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World News
April 5 - 11, 2014
TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS
Second big earthquake rocks northern Chile A POWERFUL 7.6 magnitude earthquake has rocked northern Chile, just over 24 hours after an 8.2 tremor killed six people, destroyed 2,600 houses and led to mass evacuations. A tsunami alert in Chile and Peru was again issued, but was later lifted after waves of 2.4ft (0.7 meters) hit coastal areas. Chilean President Michelle Bachelet was among those evacuated on Thursday. The quake is the strongest of several aftershocks following Tuesday’s tremor. There have been no reports of damage from the latest quake. The aftershock caused buildings to wobble and people to run into the streets in the port of Iquique, which was one of the cities hit by Tuesday night’s quake. The latest quake was centred 23km (14 miles) south of Iquique. The US Geological Survey said the aftershock had a depth of 20km (12 miles) and was felt across the border in southern Peru, where people in the cities of Tacna and Arequipa also fled buildings. President Bachelet had earlier praised the “calm behaviour” of residents following Tuesday evening’s quake.
Many objects have been pulled from the water, but none of them from the missing plane.
Missing plane MH370: Malaysia ‘will not give up’ Despite the strength of the quake, the region appears to have escaped significant damage.
Nearly a million people were evacuated across the country after the authorities issued a tsunami warning. “I think you have shown us all a tremendous example,” Ms Bachelet said during a visit to the worst affected areas. Ms Bachelet declared two northern provinces - Arica and Parinacota, and Tarapaca - disaster areas. Tuesday’s quake struck at 20:46 local time (23:46 GMT) about 86km (52 miles) north-west of the city of Iquique, a mining area, “We are here to recognise the
calm behaviour of the people of Iquique, who showed great civic responsibility, as did those of Arica,” said Ms Bachelet. Fires destroyed some businesses in the area and fishermen found their boats sunken and damaged in Iquique harbour. Ms Bachelet called on residents to “work together now” to repair the damage caused by the quake. Waves of up to 2.1m (about 6ft) hit some areas. Some 40,000 people in Tarapaca remain without power, said Ricardo Toro of Chile’s National Emergency Office (Onemi).
MALAYSIA will not give up on the search for missing flight MH370, its prime minister said as he visited the search hub in Perth. Prime Minister Najib Razak’s comments came at a joint news conference with Australian leader Tony Abbott. Mr Najib praised the search effort, saying the co-operation amid “great tragedy” had “given us all heart”. The Malaysia Airlines plane disappeared on 8 March en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. It was carrying 239 people. Planes and ships have been scouring the southern Indian Ocean, where the jet is believed to have crashed. The focus of the search is a
221,000 sq km (85,000 sq mile) area 1,500km (932 miles) west of Perth. But so far not a single piece of debris from the Boeing 777 has been found. Mr Najib met search crews at Pearce RAAF base near Perth on Thursday morning, before their planes left for the day, and then later held talks with Mr Abbott. “The disappearance of MH370 has tested our collective resolve,” he told a news conference. “Faced with so little evidence, and such a Herculean task, investigators from Malaysia, the US, the UK, China, Australia and France have worked without pause to reveal the aircraft’s movements.”
Clegg and Nigel Farage heat up debate over EU NICK Clegg has accused leader of the UK Independence Party Nigel Farage of peddling “dangerous fantasies” in an ill-tempered BBC TV debate on Britain’s future in Europe. Mr Farage accused the Lib Dem leader of “wilfully lying” to the British people about Brussels’ grip on UK laws. He also claimed EU immigration had hit the “white working class” the hardest. Instant polls said Mr Farage had won by a bigger margin than he did in their first debate last week. YouGov’s snap poll gives the debate to Mr Farage by 68% to 27%, while a poll by ICM/Guardian suggested 69% of people watching thought the UKIP man came out on top. A YouGov/Sun poll suggested Mr Farage won their first clash last Wednesday by 57% to 36%. The BBC’s chief political correspondent Norman Smith said Mr Clegg was much more fired up than he had been last week, while Mr Farage had been more measured. Mr Clegg kicked off the one-hour debate - hosted by David Dimbleby by accusing his opponent of foisting a “dangerous con” on the public
Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud has labeled all atheists as terrorists and threats to the unity of the country.
YouGov’s snap poll gives the debate to Mr Farage (left) by 68% to 27%, while a poll by ICM/Guardian suggested 69% of people watching thought the UKIP man came out on top.
by arguing for Britain’s exit from the EU, telling the audience in the BBC’s radio theatre “if it sounds too good to be true, it is”. He warned leaving the EU would lead to a ‘Billy-no-mates Britain”. An early flashpoint was Mr Farage’s support for Vladimir Putin over Syria. The UKIP leader accused the Lib Dem leader of being “hell bent” on getting Britain involved in a war - but Mr Clegg accused him of trivialising
the issue. Mr Clegg also said Mr Farage’s views on Mr Putin were reminiscent of a “pub bar discussion” - and that the Russian leader could have brought the conflict in Syria to an end with “one phone call”. Poking fun at Mr Farage, the Lib Dem leader suggested the UKIP leader would claim next that “the moon landing never happened, Barack Obama is not American and Elvis is not dead”.
Saudi Arabia labels atheists as terrorists in new anti-dissident law NOT believing in God is not an option in Saudi Arabia. The Middle Eastern country has issued new legislation that labels all atheists as terrorists who are a threat to “public order.” Article 1 of the new provisions define terrorism as “calling for atheist thought in any form, or calling into question the fundamentals of the Islamic religion on which this country is based.” The kingdom has never been a friendly place for atheists — lsam is written into its constitution as the established state religion. But these
new laws reflect King Abdullah’s desire to clamp down on political dissent before it can become a movement. A growing number of Saudis have reportedly been traveling to other parts of the Middle East, like Syria, to participate in demonstrations. According to The Independent, they’re coming back to their home country with new ideas about dethroning the monarchy—a prospect that is unsettling to the 89-year-old Abdullah, who is considered one of the world’s richest royals.