Death toll in Philippines from Typhoon Rai rises

People search for their belongings after their houses were damaged by Typhoon Rai in Surigao del Norte province, Philippines, on Saturday. The death toll from Typhoon Rai that battered the Philippines last week had climbed to at least 65, local officials said on Sunday. The number of deaths is likely to rise as data gathering from the field continues in the wake of the strongest typhoon to hit the country this year. Xinhua

Chile elects youngest president

Left-leaning candidate Gabriel Boric won the Chilean presidential election on Sunday, after his rival — right-wing candidate Jose Antonio Kast — conceded, making him the youngest elected president in Chile’s history.

“I congratulated him on his great triumph. From today, he is the elected president of Chile and deserves all our respect and constructive collaboration,” Kast wrote on Twitter.

Chilean President Sebastian Pinera, in a phone conversation with the president-elect, said that he is sure Boric will deliver “the best of himself.”

Sudanese protesters reach presidential palace

Thousands of Sudanese protesters on Sunday managed to break a security cordon and reach the presidential palace in capital Khartoum to demand civilian rule on the third anniversary of the December revolution, which toppled the regime of former President Omar al-Bashir.

The huge crowds have managed to cross three bridges linking cities of Khartoum, Bahri and Omdurman despite the intensive security presence, official SUNA news agency reported.

The protesters voiced rejection to the political agreement signed between Chairman of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan and the transitional Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok on November 21, the report said.

Protesters from Gezira State and North Kordofan State, who arrived in Khartoum on foot on Saturday evening, also took part in the demonstrations.

Omicron cases doubling in locally spread areas

The Omicron variant has been reported in 89 countries and regions, and the number of cases is doubling in 1.5 to 3 days in areas with community transmission, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Saturday.

Omicron is spreading rapidly in countries with high levels of population immunity, but it is unclear if this is due to the virus’ ability to evade immunity, its inherent increased transmissibility or a combination of both, the WHO said in an update.

The agency designated Omicron a variant of concern on November 26, soon after it was first detected, and much is still not known about it, including the severity of the illness it causes.

British Brexit minister resigns

British Brexit minister David Frost has resigned from Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Cabinet, Downing Street confirmed on Saturday night.

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss will become lead negotiator with the European Union (EU) on the Northern Ireland Protocol, following the departure of Frost, Downing Street said on Sunday.

Truss, while retaining her role as foreign secretary, will take over ministerial responsibility for Britain’s relationship with the EU with immediate effect, it said.

Manchin slams door on Biden’s US$1.7t bill

U.S. Democratic senator Joe Manchin said on Sunday that he will not vote for President Joe Biden’s roughly US$2 trillion social spending and climate bill known as the Build Back Better Act, delivering a major blow to the White House.

“If I can’t go home and explain it to the people of West Virginia, I can’t vote for it,” Manchin, a key moderate Democratic senator from West Virginia, said on “Fox News Sunday.” “This is a no on this legislation. I have tried everything I know to do,” Manchin said, citing concerns about the surging inflation and the US$29 trillion national debt.

The U.S. consumer price index rose 6.8 percent in November from a year earlier, the fastest annual pace in almost 40 years, according to the U.S. Labor Department.(SD-Agencies)