International

An exceptionally large and white 1,174-carat diamond stone has been unearthed in Botswana, trumping another huge precious stone found in the country last month. The latest find, which fills the palm of a man's hand, was discovered on June 12 by Canadian Diamond firm, Lucara and presented to the country's cabinet in the capital Gaborone on Wednesday. "This is history in the making, for us and Botswana as well," said the company's managing director Naseem Lahri, adding that the diamond sits in third position among the world's largest gemstones. In terms of size of large stones, "it actually sits as number three in the hierarchy," Lahri told AFP.    

Haiti President Jovenel Moise was assassinated at his home early Wednesday morning by a group of armed individuals, interim Prime Minister Claude Joseph announced. Joseph said he was now in charge of the country. Moise's injured wife was in the hospital, according to Joseph, who urged the public to remain calm, and insisted the police and army would ensure the population's safety. ‘The president was assassinated at his home by foreigners who spoke English and Spanish,’ Joseph said. Moise had been ruling Haiti, the poorest country in the Americas, by decree, after legislative elections due in 2018 were delayed in the wake of disputes, including on when his own term ends. In addition to the political crisis, kidnappings for ransom have surged in recent months, further reflecting the growing influence of armed gangs in the Caribbean nation. Haiti also faces chronic poverty and recurrent natural disasters. The president faced steep opposition from swathes of the population that deemed his mandate illegitimate, and he churned through a series of seven prime ministers in four year. Most recently, Joseph was supposed to be replaced this week after only three months in the post. In addition to presidential, legislative and local elections, Haiti was due to have a constitutional referendum in September after it was twice postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Supported by Moise, the text of the constitutional reform, aimed at strengthening the executive branch, has been overwhelmingly rejected by the opposition and many civil society organizations. The constitution currently in force was written in 1987 after the fall of the Duvalier dictatorship and declares that ‘any popular consultation aimed at modifying the Constitution by referendum is formally prohibited.’ Critics had also claimed it was impossible to organizing a poll, given the general insecurity in the country.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's party won 53.9 percent of the vote in snap parliamentary polls called in an effort to defuse a political crisis after a war with Azerbaijan, official results showed Monday. An alliance led by his rival, ex-leader Robert Kocharyan, came second with 21 percent, according to the results based on ballots from 100 percent of precincts counted. A winning party or bloc needs to obtain at least 50 percent of seats plus one and can be assigned additional seats in order to form a government. Pashinyan hours earlier claimed victory based on early results, but Kocharyan's grouping swiftly contested the vote and alleged election fraud. A record four electoral blocs and 21 parties ran for election on Sunday. The vote was seen as a two-horse race, with both Pashinyan, 46, and Kocharyan, 66, drawing massive crowds in the run-up to the polls. "The people of Armenia gave our Civil Contract party a mandate to lead the country and personally me to lead the country as prime minister," Pashinyan announced in the small hours of Monday. "We already know that we won a convincing victory in the elections and we will have a convincing majority in parliament," he added, urging supporters to turn up at Yerevan's main square Monday evening. Kocharyan's electoral bloc said it would not recognise Pashinyan's quick claim to victory, which came when around 30 percent of precincts had been counted. "Hundreds of signals from polling stations testifying to organised and planned falsifications serve as a serious reason for lack of trust," the bloc said in a statement, adding it would not "recognise" the results until the "violations" were studied. On Sunday evening, the general prosecutor's office said it had received 319 reports of violations. It said it had opened six criminal probes, all of which concerned bribes during campaigning. - Conflicting opinions-The vote was followed by Armenia's Soviet-era master Russia, arch-foe Azerbaijan and Turkey, which backed Azerbaijan in the six-week war over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh last year. Despite stifling heat, nearly 50 percent of around 2.6 million eligible voters cast their ballots, election officials said. Some observers said turnout in the South Caucasus country of three million people was higher than expected. During a campaign marred by polarising rhetoric, Pashinyan had said he expected his party to secure 60 percent of the vote. Some pollsters had called that estimate far-fetched. Election officials said the vote was conducted in accordance with Armenia's legislation. Kocharyan was himself accused of rigging a presidential election in favour of his hand-picked ally and presiding over a deadly crackdown on protesters in 2008. Armenia won international praise for holding its first free and fair vote under Pashinyan in 2018. On the streets of Yerevan on Sunday, Armenians voiced conflicting opinions about Pashinyan. Voter Anahit Sargsyan said the prime minister, who spearheaded peaceful protests against corrupt elites in 2018, deserved another chance. She said she feared the return of the old guard whom she accused of plundering the country. "I voted against a return to the old ways," said the 63-year-old former teacher. - 'Secure borders' - Another voter, Vardan Hovhannisyan, said he had cast his ballot for Kocharyan, who calls Russian leader Vladimir Putin his friend. "I voted for secure borders, solidarity in society, the return of our war prisoners, the well-being of the wounded and a strong army," said the 41-year-old musician. Critics blame Pashinyan for having ceded territory in and around Karabakh to Azerbaijan in a humiliating truce agreement, and accuse him of having failed to deliver reforms. Pashinyan has said he had to agree to the Moscow-brokered peace deal with Azerbaijan in order to prevent further human and territorial losses. More than 6,500 people were killed in the war, according to the latest official figures from Armenia and Azerbaijan. Besides Kocharyan, who hails from Karabakh and was in power between 1998 and 2008, two other leaders of post-Soviet Armenia backed parties in the race. During a venomous campaign, candidates exchanged insults and threats. Pashinyan brandished a hammer at rallies, while Kocharyan said he would be ready to fight the prime minister in a duel.

