Tug boats try to pull stranded cruise ship to shore as rescuers rush to evacuate passengers
Updated 0854 GMT (1654 HKT) March 24, 2019
Tug boats are trying to move a cruise ship to shore after it was stranded in rough seas off Norway with 1,300 people aboard following engine failure, rescue officials said Sunday.
Three of the Viking Sky ship's four engines are working, and the ship has restarted and is moving at a slow pace, said spokesman Per Fjeld of Joint Rescue Centre for Southern Norway. Rescuers are still evacuating passengers and crew -- even as tug boats try pull it to shore -- but there's no estimate on how long it'll take to get them all out, he said.
The Viking Sky ship sent a distress signal Saturday due to engine problems in bad weather, the Joint Rescue Centre for Southern Norway said earlier. It was in rough seas in the Hustadvika area on the western coast of Norway and rescuers are facing waves of as high as 6-8 meters (roughly 19-26 feet).
The drugs don’t work: what happens after antibiotics?
Antibiotic resistance is growing so fast that routine surgery could soon become impossible. But scientists are fighting back in the battle against infection
The first antibiotic that didn’t work for Debbi Forsyth was trimethoprim. In March 2016, Forsyth, a genial primary care counsellor from Morpeth, Northumberland, contracted a urinary tract infection. UTIs are common: more than 150 million people worldwide contract one every year. So when Forsyth saw her GP, they prescribed the usual treatment: a three-day course of antibiotics. When, a few weeks later, she fainted and started passing blood, she saw her GP again, who again prescribed trimethoprim.
Three days after that, Forsyth’s husband Pete came home to find his wife lying on the sofa, shaking, unable to call for help. He rushed her to A&E. She was put on a second antibiotic, gentamicin, and treated for sepsis, a complication of the infection that can be fatal if not treated quickly. The gentamicin didn’t work either. Doctors sent Forsyth’s blood for testing, but such tests can take days: bacteria must be grown in cultures, then tested against multiple antibiotics to find a suitable treatment. Five days after she was admitted to hospital, Forsyth was diagnosed with an infection of multi-drug-resistant E coli, and given ertapenem, one of the so-called “last resort” antibiotics.
Brexit ChaosTheresa May's Days Are Numbered. Now What?
Even if British Prime Minister Theresa May's last attempt to get her much-maligned withdrawal agreement through parliament succeeds, she is unlikely to keep her job. But whoever comes next probably won't manage to defuse the crisis.
By Jörg Schindler
Boris Johnson recently had his hair cut short. In the past few weeks, he has visibly lost weight. He has even learned to hold his tongue. When the former British foreign secretary left parliament in Westminster last Tuesday, he was, as always, confronted by journalists. But the man who otherwise never avoids a microphone pushed his ski hat down and walked off.
Since then, London's political pundits have been convinced that Johnson is up to something. They claim he's merely waiting for the right moment to catapult himself back into the spotlight. That day, it seems, is not so far away.
Thailand's turbulent political history
Violent demonstrations, multiple coups and a cryptic election eve message from the king.
Thailand's unpredictable political history has few rivals.
The country's election Sunday is the first since a 2014 coup.
Here is a brief look at two turbulent decades in Thai politics.
- 'Lost decade' -
2001 - Policeman-turned-billionaire telecoms magnate Thaksin Shinawatra wins at the polls promising social welfare schemes.
2003 - A brutal war on drugs kills upwards of 2,500 people. A year later a crackdown in the Muslim-majority Deep South sparks a renewed insurgency.
2005 - Thaksin repeats electoral triumph, heading up the first civilian administration to complete a four-year term in a history rattled by army takeovers.
2006 - While at the UN in New York, Thaksin is toppled in bloodless coup. A period of protests and violent clashes ensues and historians dub the prolonged instability the "Lost Decade".
AIPAC convenes annual conference in Washington amid division
The 2020 contenders for the Democratic presidential nomination skip AIPAC, as discourse on Israel changes among youth.by William Roberts
AIPAC, one of the most powerful lobby groups in the United States, is facing new criticism from Democrats and advocates for Palestinian rights as it convenes its annual policy conference this week amid a widening US political divide over Israel.
The annual pro-Israel event, which starts on Sunday, is expected to draw more than 15,000 Jewish Americans from across the country to Washington. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House, will give a keynote address on Tuesday. Thousands will visit Capitol Hill to deliver a message to members of Congress - Jewish Americans support Israel strongly.
Japan to use Ospreys for overseas rescue operations
The government will use Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft to conduct rescues of Japanese citizens abroad and other special operations by the Self-Defense Forces, government sources said.
Under controversial security legislation that came effect in 2016, the SDF can play an expanded role overseas.
The Ground Self-Defense Force has a special anti-terror unit to carry out rescue operations and other risky missions. But the unit is still not fully capable and lacks specialized aircraft.
The government is now set to introduce the CV-22 Osprey, the special operation forces variant of the U.S. Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey, while also considering deploying refurbished models of the GSDF's UH-60 helicopter, the sources said.
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