Philippines: Troops killed militant blamed for beheadings

Philippine troops battling militants in a central province killed a key Abu Sayyaf commander who had been blamed for the beheadings of two Canadians and a German hostage and was apparently attempting another kidnapping mission, the military chief said Wednesday.

Military chief of staff Gen. Eduardo Ano told The Associated Press that troops have recovered and identified the remains of Moammar Askali, who used the nom de guerre Abu Rami, in the scene of the battle in a far-flung coastal village on Bohol island, where five other Abu Sayyaf gunmen were killed in the fighting Tuesday, along with four soldiers and policemen.

Miss France crowned Miss Universe in Philippines

A 24-year-old dental student from France won the Miss Universe crown Monday in a pageant held in the Philippines, saying her triumph will make the beauty contest more popular in Europe and help her efforts to put more underprivileged children in school.

Iris Mittenaere from Lille city in northern France buried her face in her hands in shock and joy as the outgoing winner from the Philippines, Pia Wurtzbach, crowned her and the crowd erupted in cheers at the packed Mall of Asia Arena by Manila Bay.

Suspected rebels storm Philippine jail, 158 inmates escape

More than 100 suspected Muslim rebels stormed a jail in the southern Philippines before dawn Wednesday, allowing 158 inmates to escape in what officials said was the biggest jailbreak in the country.

Six of the inmates were killed in firefights with pursuing police and army troops, while eight others have been caught and were being returned to the facility, said Senior Inspector Xavier Solda, spokesman for the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology.

Philippine campaign ends in panic as Trump-like mayor leads

A bruising presidential campaign was drawing to a close in the Philippines on Saturday, with a last-minute attempt by the president to unify candidates against a front-running mayor perceived as a threat to democracy virtually collapsing.

After crisscrossing the archipelago nation for three months, five presidential candidates led by Mayor Rodrigo Duterte will converge in the vote-rich capital Manila for their final rallies ahead of Monday's vote.

Philippines launches world's first mass dengue vaccination

The Philippines on Monday launched the first public immunization program for dengue fever, seeking to administer to a million schoolchildren the world's first licensed vaccine against a mosquito-borne disease that the World Health Organization estimates infects 390 million people a year globally.

Hundreds of fourth-graders at a public school in metropolitan Manila's Marikina city were given the first of three shots of Dengvaxia. Some of the pupils received their vaccination shot under the glare of cameras during a festive ceremony at a gymnasium festooned with multicolored bunting and preceded by songs and dances performed by the children.

US same-sex marriage ruling likely to impact other countries

The landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling in favor of same-sex marriages has no legal force outside the United States, but gay rights activists in many parts of the world believe the court ruling will help their cause.

In the Philippines, in India, in Australia and elsewhere, gay rights advocates think the U.S. ruling may help change attitudes, just as American activists — and judges, educators and legislators — had earlier been influenced by the easy acceptance of same-sex marriage in some European countries, where the laws were changed smoothly without much fuss.

Pope to visit Sri Lanka, Philippines Jan. 12-19

In this Nov. 17, 2013 file photo, a Filipino man prays during a Mass at Santo Nino church, which was damaged by Typhoon Haiyan in Tacloban, Philippines. The Vatican confirmed Tuesday, July 29, 2014 the dates for Pope Francis' second trip to Asia, a weeklong visit Jan. 12-19 to Sri Lanka and the Philippines. Francis had already announced his intention to visit Sri Lanka and meet with victims of Typhoon Haiyan, which killed some 6,300 people, left another 1,060 missing and devastated parts of the central Philippines last year.

Typhoon kills 12 in Philippines, spares Manila

A typhoon left at least 12 people dead, knocked out power in many areas, damaged a parked plane but spared the Philippine capital on Wednesday when its fierce wind shifted, officials said.

Still, Typhoon Rammasun's winds of 150 kilometers (93 miles) per hour and blinding 185-kph (115-mph) gusts brought down trees, electric posts and ripped off roofs across the capital of 12 million people, shutting government offices and schools. More than 370,000 people moved from high-risk villages to emergency shelters in six provinces.