2024-03-17 10:30

KABUL, March 17 (Reuters) - A traffic accident in southern Afghanistan killed 21 people and injured dozens on Sunday, the provincial government said. The crash on the Kandahar-Herat highway involved a motorcycle, a fuel truck and a bus, said Sher Mohammad Wahdat, head of the information department for Helmand's provincial government, adding 38 people were injured. Photos in local media showed a tanker on fire on the dusty road and the wreckage of vehicles from the accident, which occurred in the Gereshk district of Helmand. Traffic accidents are common in Afghanistan, with poor infrastructure exacerbated by decades of war that ended when foreign troops left in 2021 and the Taliban took over. Southern Helmand province, a Taliban stronghold during the war, saw some of the country's most intense fighting. The Reuters Daily Briefing newsletter provides all the news you need to start your day. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/crash-involving-passenger-bus-fuel-truck-kills-21-afghanistan-2024-03-17/

2024-03-17 07:00

March 17 (Reuters) - Ukraine launched 35 drones at targets across Russia that sparked a brief fire at an oil refinery, took aim at Moscow and disrupted electricity supplies in border areas, Russia said on Sunday, the last day of its presidential election. Moscow has accused Kyiv of election sabotage with days of strikes on Russian infrastructure, one of the most sweeping air operations on Russian territory since President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of neighbouring Ukraine two years ago. Putin, all but certain to win re-election, has vowed to punish Ukraine for the attacks. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy thanked his military forces and intelligence for new "long-range capabilities" in his nightly video address on Saturday, without mentioning the reported intensified attacks by his nation's forces. The Russian defence ministry wrote on the Telegram messaging app on Sunday that 17 drones were destroyed over the southern Russian region of Krasnodar, four over the Moscow region and the rest over six other regions. "The drones were neutralised, but a fire broke out as a result of the fall of one of the devices," the operational headquarters of the Krasnodar region in southern Russia said on Telegram. The fire at the Slavyansk refinery in Krasnodar was extinguished and there were no casualties as a result of the fire, although preliminary information indicated one person had died of a heart attack, the administration said. Roman Siniagovskyi, head of the Slavyansk administrative district, said on Telegram refinery workers had been evacuated and there was no threat to nearby populated areas from the incident. Reuters could not independently verify the reports. Ukraine's Ukrainska Pravda newspaper cited a Ukrainian intelligence source as saying Kyiv considered the drone raid a success because a large fire broke out near the crude distillation units which were the primary target. The Slavyansk refinery, some 70 km (45 miles) north of Krasnodar, processes around 4.5 million metric tons of crude a year, producing fuel mainly for exports, but also sells some gasoline on the domestic market. A Ukrainian intelligence source told Reuters on Sunday that long-range Ukrainian attack drones launched by the SBU domestic security service had hit 12 Russian oil refineries during the war so far. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said there were no casualties or damage reported from the drones shot down over three districts near Moscow. North of Moscow four drones were destroyed over the Yaroslavl region, with no damage or injuries reported, Governor Mikhail Yevrayev said on Telegram. In the border region of Belgorod, an attack by four Ukraine-launched drones damaged electricity and gas lines in one village, said Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov. Russia's defence ministry said Russian forces also shot down 12 rockets launched from Ukraine towards the Belgorod region on Sunday. As Russia was facing attacks from Ukraine, Kyiv's military said on Sunday that Russian air attacks had damaged agricultural enterprises and destroyed several industrial buildings in the Black Sea port of Odesa overnight. The Reuters Daily Briefing newsletter provides all the news you need to start your day. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-drone-attacks-spark-fire-krasnodar-refinery-russia-says-2024-03-17/

