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Hong Kong offers bounties for 6 more democrats in security squeeze
HONG KONG – Hong Kong offered bounties of HK$1 million ($128,728) on Tuesday, December 24, for six more pro-democracy campaigners deemed to have violated national security laws, and revoked the...
View ArticleLIVE: Pope Francis delivers ‘Urbi et Orbi’ for Christmas 2024
MANILA, Philippines – Pope Francis delivers his traditional “Urbi et Orbi” blessing from the Central Loggia of Saint Peter’s Basilica on Christmas Day. During the “Urbi et Orbi” — a Latin phrase that...
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Nigerian communities combat deforestation with sustainable tree planting
Under the blazing midday sun of Gomboru Liberty in Borno, northeast Nigeria, Ali Yerima, a youth advocate and chairman of the Gomboru Youth Association, was in full concentration, sweat trickling down...
View ArticleIran lifts ban on WhatsApp and Google Play, state media says
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Iranian authorities have lifted a ban on Meta’s instant messaging platform WhatsApp and Google Play as a first step to scale back internet restrictions, Iranian state...
View ArticleOn Christmas Day, Pope Francis calls for talks to end Ukraine war
VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis in his Christmas message on Wednesday, December 25, called for talks between Ukraine and Russia to end the war that followed Moscow’s full-scale invasion two years ago and...
View ArticleFewer Filipinos expect a happy Christmas in 2024 | The wRap
Here are today’s headlines – the latest news in the Philippines and around the world: Fewer Filipinos expect a happy Christmas in 2024 compared to last year A Social Weather Stations survey reveals...
View ArticleHeading drops 30 as streaking Converge gives Meralco a Christmas beating
MANILA, Philippines – Converge celebrated Christmas by extending its winning streak in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup following a 110-94 romp of Meralco at the Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday, December 25....
View ArticleIMF to gov’t: Restore capital of state-owned banks used for Maharlika fund
MANILA, Philippines – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has called on the Philippine government to restore the capital of the LandBank of the Philippines and the Development Bank of the...
View ArticleWhy two Evangelical bishops denounce ‘self-serving’ 2025 budget
MANILA, Philippines – Two prominent Evangelical bishops joined a recent prayer service to denounce the “self-serving” 2025 national budget that is up for the signature of President Ferdinand Marcos...
View ArticleCourt issues arrest warrant vs Bukidnon town mayor for statutory rape
DAVAO CITY, Philippines – The Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 9 in Malaybalay City, Bukidnon, has issued a warrant of arrest against Pangantucan town Mayor Miguel Silva Jr. for charges of sexual...
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The day an Igorot woman met King Charles
MANILA, Philippines – Averil Pooten-Watan was told she was to give the King of the United Kingdom a quick and firm handshake. Make sure to let him move along, she was told. That was part of protocol....
View ArticleThe stories that shook the regions in 2024
CEBU, Philippines – 2024 was the year that took seismic tales from the provinces and towns to the big screens and chambers of the Congress of the Philippines and Malacañang. Rappler’s regions cluster...
View ArticleWesley So, Oliver Barbosa enter historic P80 million World Rapid & Blitz in...
MANILA, Philippines – Filipino-American standout Wesley So hopes to brighten up a dim season while US-based Filipino Grandmaster Oliver Barbosa tries his mettle against the chess elite when they...
View ArticlePope opens special ‘Holy Door’ for Catholic Jubilee at Rome prison
ROME, Italy – Pope Francis made a visit on Thursday, December 26, to one of the largest prison complexes in Italy, opening a special “Holy Door” for the 2025 Catholic Holy Year, in what the Vatican...
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Cardinal David says Christmas Mass for political prisoners
MANILA, Philippines – Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, Bishop of Kalookan, said Mass inside Camp Bagong Diwa in Bicutan, on Thursday, December 26, telling political prisoners that he wishes for a...
View ArticleJimmy Butler ‘ready for exit’ from Miami – report
Six-time All-Star Jimmy Butler is “ready for his exit” and prefers that the Miami Heat trade him before the February 6 deadline, ESPN reported Wednesday, December 25. Reports have been swirling for...
View Article[REFLECTION] The way we live now
There was a time when even Manila had all these odd, vacant patches which were either grasslands of swampy kangkungan, or daraanan ng riles ng tren. I and my playmates used to chase dragonflies and...
View ArticleMavericks superstar Luka Doncic set to miss a month due to calf strain – report
Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic will be re-evaluated in a month due to a left calf strain, ESPN reported late Thursday night (Friday, December 27, Manila time). The five-time All-Star sustained the...
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MMFF 2024 dispatches: 5 movies worth viewing for contrasting reasons
For a second year in a row, the Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) continues its expanded slate of 10 full-length films, now screened alongside 10 competing student shorts, which is part of the...
View Article90% of Filipinos hopeful for New Year, but that’s a 15-year low — SWS
MANILA, Philippines — The Social Weather Stations (SWS) found that 90% or almost all adult Filipinos will be entering 2025 “with hope rather than fear.” But that figure is a 6-percentage-point drop...
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