AFP, Washington
A senior White House official with background in infrastructure and cyber security issues was nominated Wednesday to head the Department of Homeland Security, a key agent of President Donald Trump’s domestic policies.
Trump said he was nominating Kirstjen Nielsen, a DHS veteran who is close to former secretary John Kelly, to run the massive department with 230,000 employees.
Floods, landslides kill 43 in Vietnam
AP, Hanoi
Floods and landslides caused by a tropical depression have killed at least 43 people, left 34 others missing and damaged homes and crops in northern and central Vietnam, officials said Thursday.
The storm injured 21 people and destroyed or damaged more than 1,000 houses, submerged 16,740 other homes and damaged infrastructure and crops in six central and northern provinces, the Vietnam Disaster Management Authority said.
Macron to visit India for solar summit
AFP. New Delhi
France’s President Emmanuel Macron will attend a summit to launch a solar power alliance in India in December, authorities announced Thursday.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres is also expected to attend the event organised by India’s leader Narendra Modi in New Delhi on December 8-9, officials said.
US SC throws out travel ban ruling
Reuters, Washington
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday threw out an appeals court ruling that struck down President Donald Trump’s previous temporary travel ban targeting several Muslim-majority nations countries that has now expired.
The court acted in one of two cases pending involving a case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union, which had sued to stop the ban contained in a March executive order.
23 dead in ‘catastrophic’ California wildfires
Reuters, Sonoma
Firefighters struggled overnight to halt the spread of wildfires known to have killed 23 people in North California, preparing for winds to shift after one town threatened by flames evacuated all residents.
The edge of the deadly Tubbs fire was less than two miles (3km) from Calistoga, a Napa Valley community whose 5,000 residents left their homes on Wednesday.
Finnish President leading in poll
Reuters, Helsinki
Finnish President Sauli Niinisto is set to be elected for a second six-year term in January elections by a wide margin, a poll commissioned by public broadcaster YLE showed on Thursday.
Known for cultivating good relations with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, 69-year-old Niinisto-an independent candidate who previously represented the conservative National Coalition Party-had the support of 76 percent in the poll.
