New China-Spain train route boosts trade links

STORY: New China-Spain train route boosts trade links SHOOTING TIME: April 26, 2024/May 13, 2024 DATELINE: May 14, 2024 LENGTH: 00:01:41 LOCATION: BARCELONA, Spain CATEGORY: ECONOMY SHOTLIST: 1. various of the Port of Barcelona 2. various of the arrival of the train from Shanxi to the Port of Barcelona on April 26 3. SOUNDBITE (Catalan): CARLA SALVADO, Deputy general manager of Commercial and Marketing at Port of Barcelona 4. various of China-Europe freight trains STORYLINE: An official with the Port of Barcelona in Spain said on Monday that a new train route between the port and north China's Shanxi Province is set to boost trade links between the two countries. On March 22, the first train of the China-Europe Railway Express from Shanxi to Barcelona departed from Taiyuan, the provincial capital of Shanxi. The train traveled for 35 days, covering over 12,000 kilometers, and arrived safely at the Port of Barcelona on April 26. The train left Shanxi with 50 goods containers, of which about half wer

CHINA-TIANJIN-INT'L CRUISE HOME PORT-FOREIGN TOURISTS (CN)

CHINA-TIANJIN-INT'L CRUISE HOME PORT-FOREIGN TOURISTS (CN)

(240407) -- TIANJIN, April 7, 2024 (Xinhua) -- A staff member provides foreign tourists with guide materials about payment methods in north China's Tianjin Municipality on April 7, 2024. Cruise ship Serenade of the Seas docked at Tianjin International Cruise Home Port in north China's port city of Tianjin on Sunday morning, with over 1,800 tourists from 50 countries and regions aboard. The ship will dock at Tianjin for two days and one night, carrying over 800 crew members and over 1,800 tourists. Most of the tourists will go sightseeing in the cities of Beijing and Tianjin. Tianjin International Cruise Home Port has welcomed 22 cruise ships and seen 68,000 tourist visits so far this year, according to Dong Zichen, deputy general manager of Tianjin International Cruise Home Port Co., Ltd. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)

Egypt's central bank issues 50 bln EGP in T-bills

STORY: Egypt's central bank issues 50 bln EGP in T-bills SHOOTING TIME: file DATELINE: March 4, 2024 LENGTH: 00:00:45 LOCATION: Cairo CATEGORY: ECONOMY SHOTLIST: 1. various of Egypt's Finance Ministry and the minister 2. various of Egypt's central bank 3. various of the Egyptian banknotes STORYLINE: The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE), on behalf of the Ministry of Finance, issued treasury bills (T-bills) at a total value of EGP 50 billion through two offerings on Sunday. With a tenor of 91 days, the first tranche was valued at about EGP 25 billion, according to official data. The second offering stood at EGP 25 billion and will mature in 273 days. In early February, the Central Bank of Egypt raised the key interest rates by two percent. Accordingly, the overnight deposit rate, the overnight lending rate, and the main operation rate were raised to 21.25 percent, 22.25 percent, and 21.75 percent, respectively. In addition, the discount rate was raised by 200 basis points to 21.75 percent. The decision has b

Israel, Hamas reach deal on releasing hostages, ceasefire

STORY: Israel, Hamas reach deal on releasing hostages, ceasefire SHOOTING TIME: Nov. 20——22, 2023 DATELINE: Nov. 22, 2023 LENGTH: 00:01:03 LOCATION: Jerusalem/GAZA CATEGORY: POLITICS/MILITARY SHOTLIST: 1. SOUNDBITE (English): ZHANG TIANLANG, Xinhua correspondent in Jerusalem 2. various of attacks in the Gaza Strip released by Israeli Defense Forces STORYLINE: A four-day ceasefire and hostage release agreement was reached on Wednesday between Hamas and Israel after 46 days of bloody conflict in the besieged coastal enclave. SOUNDBITE (English): ZHANG TIANLANG, Xinhua correspondent in Jerusalem "After a long meeting and voting, the Israeli government finally announced a temporary ceasefire agreement with Hamas on early Wednesday morning at around 3 a.m. (local time). According to the agreement, Israel and Hamas will cease fire in the Gaza Strip for four days, Hamas will release (at least) 50 Israeli women and children hostages. In addition, Israeli media reported that Israel will release about 150 Palestin