Armenians went to the polls Sunday in early parliamentary elections which were called in an attempt to heal the country's divisions after a disastrous war with Azerbaijan, but which could spark post-vote protests. Reformist Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who has lost much of his appeal after a military defeat last year to arch foe Azerbaijan, is hoping to renew his mandate but is in a tight race with former president Robert Kocharyan. During a campaign marred by polarising rhetoric, Pashinyan said he expected his Civil Contract party to secure 60 percent of the vote, even though some pollsters say those estimates are far-fetched. The election in the South Caucasus country of three million people is being watched by Armenia's Soviet-era master Russia as well as Turkey, which backed Azerbaijan in last year's six-week war over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh. As soon as voting started, Armenians began trickling into polling stations in central Yerevan, according to AFP correspondents. One voter, Anahit Sargsyan, said the prime minister deserved another chance, adding that she feared the return of the old guard whom she accused of plundering the country. "I voted against a return to the old ways," said the 63-year-old former teacher. Another voter, Vardan Hovhannisyan, said he cast his ballot for Kocharyan, who counts Russian leader Vladimir Putin among his friends. "I voted for secure borders, solidarity in society, the return of our war prisoners, the well-being of the wounded and a strong army," said the 41-year-old musician. "Only Kocharyan can deliver that." Critics accuse Pashinyan of ceding swathes of territory in and around Karabakh to Azerbaijan in a truce agreement that ended the fighting and of failing to deliver reforms. Pashinyan says he had to agree to the Moscow-brokered truce with Azerbaijan in order to prevent further human and territorial losses. More than 6,500 people were killed in the war, according to the latest official estimates from Armenia and Azerbaijan. Analysts say the election result is hard to predict, with both Pashinyan and Kocharyan drawing massive crowds in the final days of the race. Besides Kocharyan, who hails from Karabakh and was in power between 1998 and 2008, two other leaders of post-Soviet Armenia are backing parties in the race. All three are in opposition to Pashinyan. A venomous campaign saw candidates exchange insults and threats and both frontrunners are expected to stage demonstrations after the election. Pashinyan, 46, brandished a hammer at rallies, while Kocharyan, 66, said he would be ready to fight the prime minister in a duel and claimed he was planning to rig the vote. Armenian President Armen Sarkisian, largely a ceremonial figure, decried attempts "to incite hatred and enmity" and urged law enforcement to prevent any violations. "These elections are taking place in a difficult situation," he said on Saturday. "They are of crucial importance for our state and people." Kocharyan, who is seen as a wealthy man, faces a corruption probe and was also investigated over a deadly crackdown on protesters more than a decade ago. Some observers say Pashinyan might be investigated over his handling of the Karabakh war if he is voted out of power. A poll released Friday by MPG, a group affiliated with Gallup International Association, showed Kocharyan's Armenia bloc leading narrowly with 28.7 percent to 25.2 percent for Pashinyan's party. Following in third with 10.8 percent was an alliance linked to Pashinyan's enemy and predecessor Serzh Sargsyan. A record four electoral blocs and 21 parties are running for election but only a handful are expected to win seats in parliament. Around 2.6 million people are eligible to vote to elect for a five-year term the minimum number of 101 parliament members under a proportional electoral system. A winning party needs to obtain at least 50 percent of seats plus one and can be assigned additional seats in order to form a government. Polls will close at 8:00 p.m. (1600 GMT) in an election being monitored by observers from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

Major banks and airlines in Australia and the United States suffered brief online outages Thursday, with several blaming an ‘external provider’ for the disruption. Most of Australia's major financial firms reported customers could not access websites and mobile apps, while website Downdetector said a slew of US airlines were also affected. American, Delta, United and Southwest airlines were among them, although all four websites appeared to be working shortly after. The issues appeared to be more prolonged in Australia -- where problems hit in the mid-afternoon as much of the rest of the world slept -- with services only slowly returning an hour after the first reports. A spokesperson for ANZ bank told AFP that the incident was ‘related to an external provider’ but that ‘connectivity was restored quickly and the most impacted services are back online’. Australia's largest financial firm Commonwealth Bank told AFP that it and many of the country's major banks had been affected. Westpac and ME Bank also reported problems with their mobile apps or online banking products, while customers for St. George and several regional banks reported they were down too. The outages began around 2:10PM Sydney time (0510 GMT) and did not appear to be limited to the banking sector. Airline Virgin Australia posted to Twitter: ‘We are currently experiencing a system outage which is impacting our website and Guest Contact Centre.’ Australia Post, the country's postal service, said some services were hit by an ‘external outage’. Earlier this month major US media and government websites, including the White House, New York Times, Reddit and Amazon were temporarily down after a glitch with cloud computing services provider Fastly. The company offers a service to websites around the world to speed up loading time for websites. A series of high profile hack-for-ransom attacks have also left corporations around the world jittery over cybersecurity risks, although there was no indication the latest problems were caused by malicious actors. Colonial Pipeline was briefly shuttered after an attack in May, and JBS, the world's largest meat producer, was forced to stop operations in the United States and Australia. Both firms reportedly paid ransom to get operations back up and running. The issue of cybersecurity was at the top of the agenda when US President Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin met in Geneva this week. Washington believes hackers who have extorted hundreds of millions of dollars from Western governments, companies, and organisations operate from Russian soil.  

