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Crews rescue 18 miners trapped in Colombia

Crews rescue 18 miners trapped in Colombia

Arab News5 days ago
REMEDIOS, Colombia: Emergency crews rescued 18 workers trapped in a gold mine in Colombia on Friday, the government said.
'They were all found to be in good health,' the National Mining Agency said on X after the 12-hour emergency rescue operation in northwest Colombia.
The workers — who were trapped underground for about 18 hours because of an equipment failure — walked out of the mine one by one in blue jumpsuits and yellow helmets.
They were greeted with cheers and hugs from colleagues above ground, who gave them energy drinks, TV footage showed.
The workers became trapped on Thursday in a mine in the town of Remedios in Antioquia department.
The mayor of Remedios said in a message sent to the government that the mine was apparently unlicensed.
Yarley Erasmo Marin, a representative of a local miners' association, told AFP earlier that a mechanical failure caused the collapse of a structure designed to prevent landslides, blocking the mine's main exit.
Images released by the National Mining Agency showed rescuers with flashlights during their search efforts.
The area around Remedios has a strong mining tradition.
Gold extracted in the region is known to sometimes finance armed groups such as the Gulf Clan, a cartel also involved in cocaine trafficking.
Coal mine accidents are common in Colombia, particularly in the central region where they claim dozens of lives each year.
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Crews rescue 18 miners trapped in Colombia
Crews rescue 18 miners trapped in Colombia

Arab News

time5 days ago

  • Arab News

Crews rescue 18 miners trapped in Colombia

REMEDIOS, Colombia: Emergency crews rescued 18 workers trapped in a gold mine in Colombia on Friday, the government said. 'They were all found to be in good health,' the National Mining Agency said on X after the 12-hour emergency rescue operation in northwest Colombia. The workers — who were trapped underground for about 18 hours because of an equipment failure — walked out of the mine one by one in blue jumpsuits and yellow helmets. They were greeted with cheers and hugs from colleagues above ground, who gave them energy drinks, TV footage showed. The workers became trapped on Thursday in a mine in the town of Remedios in Antioquia department. The mayor of Remedios said in a message sent to the government that the mine was apparently unlicensed. Yarley Erasmo Marin, a representative of a local miners' association, told AFP earlier that a mechanical failure caused the collapse of a structure designed to prevent landslides, blocking the mine's main exit. Images released by the National Mining Agency showed rescuers with flashlights during their search efforts. The area around Remedios has a strong mining tradition. Gold extracted in the region is known to sometimes finance armed groups such as the Gulf Clan, a cartel also involved in cocaine trafficking. Coal mine accidents are common in Colombia, particularly in the central region where they claim dozens of lives each year.

WHO pushes for 50 percent price rise through taxes on sugar, alcohol and tobacco
WHO pushes for 50 percent price rise through taxes on sugar, alcohol and tobacco

Al Arabiya

time02-07-2025

  • Al Arabiya

WHO pushes for 50 percent price rise through taxes on sugar, alcohol and tobacco

The World Health Organization is pushing countries to raise the prices of sugary drinks, alcohol and tobacco by 50 percent over the next 10 years through taxation, its strongest backing yet for so-called 'sin taxes' to help tackle chronic public health problems and boost government health budgets. The United Nations health agency said the move would help cut consumption of the products, which contribute to diseases like diabetes and some cancers, as well as raising money at a time when development aid is shrinking and public debt rising. 'Health taxes are one of the most efficient tools we have,' said Jeremy Farrar, WHO assistant-director general of health promotion and disease prevention and control. 'It's time to act.' The WHO launched the push, which it is called '3 by 35' at the UN Finance for Development conference in Seville. WHO said that its tax initiative could raise $1 trillion by 2035 based on evidence from health taxes in countries such as Colombia and South Africa. The WHO has backed tobacco taxes and price rises for decades, and has called for taxes on alcohol and sugary drinks in recent years, but this is the first time it has suggested a target price rise for all three products. WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told the conference that the taxes could help governments 'adjust to the new reality' and bolster their own health systems with the money raised. As an example, it would mean a government in a middle-income country raising taxes on the product to push the price up from $4 today to $10 by 2035, taking into account inflation, said WHO health economist Guillermo Sandoval. Nearly 140 countries had already raised tobacco taxes and therefore prices by over 50 percent on average between 2012 and 2022, the WHO added. Sandoval said the WHO was also considering broader taxation recommendations, including on ultra-processed food, after the agency finalizes its definition of that type of food in the coming months. But he added that the agency expected pushback from the industries involved. The initiative is also backed by Bloomberg Philanthropies, the World Bank and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and involves support for countries who want to take action.

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