Redding (United States) (AFP) – Based on suspicions that previous elections were stolen, including the 2020 vote, the Shasta County’s Board of Supervisors has decided to end a contract for their lease of Dominion voting machines, used to process votes in the county. They are now implementing a new system that requires all votes to be counted by hand.
Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Ukraine urges the West to transfer control of confiscated Russian assets to Kyiv so they can be used to rebuild the country and support its recovery. “The confiscation of Russian assets should become a reliable source of support for our state and funding for our recovery,” Prime Minister Denys Shmygal tells a press conference.
Versailles (France) (AFP) – France’s Prime Minister Gabriel Attal says that the right to abortion remains “in danger” and “at the mercy of decision makers” before a vote to enshrine it in the constitution.
Samawah (Iraq) (AFP) – Far from the hustle and bustle of major cities, young Iraqis are increasingly taking advantage of a renewed sense of safety to explore the country’s serene desert getaways after years of conflict.
Portugal (Portugal) (AFP) – With one of Europe’s most open immigration regimes, Portugal has seen its foreign-born population double in the past five years. In 2023, a million foreigners were living in the country, accounting for one tenth of its population. While Brazilians remain the largest population of immigrants, Indians, Nepalis, Bangladeshis, and Pakistanis now figure in the top ten of new arrivals. Despite the rise of the far-right Chega party that is polling at 20% ahead of a March 10 general election, official figures show that openness towards immigration has been steadily growing in Portugal.
Subang Jaya (Malaysia) (AFP) – Relatives of passengers on a Malaysia Airlines plane that mysteriously vanished 10 years ago gathered on Sunday for a memorial as they called for a new search. About 500 relatives and their supporters attended the event at a shopping centre near Kuala Lumpur, where Malaysia’s Minister of Transport told the crowd that the government would discuss a “no-find, no-fee proposal” with marine exploration firm Ocean Infinity. Flight MH370, a Boeing 777 aircraft carrying 239 people, disappeared from radar screens on March 8, 2014, while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. Despite the largest search in aviation history, the plane has never been found.
Kennedy Space Center (United States) (AFP) – A SpaceX rocket Falcon 9 lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre in Florida carrying three American astronauts and a Russian cosmonaut to the International Space Station.
Melbourne (AFP) – Philippine Foreign Minister Enrique Manalo tells AFP that his country wants to solve maritime disputes with China peacefully — but delivered a simple message to Beijing: “stop harassing us”.
Santiago de Chile (AFP) – An NGO dedicated to finding children illegally adopted and taken abroad during Chile’s 1973-1990 dictatorship will search for them using artificial intelligence. Hijos y Madres del Silencio (‘Children and Mothers of Silence’) has partnered with a South Korean marketing company to generate faces through AI based on photos of the missing children and their families to approximate what they would look like as adults.
Vatikanstadt (AFP) – During his weekly Angelus prayer, Pope Francis calls for “an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and throughout the region”, adding that “disarmament is a moral duty”. Francis’ address comes as Egypt on Sunday hosts envoys for talks on a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, with heavy fighting ongoing in the nearly five-month-old war.