Armenians vote Sunday in snap parliamentary elections called by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to end a political crisis ignited by his country's humiliating military defeat to Azerbaijan last year. Pashinyan, a former newspaper editor, swept to power in 2018, spearheading peaceful protests against corrupt elites who ruled after the collapse of the Soviet Union. But many Armenians are now disappointed by his failure to deliver reforms and his handling of the six-week conflict with Azerbaijan that claimed around 6,000 lives last year. Pashinyan, 46, has defied calls to resign since he ended the war for control of the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh in November by signing an unpopular agreement that ceded to Azerbaijan swathes of Armenian-held land. He has pinned his hopes on the vote to quell protests and renew his mandate. But a venomous campaign has been marred by aggressive rhetoric and fears the election could further polarise the country. In the capital Yerevan, dotted with campaign billboards, Armenians voiced conflicting views about their prime minister. ‘This capitulator and traitor must go,’ said Gegham Hayrapetyan, 52. ‘We need a fresh face, a new politician who will address our grievances.’ Sirush Sirunyan, 69, however, blamed Pashinyan's predecessors for the crisis in the poor South Caucasus country of three million people. ‘Nikol is our hero and our saviour,’ she told AFP. ‘Former authorities are responsible for everything. They were robbing the country for decades.’ - Hammer campaign -Polls show that Pashinyan's Civil Contract Party is neck-in-neck with ex-president Robert Kocharyan's electoral bloc. Both politicians are planning to hold multiple rallies after the election. Pashinyan has over the past weeks ramped up rhetoric and brandished a hammer at recent campaign rallies while urging voters to give him a ‘steel mandate’ to crush critics. ‘This is a hammer that belongs to the people, and on June 20 it will fall down on your empty heads,’ he declared recently, addressing opponents. He says he expects his party to win 60 percent of the vote, an estimate some pollsters call ‘fantastical’. Pashinyan's enemy and predecessor, Serzh Sargsyan, whose bloc is expected to also win seats in parliament, urged supporters to counter Pashinyan's hammer with a ‘cudgel’. The heated campaign rhetoric has sparked warnings from Armenia's rights ombudsman and raised fears of post-vote unrest if candidates claim irregularities. ‘The probability of street clashes is quite high after elections that were preceded by such an aggressive campaign,’ said political analyst Vigen Hakobyan. A record four electoral blocs and 22 parties are running in the elections and most have campaigned on a pro-Russian platform. Russia, a long-standing ally, helped broker a truce agreement with Azerbaijan and its peacekeepers have been deployed to Nagorno-Karabakh. Only a handful of parties are expected to win seats in parliament. Pashinyan's rival Kocharyan, who led Armenia between 1998 and 2008 and counts Russian leader Vladimir Putin among his friends, claims to have handled the economy better than the current leadership. ‘Armenia has been left without a leader,’ Kocharyan told a recent a campaign rally. A poll last week showed Kocharyan's bloc leading with 24.1 percent, followed by Pashinyan's party with 23.8 percent and Sargsyan's bloc with 7.4 percent. Aram Navasardyan who directs the pollster that carried out the survey, Marketing Professional Group (MPG), predicted that no-one would get more than 30 percent of the vote. ‘Emotions are at fever pitch,’ Navasardyan told AFP, adding that the gap between Kocharyan and Pashinyan could further widen. Around 2.6 million people are eligible to vote in 2,008 precincts, to elect for a five-year term the minimum number of 101 parliament members under a proportional electoral system. A party needs to garner at least 54 percent of seats in the legislature to form a government, and analysts do not rule out a second round of polls. The election will be monitored by observers from the Organisation for the Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).  

New Zealand Muslims objected to a plan for a film about the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings in which a gunman killed 51 people, saying the attack was still too raw for grieving families and their community. The film, titled They Are Us, will focus on the response by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to the attacks on two mosques by a white supremacist on March 15, 2019, according to the Hollywood Reporter. The title is drawn from Ardern’s words on that day. The 40-year-old leader’s compassionate response to the attack united her shocked country and was praised globally. “There are still many sensitivities around the tragic events,” Abdigani Ali, spokesman for the Muslim Association of Canterbury said in a statement. “Although recognition of our prime minister for her response to attacks is well deserved, we question the timing and whether a movie is appropriate right now? The terrorist attack is still raw for our community.” Ardern has distanced herself from the project with her office saying she and the government have no involvement with it. Australian actress Rose Byrne is set to play Ardern in the film, the Hollywood Reporter said, and New Zealander Andrew Niccol would write and direct it. They Are Us was not so much about the attack but the response to it, Niccol was quoted as telling the Hollywood Reporter, which described the film an “inspirational story about the young leader’s response to the tragic events”. But some Muslims questioned that focus. “This is not an inspiring story,” said Mohamed Hassan, a journalist and poet based in Auckland, said in a commentary broadcast on Radio New Zealand. “It is a tragedy, one that must always be centred around the Muslim victims and their families. No one else.” #TheyAreUsShutDown was trending on Twitter in New Zealand. Ali said he recognised the story of the shootings needed to be told but said it should be done so in an appropriate, authentic and sensitive way. “There needs to be a lot of work done in New Zealand in terms of hate speech laws, recognising Islamophobia does exist in our society and the institutional prejudice within our government apparatus before a blockbuster film comes out stating that we’ve done a great job here in New Zealand,” he said.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said that violence in Myanmar is intensifying and condemned the army’s “outrageous” use of heavy weapons, while urging a wider diplomatic effort to pressure the ruling generals. Michelle Bachelet said the junta had shown no willingness to implement a five-point consensus it agreed with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) in April to halt violence and start dialogue with its opponents. Bachelet said there were credible reports that in Kayah State, civilians were being used as human shields and the army was shelling homes and churches, which had forced more than 108,000 people to flee, with little food, water or sanitation, and humanitarian access was blocked. “There appear to be no efforts towards de-escalation but rather a build-up of troops in key areas, contrary to the commitments the military made to Asean to cease the violence,” Bachelet said in a statement. Myanmar has been in turmoil since a Feb 1 coup ousted Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government, unleashing daily protests and strikes that have paralysed the economy, and fighting in borderlands between the armed forces and ethnic minority guerrilla forces and militias. A junta spokesman did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment. The Southeast Asian mediation effort has made little progress. Asean’s foreign ministers, China and Japan were among several countries this week stressing the importance of the peace plan being implemented. The United Nations, Western countries and China all back the Asean effort, but the Myanmar military, known as the Tatmadaw, has paid little heed to that and instead touted the progress of its own five-step plan towards a new election. Bachelet encouraged the intensification of diplomacy, including from influential states, and said dialogue was urgently needed with all political stakeholders, including a shadow government made up of opponents of military rule. Two Asean envoys visited Myanmar last week and met top junta officials, including military chief Min Aung Hlaing, a trip that was criticised by pro-democracy groups, who say they are being shut out. “The international community needs to unify in its demand that the Tatmadaw cease the outrageous use of heavy artillery against civilians and civilian objects,” Bachelet said. “The military leadership is singularly responsible for this crisis, and must be held to account.” She also said newly formed civilian forces, known as People’s Defence Forces, and other armed groups, must take all measures to keep civilians away from harm. Bachelet also said she was deeply troubled by detentions and reports of torture. According to the Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) activist group, 5,965 people been arrested since the coup. Of those, 4,804 remain in prison, interrogation centres, and under house arrest. At least 860 people have been killed, 22 of those from torture during detention, the AAPP says. The junta has branded its opponents terrorists and outlawed many organisations, including the AAPP. The state-run Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper gave a breakdown yesterday of offences committed since the military took power. It included 49 held for arson and terrorist acts and 61 suspected of murder, 256 people arrested for illegally holding arms and 272 for terrorism and destructive acts. Among the weapons seized were 914 homemade guns, 50 small arms, and 5,947 homemade bombs, the paper said. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet.

