Category: Foreign

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Israeli Cabinet approves ‘outline’ of deal to release all remaining hostages held by Hamas

 Israel’s Cabinet early Friday approved President Donald Trump’s plan for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the release of all the remaining hostages held by Hamas, a key step toward ending a ruinous two-year war that has destabilized the Middle East.

A brief statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the Cabinet approved the “outline” of a deal to release the hostages, without mentioning other aspects of the plan that are more controversial.

The broader ceasefire plan included many unanswered questions, such as whether and how Hamas will disarm and who will govern Gaza. But the sides appeared closer than they have been in months to ending a war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, reduced much of Gaza to rubble, brought famine to parts of the territory and left dozens of hostages, living and dead, in Gaza.

The war, which began with Hamas’ deadly attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, has also triggered other conflicts in the region, sparked worldwide protests and led to allegations of genocide that Israel denies.

Some 1,200 people were killed in the Hamas-led assault, and 251 were taken hostage. In Israel’s ensuing offensive, more than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and nearly 170,000 wounded, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants but says around half of the deaths were women and children.

In the hours leading up to the Israeli Cabinet’s vote, Israeli strikes continued. Explosions were seen Thursday in northern Gaza, and a strike on a building in Gaza City killed at least two people and left more than 40 trapped under rubble, according to the Palestinian Civil Defense.

At least 11 dead Palestinians and another 49 who were wounded arrived at hospitals over the past 24 hours, Gaza’s Health Ministry said.

An Israeli military official who spoke on the condition of anonymity in line with military guidelines said Israel was hitting targets that posed a threat to its troops as they reposition. Hamas blasted Israel over the strike, saying Netanyahu was trying to “shuffle the cards and confuse” efforts by mediators to end the war in Gaza.

A senior Hamas official and lead negotiator made a speech Thursday laying out what he says are the core elements of the ceasefire deal: Israel releasing around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, opening the border crossing with Egypt, allowing aid to flow and withdrawing from Gaza.

Khalil al-Hayya said all women and children held in Israeli jails will also be freed. He did not offer details on the extent of the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

Al-Hayya said the Trump administration and mediators had given assurances that the war is over, and that Hamas and other Palestinian factions will now focus on achieving self-determination and establishing a Palestinian state.

“We declare today that we have reached an agreement to end the war and the aggression against our people,” Al-Hayya said in a televised speech Thursday evening.

In other developments, U.S. officials announced that they would send about 200 troops to Israel to help support and monitor the ceasefire deal as part of a broader, international team. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details not authorized for release.

In the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, reactions to the announcement of a ceasefire were relatively muted and often colored by grief.

“I am happy and unhappy. We have lost a lot of people and lost loved ones, friends and family. We lost our homes,” said Mohammad Al-Farra. “Despite our happiness, we cannot help but think of what is to come. … The areas we are going back to, or intending to return to, are uninhabitable.”

In Tel Aviv, families of the remaining hostages popped champagne and cried tears of joy after Trump announced the deal.

In Jerusalem on Thursday, Sharon Canot celebrated with some others.

“We are so excited this morning. We cried all morning,” she said. “It’s been two years that we are in horror.”

Under the terms, Hamas intends to release all living hostages in a matter of days, while the Israeli military will begin a withdrawal from the majority of Gaza, people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details of an agreement that has not fully been made public. Some 20 of the 48 hostages still in captivity are believed to be alive.

In a short video posted by U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Trump was seen speaking by phone to a group of elated hostage families.

“They are all coming back on Monday,” said Trump, who is expected to visit the region in the coming days.

Tom Fletcher, the U.N. humanitarian chief, told reporters Thursday that officials have 170,000 metric tons of medicine, aid and other supplies at ready for transport into Gaza when they are given a green light.

The deal, which was expected to be signed in Egypt, will include a list of prisoners to be released and maps for the first phase of an Israeli withdrawal to new positions in Gaza, according to two Egyptian officials briefed on the talks, a Hamas official and another official.