15 killed in Israeli strike on refugee camp in central Gaza: media

STORY: 15 killed in Israeli strike on refugee camp in central Gaza: media SHOOTING TIME: Nov. 2, 2023 DATELINE: Nov. 3, 2023 LENGTH: 00:01:32 LOCATION: GAZA, Palestine CATEGORY: POLITICS/MILITARY SHOTLIST: 1. various of the rescue site 2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Arabic): ZAKARIA YEHYA, Gaza resident 3. SOUNDBITE 2 (Arabic): GAZA RESIDENT 4. various of the rescue site STORYLINE: An Israeli air strike hit the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza on Thursday, killing 15 people, according to the official Palestinian news agency of WAFA. The Bureij refugee camp is a comparatively small refugee camp hosting about 46,000 Palestinian refugees, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees. SOUNDBITE 1 (Arabic): ZAKARIA YEHYA, Gaza resident "Ten days ago, we were in one of the neighborhoods near here, only 50 meters away from here. In that neighborhood, one of its houses that was next to ours was bombed. Of course, the bombing resulted in the destruction of our house and the death and injury

Russia launches first lunar station in nearly 50 years

STORY: Russia launches first lunar station in nearly 50 years DATELINE: Aug. 11, 2023 LENGTH: 00:00:38 LOCATION: VLADIVOSTOK, Russia CATEGORY: SCIENCE SHOTLIST: 1. various of the launch of the lunar station (Source: Roscosmos) STORYLINE: Russia successfully launched the Luna-25 lunar station early Friday, embarking on a historic mission to explore the south pole of the Moon. The station, which does not have a return capsule, was launched by a Soyuz-2.1b rocket with a Fregat upper stage from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the Amur Oblast of Russia's Far East. Nine minutes after lift-off, the Fregat upper stage with the Luna-25 station separated from the third stage of the rocket. About one hour later, Luna-25 separated from the Fregat upper stage and successfully entered the flight path to the Moon, marking the successful completion of the first stage of its mission. The mission consists of four stages. The second stage will be a flight to the Moon, which will take about five days. The trajectory will be ad

7,000 runners compete in Dead Sea Marathon

STORY: 7,000 runners compete in Dead Sea Marathon DATELINE: Feb. 5, 2023 LENGTH: 00:01:54 LOCATION: Jerusalem CATEGORY: SPORTS SHOTLIST: 1. STANDUP (English): NICK KOLYOHIN, Xinhua reporter 2. SOUNDBITE 1 (English): NIR WANGER, Mayor of Tamar Regional Council 3. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): OPHIR KINDLER, Manager of Dead Sea Marathon STORYLINE: STANDUP (English): NICK KOLYOHIN, Xinhua reporter "Here behind me is the lowest point on (the land on) the Earth, minus 430 meters. And here is happening for the fourth time a marathon of the Dead Sea. About 7,000 participants from around the world will run this marathon from five kilometers to the full marathon and even one competition will be for 50 kilometers. And the track of this marathon is really unique, just for two days every year, this track is open for people that are participants of this marathon, but usually people can't get access to that, and the track is going in the middle of the Dead Sea. From the one side you have the Jordanian border and from the other

