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Another storm strikes the Iberian Peninsula, resulting in one death.
Officials said that a 46-year old woman died on Friday in Barcelona after being?hit? by a piece blown off a warehouse roof during the eighth storm which swept across the Iberian Peninsula earlier this year. Spain and Portugal have been repeatedly hit by heavy rain, 'thunder,' snow, and strong gales, which damaged infrastructure and crops, and forced authorities to evacuate tens of thousands. Spanish Agriculture Minister Luis Planas said to TVE that the eight storms in succession were "truly extraordinary". "We must consider if this is a rare phenomenon or if, looking ahead, it might happen more frequently." Planas stated that approximately 14,000 hectares (35, 000 acres) of citrus fruit, olives, berries and other crops were damaged. This figure could rise significantly. According to the state weather service AEMET, Spain has experienced 38% more rainfall than normal since October. Officials in the medieval Portuguese town of Coimbra distributed flyers warning about a major flooding and stated that 9,000 people may need to be evacuated from low-lying area. The water level at the Aguieira Dam and Reservoir on the Mondego River near city has dropped from 99% to a mere 1% overnight. However, further rains expected on Friday could cause it to overflow, causing severe flooding downstream, according the city council. Businesses were told to ask staff to work at home if possible. Schools and the University in Coimbra?were closed. AEMET predicted widespread rain across the peninsula and Balearic?Islands and low-altitude snow in the north of Spain on?Friday. In Andalusia, a region in southern Spain where 3,100 people were evacuated, 22 towns also closed their schools. Forecasts for the village of Grazalema warned that up to 180mm of rain could fall in the next 24hours. This was after 1,500 residents evacuated due to aquifers filling and increasing the risk of land slides. Catalonia's Health Ministry said that a woman in Barcelona, who was injured by the falling roof Thursday morning and died early Friday morning from her injuries. (Reporting and editing by Charlie Devereux, Andrew Heavens and Andrew Heavens; reporting by Emma Pinedo and Paolo Laudani)
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Two men arrested in UK for plot to kill hundreds Jews inspired by Islamic State
Two men were sentenced to prison on Friday after allegedly plotting an attack inspired by the Islamic State on the Jewish community of England. Prosecutors said that this plan could have been "deader" than Sydney's Bondi Beach mass shooting in December. Walid Saadaoui and Amar Hussein were both found guilty after a Preston Crown Court trial, which began one week after the deadly attack at a Manchester synagogue. The prosecution said that the two men were Islamists who wanted automatic weapons to kill as many Jews as they could during an attack in Manchester. The guilty verdict came just a few days after the mass shooting that took place at a Jewish Hanukkah party on Bondi Beach, in which 15 people died. Harpreet sandhu, the prosecutor, said on Friday that if Saadaoui et Hussein had carried out their plans, "it could have been much more serious" than what happened in Australia and Manchester. Mark Wall, the judge who sentenced Saadaoui and Hussein respectively to minimum terms of 37 years and 26 years, said: "You were close to being able to carry out this plot." Hussein did not attend his sentencing after refusing to attend the majority of his trial. Wall described Hussein as cowardly, stating that he was "brave enough" to threaten a group without weapons with an AK-47, but not courageous enough to confront what he had done. POTENTIALLY THE DEADLIEST ATTEMPT ON UK SOIL Sandhu, the prosecutor, told the jury that Saadaoui arranged to smuggle two assault rifles and an automatic pistol, as well as almost 200 rounds of ammunition, into Britain via the port at Dover, when he was arrested in May 2024. Saadaoui said he planned to purchase two additional rifles, another pistol and collect?at least 900 ammunition rounds. Wall stated that "this would have likely been one of the most deadly terrorist attacks carried out ever on British soil." Saadaoui was unaware that the man he had been trying to get the weapons from, "Farouk", was actually an undercover agent who helped foil the plan. Bilel Saadaoui (37), Walid Saadaoui’s brother, was found guilty for failing to disclose information regarding terrorist acts. He was sentenced six years in prison. (Reporting and editing by William James; Aidan Lewis, Aidan Lewis).