Israel will publish the list of the prisoners, and victims of their attacks will have 24 hours to lodge objections.

The withdrawal could start as soon as Thursday evening, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to be publicly named speaking about the negotiations. The hostage and prisoner releases are expected to begin Monday, the officials from Egypt and Hamas said, though the other official said they could occur as early as Sunday night.

Five border crossings would reopen, including the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, the Egyptian and Hamas officials said.

The Trump plan calls for Israel to maintain an open-ended military presence inside Gaza, along its border with Israel. An international force, comprised largely of troops from Arab and Muslim countries, would be responsible for security inside Gaza. The U.S. would lead a massive internationally funded reconstruction effort.

The plan also envisions an eventual role for the Palestinian Authority — something Netanyahu has long opposed. But it requires the authority, which administers parts of the West Bank, to undergo a sweeping reform program that could take years.

The Trump plan is even more vague about a future Palestinian state, which Netanyahu firmly rejects. (PBS)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

WHO calls for stronger eye health systems

The World Health Organisation has called for stronger integration of eye care into health systems, increased investment, and targeted strategies to improve access to quality vision services across African countries.

WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Mohamed Janabi, made the call in a message on Wednesday, commemorating World Sight Day, which will be observed globally on October 9, 2025.

Janabi said the day aimed to raise public awareness about the importance of eye health and promote action to reduce preventable vision loss and blindness, especially in low-resource settings.

He revealed that as of 2021, only 32 per cent of WHO Member States had developed a national policy specifically addressing vision loss and blindness, showing a gap in eye health prioritisation.

“This limited policy coverage reflects broader challenges in resource allocation and health planning for eye care.

“The existing levels of service coverage highlight the magnitude of unmet vision health needs,” he stated.

Janabi disclosed that effective cataract surgery coverage in the African Region stood at only 26 per cent, meaning just one in four affected individuals achieved a good visual outcome post-surgery.

“Similarly, effective coverage for refractive error correction, such as with eyeglasses, is estimated at 30 per cent, indicating one in three people with visual impairment have received appropriate vision correction.

“These figures underscore the urgent need for stronger health system integration, targeted investment, and people-centred strategies to ensure everyone can access quality eye care services,” he said.

Janabi emphasised that good vision significantly impacted well-being, education, productivity, and employment, while vision impairment remained a major public health concern expected to increase without urgent intervention.

He acknowledged that Africa had made progress in reducing vision loss from diseases like trachoma, vitamin A deficiency, and onchocerciasis, but new challenges were rapidly emerging across the continent.

“These include ageing populations, poor eye health awareness, unhealthy diets, sedentary lifestyles, and the growing burden of noncommunicable diseases that increase risk of cataracts and refractive errors.

“To tackle this growing challenge, several strategic global initiatives have been introduced, including Vision 2020: The Right to Sight, which aimed to eliminate avoidable blindness,” he explained.

Janabi said the Vision 2020 initiative focused on scaling up affordable, sustainable cataract services and strengthening national capacities to eliminate preventable blindness by establishing eye health infrastructure and skilled workforce. (Punch)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

French crisis: Ex-PM urges Macron to resign

Emmanuel Macron’s first prime minister on Tuesday urged the cornered French head of state to resign in a shock call that compounded an escalating political crisis.

The intervention by Edouard Philippe, Macron’s longest-serving prime minister from 2017 to 2020 and who now heads an allied political party, came as frustration grew even within the president’s own camp over the biggest domestic political crisis of his eight years in office.

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu, appointed less than a month ago, stepped down on Monday morning after failing to rally support across the centre-right coalition for his new government, which is also only supported by a minority in parliament.

Macron ordered him to make a last-ditch effort to rally support for a coalition government, but there was no sign of progress with the far-right refusing to even attend a meeting.

