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| - Duty Editor: Karl Malakunas Tel: +852 2829 6211 -- TOP STORIES -- + Electoral College formalises Biden's victory + US vaccinations begin as toll passes 300,000 + Massive outage hits Google services globally + US Attorney General Bill Barr leaving office + Eclipse shrouds Chile, Argentina in darkness US-vote,WRAP WASHINGTON Joe Biden says US democracy has "proved to be resilient" after the Electoral College confirms him as the next US president, shutting the door on Donald Trump's unprecedented efforts to overturn the results. 750 words moved by Sebastian Smith and Michael Mathes. Picture. Video. Graphic Health-virus,WRAP NEW YORK The United States kicks off a mass vaccination drive hoping to turn the tide on the world's biggest coronavirus outbreak, as the country's death toll passes a staggering 300,000. 750 words moved by Peter Hutchison with AFP bureaus. Picture. Video. Graphic. Live video US-IT-Google-outage,WRAP NEW YORK A massive blackout temporarily disrupts popular Google services such as Gmail and YouTube, derailing the remote learning, work and entertainment that people have come to rely on during the pandemic. 500 words moved by Juliette Michel US-politics-Barr WASHINGTON President Donald Trump announces that Attorney General Bill Barr, who angered him by contradicting his claims of having been the victim of mass fraud in the US election, is leaving office. 450 words moved. File Picture Chile-science-astronomy-eclipse,WRAP PUCON, Chile Thousands of people turn their heads to the sky to watch a solar eclipse that lasts around two minutes as southern Chile and Argentina are plunged into darkness. 600 words moved. Picture. Graphic. Video -- CORONAVIRUS -- Health-virus-US-vaccine-medics,FOCUS WASHINGTON As an anesthesiologist in a busy US emergency department Raymond Pla has to handle Covid patients' ventilators, among the pandemic's highest risk jobs. Now he has received the vaccine. 550 words moved by Issam Ahmed. Picture. Video -- ROHINGYA INVESTIGATION -- Rohingya-migration-trafficking,INVESTIGATION COX'S Bazar, Bangladesh Auto rickshaws slip easily past barbed-wire checkpoints at the world's biggest refugee camp, their drivers among the smallest players in a complex human trafficking network involving high-seas extortion gangs, corrupt police and drug lords. 1,700 words moved by Sam Jahan with Haeril Halim in Lhokseumawe, Indonesia and Peter Brieger in Jakarta. Picture. Video. Graphic We have also moved: Rohingya-migration-trafficking-rights,FOCUS We will also move: Rohingya-migration-trafficking-couple,FOCUS -- AMERICAS -- US-politics-Barr,FOCUS WASHINGTON As a businessman, Donald Trump always had his fixer -- part-lawyer, part-law bender, someone to make bad things go away. And in office, he thought he had even better: his very own Attorney General Bill Barr. 500 words moved by Sebastian Smith. File picture US-Russia-Turkey-military-sanction,WRAP WASHINGTON The United States makes good on months of threats to punish Turkey for buying a major Russian missile defense system, although it holds off on the most drastic options. 650 words moved by Shaun Tandon US-Iran-missing-diplomacy,WRAP WASHINGTON The United States for the first time accuses Iran of direct involvement in the "probable death" of former FBI agent Bob Levinson, who vanished 13 years ago. 700 words moved by Shaun Tandon. File Picture US-hacking-computers-government,WRAP NEW YORK The US Department of Homeland Security was the third federal department to be targeted in a major cyberattack, US media reports, a day after Washington revealed the hack which may have been coordinated by a foreign government. 550 words moved by Daniel Hoffman -- ASIA -- Japan-food-agriculture-economy-health-virus,FOCUS IZU, Japan If you've eaten sushi, you might assume you've tried wasabi. But chances are it was an artificial version that Japanese growers say is a world away from their "green gold". 700 words moved by Mathias Cena. Picture. Video China-environment-conservation-fishing-Yangtze,FOCUS ZHONGBA ISLAND, China Yang Zeqiang's boat chugs across the Yangtze ferrying a few people and sacks of grain -- his new source of income after all fishing was halted along China's longest river in the name of environmental protection. 800 words moved by Helen Roxburgh. Picture. Video -- AFRICA -- Ethiopia-conflict-Tigray,FOCUS BISOBER, Ethiopia Jano Admasi says she watched as Ethiopian soldiers shot her son dead in front her in their village in southern Tigray, where AFP recently obtained exclusive access. 900 words moved by Robbie Corey-Boulet. Picture. Video. Graphic Already moved: Ethiopia-conflict-Tigray,WRAP Nigeria-unrest-school-kidnapping,Q&A ABUJA Outrage is simmering in Nigeria after gunmen kidnapped hundreds of secondary school students, while the government says rescue efforts were under way. 750 words moved by Louise Dewast DRCongo-Belgium-politics-history KINSHASA Belgium will return a tooth taken from the remains of assassinated Congolese independence hero Patrice Lumumba to his family by the end of June, President Felix Tshisekedi says. 300 words moved -- MIDDLE EAST -- Arab-revolution-anniversary-Tunisia,INTERVIEW TUNIS When Tunisia's embattled dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali delivered a last-ditch speech promising new freedoms to a country in revolt, Nadia Khiari sketched her cat delivering the same address to a group of mice. 750 words moved by Paul Raymond. Picture. Video Yemen-conflict-disability-basket,FOCUS SANAA In Yemen's capital Sanaa, women in long-sleeved athletics shirts race down a basketball court in wheelchairs, dribbling and passing as a small crowd cheered them on. 440 words moved. Picture. Video -- EUROPE -- Italy-culture-puppets,FOCUS TURIN Augusto Grilli's eyes still light up when he recalls receiving the little theatre and 12 puppets almost 75 years ago, a childhood gift that sparked a career and a lifelong passion. 600 words moved by Celine Cornu Gay-rights-NGO GENEVA Despite significant progress on gay rights around the world, dozens of countries still criminalise consensual same-sex activity, including six where being gay is punishable by death, campaigners say. 600 words moved UK-crime-drugs-offbeat LONDON A suspected drug dealer stopped by British police catches a lucky break when they found nothing in his car -- until he pulls out his phone to access a translation app and inadvertently shows officers a video of his cannabis farm. 200 words moved -- SPORT -- Yachting-AmCup-NZL,PREVIEW AUCKLAND The "flying" yachts created for next year's America's Cup, capable of exceeding 50 knots balanced on "knife-edge" carbon fibre foils, will be tested in race conditions for the first time in warm-up events beginning in Auckland on Thursday. 550 words moved. Picture Cricket-AUS-IND,PREVIEW ADELAIDE, Australia Top-ranked Australia are plotting revenge in their first day-night Test against fellow powerhouse India, as both teams grapple with injuries and selection dilemmas. 650 words moved by Martin Parry Also moved: Cricket-AUS-IND-five,POINTS afp
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