A boat carrying about 500 migrants, including a newborn baby and pregnant women, has disappeared in the central Mediterranean, two charities said on Friday.

Alarm Phone, a group that picks up calls from migrant vessels in distress, said it lost contact with the boat on Wednesday morning.

At the time, the boat was adrift, with no working engine, in high seas about 320 km (200 miles) north of the Libyan port of Benghazi and more than 400 km away from Malta or Italy’s southern island of Sicily.

Italian NGO Emergency said on Thursday its Life Support ship and the Ocean Viking, another charity vessel, had unsuccessfully looked for the missing boat for 24 hours, but found no sign of any shipwreck.

A spokesperson for Emergency said on Friday the search was still on, adding that the migrants might have been picked up by another boat or may have managed to fix their engine and continue sailing towards Sicily.

The Italian Coast Guard reported on Thursday the rescue of 423 and 671 migrants in two separate operations in Italian search and rescue waters, and Alarm Phone said they were unrelated to the missing boat.

The Italian coast guard had no immediate comment.

In a separate incident, German charity SOS Humanity said 27 migrants were picked up at sea by an oil tanker and illegally taken back to Libya.

Under international humanitarian law, migrants cannot be forcibly returned to countries where they risk serious ill-treatment, and widespread migrant abuse has been extensively documented in Libya.

Performance Shipping (DS2.F), the Greek company that owns the P. Long Beach tanker allegedly involved in the incident, did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent via the company’s website.

European governments have taken an increasingly hard line on migration, including in Italy, which is facing a surge in sea arrivals. More than 47,000 landings have been recorded in the year to date, up from around 18,000 in the same period of 2022.

Original Article – Millions of people in Mexico have been warned to prepare for a possible evacuation after increased activity from the country’s most dangerous active volcano, which has been spewing ash into several nearby towns since last week, according to authorities.

Ash from Popocatépetl volcano, which is in a central part of the country, has delayed flights in Mexico City and led authorities to close schools in dozens of municipalities.

Some 25 million people live in a 60-mile radius of the volcano, which is about 45 miles southeast of Mexico City and located between the states of Morelos, Puebla and state of Mexico.

On Sunday, the National Civil Protection Coordination (CNPC) increased its volcanic threat level to “yellow phase 3,” which calls on some 3 million people who live in towns and villages adjacent to the volcano to stay alert and prepare for a possible evacuation.

The CNPC also warned of greater volcanic activity and the dispersion of ash into several nearby towns at high speed. It also recommended that residents nearby avoid outdoor activities.

“In the case of Mexico City, the risk is ash fall. We are prepared for that scenario and we know what to do. Let’s stay alert,” Mexico city’s mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said in a tweet on Sunday.

Mexico City’s Benito Juárez International Airport (AICM) was temporarily closed on Saturday and some flights were delayed on Monday due to the presence of volcanic ash, according to airport authorities.

“Air travelers may continue to experience additional flight delays, cancellations, or temporary airport closures with little or no warning,” the US embassy in Mexico said, with the airport also issuing a similar alert.

State authorities have also suspended in-person classes in schools across 40 municipalities in Puebla, five municipalities in the state of Mexico and seven in Tlaxcala and said the classes will be held remotely.

The US embassy in Mexico issued a warning on Saturday saying the Popocatépetl volcano “has exhibited increased activity since May 15, registering hundreds of tremors and smoke and ash exhalations.”

The embassy also recommended people to not travel within a 7.5 mile radius of the volcano, citing warnings from local authorities.

The volcano had been dormant for decades until it erupted in 1994. Since then, its rumblings have become a part of daily life for residents.

The Daily Beast – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky paid a visit to the pontiff Saturday afternoon for the first time since Russia’s invasion—and gifted him with a bulletproof vest that was used by a Ukrainian soldier and later painted with and image of the Madonna.

Last month, Pope Francis—who has voiced his support for Ukraine but has faced backlash for failing to name Russia as the aggressor of the war—offered to serve as an intermediary between the two countries.

He also told reporters two weeks ago that he had a secret mission under wraps for a peace deal, which took Moscow and Kyiv by surprise.

The Vatican said in a written statement that the two men discussed Ukraine’s “humanitarian and political situation provoked by the war going on” at the 40-minute meeting.

The Ukraine leader may request the Vatican’s help in organizing prisoner exchanges and bringing back Ukrainian children forcibly held in Russia, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Earlier Saturday, Zelensky met with Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Despite Meloni’s right-wing government, she has remained steadfast in her pro-NATO and pro-Ukraine positions.

Today in Rome. I'm meeting with President of Italy Sergio Mattarella, Prime Minister of Italy @GiorgiaMeloni and the Pope @Pontifex. An important visit for approaching victory of Ukraine! 🇮🇹🤝🇺🇦🤝🇻🇦

— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) May 13, 2023

WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW:

Original Article

If you were tuned in to Channel 5 on Wednesday morning, you’re likely still recovering from extreme cringe you experienced.

That was after Dawn Neesom, a guest host for Jeremy Vine, struggled to pronounce her guest’s name – and her guest wasn’t having it.

Dr Shola Mos-Shogbamimu joined Dawn as a special guest and commentator on the show today and, although she’s a TV regular, presenter Dawn had no clue how to pronounce her name.

In her first attempt at an introduction, Dawn said: “I’m absolutely thrilled to be joined by lawyer Dr Shola – how do I pronounce your last name, Shola?”

Smiling back at the presenter, Dr Shola simply told her: “Read it, my darling, read it.”

After Dawn attempted to sound it out, Dr Shola let out an exasperated sigh and told her: “So this is terrible, especially for a presenter-“

Shouting over her guest, Dawn agrees: “I am terrible! I can’t remember Shola’s name!”