France’s next presidential elections are scheduled to take place in 2027 and are seen as a historic crossroads in French politics, with the French far right under Marine Le Pen sensing its best chance yet of taking power.

Macron is constitutionally barred from seeking a third mandate.

Philippe, who has already declared he will stand, said the polls should be held early once a budget is passed, in comments Le Parisien daily described as “political bomb”.

Denouncing a “distressing political game”, he said it was up to Macron to help France “emerge in an orderly and dignified manner from a political crisis that is harming the country”.

“He must take the decision that is worthy of his function, which is to guarantee the continuity of the institutions by leaving in an orderly manner,” Philippe told the RTL broadcaster.

France has been locked in a political crisis since Macron’s gamble to hold legislative elections in the summer of 2024 backfired and resulted in a hung parliament and a strengthened far right.

In a scathing editorial, the Le Monde daily said the crisis was “yet another demonstration of the unravelling” of Macron’s second mandate following his win in the 2022 presidential elections.

“The president finds himself in a major crisis,” it said.

The domestic isolation of the president, who was filmed Monday walking alone by the banks of the Seine deep in a telephone conversation, contrasts with his clout on the international stage where he is seeking to end Russia’s war on Ukraine alongside President Donald Trump. (Punch)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

UN chief urges compliance after Israel-Hamas agreement on Gaza peace plan

The United Nations Secretary General, António Guterres, has called on all parties to adhere to the reached agreement between Israel and Hamas on the first phase of a U.S.-backed Gaza peace plan.

“All hostages must be released in a dignified manner. A permanent ceasefire must be secured,” Guterres said in a statement on X on Thursday, urging an end to fighting and immediate, unhindered access for humanitarian aid into Gaza. “The suffering must end,” he added.

Guterres praised diplomatic efforts by the United States, Qatar, Egypt and Turkey, which helped broker the deal at talks in the Egyptian coastal resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

The United Nations would support full implementation of the agreement, expand humanitarian aid and assist reconstruction efforts in Gaza, Guterres said.

The UN chief also encouraged both sides to seize this momentous opportunity to advance a two-state solution that would allow Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace and security. “The stakes have never been higher,” he said.

The two-state solution envisages an independent Palestinian state coexisting peacefully alongside Israel.

Both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas currently reject such an outcome. (Punch)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Madagascar’s president appoints general as PM amid protests

Madagascar’s President Andry Rajoelina on Monday appointed an army general as prime minister, hoping to quell surging protests against his leadership that have plunged the country into crisis.

In the latest in days of youth-led marches, security forces dispersed hundreds of demonstrators with tear gas in Madagascar’s capital, Antananarivo, injuring at least one, AFP reporters saw.

Sparked by anger against persistent water and power cuts in the impoverished Indian Ocean island, the demonstrations started on September 25 and have grown into an angry campaign for Rajoelina to resign.

“With wisdom, I have decided to appoint Ruphin Fortunat Dimbisoa Zafisambo, divisional general, as prime minister of the government,” Rajoelina said late Monday in a declaration at the presidential palace.

The new premier should “serve the people” and be “someone clean, with integrity, and who works quickly”, he said, promising he was “ready to save Madagascar”.

The Gen Z movement that rallied the protests on social media responded by repeating calls for Rajoelina to resign.

It said it was giving him a 48-hour “ultimatum” to “respond favourably” to their demands.

“As long as Andry Rajoelina remains in power, we will continue to fight,” the group said on social media.

Rajoelina’s move to sack his entire government last week failed to placate the demonstrators.

University students and residents gathered near the University of Ankatso on the outskirts of the capital on Monday, the 12th day of the movement.

They then marched towards the city centre, where they were stopped by a barricade put up by security forces.

Clashes erupted throughout the afternoon, with at least one young man wounded and evacuated to the main hospital, AFP reporters saw.

“There are about 120 hours of power cuts per week where I live,” said 21-year-old protester Tommy Fanomezantsoa.