2024-03-17 06:03

March 17 (Reuters) - Russian air attacks damaged agricultural enterprises and destroyed several industrial buildings in the Black Sea port of Odesa overnight, Ukraine's forces said on Sunday. Russia launched 16 drones and seven missiles, Ukraine's air force posted on the Telegram messaging app. Fourteen drones were destroyed over the Odesa region. It was not immediately clear what happened to the two drones that were not destroyed or whether the missiles hit their targets. The air force said the missiles targeted Ukraine's Kharkiv, Donetsk and Chernikhiv region. Russia's attacks come as Ukraine launched 35 drones against broad areas of Russia, including Moscow, on Sunday, the final day of Russia's presidential vote. Reuters could not independently verify the reports. The south command of Ukraine's armed forces, whose area includes Odesa, said two agricultural enterprises were damaged in Odesa district. "Unfortunately, it was not possible to avoid getting hit," the command said on Telegram. "Fires broke out there, industrial buildings were destroyed. Fires were extinguished promptly. People were not injured." It was not immediately clear whether the damage was caused by falling drone debris or drones that were not downed. The Reuters Daily Briefing newsletter provides all the news you need to start your day. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-drone-attack-odesa-damages-agribusinesses-ukraine-says-2024-03-17/

2024-03-17 01:44

SYDNEY, March 17 (Reuters) - Residents in parts of Australia's Northern Territory and Queensland state were urged on Sunday to prepare for a tropical cyclone that is forecast to make landfall in coming days. Megan, a category two cyclone sitting in the Gulf of Carpentaria with wind gusts up to 155 kph (96 mph), was expected to cross the coast on Monday or early Tuesday morning as a "severe tropical cyclone", the nation's weather forecaster said. Australia is experiencing an El Nino weather event, now easing, and typically associated with extreme phenomena such as cyclones, wildfires, droughts and heatwaves. Gales with damaging wind gusts of 110 kph were already sweeping remote Groote Eylandt, off Northern Territory's Arnhem Land, about 653 km east of territory capital Darwin, the forecaster said. It was likely Megan would intensify to category three later on Sunday, the weather forecaster said, urging those in the warning zone to prepare their properties for strong winds. Category two cyclones are three rungs away from the most dangerous and can cause significant damage to trees, caravans, and crops, and break boats from their moorings. Category three cyclones typically cause more severe damage to houses, shops and other buildings. In January, Queensland was hit by Tropical Cyclone Kirrily, the second tropical cyclone in the area since December, when Cyclone Jasper caused widespread regional damage, including in coastal towns close to the Great Barrier Reef. The Reuters Daily Briefing newsletter provides all the news you need to start your day. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/australias-north-braces-tropical-cyclone-megan-2024-03-17/

2024-03-16 23:57

March 16 (Reuters) - Private equity firm Advent International is in advanced talks to buy Nuvei (NVEI.TO) , opens new tab, a Canadian payments technology company that has received financial backing from actor Ryan Reynolds, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Saturday. A deal could be announced soon, said the source, who asked not to be named because the discussions are confidential. However, talks could still fall apart, the source added. The source did not reveal proposed terms of the deal. Advent’s buyout of Nuvei, which has a market capitalization of more than $3 billion, would make it one of the more sizable take-private deals at a time when private equity dealmaking has slowed. The Wall Street Journal first reported about Advent’s talks with Nuvei on Saturday. Advent declined to comment, and Nuvei did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment. The buyout deal, if completed successfully, would mark the second deal in the past 12 months for a company backed by the Canadian-American Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds. Last year in March, T-Mobile (TMUS.O) , opens new tab bought Ka'ena Corp, owner of the Deadpool actor's budget wireless provider Mint Mobile. The deal was valued at about $1.35 billion. Both Toronto- and Nasdaq-listed shares of Nuvei have fallen since the company acquired Paya Holdings for $1.3 billion last year. In April last year, short seller Spruce Point Capital Management LLC unveiled a short position in Nuvei, alleging the acquisition was dragging its business because Paya had been losing market share before the takeover. Two months later, Spruce Point said it was no longer holding a short position after Nuvei's stock price had fallen to its target range. Nuvei, which provides technology services to help businesses process transactions, went public in September 2020 and raised $700 million, the largest-ever technology company offering on the Toronto Stock Exchange at the time. According to its website, it processes payments for General Motors, Microsoft, Shein, and others, and operates across 200 markets. Dealmaking in the financial services sector has witnessed an uptick in recent months. In February, Capital One (COF.N) , opens new tab agreed to acquire Discover Financial (DFS.N) , opens new tab in a deal worth $35.3 billion. Shift4, a payments processor with a market value of over $6 billion, is currently in talks to be acquired by potential buyers including Fiserv, Reuters reported last month. Payments processors like Shift4 and Nuvei thrived during the COVID-19 pandemic as customers turned to digital payment methods, but some have since struggled to maintain growth as competition mounted and inflation took off. Nuvei's Toronto-listed shares have fallen far from its all-time high of C$170 ($125.54) in 2021. On Friday, the company's shares closed at just over C$29 while its New York-listed shares closed at $21.76. ($1 = 1.3541 Canadian dollars) Get U.S. personal finance tips and insight straight to your inbox with the Reuters On the Money newsletter. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/advent-near-deal-buy-canadian-payments-processor-nuvei-source-says-2024-03-16/

