Tag Archives: BBC News

https://bbc.com/africalive Madagascar should abolish a new law which allows for the chemical and surgical castration of people convicted of raping minors as it was “cruel, inhuman and degrading”, rights group Amnesty International has said. Last month, President Andry Rajoelina proposed the amendments to the penal code – that include chemical and surgical castration as punishment for individuals found guilty of ...

By Ione Wells in São Paulo and Patrick Jackson in London BBC News Chilean ex-President Sebastián Piñera, who served two terms and was also a billionaire businessman, has died in a helicopter crash at the age of 74. Three other people aboard the aircraft survived when it came down in a lake near the southern town of Lago Ranco. Piñera ...

By Ido Vock and Max Matza BBC News At least three people have been killed by falling trees as a powerful storm drenches California bringing flooding, mudslides and power outages. Fire officials have responded to over 130 flooding incidents and conducted several rescues since the deluge began. Forecasters say heavy rain with life-threatening flash flooding will continue into Tuesday. The ...

By Malu Cursino BBC News At least 112 people have been killed by forest fires in Chile’s Valparaíso region, local authorities have said. Gabriel Boric declared a state of emergency and said he would make “all necessary resources” available to tackle the situation. It is believed to be Chile’s deadliest forest fire on record. Many of those affected were visiting ...

By Mansur Abubakar BBC News, Abuja Nigerian police had no role in rescuing four sisters and their cousin from kidnappers, an uncle of the girls has told the BBC. They were taken from their home in Abuja earlier this month, along with another sister who was later killed. The uncle said a ransom was paid and the kidnappers dropped the ...

Image caption, A tree brought down by Storm Isha fell over a car in Belfast on Sunday evening By Sam Hancock BBC News Almost the whole of the UK is under weather warnings as strong winds from Storm Isha sweep in. Met Office amber wind warnings for all areas except London and parts of the South East are in place until ...

By Fan Wang BBC News At least 47 people have been buried in a landslide on Monday morning in the southwestern Chinese province of Yunnan, according to state media. Rescue efforts are under way in sub-zero temperatures in Zhaotong city. It is unclear yet if anyone has died.  Videos from local media showed rescuers working among collapsed homes and buildings. ...

By Bernd Debusmann Jr BBC News, Washington Nearly 90 weather-related deaths have been recorded across the US after the country was pummelled by ferocious winter storms for the past week.  The deaths include at least 25 in Tennessee and 16 in Oregon, which remains under a state of emergency following severe ice storms.  Tens of thousands of people also remain ...

By Cherylann Mollan BBC News, Mumbai Parents of school students who were on the boat that capsized in a lake in India’s Gujarat state have alleged that their children were “not given life jackets”. At least 12 pupils and two teachers drowned in the incident, which took place on Thursday in Harni Lake in Vadodara city. Police have arrested two people in ...

By Adedayo Okedare BBC News Yoruba, Ibadan A deadly blast that rocked the Nigerian city of Ibadan overnight was caused by explosives stored by illegal miners, the Oyo state governor has said. Two people were killed and 77 others injured in the explosion that has affected seven suburbs of Nigeria’s third most-populous city. Crowds have thronged the site of the ...