“We are protesting for everyone’s sake,” he told AFP. “The president is not listening to the anger of the people at the bottom. He always does what he wants.”

The Ankatso district was the birthplace of a 1972 revolt that led to the ousting of the first president of the poverty-stricken island, Philibert Tsiranana.

“The future of this country depends on me, on you, on all of us,” one of the protest leaders told the crowd of several hundred people, urging them not to allow the movement to lose momentum.

“We can clearly see that democracy in Madagascar is not respected at all,” said another protest leader.

“They are even destroying it with brutality,” he said.

He was referring to a United Nations statement last week that at least 22 people had been killed in the protests and more than 100 wounded, a figure rejected by the authorities. (Punch)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

French PM’s cabinet plan collapses, gridlock deepens

France’s outgoing Prime Minister, Sébastien Lecornu, was due to start a last-ditch effort on Tuesday to rally cross-party support for a cabinet lineup that would pull his country out of a political deadlock.

President Emmanuel Macron tasked Lecornu, 39, with forming a government in early September after parliament toppled his predecessor over an unpopular austerity budget.

Lecornu unveiled a new cabinet on Sunday evening, but it immediately drew criticism for containing many of the same faces from the previous government, and Lecornu resigned on Monday morning.

But in a twist, Lecornu had by Monday evening accepted Macron’s request that he spend two days trying to salvage his administration.

Macron tasked Lecornu with “conducting final negotiations by Wednesday evening to define a platform of action and stability for the country,” a presidential official said, asking not to be named.

The president was ready to “assume his responsibilities” in case of failure, the official said, appearing to allude to his calling new legislative elections.

Lecornu was from 9:00 am (0700 GMT) to meet party leaders at the prime minister’s office in an attempt to breach the impasse.

A political crisis has rocked France for over a year, after Macron called snap polls in mid-2024, which ended in a hung parliament.

The chaos comes ahead of the 2027 presidential elections, expected to be a historic crossroads in French politics, with the French far right under Marine Le Pen sensing its best chance yet of taking power.

Edouard Philippe, a former premier and centre-right contender in the next presidential elections, on Tuesday slammed what he called a “distressing political game”.

He urged Macron to call early presidential elections as soon as the 2026 budget was approved.

Within Macron’s own ranks, Gabriel Attal — who was prime minister until last year and now leads the president’s centrist party — on Monday evening said he no longer understood Macron’s decisions.

After a succession of new premiers, it was “time to try something else”, he said. 

Le Pen on Monday said it would be “wise” for Macron to resign but also urged snap legislative polls as “necessary”.

The party leader of Le Pen’s far-right National Rally (RN), Jordan Bardella, said it would be “ready to govern”.

Socialist party leader Olivier Faure late Monday called for “a change of course” with a “left-wing government”.

Bruno Retailleau, leader of the right-wing Republicans and outgoing interior minister, said he was not against remaining in a cabinet with Macron’s centrists as long as it did not mean fewer members from his party.

Lecornu’s two immediate predecessors, Francois Bayrou and Michel Barnier, were ousted by parliament in a standoff over an austerity budget. 

Any next premier will still face the challenge of finding enough support for the spending bill in a chamber where the Macron-friendly bloc is in a minority.

The crisis comes as France’s public debt has reached a record high.

France’s debt-to-GDP ratio is now the European Union’s third-highest after Greece and Italy, and is close to twice the 60 percent permitted under EU rules.

Macron has so far resisted calls for fresh parliamentary polls and ruled out resigning before his mandate ends in 2027.He could also look for a new prime minister, who would be the eighth of the president’s mandate, but would face a struggle to survive without radical change. (Punch)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Takaichi elected LDP leader; likely to become Japan’s first female prime minister

Japan’s ruling party picked hardline conservative Sanae Takaichi as its head on Saturday, putting her on course to become the country’s first female prime minister in a move set to jolt investors and neighbors.

