HOME AND ABROAD
Typhoon Haiyan Death Toll Hits 1,774
The Philippine government confirmed that the death toll reached 1,774 early Tuesday after the typhoon Haiyan attacked its costal belt. The death toll is expected to rise considerably. Two provincial officials predicted that it could reach 10,000 or more. Disrupted transportation and communications links have made it difficult to count the dead and distribute relief goods.
Royals Pelted with Tomatoes
Activists from the banned National Bolshevik party of Russia have thrown tomatoes at Dutch King Willem-Alexander and his wife, Queen Maxima on Sunday. However the state security agency claimed that the perpetrators missed their target. The royal visit was aimed to celebrate the two nations' historical ties, but it came amid tensions caused by Russia's seizure of a Dutch-flagged Greenpeace ship and other disputes.
First Spokeswoman for Hamas
The Hamas government appointed a woman as a spokesperson on. Isra Almodallal, a 23-year-old who can speak fluent British-accented English was appointed by Hamas to represent to the world. The hiring of Almodallal as a spokeswoman for the territory's conservative Islamist rulers is part of a long-running push by the group, which has at times sought to curb women's freedom, to present a newer friendlier face both to its own citizens and internationally.
Photo: Star File
Search for a Cure
Scientists in the United Kingdom who have made a recent breakthrough in developing a universal vaccine to fight all forms of influenzas have a Bangladesh-origin Briton, Shaima Begom, in their team. Shaima works at the Respiratory Infections Section of the National Heart and Lung Institute at Imperial College London under the tutelage of Prof Ajit Lalvani. Prof Ajit and Shaima explained how their research in the last four years had brightened the prospect of developing a universal vaccine that would safeguard people from every form of flu attacks in an interview with The Daily Star.
(Last updated on 12/11/2013, beforethe magazine went to print.)