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Yemen's Houthi rebels unilaterally freed 153 war detainees Saturday, the International Committee of the Red Cross said, one of several overtures in recent days to ease tensions after the ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. Previous prisoner releases have been viewed as a means to jumpstart talks over permanently ending Yemen's decade-long war, which began when the Houthis seized the country's capital, Sanaa, in 2014. However, the Houthis' release comes just after they detained another seven Yemeni workers from the United Nations, sparking anger from the world body. Those released previously had been visited by Red Cross staff in Sanaa and received medical checks and other assistance, the organization said while announcing the release. The Houthis had signalled on Friday night they planned a release of prisoners. The Red Cross said it welcomes this unilateral release as another positive step towards reviving negotiations". This operation has brought much-needed rel
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies on Tuesday launched an international emergency appeal asking donors to provide resources for Lebanon during the Israel-Hezbollah war. IFRC also called on all parties to protect paramedics in the conflict that has left thousands of people dead and wounded, many of them over the past six weeks. Jagan Chapagain, the secretary-general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, told The Associated Press in Beirut that needs are just growing so fast. He met with officials and toured shelters housing people displaced by the conflict. The IFRC said its emergency appeal for 100 million Swiss Francs (USD 115.8 million) is aimed at helping Lebanon and the Lebanese Red Cross through the ongoing conflict. The 13-month war between Israel and Hezbollah has killed more than 3,000 people, wounded over 13,000 in Lebanon. Hundreds of thousands of the displaced are staying in shelters around the small ..
Singapore on Sunday pledged USD 100,000 to support the Singapore Red Cross' (SRC) public fund-raising efforts following severe floods in eastern Bangladesh. "The contribution will support humanitarian relief efforts and the immediate needs of affected communities, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. On September 5, the SRC pledged USD 50,000 to support emergency operations in Bangladesh, providing essential aid and relief to affected communities through the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS). It said it is in contact with the BDRCS as well as the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies to monitor the situation and is ready to provide further assistance, The Straits Times newspaper reported. The SRC also launched a public fund-raising appeal to support the recovery efforts in Bangladesh. It will run until October 31. "We are deeply saddened by the loss of lives and displacement caused by the severe floods, said Benjamin William, SRC's secretary-gener
A charity working with homeless people in Auckland, New Zealand unknowingly distributed candies filled with a potentially lethal dose of methamphetamine in its food parcels after the sweets were donated by a member of the public. Auckland City Mission told reporters on Wednesday that staff had started to contact up to 400 people to track down parcels that could contain the sweets -- which were solid blocks of methamphetamine enclosed in candy wrappers. New Zealand's police have opened a criminal investigation. The amount of methamphetamine in each candy was up to 300 times the level someone would usually take and could be lethal, according to the New Zealand Drug Foundation -- a drug checking and policy organisation, which first tested the candies. Ben Birks Ang, a Foundation spokesperson, said disguising drugs as innocuous goods was a common cross-border smuggling technique and more of the candies might have been distributed throughout New Zealand. The sweets had a high street val
The Iranian-backed Houthis rebels in Yemen on Sunday released more than 100 war prisoners linked to the country's long-running conflict, the International Committee of the Red Cross said. The unilateral release came more than a year after Yemen's warring sides freed more than 800 prisoners in a major exchange in the country in April last year. The release of 113 prisoners took place Sunday morning in the Houthi-held capital of Sanaa, the Red Cross said in a statement, adding that the released detainees were among those the ICRC visited and assisted regularly in their detention in the Yemeni capital. We hope this paves the way for further releases, bringing comfort to families eagerly anticipating reunification with their loved ones, said Daphnee Maret, the ICRC's head of delegation in Yemen. One of the released detainees with health issues was transferred in an ambulance to his hometown inside Yemen, the ICRC said without elaborating. The release was delayed by a day because of ..
Follow live updates about wildfires that have devastated parts of Maui in Hawaii this week, destroying a historic town and forcing evacuations. The National Weather Service said Hurricane Dora, which passed south of the island chain, was partly to blame for strong winds that initially drove the flames, knocking out power and grounding firefighting helicopters. SEARCH EFFORTS IN HAWAII ARE GOING TO MOVE A LITTLE FASTER, OFFICIAL SAYS A state official in Hawaii says the search-and-rescue operation in Maui is taking painstaking efforts to finds survivors and victims of last week's deadly mass fire. Jeff Hickman is the director of public affairs for the Hawaii Department of Defence. He said on NBC's Today show that teams are going street by street, block by block between cars, and soon they'll start to enter buildings. Hickman said the Hawaii National Guard has over 110 personnel assisting Maui County with the search and rescue operation. The Federal Emergency Management Agency is al
A CBI inquiry has been launched at the regional branches of the Red Cross Society in four states and a Union Territory over complaints of corruption and financial irregularities. According to officials, the Union health ministry had received complaints about alleged corruption at the regional branches of the Red Cross Society in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam, Karnataka and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. In Tamil Nadu, the ministry officials said serious allegations in the functioning of the state branch were brought to the notice of the governor, after which he requested the national headquarters (NHQ) of the Red Cross Society in Delhi in July 2020 for approval under the Prevention of Corruption Act to enable the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to investigate the matter. "The accused chairman and other office-bearers of the Tamil Nadu branch obtained a stay from the high court in Chennai against investigation by the CBI. The stay stands vacated in June 2022. Currently, the ...
The death toll from a 6.8-magnitude earthquake that struck southwestern China rose to 66 as rescuers searched for victims and survivors, local authorities said on Tuesday. The powerful quake hit Luding County in Sichuan province on Monday. Sixty-six people were killed and over 50,000 people evacuated after the quake, authorities said. So far, 38 people have been killed in Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, and the other 28 died in the city of Ya'an, the rescue headquarters told a press briefing. Four counties and one county-level city in Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture and two counties in Ya'an reported quake-related damages. Luding County in Ganzi and Shimian County in Ya'an were the hardest-hit areas. Fifteen people were missing and 253 were injured, with five persons in critical condition and 70 in serious condition, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. Of the injured, 175 have been sent to hospitals for further treatment and six medical teams are working at the scene