7 killed in two shootings in northern California

STORY: 7 killed in two shootings in northern California DATELINE: Jan. 24, 2023 LENGTH: 0:01:50 LOCATION: SAN FRANCISCO, U.S. CATEGORY: OTHERS SHOTLIST: 1. various of northern California STORYLINE: Seven people were killed and one was critically injured in two shootings in northern California on Monday, U.S. media reported. The shootings occurred at two locations in the coastal northern California city of Half Moon Bay, about 50 km south of San Francisco. The motives of the shootings are still unknown, Los Angeles Times quoted a statement of the Sheriff's Office as saying. Previously, the Sheriff's Office reported on Twitter a shooting incident with multiple victims and said a 67-year-old suspect was arrested. "The Sheriff's Office is responding to a shooting incident with multiple victims in the area of (Highway) 92 and the (Half Moon Bay) City limits," it tweeted. "Suspect is in custody." The shootings took place just two days after 11 people were killed in a mass shooting in the city of Monterey

Suspicious loan to Tokyo Gov. Inose

Suspicious loan to Tokyo Gov. Inose

TOKYO, Japan - Tokyo Gov. Naoki Inose leaves the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly on Dec. 17, 2013. Inose was grilled for 20 hours over four days the past two weeks by a committee session of the assembly about a 50 million yen loan he received from the scandal-hit Tokushukai hospital organization.

World's largest floating bookshop opens at Hakata port

World's largest floating bookshop opens at Hakata port

FUKUOKA, Japan - The world's largest floating bookshop on the 6,818-ton Doulos opened to the public at Hakata port in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, on May 12 with about 500,000 books and 350 volunteers from more than 50 countries aboard. The Doulos, the world's oldest ocean-going passenger vessel still in service, will open for 10 days at Chuo pier following its arrival on May 11.

JAL ordered to pay damages to flight attendants with children

JAL ordered to pay damages to flight attendants with children

TOKYO, Japan - Plaintiffs and their supporters hold a press conference after the Tokyo District Court ordered Japan Airlines International Co. on March 26 to pay about 15 million yen in damages to flight attendants with children who sued the airline for illegally reducing their daytime work to one to two days a month and thus their salary. The plaintiffs -- four female cabin crew members aged between 42 and 50 with more than 20 years of employment -- argued that it was illegal for their employer to reduce their daytime duties when they were exempted from working late at night under the childcare law, which regulates work after 10 p.m. for those raising preschoolers.

Freed Kyrgyz policemen say Japanese hostages are safe

Freed Kyrgyz policemen say Japanese hostages are safe

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan - Two Kyrgyz policemen released by Muslim rebels tell a local television Oct 14 that four Japanese hostages still being held looked to be in good health. The two policemen were freed along with three other Kyrgyz nationals -- two other policemen and one soldier -- after being held captive by the armed rebels for about 50 days.

Turkish firms see CIIE as gateway to dynamic Chinese economy

STORY: Turkish firms see CIIE as gateway to dynamic Chinese economy DATELINE: Nov. 2, 2022 LENGTH: 00:01:31 LOCATION: Ankara CATEGORY: SOCIETY/HEALTH SHOTLIST: 1. various of the fruits 2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Turkish): MEHMET ALAGEYIK, Deputy general manager of Kirlioglu Figs company 3. various of the production of dried fruits 4. SOUNDBITE 2 (Turkish): MEHMET ALAGEYIK, Deputy general manager of Kirlioglu Figs company STORYLINE: Turkish firms are seeing the upcoming fifth China International Import Expo (CIIE) as a major business opportunity and a gateway to the dynamic Chinese economy. A dried fruit exporter has expressed his expectation in participation of the CIIE in the upcoming days. SOUNDBITE 1 (Turkish): MEHMET ALAGEYIK, Deputy general manager of Kirlioglu Figs company "Our main product is dried figs and dried apricots. We are exporting to about 50 countries and most of our products are destined for export. Our exports to China encompass a large deal of our production capacity in our factory, China is the

Australia's Olympic softball team

OTA, Japan, June 1 : Members of the Australian women's softball team on Tuesday became the first group of athletes to arrive in Japan for a pre-Olympic training camp since the Tokyo Games were postponed more than a year ago due to the coronavirus pandemic. The squad's arrival at a hotel in Ota, around 80 kilometers northwest of Tokyo, came about 50 days before the opening of the Olympics and with the Japanese public, concerned about a surge in COVID-19 infections, largely opposed to holding such a global sporting event this summer.