New corruption cases have been opened against Myanmar’s deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other former officials from her government, the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar said yesterday. The cases are the latest of a series brought against elected leader Suu Kyi, 75, who was overthrown by the army on February 1 in a coup that has plunged the Southeast Asian country into chaos. The state newspaper quoted the Anti-Corruption Commission as saying the accusations related to the misuse of land for the charitable Daw Khin Kyi Foundation, which she chaired, as well as earlier accusations of accepting money and gold. It said case files had been opened against Suu Kyi and several other officials from the capital Naypyidaw at police stations on Wednesday. “She was found guilty of committing corruption using her rank. So she was charged under Anti-Corruption Law section 55,” the paper said. That law provides for up to 15 years in prison for those found guilty. The lead lawyer for Suu Kyi in several other cases said that as far as he was aware the corruption investigations were continuing and were not before any court. He described the accusations as “absurd”. “She might have defects but personal greed and corruption are not her traits. Those who accuse her of greed and corruption are spitting towards the sky,” Khin Maung Zaw said. The Daw Khin Kyi Foundation, over which Suu Kyi is accused, was set up in the name of her late mother to help develop education, health and welfare in Myanmar. Cases Suu Kyi already faced ranged from the illegal possession of walkie-talkie radios to breaking the Official Secrets Act. Her supporters say the cases are politically motivated. The army overthrew Suu Kyi saying her party had cheated in November elections, an accusation rejected by the previous election commission and international monitors. Since then, the army has failed to establish control. It faces daily protests, strikes that have paralysed the economy by opponents of the junta, a rash of assassinations and bomb attacks and a resurgence of conflicts in Myanmar’s borderlands. “There is an undeniable political background to keep her out of the scene of the country and to smear her prestige,” he said adding she could face long prison terms on the secrecy and corruption charges. “That’s one of the reasons to charge her — to keep her out of the scene.” Suu Kyi spent more than 15 years under house arrest during the previous military rule before her 2010 release.

Mongolia's new president Khurelsukh Ukhnaa is a macho character who has been photographed topless on horseback Putin-style, and became known as ‘Fist’ after punching a parliamentarian. The former prime minister won nearly 70 percent of the vote in the presidential election, preliminary results showed Thursday, with historically low voter turnout for the third election in two years. The country went to the polls Wednesday to replace populist businessman Battulga Khaltmaa -- a former world champion on the martial art of sambo who cannot run for a second presidential term under constitutional rules. In the early hours of Thursday, Khurelsukh declared a decisive victory after getting nearly 70 percent of votes cast. ‘From the bottom of my heart, I thank my fellow Mongolians,’ he said. Enkhbat Dangaasuren, his main rival, gathered only around a fifth of the votes and conceded defeat. An official announcement of the results is expected Thursday afternoon, according to Mongolia's state news agency. Khurelsukh has cultivated a macho persona, complete with photos of him posing shirtless with a hunting gun -- similar to the famous images of Russian leader Vladimir Putin. He also got the nickname ‘Fist’ after a video of him punching a member of parliament went viral in 2012. Khurelsukh has since tried to clean up his image, and this is the first presidential win in 12 years for his Mongolian People's Party -- but voter turnout was just 59 percent out of around two million eligible voters. He resigned as prime minister in January following protests and public outrage over the treatment of a coronavirus patient and her newborn baby. Landlocked Mongolia, wedged between China and Russia, has struggled with political instability since it became a democracy. Its first constitution was passed in 1992 after decades of communist rule. Challenger Enkhbat, an internet entrepreneur who largely appealed to the country's youth, lost momentum when he tested positive for the coronavirus during the election campaign and was forced into quarantine. Gerelt-Od, senior lecturer at the Mongolian National University of Education, told AFP that low turnout was a sign of apathy towards all parties. Infighting among the rival parties and Covid-19 restrictions are also being blamed for the sluggish turnout. Mongolia introduced some of the strictest early measures against the virus and achieved early success in keeping numbers low. But cases have soared in recent months, although there have been impressive high rates of vaccination.  

Mongolians took to the polls on Wednesday to vote for the country's new president, in the nation's third election to take place in the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic. Polls opened at 7am local time in the vast central Asian democracy, in an election hampered by social distancing, cancelled presidential debates and one candidate catching Covid. There are around two million eligible voters in the landlocked country between China and Russia, where temperatures swing from minus 30 degrees Celcius in the winter to plus 30  in the summer. Political instability has been a constant problem for the young democracy, which passed its first constitution in 1992 after decades of Communist rule. Former prime minister Khurelsukh Ukhnaa is seen as the frontrunner, looking to make a comeback after resigning amid public outrage in January over the treatment of a new mother with coronavirus. Khurelsukh's main rival is charismatic internet entrepreneur Enkhbat Dangaasuren, leader of the Green Party. But Enkhbat's campaign has been hindered by having to go into quarantine after testing positive for Covid-19 during the rally. Last year, a parliamentary election delivered a landslide victory for the ruling Mongolian People's Party -- largely on the back of no domestic transmissions of the virus. But since then, cases have soared, with around 300 deaths from Covid-19 recorded -- although the country has achieved impressive rates of inoculations with around 90 percent of adults given their first dose of the vaccine. The current president is populist businessman Battulga Khaltmaa, a former world champion in the Soviet-era martial art of sambo, who cannot run for a second term under constitutional rules. Inequality is a key concern among Mongolian voters with the poverty rate standing at 28 percent, according to the latest World Bank survey. The country is also one of the hardest hit by climate change, causing desertification and pollution. Traditionally heavily influenced by nomadic culture, more than two-thirds of the population now live in cities.

