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    Paris, France ---From a mobile phone that fell and fell but didn't break to a shoot 'em up granny... Your weekly roundup of offbeat stories from around the world. Honest thief Say what you like about Spain, it has some of the world's most well brought up armed robbers. A teenager who held up a filling station in Estepona on the Costa del Sol made off with 2,000 euros, but not before paying for the soft drink he also took, police said. Phone had wi-fly Now that's what you call airplane mode. An iPhone that was sucked out of an Alaska Airlines flight when a panel blew out at 16,000 feet (5,000 meters) was found on the ground without a scratch. The phone wa...

Keep on reading: Funny old world: The week’s offbeat news

  LIMA --- Peru's prosecutors office on Friday formally requested 34 years in prison for former President Pedro Castillo, who was dramatically ousted from office and arrested after his attempt to dissolve Congress in late 2022. Castillo, whose ouster sparked off months of deadly protests that hit the key mining sector in the copper-rich country, remains in pre-trial detention on charges of "rebellion," abuse of authority and disrupting the peace.   READ:Ousted Peru leader ordered detained for 18 months amid protests...

Keep on reading: Peru prosecutors seek 34 years in prison for ex-President Castillo

  MANILA, Philippines --- Baguio City's gastroenteritis outbreak is now on a downtrend, city mayor Benjamin Magalong said on Friday. "The gastroenteritis outbreak, the cases are now on a downtrend," Magalong said in an announcement posted on Baguio City's Public Information Office's Facebook page. Magalong noted that the peak in gastroenteritis was on January 7 when 430 cases were reported. However, on Thursday, January 11, only 43 infections were logged. Over 2,000 gastroenteritis cases were reported in the city to date. READ: Gastroenteritis outbreak declared in Baguio Magalong, meanwhile, said he requested more personnel from the Department of Health's epidem...

Keep on reading: Magalong: Baguio’s gastroenteritis cases now on downtrend

  MANILA, Philippines --- No fecal coliform was found in the water samples taken in the main supplier of water in Baguio City. The Baguio Water District (BWD) made the announcement on Friday amid the acute gastroenteritis outbreak in the city. READ: Gastroenteritis outbreak declared in Baguio "Results of the initial microbiological test on water samples collected from various water sources of the BWD showed 'negative' for thermotolerant coliform organisms (commonly referred to as fecal coliforms)," the BWD said in a statement. The state-owned water provider said the samples were collected from BWD water sources supplying most of the Central Business District. B...

Keep on reading: No fecal coliform found in samples from Baguio’s main water provider

    WASHINGTON --- U.S. producer prices unexpectedly fell in December amid declining costs for goods such as diesel fuel and food, suggesting inflation would continue to subside and allow the Federal Reserve to start cutting interest rates this year. The report from the Labor Department on Friday, which also showed prices for services were unchanged for the third straight month, implied that a pick-up in consumer prices last month was likely a blip. It led economists to anticipate that the key price measures tracked by the U.S. central bank for its 2% inflation target rose moderately in December from the prior month. "The inflation pipeline is clearing and consu...

Keep on reading: US producer prices unexpectedly fall; goods deflation seen persisting

  WARSAW --- Thousands of opposition supporters gathered outside Poland's parliament on Thursday to protest against the new government's changes to state media and the imprisonment of two former ministers convicted of abuse of power. The march reflects mounting tensions in the country as the new pro-European Union coalition government led by Donald Tusk tries to undo the policies of the previous nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party administration. READ:Warsaw 'biggest' rally draws 'a million' anti-gov't protesters It also came as President Andrzej Duda, a PiS ally, said on Thursday he had started proceedings to pardon the two ministers in the last government who were ...

Keep on reading: Thousands protest in Poland against media reform, ex-ministers’ imprisonment

MANILA ---The Philippine Stock Exchange Index (PSEi) rebounded above 6,600 as the market awaited catalysts, such as the latest US inflation print. The PSEi rose 1.03 percent, or 67.62 points, to 6,613.73 while the broader All Shares index climbed 0.75 percent, or 26.12 points, to 3,495.76. Most large cap stocks traded in a narrow range throughout as investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of the US inflation report. Jonathan Ravelas, senior adviser at Reyes Tacandong & Co., also noted the market was "encountering some difficulty breaking above the 6,700 levels." READ: Asian shares rise after Wall St nears record; markets eye inflation report Removing block sales, trading ...