Australian softball team arrives in Japan

NARITA, Japan, June 1 : Members of the Australian women's softball team on Tuesday became the first group of athletes to arrive in Japan for a pre-Olympic training camp since the Tokyo Games were postponed more than a year ago due to the coronavirus pandemic. The squad's arrival at Narita airport, near Tokyo, came with about 50 days to go before the opening of the Olympics and the Japanese public, concerned about a surge in COVID-19 infections, largely against holding such a global sporting event this summer.

1,000 families receive relief aid in N. Afghanistan

STORY: 1,000 families receive relief aid in N. Afghanistan DATELINE: April 15, 2022 LENGTH: 00:00:27 LOCATION: Kabul CATEGORY: SOCIETY SHOTLIST: 1. various of needy people receiving relief assistance in Kunduz province STORYLINE: About 1,000 destitute and drought-affected families received relief assistance in Afghanistan's northern province of Kunduz on Thursday, a provincial official said. "The Afghan Red Crescent Society (ARCS) distributed 50 kg of flour, 10 liters of cooking oil, and 25 kg of rice together with packages of tea, sugar, salt and biscuits to each of the 1,000 surveyed families in Qala-i-Zal district on Thursday," Mohammad Riza Nasiri, head of province's ARCS department, told Xinhua. More relief assistance would be provided to needy families in Kunduz, 250 km north of Afghanistan's Kabul, in the coming days and weeks, according to the official. Following the U.S. pullout from Afghanistan last August, Washington has imposed sanctions on the Taliban-run administration and

Next round of Russia-Ukraine peace talks to be held on Belarusian-Polish border -- head of Russian delegation

STORY: Next round of Russia-Ukraine peace talks to be held on Belarusian-Polish border -- head of Russian delegation DATELINE: March 1, 2022 LENGTH: 00:00:50 LOCATION: Moscow CATEGORY: POLITICS SHOTLIST: 1. SOUNDBITE (Russian): VLADIMIR MEDINSKY, Head of the Russian delegation STORYLINE: The next round of Russia-Ukraine peace talks will take place on the Belarusian-Polish border in the coming days, according to Vladimir Medinsky, head of the Russian delegation at the talks held in Belarus, Russia's RIA Novosti news agency reported Monday. SOUNDBITE (Russian): VLADIMIR MEDINSKY, Head of the Russian delegation "The negotiations with the Ukrainian side, which lasted about five hours, have just ended. During this time, we went through all the items on the agenda in detail and found some points on which common ground could be predicted. And most importantly, we have agreed to continue the negotiation process. The next meeting will be held in the coming days on the Polish-Belarusian border. There are relevant p

World's largest floating bookshop opens at Hakata port

World's largest floating bookshop opens at Hakata port

FUKUOKA, Japan - The world's largest floating bookshop on the 6,818-ton Doulos opened to the public at Hakata port in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, on May 12 with about 500,000 books and 350 volunteers from more than 50 countries aboard. The Doulos, the world's oldest ocean-going passenger vessel still in service, will open for 10 days at Chuo pier following its arrival on May 11. (Kyodo)

Anti-terrorism drill near Tokyo Olympics basketball venue

Anti-terrorism drill near Tokyo Olympics basketball venue

Police officers and JR East staff conduct a bomb-disposal drill at a JR station near Saitama Super Arena, the venue of Tokyo Olympics basketball games, in Saitama, eastern Japan, on June 3, 2021, about 50 days ahead of the opening of the Olympics.

Freed Kyrgyz policemen say Japanese hostages are safe

Freed Kyrgyz policemen say Japanese hostages are safe

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan - Two Kyrgyz policemen released by Muslim rebels tell a local television Oct 14 that four Japanese hostages still being held looked to be in good health. The two policemen were freed along with three other Kyrgyz nationals -- two other policemen and one soldier -- after being held captive by the armed rebels for about 50 days.