Month: February 2025

PARIS — Nearly all nations missed a UN deadline Monday to submit new targets for slashing carbon emissions, including major economies under pressure to show leadership following the U.S. retreat on climate change. Just 10 of nearly 200 countries required under the Paris Agreement to deliver…

Climate change is rapidly altering the Arctic region, creating environmental danger, economic opportunity and geopolitical tension as the world’s major powers scramble to control newly accessible shipping lanes and resource deposits. ...

JAKARTA, INDONESIA — Economists are raising concerns about the viability of Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s program launched this year to combat child nutrition. According to an Indonesian Ministry of Health Nutritional Status Study report, 21.6% of children ages 3 and 4 experienced stunting caused by malnutrition…

NEW YORK — All live poultry markets in New York City and some of its suburbs were ordered Friday to close for a week after the detection of seven cases of avian flu, which has also hit farms nationwide. Governor Kathy Hochul said that there was…

NEW YORK — The U.S. winter virus season is in full force, and by one measure is the most intense in 15 years. One indicator of flu activity is the percentage of doctor's office visits driven by flu-like symptoms. Last week, that number was clearly higher…

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA — Some South African organizations that assist people with HIV are in limbo, after the United States put a 90-day freeze on most foreign aid. The U.S. State Department later added a waiver for "lifesaving" aid, but NGOs that have already shut their…

U.S. dairy cattle tested positive for a strain of bird flu that previously had not been seen in cows, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Wednesday, ramping up concerns about the persistent spread of the virus.  The H5N1 virus has reduced milk output in…

BUENOS AIRES — President Javier Milei has ordered Argentina's withdrawal from the World Health Organization due to profound differences with the U.N. agency, a presidential spokesperson said Wednesday. Milei's action echoes that of his ally, U.S. President Donald Trump, who began the process of pulling the…

Abuja, Nigeria — Nigerian officials have launched a committee to develop a transition and sustainability plan for USAID-funded health programs following U.S. President Donald Trump’s 90-day halt of most foreign aid. The multi-ministerial committee aims to secure new financial support for critical health programs.  Nigeria’s health…

Scientists are testing a novel technique to deter poachers targeting endangered rhinoceroses for their prized horns. As part of a pilot study in South Africa, researchers have injected small, radioactive pellets into the horns of live rhinos. The goal is to make the horns radioactive…

Not all children can play with conventional toys. At a school in New York, occupational therapists are taking off-the-shelf toys and adapting them to make them more suitable for disabled students’ needs. Tina Trinh reports. ...

Washington — Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the controversial environmental lawyer turned public health critic, cleared his first hurdle on Tuesday to become the nation's top health official when the senate finance committee voted to advance his nomination for a floor vote.  Republicans voted together to advance…

Uganda began a vaccine trial Monday against the Sudan strain of Ebola that has killed one person in the outbreak declared last week. World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Monday in a post on the X social media platform that the trial was…

The recent outbreak of the H5N1 avian influenza virus in the U.S. and the potential for it to mutate has raised concerns among the scientific community that it could result in human-to-human transmission and a new pandemic. Farmers are also concerned about the potential impacts…

Arlington, Virginia — A baby food maker is recalling edible sticks meant to ease teething pain over a possible choking hazard.  Gerber announced Friday that it was recalling and discontinuing its brand of “Sooth N Chew” teething sticks after receiving customer complaints about choking. The company…

Kampala, Uganda — Ugandan officials are preparing to deploy a trial vaccine as part of efforts to stem an outbreak of Ebola in the capital, Kampala, a top health official said Sunday. A range of scientists are developing research protocols relating to the planned deployment of…

TOKYO — Japan's space agency said Sunday it successfully launched a navigation satellite on its new flagship H3 rocket as the country seeks to have a more precise location positioning system of its own.  The H3 rocket carrying the Michibiki 6 satellite lifted off from the…

WASHINGTON — The U.S. State Department said Saturday that the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) -- the world's leading HIV initiative -- was covered by a waiver for life-saving humanitarian assistance during a 90-day pause in foreign aid. Just hours after taking office on…

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA — The Alaska Gold Rush town of Nome faced a bleak winter. It was hundreds of miles from anywhere, cut off by the frozen sea and unrelenting blizzards, and under siege from a contagious disease known as the "strangling angel" for the way it…