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Sources: Reliance India wins US oil license for Venezuelan oil
Two sources with knowledge of the matter confirmed that the United States issued a general licence to India's Reliance Industries Ltd. This will allow the refiner?to buy Venezuelan crude oil directly without breaking sanctions. After the capture by the U.S. of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro in early this month, U.S. official said Washington would ease the sanctions imposed on Venezuela’s energy industry to help facilitate a $2 Billion oil supply deal and a $100 Billion reconstruction plan for Venezuela’s oil industry. A general licence authorizes the purchase, exportation and sale of Venezuelan oil that is already extracted, as well as the refining. Reliance's oil exports could be accelerated and crude costs reduced for the operator of world's largest refining complex. Reliance did not respond to an email request for comments. The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control didn't respond immediately outside of normal business hours. VENEZUELAN OIL WILL REPLACE RUSSIAN SUPPLY Earlier in the month, Reliance purchased 2 million barrels from Vitol. Vitol was awarded, along with Trafigura U.S. licenses to sell and market millions of barrels Venezuelan Oil after Maduro’s capture. One of the sources said that Reliance can replace Russian oil with heavy crude oil from Venezuela by purchasing it directly. Heavy crude oil is available at a discounted price in Caracas. Donald Trump removed the 25% punitive duty?on India earlier this month and said New Delhi would purchase more oil from Venezuela and possibly the U.S. Reliance and other Indian refiners are not buying Russian oil for delivery in April. They are also expected to avoid such trades longer. This could help New Delhi reach a trade agreement with Washington. Conglomerate was a regular buyer of Venezuelan crude oil for its "advanced refinery complex" but due to U.S. sanction, it had to cease purchases by early 2025. Reliance has two refineries that have a combined production capacity of 1.4 million barrels a day.
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Nornickel, a Russian nickel producer, will shift some of its nickel production to a copper plant for repairs.
A company vice president revealed that Russian metals producer Nornickel plans to begin 'experimental nickel melting' at its copper plant this year in order to maintain production during the major furnace reconstruction planned for 2027. This innovative approach will enable the company to maintain nickel production throughout the renovation. Alexander Leonov told Norilsk TV that Nornickel plans to upgrade the smelting?furnace at the Nadezhda Metallurgical Plant, in the Arctic city Norilsk, in 2027. He said that the shutdown would last approximately 270 days and remove about half of the plant’s capacity. Leonov stated that Nornickel will convert a part of its copper facility to produce nickel instead of copper to offset the outage. This is an "unconventional" solution. The company has begun preparing its production lines to make the switch. It hopes to begin industrial pilot tests in this year. Nornickel stated in 2024 it would?close its Arctic Copper plant and move the copper production to China mid-2027. According to a participant on a conference call with the company, talks are underway with Chinese partners. The company expects nickel production to be between 193,000 and 203,000 metric tonnes in 2026. This is roughly the same as 2025. The?company expects palladium production to be between 2.415 - 2.465 million pounds, down up to 11% from last year. Nornickel CEO and main shareholder?Vladimir Potanin said previously that recent 'production declines were temporary. He cited depleted ore reserves, switching to non-Western suppliers, and the loss some markets. Potanin expects the output to stabilize by 2028. (Reporting by Anastasia Lyrchikova. (Editing by Vladimir Soldatkin, Mark Potter and Mark Potter.)
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French tourist killed in Chad after falling from cliff
Local authorities announced on Friday that the Chadian army had found a body of a French citizen who went missing in recent days. The?Mayor of 'Amdjarass' said that the army that was leading the search informed him on Friday morning that the tourist had died and that the local medical staff confirmed his death. Officials at the Tourism Ministry of?Chad said that the man who appeared weak likely died from falling off a cliff. They added that more?details will be released when the body arrives in N'Djamena, the capital. The French foreign ministry announced 'on Thursday that it was in touch with the Chadian authorities following a?disappearance of one of its citizens during the International Festival of Saharan Cultures near Amdjarass. A search is currently underway. (Reporting and writing by Mahamat Ramadane, Editing by Benoit van Overstraeten).
