Kathmandu, July 7 (IANS) At least 15 more people have been killed in landslides and floods in Nepal in the past two days, police said on Sunday.

The rain-induced disasters, previously, had killed 48 people in the country since the monsoon season set in on June 10, Xinhua news agency reported.

Incessant monsoon rains since Friday evening have created havoc across Nepal, leaving 15 dead, two missing and 17 others injured in landslides and floods, said Dan Bahadur Karki, the spokesperson for Nepal Police.

He told Xinhua that at least 125 families have been displaced, hundreds of livestock killed, and some highways across the country blocked due to landslides and floods in the last two days.

Parts of Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital, have been inundated.

As the rainfall is continuing, the loss of lives and property is likely to increase, Karki said.

–IANS

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Paris, July 7 (IANS) The second and decisive round of France’s snap legislative elections began on Sunday in Metropolitan France for voters to elect the remaining 501 members of the 577-seat French National Assembly.

According to the results published by the French Interior Ministry, the French far-right wing party National Rally (RN) was leading the first round of the elections held on June 30, taking 37 seats, reports Xinhua news agency.

Following the RN, the New Popular Front (NFP), the left-wing parties’ electoral alliance, won 32 seats, while French President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist coalition only gained two seats.

Five other deputies from various right and extreme right parties were also elected during the first round.

France has a long history of preventing far-right wing parties from taking power, but according to a survey published by consulting firm Elabe on Friday, 33 per cent of the French voters want the RN to obtain the largest number of seats in the National Assembly this time, 24 per cent for the NFP, and only 18 per cent for Macron’s centrist coalition.

To stop the RN from gaining the absolute majority, the NFP and Macron’s coalition announced that their candidates who entered the second round in third place would renounce their candidacy to not split anti-RN votes.

Any party that wants to form a government should hold an absolute majority of 289 seats in the 577-member Assembly. The latest projections show that the RN would win the most seats in the National Assembly but not an absolute majority.

No matter which side wins the legislative elections, Macron has already announced that he will continue his second presidential term until the end of 2027.

Physical attacks targeting 51 candidates were registered during the campaign period before the second round, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said on Friday, adding that nearly 30 suspects were arrested across the country.

Given the possibility of riots following the announcement of the election results, Darmanin said that nearly 30,000 police officers would be deployed across France on Sunday, including 5,000 in Paris and its suburbs.

Polling booths are open for the 49.5 million registered voters from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. local time, while in major cities such as Paris, Lyon and Marseille, the booths will close at 8 p.m. local time.

–IANS

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Kabul, July 7 (IANS) Afghanistan’s central bank announced in a statement that it will inject $15 million on Monday into the local market to boost the national currency afghani.

“The bidders including moneychangers and private banks should deposit the necessary money in cash in the form of afghani in the central bank, Da Afghanistan Bank,” the statement added, reports Xinhua news agency.

According to the statement, the bank was requesting all eligible banks, foreign exchanges and monetary service providers to participate in the auction.

The bank also auctioned $15 million last week.

Afghanistan’s central bank has injected millions of dollars into the money exchange market over the past two and half years, aiming at preventing the devaluation of the afghani.

The Afghan caretaker government, since assuming power in August 2021, has taken a series of measures to maintain the stability of the afghani against foreign currencies.

–IANS

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Seoul, July 7 (IANS) South Korea’s Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, on Sunday, instructed officials to take emergency containment measures as authorities confirmed more cases of African swine fever (ASF) at a pig farm in a southeastern county.

The instruction came after this year’s sixth case of the virus, which is deadly to pigs but not harmful to humans, was confirmed at the farm raising some 900 pigs in Yecheon County, 161 kilometres southeast of Seoul, reports Yonhap News Agency.

Han ordered authorities to take relevant measures, including culling, a standstill order and an epidemiological analysis, the Prime Minister’s office said in a statement.

A standstill order has been issued in Yecheon and six other counties and cities nearby, including Andong and Yeongju, through 6 a.m. Monday.

Authorities plan to conduct an epidemiological investigation, cull pigs at the farm, and disinfect the site and nearby roads.

The agriculture ministry said the culling is not expected to impact the supply of pork in the local market, noting that the farm in question raised just 0.008 per cent of the total number of pigs in the country.

–IANS

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Seoul, July 7 (IANS) President Yoon Suk Yeol is expected to warn against deepening defence cooperation between North Korea and Russia as he is set to attend the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit this week, according to presidential officials on Sunday.

Yoon will visit Washington from Wednesday to Thursday to take part in the summit, becoming the first South Korean president to participate in the gathering for the third year in a row, reports Yonhap news agency.

On Wednesday, Yoon will hold back-to-back talks with the heads of more than five NATO members, including the Czech Republic, Sweden, Finland and Norway, as well as with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

The talks are expected to discuss bilateral issues and the regional and global security situation, with a focus on energy and security cooperation.

Later that evening, Yoon and first lady Kim Keon Hee will attend a dinner hosted by US President Joe Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, at the White House.

On Thursday, Yoon will participate in a summit between NATO’s Indo-Pacific partners, which also include Japan, Australia and New Zealand, before attending the main NATO summit.

The gathering of the Indo-Pacific countries may produce a message critical of military cooperation between North Korea and Russia.

Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo said Friday Seoul seeks to send a “strong message” over the military cooperation between Russia and North Korea through the NATO summit.

“While sending a strong message against military cooperation between Russia and North Korea, (we) will discuss ways for cooperation with NATO to respond to this,” he said in a briefing.

Last month, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a new “comprehensive strategic partnership” treaty pledging mutual military assistance in case either of them comes under attack, raising concerns over their deepening ties.

Meanwhile, possible bilateral summits with the United States and Japan, as well as a trilateral one on the sidelines of the NATO summit, have yet to be confirmed.

Yoon is also scheduled to make a speech at the NATO Public Forum, co-organized by NATO and five think tanks in the United States and Europe, on Thursday. It will mark the first time a South Korean president will make a speech at the forum.

Ahead of the NATO summit, Yoon will travel to Hawaii from Monday to Tuesday to visit the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific and the US Indo-Pacific Command in a series of events intended to enhance the bilateral alliance.

–IANS

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