US Vice President Kamala Harris arrived in Guatemala Sunday, bringing a message of "hope" to a region hammered by Covid-19 and which is the source of most of the undocumented migrants seeking entry to the United States. Harris, who will also visit Mexico, is making her first journey abroad as President Joe Biden's deputy with an eye toward tackling the root causes of migration from the region -- one of the thorniest issues facing the White House. She landed at an air force base outside Guatemala City on Sunday evening, where she was greeted by Foreign Minister Pedro Brolo and US Ambassador William Popp. "I am here in Guatemala City for my first international trip as vice president," she wrote on Twitter following her arrival in the city, where she will meet with President Alejandro Giammattei as well as community and business leaders. Giammattei extended a "most cordial welcome" to Harris. "I am certain that it will be a successful visit and that we will continue to strengthen bilateral relations for the benefit of our peoples," he tweeted. Nancy McEldowney, Harris' National Security Advisor, said the trip was part of efforts to "restore American leadership around the world." The United States would seek to develop an agenda that "takes into account the need to grow the Guatemalan economy, to deal with the climate crisis and food insecurity that has resulted, to work to combat poverty, violence and corruption," she added. Harris has said she hopes to have "honest" discussions with the two leaders about corruption, crime and violence. Giammattei, speaking to CBS ahead of the visit, said Harris "doesn't hold back, which is good. She is frank." Detentions of undocumented travelers along the US-Mexico border, including unaccompanied minors, hit a 15-year high in April. Nearly 180,000 people were intercepted -- more than 80 percent of them coming from Mexico or the so-called Northern Triangle of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. "We have to give people a sense of hope ... that if they stay, things will get better," Harris has previously said, after Biden tasked her with leading diplomatic efforts on the issue in March. - Vaccines, TPS, Title 42 – Donation of coronavirus vaccines by the United States to the region is also expected to be up for discussion. Harris addressed the subject over the phone with Giammattei and Lopez Obrador on Thursday, just before Biden announced the shipment of a first batch of six million doses to be distributed in Central America and the Caribbean through the global Covax program. Others will be sent directly from Washington to partner countries such as Mexico. For security and democracy expert Rebecca Bill Chavez, "a real commitment" on the number of doses destined for the Northern Triangle would be "one very positive outcome" of Harris's trip. Another potential topic is the possibility of granting Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Guatemalans living in the United States, allowing them to work legally. And there could be talk in Mexico of ending "Title 42," a Trump-era coronavirus policy allowing the immediate deportation of undocumented migrants -- even those who arrive seeking asylum. - 'A lot tougher' – The vice president's trip to Central America is part of the Biden administration's promise of a more humane immigration policy -- in contrast to the hardline approach taken by his predecessor Donald Trump. But Harris faces challenges even more complicated than the ones Biden dealt with as Barack Obama's vice president, when he was charged with handling the same matter. "The conditions have deteriorated dramatically since 2014," said Michael Shifter, president of the Inter-American Dialogue think tank, referring to a worsening economic situation and increasing violence, both exacerbated by the pandemic. Harris's work is "a lot tougher," Shifter said, "because the (country) partners are far more problematic." The relationship between Washington and San Salvador has been tense since the Salvadoran Legislative Assembly, led by the ruling party, fired judges and the attorney general on May 1, and after the US labeled members of President Nayib Bukele's government corrupt. And Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez was implicated in cocaine trafficking in a New York court earlier this year. A group of 18 US Democratic senators wrote a letter to Harris ahead of her trip. "Ensuring stability in Central America directly supports the national interests of the United States," said the group, led by Foreign Relations Committee head Bob Menendez. The Republican opposition on the other hand has accused Biden of creating a "crisis" on the country's southern border by failing to rein in immigration. Congress must still decide whether to approve the $861 million Biden has asked for next year as part of his $4 billion plan to take on the issue of undocumented immigration.  

The African Union announced it was suspending Mali with immediate effect and threatened the impoverished country with sanctions, after a second military coup in nine months. The putsch has sparked deep concerns over stability in the volatile Sahel region and warnings of economic penalties from across the international community. The AU ‘decides... to immediately suspend the Republic of Mali from participation in all activities of the African Union, its Organs and institutions, until normal constitutional order has been restored in the country’, the body's Peace and Security Council said in a statement late Tuesday. The move follows a similar suspension on Sunday from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). In its statement, the AU called for the military to ‘urgently and unconditionally return to the barracks, and to refrain from further interference in the political processes in Mali’. It warned that if the military did not hand back power to civilian transitional leaders, ‘the Council will not hesitate to impose targeted sanctions and other punitive measures’. Condemning the coup ‘in the strongest terms possible’, it added it was ‘deeply concerned about the evolving situation in Mali and its negative impact on the gains made thus far in the transition process in the country’. Strongman Colonel Assimi Goita was at the ECOWAS crisis summit in Ghana on Sunday to argue the military's case but has now returned to Mali. Goita last August led army officers who overthrew elected president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, following mass protests over perceived corruption and a bloody jihadist insurgency. After the takeover, the military agreed to appoint civilians as interim president and prime minister under the pressure of ECOWAS trade and financial sanctions. But in a move that provoked diplomatic uproar, soldiers last week detained transitional president Bah Ndaw and prime minister Moctar Ouane, releasing them on Thursday while saying that they had resigned. Mali's constitutional court completed Goita's rise to full power on Friday by naming him transitional president. With the junta going back on its previous commitment to civilian political leaders, doubts have been raised about its other pledges, including a promise to hold elections in early 2022. The junta said this week it would continue to respect that timetable, but added that it could be subject to change.  

Hong Kong yesterday warned it may soon have to throw away coronavirus vaccine doses because they are approaching their expiry date and not enough people have signed up for the jabs. Hong Kong is one of the few places in the world fortunate enough to have secured more than enough doses to inoculate its entire population of 7.5mn people. But swirling distrust of the government as it stamps out dissent - combined with online misinformation and a lack of urgency in the comparatively virus-free city - has led to entrenched vaccine hesitancy and a dismal inoculation drive. Yesterday a member of the government’s vaccine task force warned that Hong Kongers “only have a three-month window” before the city’s first batch of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines go out of date. “The vaccines all have expiry dates,” Thomas Tsang, a former controller of the Centre for Health Protection, told RTHK radio. “They cannot be used after the expiry date and the community vaccination centres for BioNTech will, according to present plans, cease operating after September.” Tsang said it was “just not right” that Hong Kong was sitting on an unused pile of doses while the rest of the world “is scrambling for vaccines”. And he warned new doses were unlikely to be delivered. “What we have is probably all we have for the rest of the year,” he said. Hong Kong bought 7.5mn doses each of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and China’s Sinovac. The latter has yet to be approved by the World Health Organisation but was fast-tracked for use by city health regulators. It also pre-ordered 7.5mn doses of AstraZeneca jabs but scrapped that deal earlier in the year, with authorities saying they planned to use the money for second-generation vaccines next year. So far just 19% of the population has received one dose of either vaccine, while 14 % has received two doses. Hesitancy is common even among the city’s medical workers.

