Philippines

MANILA, Aug 27 (Reuters) - China's "aggressive behaviour" in the South China Sea, including the use of water canon by its coast guard against a Philippine vessel, must be challenged and checked, the commander of the U.S. Navy's Seventh Fleet said on Sunday.

Vice Admiral Karl Thomas assured the Philippines of U.S. backing in the face of "shared challenges" in the region, saying: "My forces are out here for a reason."

MANILA, Aug 6 (Reuters) - The Philippines on Sunday accused China's coast guard of blocking and water-cannoning a Philippine military supply boat in the South China Sea, condemning the "excessive and offensive actions" against its vessels.

China's coast guard countered that it had implemented necessary controls in accordance with the law to deter Philippine ships, which it accused of trespassing and carrying illegal building materials.

MANILA, Aug 3 (NNN-PNA) – A ferry boat with about 70 people on board, sank off Quezon province, in the south of Luzon island in the Philippines, local media reported, today.

Philippine Coast Guard confirmed the accident, without providing further details, adding, a search and rescue operation is ongoing.

Ferry accidents are common in the country, mainly due to frequent storms, ill-maintained boats, overcrowding and weak enforcement of safety regulations.

MANILA, Aug 3 (NNN-PNA) – The Philippines’ Department of Health (DOH), today expressed concern over the rising number of leptospirosis cases in the country, amid the flooding across many regions due to days of heavy rainfall.

The health agency logged 2,079 cases from Jan 1 to Jul 15, this year, with at least 225 deaths. The DOH warned that cases may still increase.

The cases were reported in at least 10 regions, including Metro Manila, which showed a rise in patients in the last four weeks.

MANILA, July 31 (Xinhua) -- The death toll from flooding and landslides triggered by typhoon Doksuri climbed to 25, with at least 20 more missing, the Philippines' national disaster agency said on Monday.

Many parts of the country remain underwater as heavy rain continues to pour even after Doksuri blew away from the Philippines last week.

Typhoon Khanun, the sixth cyclone to batter the Philippines this year, continues to intensify on Monday, enhancing the southwest monsoon rains across the country, including Metro Manila.

MANILA, Jul 25 (NNN-PNA) – Philippine President, Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos, left for Malaysia today, for a three-day visit, to identify new areas of economic cooperation between the two countries.

“I believe this is an opportune time to harness the potential of a revitalised relationship between the Philippines and Malaysia,” Marcos said in his departure speech, at an airbase in Manila.

The Philippines and Malaysia, two major economies in Southeast Asia, have long enjoyed close economic ties, supported by strong bilateral ties stretching back for decades.

MANILA, Jul 25 (NNN-PNA) – Five people were killed, after a steel bridge under construction collapsed, in Davao City, in the southern Philippines, police said today.

Police said, the victims were installing the bridge’s side panel using a boom truck when the structure collapsed at around 3:30 p.m. local time yesterday, burying seven workers.

Two were critically injured but survived. An investigation has been launched into the accident.

MANILA, July 17 (Xinhua) -- ASEAN countries have reaffirmed their determination to maintain regional peace and stability, and emphasized the need to maintain ASEAN's unity and centrality and avoid becoming any country's proxy.

During the 56th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers' Meeting (AMM) and related meetings that concluded last week in Jakarta, Indonesia, the countries in the bloc stated that they would join hands to promote regional economic integration.

MANILA, July 5 (Reuters) - The Philippines on Wednesday accused China's coast guard of harassment, obstruction and "dangerous manoeuvres" against its vessels, after another incident near a strategic feature of the South China Sea that has become a flashpoint between them.

Philippine coast guard boats were assisting a naval operation on June 30 when they were "constantly followed, harassed, and obstructed by the significantly larger Chinese coast guard vessels", Philippine coast guard spokesperson Jay Tarriela, said in a Tweet.

MANILA, Jul 4 (NNN-PNA) – The erupting Mayon volcano, approximately 500 km south-east of the Philippine capital, has increased seismic activities, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology warned, today.

The institute said that, alert level 3 on a scale of 5, remains, at the most active volcano in the country, despite the persistence of “a continuous tremor-like series of weak volcanic earthquakes that steadied and increased in strength.”