Headline

Biden, 80, To Undergo Medical Checkup Ahead Reelection Bid

Published

3 years ago

February 16, 2023

Editor

Joe Biden will complete a routine medical checkup on Thursday, a crucial step for the oldest-ever US president ahead of his expected fight for reelection in 2024.

The White House has promised to release the report by the 80-year-old president’s doctor, as it also did during his previous checkup in 2021.

This time around, with the Republican 2024 campaign already kicking off, it will be scrutinized even more closely.

Despite poor poll ratings, Biden — a Democrat — has been suggesting for some time that he intends to run again, potentially lining up a rematch of his 2020 battle with his predecessor Donald Trump, who has already declared his candidacy.

“That’s my intention, I think, but I haven’t made that decision firmly yet,” he said in a PBS interview on February 8.

Biden’s last checkup was on November 19, 2021, when he underwent a complete examination, including a colonoscopy under general anaesthesia.

He transferred his powers for one hour and 25 minutes to Vice President Kamala Harris, making her the first woman in US history to hold the presidential prerogative.

Biden’s doctor, Kevin O’Connor, at the time painted a picture of a healthy man fit to carry out his presidential duties.

But he did also point out relatively minor signs of old age, and noted Biden’s stiffer gait, attributing it to a mild nerve condition affecting the feet; as well as a frequent cough caused by gastroesophageal reflux.

Biden does not smoke, does not drink, plays sports, and has not had any major health concerns since undergoing brain surgery in 1988.

He tested positive for Covid-19 in July 2022 but did not have a serious form of the disease.

The American president has shown uncommon stamina, making public appearances and travelling.

But his age remains a frequent angle of attack by the Republican opposition.

Some of the president’s opponents even claim that he is no longer in his right mind, citing some of his moments of confusion and his slurred speech. Biden has spoken often of overcoming a childhood stutter.

Nikki Haley, a 51-year-old Republican who has just entered the race for 2024, called Wednesday for mental fitness tests for any elected official over 75.

That would also apply to ex-president Trump, 76, whom she is challenging with her candidacy.

Haley, a former UN ambassador, hopes to capitalize on the American electorate’s desire for fresh blood in politics. Polls show many do not want a second Biden term any more than they want a repeat Trump presidency.

If he runs, Biden will have to face both the rigours of an election campaign and the demands of his office.

He wants Americans to judge him on his results, effectively saying age is just a number.

“Watch me,” he likes to say.

AFP

Headline

42 Killed In Israeli Attacks, Says Gaza’s Civil Defense

Published

14 hours ago

August 24, 2025

Editor

Gaza’s civil defence agency reported at least 42 people killed in Israeli attacks on Sunday, as the Israeli army prepared for a new assault on the Palestinian territory’s largest city.

Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said there had been several air strikes around Gaza City — which the military is gearing up to capture — including one in the Al-Sabra neighbourhood that killed eight people.

Attacks were also reported elsewhere across the territory, he said, with the “total tally currently rising to 42 dead”.

The army did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the figure.

“The situation is extremely dangerous… Each day, each minute, there are bombings, martyrs, death and blood — we can’t take it anymore,” Al-Sabra resident Ibrahim Al-Shurafa told AFP, explaining strikes and shelling were ongoing.

“We don’t know where to go. Death follows us everywhere,” he added.

Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency or the Israeli military.

The October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel that sparked the war resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Israel’s offensive has killed at least 62,686 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable.

AFP

Headline

Venezuela Frees Eight Opposition Leaders

Published

14 hours ago

August 24, 2025

Editor

Venezuelan authorities released eight opposition leaders from jail early Sunday, including a former congressman and two Italian citizens, and granted house arrest to five others, an opposition politician said.

Most of those released had been charged with corruption in opposition-run mayoral offices.

Also set free was Congressman, Amirico de Grazia, detained amid protests that erupted during President Nicolas Maduro’s reelection in 2024.

“Today, several families are once again embracing their loved ones. We know there are many left, and we have not forgotten them; we continue to fight for everyone,” two-time former presidential candidate Henrique Capriles said on X.

Opposition leaders Victor Jurado, Simon Vargas, Arelis Ojeda Escalante, Mayra Castro, Diana Berrio, Gorka Carnevalli, as well as Italian nationals Margarita Assenzo and de Grazia were released, Capriles said.

Nabil Maalouf, Valentin Gutierrez Pineda, Rafael Ramirez, Pedro Guanipa, and David Barroso were placed under house arrest.

The Italian government confirmed the release of de Grazia and Assenzo, who must appear in court to clarify the conditions of their release. It also vowed to continue working on securing the release of other detained Italians.

“We have always said, and we maintain it: we will talk to whomever we need to talk to so that there is not a single political prisoner in our Venezuela!” Capriles added.

AFP

Headline

Russia, Ukraine Exchange Prisoners Of War, Civilians

Published

14 hours ago

August 24, 2025

Editor

Russia and Ukraine each sent back more prisoners of war on Sunday in the latest in a series of exchanges that have seen hundreds of POWs released this year, the two sides said.

Large-scale prisoner exchanges were the only tangible result of three rounds of talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul between May and July.

They remain one of the few areas of cooperation between the two countries since Russia’s offensive began in 2022.

“On August 24, 146 Russian servicemen were returned from the territory controlled” by Kyiv, the Russian defence ministry said on Telegram.

“In exchange, 146 prisoners of war of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were transferred” to Ukraine, it added. Ukraine did not confirm any figures for the release.

Russia also said that “eight citizens of the Russian Federation—residents of the Kursk region, illegally detained” by Kyiv were also returned.

Ukrainian forces launched a surprise incursion into Russia’s Kursk region in August last year, seizing hundreds of square kilometres (miles) of territory in a major setback for the Kremlin.

Russia deployed thousands of troops from its ally North Korea as part of a counterattack but did not fully reclaim the region until April.

Among the Ukrainians released on Sunday was journalist Dmytro Khyliuk, President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

Khyliuk was kidnapped in the Kyiv region in March 2022. He is finally home in Ukraine,” Zelensky said on social media.

Also freed was former Kherson mayor Volodymyr Mykolayenko, “who spent more than three years in captivity,” Zelensky’s aide Andriy Yermak wrote on X.

“In 2022, he was on the list for return, but Volodymyr voluntarily refused to be exchanged in favour of a seriously ill prisoner with whom he was sharing a cell in a Russian prison,” Yermak said.

AFP