A river of boiling lava came to a halt on the outskirts of Goma Sunday, sparing the city in eastern DR congo from disaster after the nighttime eruption of the Nyiragongo volcano sent thousands of terrified residents fleeing in panic. Fire and strong fumes emanated from the blackish molten rock as it swallowed up houses, heading towards Goma airport on the shores of Lake Kivu and leaving smouldering wreckage in its wake, an AFP correspondent said. But the military governor of North Kivu province said "the city was spared" by a matter of a few hundred yards (metres) after "the lava halted near Buhene on the outskirts of Goma". Five people were killed in accidents during the evacuations, said General Constant Ndima, appointed governor early this month when the province was placed under a "state of siege" to combat violence by armed groups. Ndima reported some thefts from shops and an attempted escape of inmates from Goma prison but said "the situation is under control." Many families slept on pavements surrounded by their belongings under a night sky turned red by fire and fumes. The morning brought around a dozen earth tremors, prompting Pope Francis to offer a special prayer for Goma in his Sunday Vatican address. "This morning we saw the whole district had gone up in smoke, the flames came right down here from Nyiragongo," said one resident, Irene Bauma. "People have lost property, maybe there are some dead," said local trader Kambere Ombeni, who called on the government to help. Ndima said around 7,000 people fled overnight to neighouring Rwanda before returning. "All the Goma residents returned home without incident this morning after spending the night in emergency shelters which Rwanda set up, mainly schools," said Rwanda's minister for emergency management, Marie Solange Kayisire. She spoke to AFP from the town of Rubavu near the border with the Democratic Republic of congo. "Only about 100 of them are still in Rwanda but they are people who have cars who spent the night in hotels," added Kayisire. Despite a relative return to calm Goma residents remained wary. "There is a smell of sulphur. In the distance you can see giant flames coming out of the mountain," one resident, Carine Mbala, told AFP. Tourists who were near the crater when the volcano erupted are safe, the congolese Institute for the Conservation of Nature (ICCN) tweeted, adding the rare mountain gorillas in the Virunga National Park, where Mount Nyiragongo is located, were likewise not threatened by the eruption. - 'Not sure it's over' -A few cars were on seen on the streets Sunday, but no police or military presence was visible. "We're not convinced that the eruption is over in just a day. We're waiting," said one man. On Saturday, Communications Minister Patrick Muyaya had said that the government had activated an evacuation plan and was "discussing the urgent measures to take at present." The president of the Democratic Republic of congo, Felix Tshisekedi, said he would "interrupt his stay in Europe to return home this Sunday to supervise the coordination of aid". General Ndima said Monusco, the UN mission in the country, NGOs and international organisations in the DRC would hold an emergency meeting on the crisis later Sunday with local and regional authorities. The first departures from Goma city came even before the official confirmation that Mount Nyiragongo had erupted at around 7:00 pm Saturday, spewing red fumes into the night sky. - 'I'm scared again' -Power was already cut in large parts of the city when hundreds of residents began leaving their homes. Some headed out of the southern end of Goma towards the nearby border post with Rwanda, while others headed west towards Sake, in the neighbouring congolese region of Masisi. Resident Richard Bahati said he was incredibly worried about the eruption: "I lived through this volcano problem in 2002. "The volcano had devastated all our homes and all our possessions. That's why I'm scared again this time." Electricity was cut off in a large part of the city as thousands of people -- encumbered with mattresses, food and parcels -- streamed towards the Rwandan border. - Last flights -Several planes, belonging to Monusco and private companies, took off on Saturday evening, according to an airport source, with a local adding they had also seen the unusual nighttime activity. In a May 10 report, the Goma Vulcanology Observatory warned seismic activity around the volcano had increased and warranted careful monitoring of a region with six volcanos in all. The Observatory's Adalbert Muhindo said ongoing tremors meant people had to remain vigilant and warned it would be dangerous for locals who had fled to think of returning to the vicinity for now. The last time Nyiragongo erupted was January 17, 2002, killing more than a hundred people and covering almost all of the eastern part of Goma with lava, including half of the airport's landing strip. During that eruption, the victims were mostly sick or elderly abandoned to their fate in the northern districts of the city with some looting also taking place.