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Indonesia wants coal miners who supply more of their output to the domestic market to increase their share
Local media reported that the Indonesian government would ask coal'miners with special contracts' to supply a greater portion of their production domestically, as they are expected to receive their 'full output quota request. Kontan, citing a senior energy ministry official, reported that the government wanted 75 million metric tonnes of coal supplied to the state utility Perusahaan Listrik Negara in early 2026 from holders of the first-generation 'contract of works' deals, and state-controlled 'coal miner's. A contract of works is a long-term agreement between the government and miners that has specific rules. This includes taxes. Tri Winarno, an official at the Energy Ministry was quoted as saying that these miners will be granted their output quotas because of the importance they place on royalty payments. The majority of coal?miners have switched over to newer mining permits which generally follow the law. Indonesia has a scheme that requires coal miners sell at least 25% of their production to the domestic market. Indonesia announced plans to reduce mining output quotas for many minerals this year to help support prices. In the past year, 32% (or 790 million tons) of the nation's coal production was sold on the domestic market. (Reporting and editing by John Mair; Fransiska Nanangoy)
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Iron ore prices fall as traders reduce their positions before the China holiday
Iron ore futures fell on Friday, as traders closed out their 'positions' ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays in China. During this time, demand is expected to fall significantly. The most-traded May iron ore contract at China's Dalian Commodity Exchange closed the daytime trading down 2.36% to 746 yuan (107.96 dollars) per metric ton. This contract has fallen 1.44% this week. As of 0715 GMT, the benchmark March iron ore traded on the Singapore Exchange at $97.25 per ton. This is a 2.34% decrease. The contract has fallen 1.76% this week and is on track for its fifth consecutive weekly drop. LSEG data shows that the trading volume for Dalian 'iron ore', which fell for six consecutive sessions before, increased as traders closed positions. Market will be closed from February 16 through to 23 due to the holiday. The demand for feedstock will likely decrease during the holiday season, when most steel mills are shutting down or performing planned maintenance. Atilla Wiednell, managing director of Navigate Commodities, stated that China's hot-metal production has continued to decline at 229 thermally monitored furnaces, as operators continue to idle or hot bank their furnaces in preparation for the holiday. Tropical cyclone Mitchell, which formed last week off the coast of Australia's resource-rich Pilbara area, has caused a decline in shipments. The Financial Times reported that Donald Trump, U.S. president, announced plans to reduce tariffs on aluminum and steel goods. Coking coal, which is used to make steel, fell by 0.31% on the DCE while coke rose by 1.05%. The benchmarks for steel on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mixed. Rebar rose 0.13%; hot-rolled coils remained unchanged; stainless steel fell 1.53%, and wire rod dropped 0.27 percent.
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Two dead and one injured after a shooting at South Carolina State University
In a school statement, officials reported that two people were killed, and another was injured, in a shooting at the?dormitory for South Carolina State University, an historically Black college. The campus was put on lockdown. According to a statement posted on Facebook, the shooting occurred at around 9:15 pm local time, in an apartment of?the Hugine suites student housing complex. There were few additional details immediately available. This included whether the perpetrators of the shooting are still at large. The statement stated that "University officials had not yet confirmed the identities of the victims or the condition of the injured person." South Carolina State is one of the two historically Black colleges in Orangeburg, South Carolina, which is a riverside college town located about 40 miles south of the capital of South Carolina, Columbia. Claflin University is the other historically Black university in Orangeburg, South Carolina. On Thursday night, a person who answered the phone for the University Public Safety Office said they weren't at liberty to give any information regarding the incident. The university stated that it had asked the State Law Enforcement Division to investigate the shooting and cancelled Friday classes. Reporting by Steve Gorman, Los Angeles; editing by Stephen Coates
Myanmar's Wa State is looking at resuming mining
Nyi Rang, the Wa State spokesperson, said on Friday that Myanmar is considering allowing mining in the region rich in tin to resume.
Nyi Rang confirmed that an announcement circulated on Chinese social media by the Wa State Industrial Minerals Management Bureau, which outlined the process for obtaining permits for mining and exploration.
Nyi Rang has not provided a timeline for the restart of mining.
Mines in Wa provide 70% of Myanmar's tin, which is the third largest producer on the planet and the dominant supplier to China.
Wa State, unlike the majority of Myanmar which is controlled by the military junta maintains its own military, political system and economy. It is a separate state.
The United Wa State Army (the militia affiliated with Myanmar's ethnic Wa minorities) controls large areas of Wa State. In August 2023, it suspended all mining activities in areas under its control to protect the resources.
Customs data revealed that China's imports from Myanmar of tin-ore more than halved in the past year.
At 0250 GMT, the most active April tin contract at the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 0.6%, to 255.770 yuan (US$35,103.83), a metric tonne. Reporting by Shoon Ning in Chiang Mai, Additional reporting by Violet Li from Shanghai; Editing Christopher Cushing & Muralikumar Aantharaman
(source: Reuters)