Two deadly storms roar ashore on the same day

Men paddle through water after Typhoon Mangkhut on Luzon Island, the Philippines, on Sunday. Two deadly storms — Hurricane Florence and Typhoon Mangkhut — roared ashore on the same day, half a world apart. Mangkhut made landfall on Friday on the northeastern tip of Luzon Island in the Philippines with scale-topping Category 5 winds. Florence had weakened to a Category 1 storm by the time it arrived at North Carolina’s coast.SD-Agencies

Australia’s strawberry needle scare widens

Australia has ordered an investigation into the discovery of sewing needles hidden in strawberries, amid growing alarm over scares across the country.

Contaminated punnets* have now been reported in six states and territories. A minister called it a “vicious crime.”

One man was taken to the hospital after eating a strawberry that contained a needle. Several brands have been recalled, while a major New Zealand grocer said that it had stopped selling imported strawberries as a precaution.

Ethiopia, Eritrea sign accord in Saudi Arabia

Leaders from Ethiopia and Eritrea signed a peace agreement on Sunday during a summit in Saudi Arabia, yet another sign of warming ties between two nations that have faced decades of war and unease.

Terms of the agreement signed by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki weren’t immediately clear.

Ethiopia’s Foreign Ministry described it as a “seven-point agreement” while Eritrea offered no details. The accord had been described as being a further endorsement* of a historic deal reached between the two nations in July.

Gunmen kill five in Mexico City tourist plaza

Gunmen dressed as mariachi* musicians opened fire in Mexico City’s famed Plaza Garibaldi, killing five people and wounding eight others including a foreigner, law enforcement officials said on Saturday.

The five assailants opened fire with rifles and handguns shortly before 10 p.m. on Friday as the downtown plaza was filled with partiers enjoying the September 16 Independence Day weekend celebrations.

Investigators later found 60 empty bullet casings on the ground.

Egypt ex-President Mubarak’s sons arrested

The two sons of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak have been arrested for alleged stock market manipulation.

Alaa and Gamal Mubarak are accused of breaking stock market and central bank rules, state news agency Mena reported on Saturday.

The case against them began in 2012, after their father was deposed the year before.

Roads shut after 2 fall ill in UK city

U.K. Police closed roads and called a hazardous* response team on Sunday night after two people became ill at a restaurant in an English city where a Russian ex-spy and his daughter were poisoned with a chemical nerve agent*.

Wiltshire Police described the emergency steps taken in response to “a medical incident” in Salisbury as a precaution. Authorities later lifted the alert and said no evidence of the nerve agent Novichok involved in the earlier case was found.(SD-Agencies)