Myanmar’s junta leader Min Aung Hlaing said deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi was healthy at home and would appear in court in a few days, in his first interview since overthrowing her in a Feb 1 coup.  The coup has plunged the southeast Asian country into chaos. An ethnic armed group opposed to the ruling junta attacked a military post in a northwestern jade mining town while other violent incidents were reported from other corners of Myanmar. Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate for her long struggle against previous military rulers, is among more than 4,000 people detained since the coup. She faces charges that range from illegally possessing walkie-talkie radios to violating a state secrets law. “Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is in good health. She is at her home and healthy. She is going to face trial at the court in a few days,” Min Aung Hlaing said by video link with the Hong Kong-based Chinese language broadcaster Phoenix Television on May 20, in excerpts released on Saturday. The interviewer asked him what he thought of the performance of Suu Kyi, 75, who is widely admired in the country of 53mn for her campaign that had brought tentative democratic reforms which were cut short by the coup.  “She tried all she could,” Min Aung Hlaing responded. He reiterated that the army had seized power because it had identified fraud in an election won by Suu Kyi’s party in November - although its accusations were rejected by the then election commission. He said the army would hold elections and potential changes to the constitution had been identified and would be made if they were “the people’s will”. Suu Kyi’s next court appearance is due on Monday in the capital Naypyidaw.  So far she has appeared only by video link and as yet to be allowed to speak directly to her lawyers. The junta has cited security reasons for not allowing her to speak to her lawyers in private at a time the military authorities have not established control of the country in the face of daily protests, strikes and renewed insurgencies. The Kachin Independence Army (KIA) attacked an army post at Hkamti township in the Sagaing region early on Saturday, the Irrawaddy and Mizzima online publications said.  Pictures showed columns of dark smoke rising from the scene. KIA spokesman Naw Bu told Reuters he was aware of the attack but could give no details. Reuters was unable to reach a junta spokesman for comment. State run-MRTV television reported the attack and said that three police had been wounded and others were missing. Independent broadcaster DVB said nine were captured by the insurgents.  Since the coup, open conflict resumed between the army and the KIA, which has been fighting for greater autonomy for the Kachin people for some six decades and has voiced support for anti-junta protesters. Mizzima said the army used jets in attacks on the KIA at Hkamti, a town on the Chindwin river in a remote region rich in jade and gold about 50km (30 miles) from the border with India. The army has carried out numerous bombing attacks on KIA positions in recent weeks and has also clashed with ethnic armies in the east and west of Myanmar. Security forces have killed at least 815 people since the coup, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners activist group. Min Aung Hlaing said the actual figure was  around 300 and that 47 police had also been killed. State-run MRTV said one policeman had been killed in an insurgent attack in eastern Kayah state on Friday. In western Chin state, junta opponents said they had killed at least four members of the security forces on Friday and had buried them by the roadside. The claim could not be independently verified. Myanmar media reported that a soldier had been killed in a shooting in the commercial hub, Yangon, yesterday. Bomb blasts were reported there, at Pathein in the Irrawaddy delta region and at a trading zone near the border with China.

Arctic countries on Thursday pledged to fight global warming, which is happening three times faster in the Far North, and to preserve peace in the region as its geopolitical importance rises. Accelerated global warming, untapped resources, new maritime routes opened up by retreating sea ice, and the future of local populations all topped the agenda as foreign ministers of countries bordering the Arctic gathered in Reykjavik in Iceland. ‘We are committed to advancing a peaceful Arctic region where cooperation prevails on climate, the environment, science and safety,’ US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his Arctic Council counterparts from Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia and Sweden. ‘The Arctic as a region for strategic competition has seized the world's attention’ but ‘rule of law’ must be ensured so that it remains ‘a region free of conflict where countries act responsibly,’ he added. The statements were thinly-veiled warnings to China, which although only an observer on the Council has made no secret of its interest in the vast territory rich in natural resources and where retreating sea ice has opened up new maritime routes. Blinken was also certainly targeting Russia, after tense exchanges that preceded Thursday's meeting about the risk of a ‘militarisation’ of the Arctic. - Military manoeuvres – Russia has steadily beefed up its military presence in the Arctic in recent years, reopening and modernising several bases and airfields abandoned since the end of the Soviet era. But Sergei Lavrov, foreign minister for Russia -- which succeeded Iceland as rotating chair of the Arctic Council on Thursday -- also accused NATO of using a ‘play on words’ to justify setting up a military presence on Russia's doorstep. In order to circumvent an agreement between Russia and NATO, deployments in Norway were called a ‘rotational presence instead of permanent presence,’ Lavrov said. ‘Today, we have highlighted at the meeting that we see no grounds for conflict here. Even more so for any development of military programs of some blocks here,’ Lavrov told reporters. The Russian envoy also said his country supported the idea of hosting a summit of Arctic nations during its two-year presidency of the Council. Lavrov has also called for a resumption of regular meetings between the chiefs of staff of the Council's member countries. Russia has been excluded from these meetings since 2014, after the annexation of Crimea. The Arctic Council was set up 25 years ago to deal with issues like the environment and areas of international cooperation, and its mandate explicitly excludes military security. With the departure of Donald Trump, who sparked agitation by proposing to buy Greenland in 2019 and repeated opposition to Russian and Chinese ambitions in the region, eyes have been on the line adopted by President Joe Biden's administration. Blinken, who on Wednesday met with Lavrov in their first face-to-face meeting which was described as ‘constructive’ by both countries, ostensibly emphasised ‘cooperation’ rather than tensions. On Thursday, Blinken also ended his four day tour, which started in Denmark, by visiting Greenland directly, where he told reporters that the US wished to make their partnership with Greenland ‘even stronger’ and that he could ‘confirm’ the US was no longer attempting to buy Greenland. - Climate change – The US top diplomat also focused on the fight against global warming, much in line with his counterparts who have rejoiced in recent days at the ‘return’ of America to the international community consensus on the climate issue. ‘The climate crisis is our most serious long term threat with the Arctic warming three times faster than anywhere else on the planet,’ Canadian Foreign Minister Marc Garneau told the Council. The alarming data was part of a report published Thursday by the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP), which also warned of an increased risk of the region's sea ice disappearing completely in summer, before reforming in winter. ‘We have a duty to strengthen our cooperation for the benefit of the people inhabiting the Arctic,’ Danish Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod said. At the previous Council meeting in 2019 in Finland, the Trump administration blocked the signing of a joint declaration for the first time since the Council's creation 25 years ago, as it refused to include climate change in the final statement. The adoption of a joint statement on Thursday went without a hitch, as did the agreement of a 10-year strategic plan for the first time in the Council's history. In addition to the countries bordering the Arctic, the Council also includes six organisations representing the indigenous peoples of the region and 13 observer countries.    

