WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The White House's troubled bid for a star-studded musical celebration of the 250th anniversary of US independence took yet another hit Friday after three more acts pulled out, citing political tensions. President Donald Trump's administration had publicised multiple headliners for a concert series between June 25 and July 10 on the National Mall in Washington. However, the event is floundering as one act after another withdraws....

Producer Realjedii and dancehall artiste Frassman Brilliant have teamed up for a new single titled Defiance, the lead track from Realjedii’s upcoming third compilation album. “This collaboration with Frassman Brilliant came from a mutual place, being that we have musical chemistry working together. We spoke for a while before I sent him the instrumental, and the rest is history,” Realjedii told Observer Online recently. Defiance was released on May 29 through...

NORTH CAROLINA, United States (CMC) — A North Carolina man has been sentenced to over 10 years in prison after being convicted of running a seven-year scheme in which he victimised millions of elderly Americans by selling their personal information to Jamaican lottery fraud scammers. Assistant Attorney General A Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division said Troy Murray, 57, will also serve three years of supervised release and...

Jamaican-American attorney, humanitarian, author, and community advocate Kaysia Earley will be honoured by the City of Parkland, Florida, with a Juneteenth Proclamation recognising her contributions to justice, humanitarian service, education, and community empowerment. The proclamation is scheduled to be presented by Mayor Richard Walker and the Parkland City Commission at City Hall on June 3. The recognition highlights Earley’s impact as an attorney and community leader whose work has supported...

ST JAMES, Jamaica — Hundreds of senior citizens turned out at Harmony Beach Park in St James on Friday for the launch of the Ministry of Health and Wellness’ Park Walker Initiative for Older Adults. The islandwide programme, which began with a group walk around the park, is aimed at encouraging older Jamaicans to become more physically active and adopt healthier lifestyles. Director of the Health Promotion and Protection Branch,...

GEORGETOWN, Guyana (CMC) — France has reaffirmed its support for Guyana in the ongoing border controversy with Venezuela, saying Paris remains “particularly attached” to its partnership with the South American country amid shared regional challenges on the Guyana Shield. In a letter to Guyanese President Irfaan Ali, marking Guyana’s 60th anniversary of independence from Britain, French President Emmanuel Macron congratulated the Government and people of Guyana while underscoring the importance of...

NAIROBI, Kenya (AFP) — A Kenyan court temporarily halted the opening of an Ebola quarantine centre for United States (US) citizens on Friday following a petition filed by a rights group. The facility was due to open in the east Africa nation on Friday, according to US officials, to quarantine Americans arriving from the Democratic Republic of Congo, which is battling a major Ebola outbreak. Washington has defended its criticised decision not to...

UNITED NATIONS (CMC) — The United Nations (UN) says nearly 1.5 million people in Haiti had been displaced as of May this year, with 95,000 newly displaced between December last year and May. UN Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq said the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported that violence in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area has pushed the number of displaced people...

WASHINGTON, United States (CMC) — The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) says it has signed a technical cooperation agreement with the Madrid-based Mundo Sano Foundation to strengthen efforts to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of diseases and advance cervical cancer prevention in the Americas, including the Caribbean. The agreement was signed by PAHO’s Director Jarbas Barbosa and Silvia Gold, president of Mundo Sano at the foundation’s headquarters. “This partnership reflects a conviction...

GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The World Health Organization (WHO) on Friday announced the first recovery of a confirmed Ebola patient in the outbreak raging in the Democratic Republic of Congo. "The DRC has said that on May 27, a patient recovered and left the hospital and has been discharged into the community," the WHO's Anais Legand told reporters. She said it marked the "first" among patients who had been confirmed to...