of arms transfers, which would be a violation of multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions.

In March, South Korean Defense Minister Shin Wonsik said North Korea had already shipped about 7,000 containers filled with munitions and other military equipment to Russia. In return, Shin said that North Korea had received more than 9,000 Russian containers likely filled with aid.

Russia is only interested in a cooperation with North Korea while there is ongoing military action in Ukraine, Andrei Lankov, a professor at Kookmin University, said.

“The strategic value of North Korea, in case the phase of active hostilities in Ukraine ends, is most likely not so great.” he added.

“At the stage of the military conflict (in Ukraine) there will be quite active interaction on issues of simple arms trade. The North Koreans will try to get some kind of military-technical assistance and military technology. I think no one will be particularly willing to give them these technologies,” Lankov said.

Putin’s trip to North Korea marks his second visit to the country.

Putin first visited Pyongyang in July 2000, months after his first election when he met with Kim’s father, Kim Jong Il, who ruled the country then.

Moscow has said it “highly appreciates” Pyongyang’s support for Russia’s military action in Ukraine and mentioned its “close and fruitful cooperation” at the United Nations and other international organizations.

Russia, together with China, has repeatedly blocked the U.S. and its partners’ attempts to impose fresh U.N. sanctions on North Korea over its barrage of banned ballistic missile tests.

In March, a Russian veto at the United Nations ended monitoring of U.N. sanctions against North Korea over its nuclear program, prompting Western accusations that Moscow is seeking to avoid scrutiny as it allegedly violates the sanctions to buy weapons from Pyongyang for use in Ukraine.

Earlier this year, Putin sent Kim a high-end Aurus Senat limousine, which he had shown to the North Korean leader when they met for a summit in September. Observers said the shipment violated a U.N. resolution aimed at pressuring the North to give up its nuclear weapons program by banning the supply of luxury items to North Korea

France is gearing up security measures ahead of its unprecedented opening ceremony for the Paris Olympics next month.

Cpt Sandy of theff French Army told the AP that Fennec helicopters will be patrolling the city and protecting airspace on the day.

The wildly ambitious July 26 ceremony is proving to be a gargantuan security challenge.

On the day of the eagerly-awaited event, around 200 Olympic delegations will join the parade on more than 80 boats. They will make the journey from east to west, along a six-kilometer (3.7-mile) route which has become a major talking point — for its audacity as a unique open-air event and for its exposure to potential danger.

Paris police chief Laurent Nunez said in April that the parade route will be inside a high-security zone described as an “anti-terrorism perimeter.” He said it will include the first row of buildings along the route.

Anyone who wants to enter the zone in the eight days before the ceremony and on July 26 itself will need to pre-register online and will “systematically” be subjected to the background security checks known in France as an “administrative investigation,” Nunez said.

The French government also decided that tourists won’t be given free access to watch the opening ceremony because of security concerns. Access will be invitation-only instead.

Security concerns led French President Emmanuel Macron to say in mid-April that the ceremony could shift to Stade de France if the threat level was too high. But French authorities said Monday events will go on for the big day as originally planned, with no alternatives being prepared at this stage.

There will be a final rehearsal, involving the full armada of boats, before the opening ceremony — one which is expected to bring 100 world leaders to the city’s embankments, where more than 300,000 people will watch.

“We will give our heart and souls to make it a great success for the French people,” France’s Sports Minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra said Monday. “They deserve it.”

More than 200 protesters have been arrested in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, in ongoing protests against proposed tax hikes in a finance bill that is due to be tabled in parliament.

Civil society groups say that despite the arrests, demonstrations and a planned sit-down outside the parliament buildings will continue.

Nairobi Police Commander Adamson Bungei on Tuesday said no group had been granted permission to protest in the capital. The right to peaceful protests is guaranteed in Kenya’s constitution but organizers are required to notify the police beforehand. Police generally give a go-ahead unless there are security concerns.

Police hurled tear gas canisters at hundreds of demonstrators on Tuesday, forcing businesses to close for fear of looting temporarily.

A lawyer, Wanjohi Gachie, said he was protesting on behalf of all Kenyans who would be potentially burdened by the tax hikes.

“I’m requesting the police not to arrest or beat us because we are fighting for their rights as well,” he said.

Some major tax proposals in the bill were dropped after a Tuesday morning meeting between ruling party MPs and President William Ruto.

The chairperson of the finance committee, Kuria Kimani, said the proposal to introduce a 16% VAT tax on bread had been dropped.

Other levies that had prompted debate and have been amended include a proposed 2.5% motor vehicle annual tax that was to be placed on insurance.

A proposed tax on goods that degrade the environment will also be amended to apply only to imported goods to encourage local manufacturing.

Ruto last month defended the proposed taxes saying the country must be financially self-sustaining.

“The whole principal is that you must live within your means,” he said.

“I persuaded and I made a case to the people of Kenya that we must begin to enhance our revenue,” Ruto added.

Opposition leader Raila Odinga urged MPs to scrutinize the bill and vote to remove clauses that would burden the poor.

“It is worse than the one of 2023, an investment killer and a huge millstone around the necks of millions of poor Kenyans who must have hoped that the tears they shed over taxes last year would see the government lessen the tax burden in 2024,” he said in a statement in early June

Opposition figure Kalonzo Musyoka said weekly protests would resume if the finance bill is approved as proposed.

Legislators are due to debate the bill starting Wednesday with a vote scheduled for Monday.

Teenager, Emmanuel Wanyonyi, ran the fastest 800 metres since 2012 at the Kenyan Athletics Olympics Trials in Nairobi on Saturday, to qualify for the Paris games.

Despite almost failing to qualify for the finals after he tripped and fell during Friday’s semi-finals, he clocked a time of 1:41.70 on Saturday, making him the third-fastest man ever in the event.

“If I didn’t fall yesterday I would not have run like this today, so everything happens for a reason,” the 19-year-old said.

Only Kenya’s two-time Olympic champion, David Rudisha, and Denmark’s Wilson Kipketer have run faster times.

Rudisha holds the world record of 1:40.91 and has also run the second- and third-fastest times, followed by Kipketer with the fourth-fastest time of 1:41.11.

Emmanuel Wanyonyi produces a 1:41.70 win the 800m at the Kenyan Olympic.

David Rudisha and Wilson Kipketer have run quicker than him pic.twitter.com/6s4xm5j5nr

— Athletics Kenya (@athletics_kenya) June 15, 2024

Also qualifying for the Kenyan team on Saturday was sprinter, Ferdinand Omanyala.

He set the world-leading time of 9.79 seconds in the men’s 100 metres, appearing to have regained the form that saw him setting the African record of 9.77 during the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi in 2021.

“I feel great but I just feel like we can go faster. Today was just a confirmation of what is coming because this part of the season we did not do much,” the 28-year-old said.

Ferdinand Omanyala ran 9.79 to win the 100 meters finals at the Kenyan Olympic Trials, Mark Otieno was second in 10.12sec. Congratulations to Ferdy. pic.twitter.com/RxNwO99tAe

— Athletics Kenya (@athletics_kenya) June 15, 2024