Politics

• Tuesday, December 15th 2020 - 09:14 UTC

  As airlines reactivate planes, regulators and insurers call for extra attention to conditions and training

  

  Regulators, insurers and experts are warning airlines to take extra care when reactivating planes left in extended storage during the Covid-19 pandemic, citing potential pilot rustiness, maintenance errors and even insect nests blocking key sensors.

• Tuesday, December 15th 2020 - 09:02 UTC

  Machu Picchu closed again for security reasons and protests from local villages

  

  The Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, the crown jewel of Peru's tourist sites, closed its doors Monday for an indefinite period for security reasons amid protests by locals over train services, officials said.

• Tuesday, December 15th 2020 - 09:00 UTC

  A third of the world population with no government aid during the pandemic, Oxfam

  

  More than a third of the world's population - some 2.7 billion people - has not received government aid during the coronavirus pandemic, Oxfam said on Tuesday, with gaping differences between rich and poor countries.

• Tuesday, December 15th 2020 - 08:59 UTC

  Twenty Venezuelan “boat people” drown fleeing from the country

  

  The bodies of at least 20 migrants who were travelling by boat from Venezuela to the nearby Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago were found over the weekend, officials said.

• Tuesday, December 15th 2020 - 08:58 UTC

  Honduras claims two hurricanes caused damage equivalent to half its GDP

  

  Hurricanes Eta and Iota have caused about US$10 billion in damages in Honduras and affected more than 4 million people, the Central American country's foreign minister said on Monday as he called for international support.

• Monday, December 14th 2020 - 09:39 UTC

  Tax reform in Brazil stalled in the midst of political dispute and “fiscal abyss”

  

  Brazil is heading into a “fiscal abyss” and a serious crisis next year, following the decision to postpone parliamentary debate on a bill extending emergency aid spending, lower house speaker Rodrigo Maia said on Friday

• Monday, December 14th 2020 - 09:37 UTC

  Bolsonaro remains with a 37% approval, shows Datafolha public opinion poll

  

  Brazilian right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro’s approval rating remains at its highest level since he took office in 2019, despite the country experiencing the world’s second-deadliest coronavirus outbreak, a poll showed on Sunday.

• Monday, December 14th 2020 - 09:31 UTC

  London and Brussels agree on an “extra mile” after an elusive post-Brexit deal

  

  London and Brussels agreed to “go the extra mile” in coming days to try to reach an elusive trade agreement despite missing their latest deadline to avert a turbulent ‘no deal’ exit for Britain from the European Union’s orbit at the end of the month.

• Monday, December 14th 2020 - 09:30 UTC

  Bolsonaro's vaccination plan “a murderous stupidity” and a display of “lethal incompetence”

  

  President Jair Bolsonaro faced scathing criticism on Sunday over his government's plan – or lack thereof, opponents said – to vaccinate the population against Covid-19 in Brazil, the country with the second-highest death toll worldwide.

• Monday, December 14th 2020 - 09:30 UTC

  Four Royal Navy patrol ships ready as of January to protect UK's fishing waters

  

  The British Ministry of Defense said four Royal Navy patrol ships will be ready on Jan 1 to help protect Britain’s fishing waters in the event of a post Brexit no deal.