Keep on reading: PSEi recovers, but 6,700 ascent remains tricky

    GAZA/THE HAGUE --- Israel faced down accusations at the World Court on Thursday of genocide in its war in Gaza, as the first residents returned to scenes of total devastation in the north of the enclave where Israeli forces have begun withdrawing this week. Three months of Israeli bombardment has laid much of the coastal enclave to waste, killing more than 23,000 people and driving nearly the entire population of 2.3 million Palestinians from their homes. An Israeli blockade has sharply restricted supplies of food, fuel and medicine, creating what the United Nations describes as a humanitarian catastrophe. READ:Israel, S. Africa to face off at UN top court in ...

Keep on reading: Israel lashes back at ICJ genocide case; Gazans return to wasteland

MANILA, Philippines --- A total of 108 police personnel were dismissed due to drug-related charges since the start of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.'s administration, according to Philippine National Police's (PNP) data furnished to the media on Thursday. Of the said dismissal, 65 police personnel tested positive for illegal drugs while 43 were involved in drugs according to the PNP data from July 1, 2022 until Jan. 3 2024. READ: Marcos admin eyes drug rehab facility per province by 2028 PNP chief Gen. Benjamin Acorda Jr. said the benefits of dismissed policemen are now forfeited. "Dismissed from the service, they are not entitled to any benefits," Acorda said in a...

Keep on reading: PNP: 108 cops dismissed over drug-related raps since Marcos admin

    MANILA, Philippines --- China on Thursday said consultations on the "long-delayed" Code of Conduct (COC) for South China Sea are going smoothly. Chinese Foreign Ministry Mao Ning disclosed this in a regular press briefing after she was asked how optimistic the ministry is for the new phase of negotiations regarding the disputed waters. "China and Association of Southeast Asian Nation countries are working toward the adoption of COC in the South China Sea, which is an important measure in implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC). The consultations on the COC are going smoothly," said Mao. READ:Talks on South China S...

Keep on reading: China says talks on ‘long-delayed’ South China Sea code going smoothly

Actor Gerald Anderson, who said he learned valuable lessons from people's collective experience during the pandemic lockdowns, has these pointers to share on how to save for the rainy days. "Always be prepared. Make sure you have emergency funds," Gerald began. "Try to save up, too. If you don't really need something, don't buy it." Gerald, who is an auxiliary commander of the K9 Special Support Squadron of the Philippine Coast Guard, was active in helping out people whose livelihoods were affected by the series of lockdowns since 2020. "I realized that there are only a few things a person needs in order to live comfortably, and that some people spend so much on things that ...

Keep on reading: Gerald Anderson on possibility of quitting the biz: I’ll still survive

MANILA, Philippines---Kevin Quiambao has a lot of reasons to smile before the Dubai International Basketball Tournament. For one, he's coming off a UAAP championship run. Then, he's set to play for the Philippines alongside former NBA veterans Dwight Howard, Andray Blatche and Andre Roberson. But what makes Quiambao giddier is seeing two La Salle coaches train him before the big event. "As a La Sallian, I'm so happy to see my fellow La Sallians here and be with them in the court so they can teach me. Our (me, Charles Tiu and Topex Robinson bonding is normal now because both of them are like my father figures," said Quiambao in Filipino on Wednesday. "Whatever lessons I'm ...

Keep on reading: Kevin Quiambao embraces chance to learn in Strong Group stint

Federal Reserve policymakers may not be quite as eager to start cutting interest rates as soon as March after fresh data showed inflation ticked up in December. The consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.3 percent in December after increasing 0.1 percent in November, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Thursday. From a year earlier, consumer prices rose 3.4 percent, more than the 3.2 percent economists polled by Reuters had expected. U.S. central bankers want more confirmation that inflation is on a firm path toward their 2 percent goal before they reduce the policy rate, now in the 5.25 percent-5.5 percent range. READ: US interest rates in 'good place,' ...

Keep on reading: Fed rate cuts may wait as inflation ticked up in December

MANILA, Philippines --- A 22-year old woman was killed in a residential fire in Tondo, Manila on Thursday afternoon, police said. The Manila Police District said the fire occurred along the informal settlements along Mayhaligue St., Estero de Magdalena in Barangay 262, Zone 23. Citing Bureau of Fire Protection, the MPD said the fire began at 3:58 p.m. and was extinguished at about 4:28 p.m. READ: Fire in Manila in 2023 mostly happened in residential areas, says PIO READ: Fire hits residential block in Pandacan, 1 hurt -- BFP "During the clearing operation made by the BFP personnel, the victim was found lying sideways inside her residence," the MPD said in its report. Auth...

