Record 8,938 people died on migration
routes in 2024: UN
GENEVA, Mar 21: Last year was the deadliest year for migrants, with nearly 9,000 people dying worldwide, the United Nations said on Friday, calling it an "unacceptable and preventable" tragedy. "At least 8,938 people died on migration routes worldwide in 2024," the UN's migration agency said. "The 2024 toll continues a five-year trend of more deaths each year." — AFP
Tunisian president sacks prime minister
TUNIS, Mar 21: Tunisian President Kais Saied dismissed Prime Minister Kamel Madouri overnight Thursday, a statement from his office said, as the country grapples with major economic issues. Madouri, a technocrat appointed only last August during a major cabinet reshuffle, is replaced by Sarra Zaafrani Zenzri, formerly the minister of public works, an official announcement said. Saied has expressed dissatisfaction in recent weeks with the government's performance. Deeply indebted Tunisia is mired in serious economic and financial difficulty with sluggish growth and high unemployment. — AFP
Flights cancelled after Indonesia
volcano eruption
JAKARTA, Mar 21: At least seven international flights from Indonesia's resort island Bali have been cancelled, an airport official said Friday, after a volcano in the archipelago nation's east erupted, shooting dark ash eight kilometres into the sky. Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki, a 1,703-metre (5,587-foot) twin-peaked volcano on the tourist island of Flores, erupted for 11 minutes and nine seconds late Thursday, authorities said, raising the volcano's alert status to the highest level. — AFP
Trump denies reports Musk to receive
'top-secret' China briefing
WASHINGTON, Mar 21: US President Donald Trump denied media reports on Thursday at reports that his billionaire ally Elon Musk would receive a "top-secret briefing" on Washington's strategy in a potential war with China. The report, first published by The New York Times, fans concerns about the SpaceX and Tesla chief's influence in the White House as an unelected tycoon who has become Trump's closest advisor. Democrats have blasted Trump for handing administration policy to Musk, the president's cost-cutter-in-chief, despite him undergoing no background checks and heading companies with government contracts worth billions. — AFP
N Korea's Kim oversees test of latest
anti-aircraft missile system
SEOUL, Mar 21: North Korea test-fired its latest anti-aircraft missile system in a drill watched by leader Kim Jong Un, state media reported Friday, as the nuclear-armed state lashed out at US-South Korea joint drills. The launch proved the system's "combat fast response", the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, and came a day after South Korea wrapped up a major annual joint military exercise with the United States, known as Freedom Shield. The North-which attacked its neighbour in 1950, triggering the Korean War-has long been infuriated by any military exercises between the United States and the South, which it claims are rehearsals for invasion. — AP
Turkey won't surrender to 'street terror', Erdogan warns protesters
ISTANBUL, Mar 21: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday the Turkish authorities would not be cowed by "street terror" after days of unrest over the arrest of Istanbul's powerful opposition mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu. "Turkey will not surrender to street terror," Erdogan said as the leader of the main opposition CHP called for nationwide protests later on Friday over a move it has denounced as a "coup". "Let me say it loud and clear: the street protests that the CHP leader has called for are a dead end," Erdogan warned. — AFP
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