40 000 lb bomb that triggered earthquake

BRUSSELS, March 24 - A "third man" seen with two Islamic State suicide bombers at Brussels Airport was the focus of a Belgian manhunt on Thursday after police identified three others, including two brothers, who killed at least 31 people at the airport and on a city metro train. Turkey's president criticised Belgium for failing to track Brahim El Bakraoui, a convicted Belgian armed robber whom it deported last year and who blew himself up at the airport on Tuesday an hour before his brother Khalid, a fellow convict, killed some 20 people at Maelbeek metro station in the city centre. The third bomber, security sources told Belgian media, was Najim Laachraoui, a veteran Belgian Islamist fighter in Syria suspected of making explosive belts for November's Paris attacks and who also detonated a suitcase bomb at the airport. The "third man", captured on airport security cameras pushing a baggage trolley into the departures hall alongside Laachraoui and Brahim El Bakraoui, is now the … [Read more...] about Belgians hunt ‘third man’ after Islamic State bombings

U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned that the "climate time bomb is ticking" as he urged rich nations on Monday to slash emissions sooner after a new assessment from scientists said there was little time to lose in tackling climate change. "The rate of temperature rise in the last half century is the highest in 2,000 years," he said. "Concentrations of carbon dioxide are at their highest in at least 2 million years. The climate time-bomb is ticking." In a recorded address, Guterres described the sixth "synthesis report" from the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) as "a survival guide for humanity" and urged developed countries to commit to reaching net zero emissions by the earlier date of around 2040. The synthesis report summarized findings from three expert assessments published between 2021 and 2022 that looked at the physical science, impacts, and mitigation of climate change. The summary report is designed to provide clarity for policymakers … [Read more...] about ‘Climate time bomb ticking’, emissions must urgently be cut, UN chief says

A 55-year-old Georgian man has been arrested for allegedly appropriating nearly US$30,000 from a gold shop in Hai Phong City, northern Vietnam. The Hai Phong Police on Saturday informed the arrest of the foreigner. In particular, at 6:00 pm on February 27, P.D.D., a 24-year-old resident in Dong Hai Ward, Le Chan District, Hai Phong City, reported to the Le Chan District Police that he lost $30,000 to a foreign man. He said that at about 5:40 pm on the same day, the foreign man arrived at his gold shop at 96D Cho Hang Street in Dong Hai Ward to exchange Vietnamese banknotes for U.S. dollars totaling $30,000. The foreigner could not speak Vietnamese, so he used Google Translate for communication. After receiving $30,000 from D., the foreigner put the money into three envelopes. Each envelope had a small plastic square through which they could look inside the envelopes. When D. did not pay attention to the envelopes, the foreign man exchanged the three envelopes with three … [Read more...] about Foreigner detained for appropriating nearly $30,000 from gold shop in Vietnam’s Hai Phong

These days, coming back to Phu Quoc Prison - known as “Hell on Earth,” former prisoners of war (POW) recalled dreadful and brutal tortures by jailers. Going along a small path leading to the gate of Phu Quoc Communist POWs’ Prison, many people got the shivers after witnessing a dozen layers of sharp barbed-wire fences and models of prisoner guards holding guns. The iron door creaked when we opened it slowly. The screeching noise made us partly feel the dark atmosphere of the ruthless prison during the colonial and imperialistic periods. Among groups of tourists nationwide visiting Phu Quoc Prison, we luckily met and talked with Mr. Phu Xi Khieu, a former Phu Quoc prisoner in the 1971-1973 period. Looking back on his memories, Mr. Khieu shared that returning to Phu Quoc after 50 years, he was delighted at the rapid development of Phu Quoc city. However, he could not hold back his tears as he remembered his fallen comrades. They together fought bravely till their last breath. Phu … [Read more...] about Memories of former war prisoners in Phu Quoc

Police in 32 provinces and cities in Vietnam have pressed charges against 506 individuals from vehicle registration and inspection centers nationwide for allegedly making illegal gains while on duty. The statement was released by To An Xo, spokesperson of the Ministry of Public Security, at a press briefing in Hanoi on Tuesday afternoon. According to investigation results, these suspects, including auto testing officers and technicians, colluded with 73 companies in 18 provinces and cities to offer vehicle registration and inspection services to nearly 40,000 autos during the 2018-22 period. They were found to have granted certifications to a host of vehicles that were ineligible to run on the road. Such practices posed a risk of traffic accidents and negatively affected society, Xo said. Commenting on congestion confronting auto testing centers after many of them were forced to shut down to serve investigations, Xo said the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry … [Read more...] about Over 500 individuals from Vietnam’s auto testing centers face prosecution

