CAIRO– The small theatre of the Cairo Opera House seemed packed, as the audience were watching a group of short films, starting with China’s ‘Poem for a Distant Village,’ which is one of the 22 works, contesting in the International Short Film Competition, in the 43rd edition of Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF). Directed […]
Day: December 5, 2021
At least 20 drown as bus carrying wedding guests swept into flooded river in Kenya; 12 rescued
NAIROBI— More than 20 people drowned on Saturday when a bus travelling to a wedding in Kenya was swept away by fast-flowing waters as it tried to cross a flooded river. Onlookers screamed as the yellow school bus hired to take a church choir and other revellers to the ceremony in Kitui County keeled […]
Morocco foils smuggling of about 9 tonnes of cannabis
RABAT— Moroccan police have foiled an attempt to smuggle 8.99 tonnes of cannabis near Casablanca, the police said Saturday in a statement. The drugs were carefully hidden in large blocks of marble of about 10 tons each, intended for export to an African country, it added. The operation occurred at a warehouse located […]
UN extends mandate for int’l forces fighting piracy off coast of Somalia
UNITED NATIONS— The United Nations (UN) Security Council renewed for an additional three months its authorization for states and regional organizations cooperating with Somalia to use all necessary means to fight piracy off the coast of the East African country. Unanimously adopting Resolution 2608, the council decided, for a further period of three months […]
Ethiopia closes schools to boost civil war effort
ADDIS ABABA— Ethiopian authorities have closed all secondary schools so pupils can harvest crops for those on the frontline of the civil war, state-affiliated media says. The closure will last for one week, according to the education minister. More than 2 million pupils were already out of school due to the war which […]
Total solar eclipse plunges Antarctica into darkness
SANTIAGO— A total solar eclipse plunged Antarctica from summer into darkness early Saturday in a rare astronomical spectacle witnessed by a handful of scientists and thrill-seekers — and countless penguins. “The visibility was excellent,” said Raul Cordero of the University of Santiago de Chile (USACH), who was on site to witness “totality” at 0746 […]