Keep on reading: 22-year old woman dead in Tondo residential fire

    MANILA, Philippines --- Former Office of the Vice President (OVP) spokesperson Barry Gutierrez has advised former president Rodrigo Duterte to stop avoiding the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigation, as he has nothing to fear if he has done nothing wrong. Gutierrez, who is also a former House lawmaker, threw back to Duterte on Thursday a line used to lecture suspected drug users and dealers during the height of the drug war --- if you have not done something wrong, why are you afraid? "Dadagdag ko lang ang isang nausong hirit noong nakaraang administrasyon: Kung wala kayong kasalanan, bakit kayo takot na takot?" Gutierrez, who was with OVP during ...

Keep on reading: Ex-OVP spox to Duterte: No need to fear ICC if he did nothing wrong

Jo Koysaid his joke at the 81st Golden Globe awards referencing Taylor Swift was actually directed towards the National Football League (NFL) using her cutaways to draw more viewers to watch the game. During an interview with the Los Angeles, California-basedKTLAlast Jan. 9, Jo Koy was asked for his reaction to Swift's serious, if not chilly, reception to his joke on her NFL game attendance. In that controversial spiel, he claimed the Golden Globes has fewer cutaways of Swift than the NFL, in which the camera panned to the singer-songwriter to catch her taking a sip from her champagne flute, seemingly unamused by his wisecrack. The Filipino-American standup-comedian clarified t...

Keep on reading: Jo Koy says joke on Taylor Swift was about NFL using her cutaways

MANILA, Philippines --- Germany is set to deliver additional drones for the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) to be used for its operations in theWest Philippine Sea (WPS) among otherfunctions, its spokesperson Rear Admiral Armado Balilo said on Thursday. Balilo told reporters that Germany will provide "additional drones that can be utilized in the performance of our functions, WPS operations included." Asked as to how many additional drones the country will provide, Balilo said: "around four or more." READ: Bongbong Marcos wants enhanced ties with Germany on climate change The PCG spokesperson said the drone delivery is part of the 129 million (P7.9 billion) initial assistance fr...

Keep on reading: Germany to deliver additional drones for PCG’s West PH Sea response

    PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES - Israel bombarded the southern Gaza Strip Thursday as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken ended a days-long regional tour aimed at preventing the Israel-Hamas war from spreading. His final stop in Egypt coincided with a hearing at the UN's top court over an urgent appeal for Israel to immediately suspend its military operations in the Gaza Strip. Adila Hassim, a top lawyer for South Africa which has brought the case against Israel, said Israel's bombing campaign aimed at the "destruction of Palestinian life" and had pushed Palestinians "to the brink of famine". In Cairo, Blinken met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, whose ...

Keep on reading: Israel bombs Gaza as Blinken ends regional tour

MANILA, Philippines --- Vehicles were seen as the leading cause of air pollution in Quezon City, its local government found. According to the results of its Emissions Inventory posted on Thursday, mobile sources or vehicles accounted for 91 percent of criteria air pollutants and 66 percent of climate air pollutants. "Sa isinagawang Emissions Inventory (EI) ng Quezon City para sa Air Quality Management Project, natukoy na ang mga sasakyan ang pangunahing pinagmumulan ng air pollution sa ating lungsod," the Quezon City Climate Change and Environmental Sustainability Department said. (In the Emissions Inventory of Quezon City for the Air Quality Management Project, it has...

Keep on reading: Vehicles are leading cause of air pollution in QC

    MANILA, Philippines ---Unconsolidated jeepney operators who failed to join existing cooperatives or corporations will be tagged as "colorum" after January 31, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) said on Thursday. According to LTFRB Chairman Attorney Teofilo Guadiz III, those who will not comply with the consolidation requirement past the end of the January extension given by the board will be strictly banned from plying their routes. "Lahat ng hindi nakapag consolidate, classified po na colorum kaya huhulihin na po," Guadiz said in a press briefing. (All those who have not consolidated are classified as colorum, so they will b...

Keep on reading: Unconsolidated jeepney operators considered ‘colorum’ after Jan 31 — LTFRB