Bamboo Airways on March 17 started selling tickets for its direct flights from the capital city of Hanoi to the southernmost province of Ca Mau and vice versa with prices from 769,000 VND (32.6 USD) per ticket. Bamboo Airways will launch Hanoi-Ca Mau direct flights from April 29 this year. ( Photo: Courtesy of Bamboo Airways) The airline will operate three return flights on the route per week on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from April 29, 2023. It takes just more than two hours to travel from Hanoi to Ca Mau province by 98-seat Embraer E190 aircraft. Nguyen Ngoc Trong, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Bamboo Airways, said Ca Mau Airport will be the last destination to complete Bamboo Airways’ domestic flight network connecting all of the nation’s 22 airports. According to the airline's survey, the Hanoi - Ca Mau route is one of the longest road trips in the country, with a distance of more than 1,900 km. Previously, passengers had to travel for … [Read more...] about Bamboo Airways to launch Hanoi – Ca Mau direct flights

Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City has carried out more than 1,100 organ transplants over the past 30 years, with a high success rate equivalent to the figures recorded in other countries, said hospital director Nguyen Tri Thuc at its 30th kidneyversary on Thursday morning. The event gathered representatives of Vietnam’s Ministry of Health, the municipal government, and leading experts on organ transplantation in the country. Organ transplants record high success rates Given the support of experts at home and abroad, the hospital managed to perform a kidney transplant in its first two cases on December 28 and 29, 1992, just a few days after the country’s first organ transplant was done, Thuc recalled. This milestone helped lay a solid foundation for the strong growth of the hospital’s kidney and organ transplantation. The number of organ transplants has risen over time and exceeded 1,100 to date. Cho Ray Hospital was also a pioneer in adopting measures to expand a source … [Read more...] about Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City performs over 1,100 organ transplants in three decades

Twenty schools in Dong Thap Province, southern Vietnam have involved students in growing organic vegetables at school gardens in a bid to enrich their knowledge about farming and prove the model of such gardens. The vegetable gardening at these schools is part of an organic farming project backed by Seed To Table, a Japanese non-profit organization. The Dong Thap Agricultural and Rural Clean Water Service Center said on Tuesday that the project has been implemented at 20 schools in 10 districts and cities of the province, producing remarkable results. Via the project, which was launched in 2019, 20 net-roofed houses have been built to plant organic vegetables, while participating students have been equipped with farm uniforms. Furthermore, signboards have already been placed at the vegetable gardens. Many schools are growing legumes and flowers to develop an ecosystem in their gardens, while some others have planted vegetables to harvest and sell full-grown plants to … [Read more...] about Schools in Vietnam’s Dong Thap strive to engage students in vegetable gardening

The structures, which were among 40 bungalows that were illegally built at the site, span over 1,200 m2 on the island city of the Mekong Delta’s Kien Giang Province. They were built three years ago by 38-year-old Nguyen Long Vi from Ho Chi Minh City. The same day, authorities seized structures built by 44-year-old Pham Trung Hien in Phu Quoc, who poured sand that intruded upon 5,000 m2 worth of coastal land of Ham Ninh Commune, which belongs to the Phu Quoc marine conservation area. Hien had already been fined over VND25 million ($1,060) in May 2022 for the violations. The demolition of structures built illegally in the marine conservation area, spanning over 40,000 ha, has been ongoing for months. Back in October 2022, eight illegally built bungalows over a 500 m2 area at the site were also demolished. Huynh Van Dinh, head of the Phu Quoc Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, said authorities would demolish the last nine illegally built bungalows by the end of the … [Read more...] about Illegal bungalows in Phu Quoc demolished for invading marine conservation site

Apart from kraits, redtail pit vipers and copperheads, a four-meter-long king cobra weighing nearly 17 kilograms at Dong Tam 2 Snake Farm in Phu Quoc City in Vietnam’s Kien Giang Province is luring crowds of tourists. Visiting the snake farm in Suoi Da Hamlet in Duong Ta Commune, Phu Quoc City, Nguyen Thi Thu Duong, a tourist coming from Hanoi, said that she was surprised at the king cobra’s length and large size. “The king cobra is so big. It is necessary to take care of the snake carefully to attract many visitors, especially those who desire to learn about the rare snake,” said Dung. Nguyen Tan Loc, an employee at the snake farm, said that the farm is conserving and nourishing seven types of snakes, including four venomous species such as krait, redtail pit viper, copperhead and king cobra. The king cobra has a big head. Photo: Chi Cong / Tuoi Tre The farm expects to show residents on Phu Quoc Island which snakes are poisonous and instruct them how to protect … [Read more...] about 4-meter long king cobra draws tourists in Vietnam’s Phu Quoc