While Dawn was clearly getting a little exasperated, Shola calmly told the presenter: “Go back and start again. Phonetically.”

Dawn attempted: “Okay. Shola. Mos. Shog. Man. Imu!”

Still not impressed, Dr Shola simply replied: “Do it again.”

“Oh, come on,” Dawn begged. “I got the Shola right!”

But Dr Shola wasn’t letting up.

“Do it again. Phonetically,” she requested.

Dawn gives it a second attempt, but still struggles to get it right.

Unwilling to give it a third try, and likely getting a little bit stressed about how long this introduction was taking, Dawn gave up, clapping her hands together and saying: “Shola… Shola! Welcome to the show!”

But Dr Shola wouldn’t let her get away with it, and told Dawn: “No. You will say my name. Now read it phonetically.”

A clip of the painfully awkward moment quickly went viral on Twitter, and people really weren’t impressed with what they saw.

Auntie Shola said we're not moving on until you pronounce my name right. pic.twitter.com/6r0bvmNbh4

— Mukhtar (@I_amMukhtar) May 10, 2023

“How long have they been talking to and about Shola? Yet they can’t pronounce her name,” commented one Twitter user.

“My first thought was that her name wasn’t spelt phonetically but it absolutely is,” tweeted a second. “Double checking the pronunciation of someones name BEFORE going live with them should be basic for a presenter. If it’s a name you don’t know you could mistake pronunciation or stress.”

Praising Dr Shola for sticking to her guns, a third commented: “I love that she did this. And I love that she did it with so much grace.”

And a fourth, referring to Dr Shola’s 2021 book This Is Why I Resist, added: “She didn’t write a whole chapter of her book called ‘Say My Name’ for these lot to be doing oops it’s hard to say soz x”

A dad has accused a doctor of ripping his daughter’s head “clean off” during childbirth.

The family claims the newborn was alive during the delivery until the horrifying incident occurred on May 1.

They have also accused Hospital das Clinicas da UFMG, in Belo Horizonte, in Brazil’s state of Minas Gerais of pressuring them into signing documents to cover up the details,

Mum, named Ranielly Coelho Santos filed a complaint with the local police two days later – the force has now confirmed the doctor is being investigated.

According to reports by Brazilian media, Ranielly, who already has a nine-year-old daughter, was hospitalized on April 24.

The mum was only 28 weeks into her pregnancy at the time, and on May 1 doctors induced her labour.

During the delivery, the unidentified obstetrician reportedly called the girls father in to watch the birth closely.

The father claims that his daughter was blinking and moving her mouth so he claims she was alive and well.

But according to the report filed with police, the doctor then put pressure on Ranielly’s belly to remove the baby’s body quicker.

During this process, the distraught father claims the baby’s head was “ripped off”.

The police report also says that the family, from Ribeirao das Neves, were later approached by a social worker at the hospital who said that the facility would bear all the costs for the baby’s burial.

But the offer was reportedly only valid if they agreed to sign documents stating that “the autopsy had already been performed at the hospital”, that “the child’s body had already been examined” and that “the body would not be forwarded to the Legal Medical Institute (IML)” for further analysis.

According to lawyer Jennifer Valente the family refused to sign the paperwork and the baby’s remains are being examined at the IML.

The hospital reportedly declined to comment to local media and the result of the autopsy has not been made public. The police investigation is ongoing.

The baby’s body is set to be released to the family today, Monday, 8th May, so that it may be buried.

At least 400 people have died after floods and landslides hit the Democratic Republic of Congo’s South Kivu province last week, officials told CNN.

Heavy rainfall through last week caused rivers to overflow and created mudslides that devastated the villages of Bushushu and Nyamukubi in South Kivu’s Kalehe territory, provincial governor Theo Kasi told CNN Monday.

“We have 401 deaths in Bushushu and Nyamukubi villages in Kalehe territory,” Kasi said.

Videos from the area show buildings swept away in the water and mud, with debris strewn across the villages.

Congolese Red Cross volunteers and residents of Nyamukubi wrap in blankets the bodies of people who died in heavy flooding in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, on May 6, 2023.Glody Murhabazi/AFP/Getty Images

Valet Chebujongo, an activist in Kalehe, told CNN that rescuers have been unable to clear the muddy roads, leaving residents with the dangerous option of wading through lakes.

“The Congolese government and its partners should find a safe place where the victims will be relocated and ask the population not to use the flowing waters and the lake during this period,” Chebujongo said, adding that there are “no machines to clear the mud and clear the landslides in the road to allow the population to circulate Bushushu-Nyamukubi villages. People are crossing the lake, another danger.”

This aerial photograph taken on May 6, 2023 shows a landslide that engulfed Nyamukubi village, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.Glody Murhabazi/AFP/Getty Images

Kasi said rescue operations were ongoing in spite of difficulties. “We are in a disaster. We work despite difficult conditions,” he said.

The provincial government said Saturday it was relocating residents affected by the floods to safer sites. It also said the government was funding medical care for the injured, including funeral costs for the deceased.

President Felix Tshisekedi declared Monday a national mourning for victims of the floods, government spokesman Patrick Muyaya said, adding that a national government delegation had arrived in Kalehe to assist local response efforts.

The DRC is located within the River Congo Basin where flood disasters are frequently reported. According to a World Bank report, climate-related disasters, including flooding “are likely to increase in frequency and magnitude” in the Central African country due to climate change.

In 2020, more than 15,000 homes were destroyed and at least 25 people killed by floodwaters in South Kivu, a province already ravaged by armed conflict, the UN Refugee Agency reported at the time.

Months earlier, around 39 people died when torrential rains triggered landslides in Kinshasa.

Original Article