The Liberal Democratic Party, which has ruled Japan for almost all of the postwar era, elected Takaichi, 64, to regain trust from a public angered by rising prices and drawn to opposition groups promising stimulus and clampdowns on migrants.

A vote in parliament to choose a replacement for outgoing Shigeru Ishiba is expected on October 15. Takaichi is favored as the ruling coalition has the largest number of seats.

Takaichi, the only woman among the five LDP candidates, beat a challenge from the more moderate Shinjiro Koizumi, 44, who was bidding to become the youngest modern leader.

Takaichi got 183 votes, while Koizumi garnered 156 in a runoff.

A former economic security and internal affairs minister with an expansionary fiscal agenda for the world’s fourth-largest economy, Takaichi takes over a party in crisis.

Various other parties, including the expansionist Democratic Party for the People and the anti-immigration Sanseito, have been steadily luring voters, especially younger ones, away from the LDP.

The LDP and its coalition partner lost their majorities in both houses under Ishiba over the past year, triggering his resignation.

“Recently, I have heard harsh voices from across the country saying we don’t know what the LDP stands for anymore,” Takaichi said in a speech before the second-round vote. “That sense of urgency drove me. I wanted to turn people’s anxieties about their daily lives and the future into hope.”

Takaichi, who says her hero is Margaret Thatcher, Britain’s first female prime minister, offers a starker vision for change than Koizumi and is potentially more disruptive.

An advocate of late premier Shinzo Abe’s “Abenomics” strategy to boost the economy with aggressive spending and easy monetary policy, she has previously criticized the Bank of Japan’s interest rate increases.

Such a spending shift could spook investors worried about one of the world’s biggest debt loads.

Naoya Hasegawa, chief bond strategist at Okasan Securities in Tokyo, said Takaichi’s election had weakened the chances of the BOJ raising rates this month, which markets had priced at around a 60% chance before the vote.

Takaichi has also raised the possibility of redoing an investment deal with U.S. President Donald Trump that lowered his punishing tariffs in return for Japanese taxpayer-backed investment.

The U.S. ambassador to Japan, George Glass, congratulated Takaichi, posting on X that he looked forward to strengthening the Japan-U.S. partnership “on every front”.

But her nationalistic positions – such as her regular visits to the Yasukuni shrine to Japan’s war dead, viewed by some Asian countries as a symbol of its past militarism – may rile neighbors like South Korea and China.

South Korea will seek to “cooperate to maintain the positive momentum in South Korea-Japan relations”, President Lee Jae Myung’s office said in a statement.

Takaichi also favors revising Japan’s pacifist postwar constitution and suggested this year that Japan could form a “quasi-security alliance” with Taiwan, the democratically governed island claimed by China.

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te welcomed her election, saying she was a “steadfast friend of Taiwan”.

“It is hoped that under the leadership of the new (LDP) President Takaichi, Taiwan and Japan can deepen their partnership in areas such as economic trade, security, and technological cooperation,” he said in a statement.

If elected prime minister, Takaichi said she would travel overseas more regularly than her predecessor to spread the word that “Japan is Back!”

“I have thrown away my own work-life balance and I will work, work, work,” Takaichi said in her victory speech.

Some of her supporters viewed her selection as a watershed in Japan’s male-dominated politics, though opinion polls suggest her socially conservative positions are favored more by men than women.

“The fact that a woman was chosen might be seen positively. I think it shows that Japan is truly starting to change and that message is getting across,” 30-year-old company worker Misato Kikuchi said outside Tokyo’s Shimbashi station.

Takaichi must also seek to blunt the rise of Sanseito, which broke into the political mainstream in a July election, appealing to conservative voters disillusioned with the LDP.

Echoing Sanseito’s warnings about foreigners, she kicked off her first official campaign speech with an anecdote about tourists reportedly kicking sacred deer in her hometown of Nara.

