Philippines

Philippines forms task force to help stranded tanker off Somalia

Philippines forms task force to help stranded tanker off Somalia Manila - The Philippines has formed a task force to help a chemical tanker stranded off the coast of Somalia without fuel after being freed by pirates, the foreign ministry said Friday.

The Philippine-registered MT Stolt Strength, with 23 Filipino sailors on board, was released by pirates on Tuesday after five months in captivity. All the crew were unharmed and the ship was supposed to sail to Oman.

US Marine leaves Philippines after rape conviction overturned

Media Type: Text  US Marine leaves Philippines after rape conviction overturned Manila - A US Marine whose rape conviction was overturned by the Philippines' appeals court has left the country as protesters denounced the reversal, the US Embassy said Friday.

Lance Corporal Daniel Smith, 24, has been under the custody of the US Embassy in Manila since he was convicted of rape and sentenced to life in prison in December
2006.

Eight Muslim rebels killed in clashes in southern Philippines

Eight Muslim rebels killed in clashes in southern Philippines Cotabato City, Philippines - Eight Muslim secessionist rebels were killed in separate clashes in two towns in the southern Philippines, a regional military spokesman said Friday.

Colonel Jonathan Ponce said government troops did not suffer any casualties in the fighting in Pikit town in North Cotabato province, 930 kilometres south of Manila, and Datu Piang town in nearby Maguindanao province.

WHO vows to intensify fight against malaria in Asia-Pacific

World Health Organization (WHO)Manila- The World Health Organization (WHO) vowed on Friday to intensify the fight against malaria in Asia and the Pacific amid growing signs of the disease developing greater resistance to commonly used drugs.

The Manila-based WHO Western Pacific Office expressed concern over the situation in the Thai-Cambodian border where a strain of malaria that is increasingly resistant to artemisinin, the most effective drug available to fight the disease, has proliferated.

Philippine Court of Appeals reverses rape conviction of US Marine

Philippine Court of Appeals reverses rape conviction of US Marine Manila - The Philippine Court of Appeals on Thursday overturned the rape conviction of a US Marine sentenced in 2006 to life in prison in the alleged assault of a Filipino woman, which provoked protests and outrage in the former American colony. The Court of Appeals ordered the immediate release of Lance Corporal Daniel Smith, 24, who has been in the custody of the US embassy in Manila since he was convicted in December 2006.

Philippine troops clash with communist rebels; one soldier hurt

PhilippinesManila - One Philippine soldier was wounded in a clash with communist rebels while providing security for US troops building a farm road in an eastern province, a military spokesman said Thursday.

The firefight erupted Wednesday when troops encountered the guerrillas while on patrol in Barcelona town in Sorsogon province, 390 kilometres south-east of Manila.

Lieutenant Colonel Ernesto Torres said the troops were part of forces providing security for US soldiers constructing a one-kilometre farm road in nearby Juban town at the time of the clash.

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