WHO reports fever killed 164 in Sudan

GENEVA - An outbreak of Rift Valley Fever in Sudan has killed 164 people, the World Health Organization said yesterday. Rift Valley Fever is normally a mild disease in humans with a fatality rate of about 1 percent. But in patients who develop the hemorrhagic fever form, the fatality rate is about 50 percent. More than 221 people caught the virus over the past two weeks, bringing the total number of cases to 451. (AP)

MANILA - The Philippines began evacuating tens of thousands of people from coastal areas in the central Bicol region as typhoon Mitag gathered strength, officials said yesterday. The Philippines is trying to avoid a repeat of last year's typhoon Durian, which killed 1,200 people and left 120,000 homeless when it crashed through Bicol, the country's typhoon alley. (Reuters)

ROSTOV-ON-DON - A passenger bus caught fire and exploded in Russia's troubled North Caucasus yesterday, killing at least five people and wounding 12. Investigators said they considered terrorism the likely cause. The explosion took place in the North Ossetia region, which is plagued by violence from feuding criminal groups, Chechen separatist fighters, and other militant organizations. (AP)

SAN'A - More than 60 migrants drowned after their boat capsized off Yemen during an attempt to flee their war-torn homeland of Somalia, a security official said yesterday. Twenty-five survived by reaching Redhoum on Yemen's southern shore after their boat went down in the Gulf of Aden on Wednesday. Fishermen reported the accident, whose cause was not known. (AP)