BIG Wrap

(Al Jazeera Media Network) A United States citizen who was on the hantavirus-hit MV Hondius cruise ship is the latest to test positive for the virus while a French traveller has developed symptoms as the ship is being evacuated and passengers are returning to their home countries. Passengers began flying home on military and government planes after the ship anchored near Tenerife, the largest of Spain’s Canary Islands, on Sunday. At least eight people who were on board the ship...

(BBC News) Dozens of Nigerian fishermen are feared dead after Chad's military launched air strikes on Boko Haram militants in the Lake Chad region, a local fishermen's leader has told the BBC. Abubakar Gamandi Usman, chairman of Lake Chad Basin Fisheries Association of Nigeria, said several of the union's members were missing and estimated more than 40 had died. No bodies have yet been recovered but Usman believes some fishermen were hit by the strikes, while...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Laura Fernandez has been sworn in as Costa Rica’s new president and has vowed to fight rising crime in the Central American country, as well as maintain close ties with the United States. Fernandez defeated a crowded field in the February 1 vote to replace outgoing president Rodrigo Chaves, who has remained a close ally of US President Donald Trump. In an unorthodox move, Chaves is set to remain in the government...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Secessionists in the western Canadian province of Alberta recently announced that they have gathered enough signatures to launch a referendum on independence from the rest of the country. Leading secessionists said that they formally submitted about 300,000 signatures to election authorities earlier this week, far more than the 178,000 required for the province to consider a referendum. “This day is historic in Alberta history,” secessionist leader Mitch Sylvestre said. “It’s the first step...

(BBC News) Oil prices have dropped and global stock markets have risen following reports that the US and Iran are close to a deal to end the war. Brent crude futures, the global benchmark oil price, fell to $97 (£73) a barrel after the reports before rebounding to over $101. The price was over $108 earlier in the day. The FTSE 100 index of London's largest public firms and Germany's Dax index closed over 2% up...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) The United Arab Emirates has come under attack from Iranian missiles and drones for the second day in a row, according to its Defence Ministry, while Iran denied being behind the aggression. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said late on Tuesday that the country’s forces “have not carried out any missile or drone operations against the UAE in recent days.” “If any action had been taken, we would have announced it...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Amnesty International has accused a rebel group in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) of mass war crimes and crimes against humanity. In a damning report published Monday, the rights group said the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) was behind multiple cases of murder, abductions, forced labour and marriage, sexual abuse of women and girls, and the exploitation of children. The report is entitled “I’d Never Seen So Many Bodies: War Crimes by...

(BBC News) Russian drone and missile strikes in Ukraine have killed 10 people and injured at least 76 over the past day, Ukrainian officials say. Officials in five regions around the country reported fatalities as Moscow continues to target Ukrainian cities with regular drone and missile attacks. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said three Russian oil tankers, a cruise-missile carrier warship and a patrol boat were struck in separate attacks on two Russian ports. There are no...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has reiterated warnings to Belarus not to get involved in Russia’s invasion as he reported unusual activity near the shared border between the two. In a video address shared on social media on Saturday, Zelenskyy said, without offering details regarding the suspicious activity along sections of the border, that Ukraine is ready to respond. “We are closely documenting everything and keeping the situation under control,” he said, warning that...

(BBC News) Pro-Palestinian activists say 22 boats from a flotilla carrying aid for Gaza have been intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters near the Greek island of Crete. The organisers of the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) denounced the action as "piracy", saying those on board were seized unlawfully more than 965 km from Gaza, which is under an Israeli naval blockade. Israel's foreign ministry said about 175 activists were detained and dismissed the flotilla as...