Tokyo could freeze all aid to Myanmar, Japan's foreign minister warned in an interview published Friday, as the military junta continues to use lethal force against opponents of its coup. Japan is a top donor to Myanmar, and has already suspended new aid after the military ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi. But Toshimitsu Motegi, speaking to the Nikkei newspaper, said the freeze could be expanded. ‘We don't want to do that at all, but we have to state firmly that it will be difficult to continue under these circumstances,’ he told the newspaper. ‘As a country that supported Myanmar's democratisation in various ways, and as a friend, we must represent the international community and convey that clearly.’ Japan announced in March it was halting all new aid to impoverished Myanmar in response to the coup, though it has not imposed the individual sanctions on military and police commanders implemented by some other countries. Motegi has said Japan is Myanmar's largest provider of economic assistance, and Tokyo has long-standing relations with the country's military. According to the Nikkei, Japan provided $1.74 billion in development aid to Myanmar in fiscal 2019, more than any other country with disclosed figures. China's aid figures are not public. More than 800 people have been killed in Myanmar in unrest since the military ousted Suu Kyi in a February 1 coup. A Japanese journalist arrested covering the aftermath of the coup was released last week and returned to Tokyo. His release came as Japan said it had offered Myanmar $4 million in emergency aid through the World Food Programme. Speaking in Tokyo on Friday, the journalist Yuki Kitazumi called on Japan's government to have the ‘courage’ to use its leverage with Myanmar's military. ‘People in Myanmar expect and hope that the Japanese government will take concrete action,’ he told a press conference. Kitazumi described meeting political prisoners who told him they and others were being tortured in custody, including beatings, and being kept awake around the clock. ‘I hope the power of the Japanese government that got me released will be used for people in Myanmar,’ he said. Tokyo has called for Suu Kyi's release and the restoration of democracy, and Motegi told the Nikkei that Tokyo was continuing to hold dialogue with the junta. ‘We have a greater variety of channels in Myanmar, including with the military, than Europe and the US,’ he said.    

More than 800 people have been killed by Myanmar's security forces since a wave of protests broke out across the country after the military seized power in a coup in February, an activist group said. Myanmar has been in turmoil since the army ousted Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's elected government and detained her and officials of her National League for Democracy party. The military has responded to protests by pro-democracy supporters in cities and towns with lethal force, while there has been an upsurge in fighting between the army and ethnic rebels in border areas and newly formed militia forces. As of Monday, 802 people had been killed in the junta's crackdown on its opponents, according to the activist group the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. ‘This is the number verified by AAPP, the actual number of fatalities is likely much higher,’ the group said in its daily briefing. It detailed six additional fatalities including in towns in Chin state and in districts of the main cities of Mandalay and Yangon. Reuters could not independently verify the casualties and a military spokesman did not answer a phone call seeking comment. The junta has previously disputed the number of civilians that have died and said dozens of members of the security forces had also been killed during the protests. The activist group said 4,120 people were currently being detained, including 20 who had been sentenced to death. RESIDENTS FLEE Some of the most intense fighting since the Feb. 1 coup has emerged in recent days in Mindat, about 100 km (60 miles) from the Indian border in Chin state as the army battles local militias. Thousands of residents in the hill town in northwest Myanmar were hiding in jungles, villages and valleys on Monday after fleeing an assault by the military, witnesses said. Martial law was declared in Mindat last week before the army launched its assault, using artillery and helicopters against a newly formed Chinland Defence Force. The militia, armed mainly with hunting rifles, said it had pulled back to spare civilians from being caught in the crossfire. Several residents reached by Reuters said food was in short supply and estimated as many as 5,000 to 8,000 people had fled the town. Roads were blocked and the presence of troops in the streets was preventing their return. ‘Almost everyone left the city,’ said a volunteer fighter who said she was in a jungle. ‘Most of them are in hiding.’ The United States and Britain have called on the army to avoid civilian casualties and a shadow National Unity Government formed by loyalists of Suu Kyi appealed for international help. A UN General Assembly vote on Tuesday on a draft resolution calling ‘for an immediate suspension of the direct and indirect supply, sale or transfer of all weapons and munitions’ to Myanmar has been postponed, diplomats said. It was not immediately known when a vote would be rescheduled. Some diplomats said it had been delayed in a bid to win more support. The draft resolution calls on the Myanmar military to end a state of emergency, stop all violence against peaceful protesters and respect the will of the people as expressed in the results of November's election.    

Taiwan yesterday raised its coronavirus alert level in the capital, Taipei, and the surrounding city, bringing curbs for a period of two weeks that will shut many venues and restrict gatherings in the wake of 180 new domestic infections. Masks are to be worn outdoors for the first time, as the government encourages work and study from home, shutting cinemas and entertainment spots, while limiting gatherings of families and friends to five indoors and 10 outdoors. Taipei’s government has already ordered restaurants and similar venues to shut. Health Minister Chen Shih-chung said a “level of risk” in certain hot spots, such as Taipei’s gritty Wanhua district, had spurred the decision to raise the alert level. “Only by doing this can infections be dealt with and controlled,” he told reporters. Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je urged people to stay home as much as possible, adding that schools teaching should move online. “During this time, if you have nothing on, then stay at home and don’t go out, and if you do, wear a mask to reduce infection from droplets,” said Ko, a doctor by training. President Tsai Ing-wen’s spokesman said she would reduce the number of “unnecessary meetings” or public events. The presidential office is close to Wanhua. Amid pictures on social media showing people flocking to supermarkets to stock up on toilet paper and instant noodles, the economy ministry took to Facebook to assure people that supplies were ample and there was no need to hoard. The rising community infections unnerved the stock market this week, though the government says the island’s economic fundamentals remain good. Deputy Finance Minister Frank Juan said authorities would watch market reaction on Monday, adding he did not rule out calling a meeting of the National Stabilisation Fund, which the government can use to smooth large fluctuations. Investors should act rationally, he said, pointing out that only a few sectors would be affected by the curbs, such as tourism, rather than the island’s crucial foreign trade. The new restrictions do not apply to the chip-manufacturing hub of Hsinchu, and are unlikely to affect exports of semiconductors, a global shortage of which has shut some car factories. Chipmaking giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co said it was closely monitoring the situation, cutting non-essential gatherings and activities and reducing the movement of people across different chip fabs. Taiwan has millions of vaccine doses on order from Moderna and AstraZeneca, though only a small number have arrived from the latter due to global shortages and vaccination rates remain low. More vaccines will start arriving next month, Tsai has said. Since the pandemic began, Taiwan has reported fewer than 1,500 cases among a population of about 24mn, most of them imported from abroad, but a recent rise in community transmissions has spooked residents. The island has never gone into a full lockdown and its people are used to life carrying on near normal, despite the pandemic ranging in many other parts of the world.