Takaichi, whose mother was a police officer, promised to clamp down on rule-breaking visitors and immigrants, who have come to Japan in record numbers in recent years.”We hope she will … steer Japanese politics in an ‘anti-globalism’ direction to protect national interests and help the people regain prosperity and hope,” Sanseito said in a statement. (JapanToday)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

British police arrest 6 after deadly Manchester synagogue attack

Police on Saturday were questioning six people arrested on suspicion of terror offenses after an attack on a synagogue in northwest England that left two men dead and Britain’s Jewish community shocked and grieving.

Jihad Al-Shamie, 35, was shot dead by police on Thursday outside the Heaton Park Congregation Synagogue in Manchester after he rammed a car into pedestrians, attacked them with a knife and tried to force his way into the building.

Three men and three women, aged between 18 and their 60s, were arrested in the greater Manchester area on suspicion of the “commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism,” as police work to determine whether the attacker acted alone.

Congregation members Melvin Cravitz, 66, and Adrian Daulby, 53, died in the attack on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish year. Police say Daulby was accidentally shot by an armed officer as he and other congregants barricaded the synagogue to block Al-Shamie from entering. Three other men are hospitalized with serious injuries.

Detectives say Al-Shamie, a British citizen of Syrian origin who lived in Manchester, may have been influenced by “extreme Islamist ideology.” He wore what appeared to be an explosives belt, which was found to be fake.

Police said Al-Shamie was out on bail over an alleged rape at the time of the attack but had not been charged.

The attack has devastated Britain’s Jewish community and intensified debate about the line between criticism of Israel and antisemitism.

Recorded antisemitic incidents in the U.K. have risen sharply since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and Israel’s ensuing war against Hamas in Gaza, according to Community Security Trust, a charity that provides advice and protection for British Jews.

Some politicians and religious leaders claimed pro-Palestinian demonstrations, which have been held regularly since the war in Gaza began, had played a role in spreading hatred of Jews. The protests have been overwhelmingly peaceful but some say chants such as “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” incite anti-Jewish hatred.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his supporters have frequently accused critics of Israel for its conduct of the war of antisemitism. Critics see it as an attempt to stifle even legitimate criticism.

Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, the head of Orthodox Judaism in Britain, said the attack was the result of “an unrelenting wave of Jew hatred” on the streets and online.

Some also say the U.K.’s recognition of a Palestinian state last month has emboldened antisemitism — a claim the government rejects. Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy was interrupted by boos and shouts of “Shame on you” on Friday as he addressed a vigil for victims of the attack in Manchester.

Police in London urged organizers to call off a protest planned for Saturday to oppose the banning of the group Palestine Action, which has been labeled a terrorist organization by the government.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said protest organizers should “recognize and respect the grief of British Jews this week” and postpone the demonstration.

The group Defend Our Juries said it would not cancel the protest, where hundreds of people are expected to risk arrest by holding signs supporting the banned group.

Member Jonathon Porritt said protesters would “demonstrate huge respect and real grief for those affected by the absolute atrocity at Heaton Park.”

“But I don’t think that means that we should be asked to give up on our right to stand up for those who are being devastated by an ongoing, real-time genocide in Gaza,” he told the BBC. (CBS)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Hamas says ready to free Gaza hostages under Trump ceasefire proposal

Hamas said on Friday it was ready to release hostages held in Gaza under a peace deal proposed by but wantDonald Trumped negotiations on the details and a say in the future of the Palestinian territory.

“The movement announces its approval for the release of all hostages — living and remains — according to the exchange formula included in President Trump’s proposal,” Hamas said in a statement, adding it was ready to enter talks “to discuss the details”.

The peace plan for Gaza, presented by Trump this week and backed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calls for a ceasefire, the release of hostages within 72 hours, Hamas’s disarmament and a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

In the statement, Hamas said it agreed to hand over power in Gaza to a body of Palestinian technocrats but said decisions on the territory’s long-term future would need to be discussed within a Palestinian framework “in which Hamas will participate and contribute responsibly”.

