Caribbean & International

Brazil declares emergency after 2,400 babies are born with brain damage, possibly due to mosquito-borne virus

(Washington Post)  Brazilian health authorities are sounding the alarm about a mosquito-borne virus that they believe may be the cause of thousands of infants being born with damaged brains. The pathogen, known as Zika and first discovered in forest monkeys in Africa over 70 years ago, is the new West Nile — a virus that […]

Comedian Host mistakenly crowns wrong Miss Universe Queen

The host of the Miss Universe has apologised after mistakenly naming the wrong woman as winner, leaving Miss Colombia empty-handed. After the error, Ariadna Gutierrez was instead declared runner-up and surrendered her crown to Miss Philippines, Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach. #MissUniverse2015 became Twitter’s biggest trend of the night as social media users expressed their disbelief. Ms […]

Colombia and Farc reach deal on war reparations

(BBC)  The government of Colombia and Farc rebels have announced that they have reached a deal on reparations for war victims. The agreement deals with one of the most sensitive issues in the three-year peace talks taking place in the Cuban capital, Havana. It will include the establishment of a special judicial system to deal […]

Ralph Gonsalves wins 4th term in St. Vincent

KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent – The Ralph Gonsalves-led Unity Labour Party (ULP) made history here tonight by winning its fourth consecutive general election. However, it had to settle for the same slender one seat margin as it did in the 2010 poll. The incumbent ULP won eight of the 15 seats, according to the preliminary results. The main […]

Argentina’s Fernandez bids emotional farewell

(BBC) Argentina’s outgoing President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has made an emotional farewell speech to supporters in Buenos Aires. She urged people to take to the streets if they feel betrayed by the new centre-right government. Conservative Mauricio Macri, who won a run-off election last month, is due to be sworn in as president later. […]