What to know about Vanuatu, the Pacific island nation struggling to recover from a massive quake

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A search expanded on Thursday for those killed or trapped alive by an earthquake in the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu, as rescue workers arriving from abroad fanned out through the capital, Port Vila, encountering flattened buildings that had not yet been...

Number of dead and missing still unclear as first aid arrives in quake-hit Pacific nation of Vanuatu

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Amid the havoc wrought by a violent earthquake two days earlier, Ivan Oswald and his staff prepared for lunchtime service Thursday at Nambawan Cafe, on an idyllic stretch of Vanuatu’s waterfront. The menu for the usual lunchtime rush was replaced...

Rescuers dig for survivors of Vanuatu earthquake with no water and unclear death toll

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Vanuatu's capital was without water on Wednesday, a day after reservoirs were destroyed by a violent magnitude 7.3 earthquake that wrought havoc on the South Pacific island nation, with the number of people killed and injured expected to rise. The...

14 dead and hundreds injured in magnitude 7.3 quake in Vanuatu. Some people are trapped in rubble

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A magnitude 7.3 earthquake that struck off Vanuatu killed at least 14 people, injured hundreds more and caused widespread damage across the South Pacific island nation, officials said early Wednesday. Frantic rescue efforts got underway after the...

USGS says magnitude 7.3 earthquake hits near Vanuatu in the Pacific Ocean

Hearings are done: Now the wait begins for verdict on closely-watched climate case at UN’s top court

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A lawyer for a small South Pacific island nation told the world’s highest court to heed her warning. “Tuvalu will not go quietly into the rising sea,” Phillipa Webb said, hoping her ominous words this week would make a mark as two weeks of...

Closely-watched international climate case in the Hague wraps up its first week of testimony

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A closely-watched international climate case that could yield guidance for governments around the world wrapped its first week of arguments before the top court of the United Nations in The Hague Friday. The case, though not binding, is expected to spell out what...

A landmark climate change case opens at the top UN court as island nations fear rising seas

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The top United Nations court took up the largest case in its history on Monday, hearing the plight of several small island nations helpless in combating the devastating impact of climate change that they feel endangers their very survival. They demand that major...

A landmark climate change case will open at the top UN court as island nations fear rising seas

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The top United Nations court will take up the largest case in its history on Monday, when it opens two weeks of hearings into what countries worldwide are legally required to do to combat climate change and help vulnerable nations fight its devastating impact. ...

Climate-threatened Pacific Islands criticize Australia at Commonwealth meeting

APIA, Samoa (AP) — Several Pacific island nations singled out Australia to do more to phase out fossil fuel exports during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting which opened in Samoa on Thursday. Tuvalu’s Prime Minister, Feleti Teo, alongside senior officials from Vanuatu...