This file photo shows Guatemalan migrants deported from the United States walk on the airport runway upon their arrival at the Air Force Base in Guatemala City on June 21, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP) MEXICO CITY – Mexican authorities on Monday rescued 130 Guatemalan migrants crammed inside an extremely overcrowded cargo truck in the eastern state of Veracruz. Among the rescued were 19 unaccompanied minors, …

People place portraits of refugees and returnees on the ground during an activity carried out by the Inside Out art project in the framework of World Refugee Day in Bogota on June 21, 2023.  (PHOTO / AFP) GENEVA – Over 2.4 million refugees globally will need resettling in 2024, a 20 percent increase compared to 2023, the UN refugee agency UNHCR said on Monday. According …

A nurse prepares a syringe of the Pfizer-BioNtech COVID-19 vaccine at a vaccination center, in Garlan, western France, on May 31, 2021. (PHOTO / AFP) LONDON – Several billions of dollars left in a scheme to deliver COVID-19 vaccines to the world’s poorest could be diverted to prepare for other pandemics or to support vaccine manufacturing in Africa, the scheme's partners said. Gavi is proposing …

Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (left) takes the oath during a swearing in ceremony at the Presidential palace, in Athens, Greece,  June 26, 2023.  (PHOTO / AP) ATHENS – Kyriakos Mitsotakis promised to rebuild Greece's credit rating, create jobs, raise wages and boost state revenues after he was sworn in for a second term as prime minister on Monday following a resounding election win. His …

European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell speaks with the media as he arrives for the European Political Community Summit at the Mimi Castle in Bulboaca, Moldova, June 1, 2023. (PHOTO / AP) BRUSSELS – The European Union (EU) member states on Monday adopted a decision to boost a fund used to support military aid in Ukraine. It was announced by Josep Borrell, EU High …

Nobel chemistry winner John B. Goodenough poses for the media at the Royal Society in London,  Oct 9, 2019. (PHOTO / AP) Nobel laureate John Goodenough, a pioneer in the development of lithium-ion batteries that today power millions of electric vehicles around the globe, died on Sunday just a month short of his 101st birthday. Goodenough was 97 when he received the 2019 Nobel Prize …

People walk past the Southern Military District headquarters in Rostov-on-Don, southern Russia, on June 25, 2023, a day after a revolt by the Wagner private military group was peacefully resolved. (PHOTO / AP) MOSCOW – Russian President Vladimir Putin in a national address on Monday urged the members of the Wagner private military group to sign contract with the country's defense ministry, return home or …

Policemen stand guard in Moscow, Russia, June 24, 2023.  (PHOTO / XINHUA) MOSCOW / VLADIVOSTOK – The legal regime of the counter-terrorist operation against the Wagner private military group has been canceled in Moscow and the Moscow region due to the normalization of the current situation, the Russian government said on Monday. "Due to the absence of threats to life, health, property and other legally protected …

US President Joe Biden, left, shakes hands with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at Mariinsky Palace during an unannounced visit in Kiev, Ukraine, Feb 20, 2023. (PHOTO / AP) WASHINGTON – US President Joe Biden spoke by phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday, discussing Washington's support for Kiev as the latter continued to fight against Russia on the battlefield. "They discussed Ukraine's ongoing counter-offensive, …

Honduran Security Minister Gustavo Sanchez speaks to the press after the pool hall attack in San Pedro Sula, Honduras on June 25, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP) TEGUCIGALPA – At least 11 people, including a woman, were killed and three others injured in a mass shooting at a billiard hall in northern Honduras, police confirmed on Sunday. The bloodshed occurred on Saturday night in the city …

People walk among scattered objects in the market of El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur, as fighting continues in Sudan between the forces of two rival generals, on April 29, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP) KHARTOUM – The Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday welcomed the UN human rights chief's condemnation of atrocities carried out by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in West …

Captain Jason Neubauer, the chief investigator of the US Coast Guard (left) speaks with the media as Samantha Corcoran, public affairs officer of the First Coast Guard District looks on during a news conference, June 25, 2023, at Coast Guard Base Boston, in Boston. (PHOTO / AP) The US Coast Guard is investigating the cause of the undersea implosion of a tourist submersible that killed …

Leader of Greece's conservative party New Democracy Kyriakos Mitsotakis waves to supporters during an election evening event after general elections in central Athens, on June 25, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP) ATHENS – Greek Former Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis promised more reforms at a faster pace after his conservative party won the second general election in five weeks on Sunday and an outright majority in parliament. …

Packets with cocaine are displayed for the media at the Portuguese police headquarters in Lisbon, May 2, 2023. (PHOTO / AP) VIENNA – Cocaine demand and supply are booming worldwide and methamphetamine trafficking is expanding beyond established markets, including in Afghanistan where the drug is now being produced, a United Nations report showed on Sunday. While almost 90 percent of methamphetamine seized worldwide was in …

This photo taken on June 24, 2023 shows the Red Square in Moscow, Russia. (PHOTO / XINHUA) MOSCOW – Russia appears to have stabilized the situation after the country's Wagner private military group was accused of attempting to launch an armed rebellion. A compromise was reached between Moscow and Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner group, through the mediation of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on …

Refugees who crossed from Sudan to Ethiopia wait in line to register at IOM (International organization for Migration) in Metema, on May 4, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP) ADDIS ABABA – The Ethiopian government and aid partners have formed a joint technical committee to investigate allegations of food aid misappropriation, an Ethiopian official said. Speaking at a press conference to state media outlets on Saturday, State …

Refugees who crossed from Sudan to Ethiopia wait in line to register at IOM (International organization for Migration) in Metema, on May 4, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP) ADDIS ABABA – The Ethiopian government and aid partners have formed a joint technical committee to investigate allegations of food aid misappropriation, an Ethiopian official said. Speaking at a press conference to state media outlets on Saturday, State …

Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa speaks during a handover ceremony where he received medical emergency and police helicopters from Sergey Chemezov the Director General of the Russian State Corporation "Rostec" at the Robert Mugabe International Airport in Harare on May 18, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP) HARARE – Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who is also leader of the ruling ZANU PF party, on Saturday launched his party's …

Election officials start counting votes at a voting station in Freetown on June 24, 2023 during the presidential vote. (PHOTO / AFP) FREETOWN – Sierra Leone kicks off its presidential, parliamentary, and local council elections Saturday, with more than 3.3 million registered voters casting their ballots across the country. Voters queued in over 11,000 polling stations that were opened from 7 am to 5 pm.  …

This photo taken on June 24, 2023 shows the Red Square in Moscow, Russia. (PHOTO / XINHUA) MOSCOW – Moscow and Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner private military group, reached a compromise through the mediation of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko late Saturday, according to RIA Novosti news agency reports. Prigozhin has accepted Lukashenko's proposal to stop the advance of the Wagner troops and de-escalate …