2024-03-16 21:01

COPENHAGEN, March 16 (Reuters) - A volcano in Iceland erupted on Saturday for the fourth time since December, the country's meteorological office said, spewing smoke and bright orange lava into the air in sharp contrast against the dark night sky. In a video shot from a Coast Guard helicopter and shown on public broadcaster RUV, fountains of molten rock soared from a long fissure in the ground, and lava spread rapidly to each side. The eruption began at 2023 GMT and the fissure was estimated to be about 2.9 kilometres long, roughly the same size as the last eruption in February, the Icelandic Meteorological Office said in a statement. Authorities had warned for weeks that an eruption was imminent on the Reykjanes peninsula just south of Iceland's capital Reykjavik. The site of the eruption was between Hagafell and Stora-Skogfell, the same area as the previous outbreak on Feb. 8, the Met Office said. "This was definitely expected," said Rikke Pedersen, head of the Nordic Volcanological Centre. "Of course the exact time of the eruption is impossible to predict. The first cues of this moving towards the surface actually only happened about 15 minutes in advance," she said. Reykjavik's Keflavik Airport's website showed it remained open both for departures and arrivals. Lava appeared to be flowing rapidly south towards the nearby Grindavik fishing town, where a few of the nearly 4,000 residents had returned following earlier outbreaks, the Met Office said. The town was again being evacuated, public broadcaster RUV reported. An outbreak in January burned to the ground several of its homes. "We're just like, this is business as usual," Kristin Maria Birgisdottir, who was evacuated from Grindavik in November, told Reuters. "My son...just called me and said, Mamma, did you know the eruption has started? And I was like, yeah, I did know. Oh, my grandma just told me. So it's like we don't even bother telling each other anymore," she said. Icelandic police said they had declared a state of emergency for the area. The nearby Blue Lagoon luxury geothermal spa immediately shut its doors, as it did during previous eruptions. Iceland, roughly the size of the U.S. state of Kentucky, boasts more than 30 active volcanoes, making the north European island a prime destination for volcano tourism - a niche segment that attracts thousands of thrill seekers. In 2010, ash clouds from eruptions at the Eyafjallajokull volcano in the south of Iceland spread over large parts of Europe, grounding some 100,000 flights and forcing hundreds of Icelanders to evacuate their homes. Volcanic outbreaks in the Reykjanes peninsula are so-called fissure eruptions, which do not usually cause large explosions or significant dispersal of ash into the stratosphere. Gases from the eruption were travelling westwards out at sea, the meteorological office said. Scientists fear the eruptions could continue for decades, and Icelandic authorities have started building dykes to divert burning lava flows away from homes and critical infrastructure. The February eruption cut off district heating to more than 20,000 people as lava flows destroyed roads and pipelines. Located between the Eurasian and the North American tectonic plates, among the largest on the planet, Iceland is a seismic and volcanic hot spot as the two move in opposite directions. The Reuters Daily Briefing newsletter provides all the news you need to start your day. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/iceland-volcano-erupts-again-met-office-says-2024-03-16/