Hamas’s statement made no mention of its intentions on disarmament, a key part of the US president’s plan and a move the group has previously resisted.

Following the announcement, Mahmoud Mardawi, a senior Hamas official, told AFP the group welcomed Trump’s proposal, but that “without clear terms, criteria, and transparency, we need clarification and confirmation through a negotiated agreement”.

“The American proposal is vague, ambiguous, and lacks clarity,” Mardawi said.

Hamas had “made our position clear, and we are now waiting to see how the details of the terms will be implemented and clarified”, he added.

Under the US plan published on Monday — which has been welcomed by world powers, including Arab and Muslim nations — a post-war transitional authority for Gaza would be headed by Trump himself.

Earlier on Friday the US president gave Hamas until Sunday night to respond to the plan, and warned the group it faced “all hell” if it did not agree to the terms. (Vanguard)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Philippine quake death toll rises to 72

The death toll from a powerful earthquake in the central Philippines rose to 72 on Thursday, rescuers said, as officials turned their efforts to the hundreds injured and thousands left homeless.

Firefighters and rescuers pulled a woman and her child from the rubble of a collapsed hotel overnight Wednesday in the city of Bogo, near the epicenter of the 6.9-magnitude quake that struck on Tuesday.

The body of another woman was also retrieved from the site earlier in the day, AFP journalists saw.

The national government said 294 people were injured and around 20,000 had fled their homes. Nearly 600 houses were wrecked across the north of Cebu island and many are sleeping on the streets as hundreds of aftershocks shake the area.

Cebu provincial governor Pamela Baricuatro made several urgent appeals for help on Thursday, saying thousands needed safe drinking water, food, clothes and temporary housing, as well as volunteers to sort and distribute aid.

“Many homes were destroyed and many families are in need of help to recover… They need our help, prayers and support,” she said on Facebook.

President Ferdinand Marcos flew to Cebu with senior aides on Thursday to inspect the damage and coordinate relief efforts. He did not immediately speak to the press.

A tiny village chapel is serving as a post-quake home for 18-year-old Bogo resident Diane Madrigal and 14 of her neighbors after their houses were destroyed. Their clothes and food are scattered across the chapel’s pews.

“The entire wall (of my house) fell so I really don’t know how and when we can go back again,” Madrigal told AFP. “I am still scared of the aftershocks up to now, it feels like we have to run again.”

Mother-of-four Lucille Ipil, 43, added her water container to a 10-meter line of them along a road in Bogo, where residents desperately waited for a fire truck scheduled to bring them water.

“The earthquake really ruined our lives. Water is important for everyone. We cannot eat, drink or bathe properly,” she told AFP. “We really want to go back to our old life before the quake but we don’t know when that will happen… Rebuilding takes a long time.”

Many areas remain without electricity, and dozens of patients were sheltering in tents outside the damaged Cebu provincial hospital in Bogo.

“I’d rather stay here under this tent. At least I can be treated,” 22-year-old Kyle Malait told AFP as she waited for her dislocated arm to be treated.

More than 110,000 people in 42 communities affected by the quake will need assistance to rebuild their homes and restore their livelihoods, according to the regional civil defense office.

Search and rescue efforts appeared to be winding down in Bogo early Thursday, as rescuers milled around awaiting instructions.

“As of now, all those who were reported missing were already retrieved,” Cebu fire bureau official Liewellyn Lee Quino told AFP.

Rescuers were sent to re-check a collapsed hotel hours after three bodies were retrieved.

“The final check is important so that we can assure the community here that no one is forgotten inside these establishments, and that they can choose to destroy this place completely (for redevelopment),” Quino said.

Earthquakes are a near-daily occurrence in the Philippines, which is situated on the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, an arc of intense seismic activity stretching from Japan through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin.Most are too weak to be felt by humans but strong and destructive quakes come at random, with no technology available to predict when and where they might strike. (JapanToday)