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SE Asia vows to rescue 'boat people'; Myanmar seizes migrant vessel

By Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Kanupriya Kapoor BANGKOK (Reuters) – Southeast Asian nations agreed on Friday to intensify search and rescue efforts to help vulnerable “boat people” stranded in the region’s seas, as Myanmar said its navy had seized a vessel off its coast with more than 700 migrants aboard. More than 4,000 migrants have landed in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar and Bangladesh since Thailand launched a crackdown on people-smuggling

Explosion shakes Burundi capital, deadly protests continue

By Clement Manirabarusha BUJUMBURA (Reuters) – An explosion shook the center of the Burundi capital on Friday but no one was injured, a police source said, as deadly unrest against President Pierre Nkurunziza’s bid for a third term in office rumbled on. “We don’t know the cause of the explosion yet,” said one police officer who had visited the scene of the blast. The demonstrations, which began a day after

Heavy rains pound North Texas, severe weather kills 20 in the state

By Lisa Maria Garza and Jim Forsyth DALLAS (Reuters) – Storms bringing as much as 7 inches (17.8 cm) of rain drenched North Texas overnight into Friday, prompting hundreds of calls for emergency assistance and adding to the woes of the state where at least 20 people have been killed in severe weather this week. The National Weather Service issued a flash flood watch for an area from Central Texas

Hollande, Merkel call for rapid implementation of Minsk agreement

French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to rapidly implement measures agreed under the Feb. 12 Minsk ceasefire, Hollande’s office said in a statement. Hollande said he and Merkel had spoken on the phone with Putin early on Friday afternoon and told him they want to see concrete results from four working groups that were set up on May 6 to

Live anthrax found in U.S. military shipment to Australia: source

Live anthrax has been found in a 2008 sample sent to Australia from the same U.S. Army facility identified this week for more recent, mistaken shipments to nine U.S. states and an air base in South Korea, a U.S. defense official said on Friday. The U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, did not know what kind of facility in Australia received the sample, which, like the others, was

'Chaotic picture' as funding gap threatens WHO operations in Iraq

By Magdalena Mis LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – More than 3 million refugees and displaced Iraqis could be denied life-saving healthcare as the World Health Organization (WHO) scrambles to secure $60 million to fund their operations in the country to the end of the year. Without the money, healthcare providers in Iraq funded by the WHO and its partners could be forced to stop services — including primary healthcare, disease

When Paternalism Doesn't Work for Patients

“Does there have to be someone watching me?” Paula had asked the question as I was examining her. She was referring to the woman sitting in her hospital room, a “sitter.” Paula had been in the hospital for days with a skin infection that was not healing. Earlier that morning, her nurse noticed a few pills covered underneath Paula’s bed sheets….