Category: International News

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702 total views, 124 views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Hong Kong, China, Jan 16 – Hong Kong may be allowed to keep its unique freedoms beyond their 2047 expiry date, its leader said Thursday, but only if inhabitants remain loyal to Beijing’s vision of how the city should be run. Chief executive Carrie Lam, a pro-Beijing appointee, made the comments during a fiery session in the city’s legislature, where she was frequently interrupted by opposition lawmakers — many of whom were ejected. Hong Kong has been battered by seven months of pro-democracy protests, which…

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1,357 total views, 124 views today BY AFP,Sydney,14TH JAN 2020-Helicopter-borne marksmen killed more than 5,000 camels in a five-day cull of feral herds that were threatening indigenous communities in drought-stricken areas of southern Australia, officials said Tuesday. Aboriginal leaders in South Australia state said extremely large herds of the non-native camels had been driven towards rural communities by drought and extreme heat, threatening scarce food and drinking water, damaging infrastructure, and creating a dangerous hazard for drivers. The cull in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands — home to about 2,300 indigenous…

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2,579 total views, 124 views today BY AFP,TEHRAN,11TH JAN 2020-Iran on Saturday said it unintentionally shot down the Ukrainian airliner that crashed this week killing 176 people, calling it an “unforgivable mistake”. The Ukraine International Airlines plane came down on Wednesday shortly after Iran launched missiles at bases hosting American forces in Iraq in response to the killing of Qasem Soleimani, one of Iran’s top generals, in a US drone strike. “The Islamic Republic of Iran deeply regrets this disastrous mistake,” Iranian President Hassan Rouhani tweeted. “Armed Forces’ internal investigation has concluded…

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3,155 total views, 5 views today BY BBC NEWS,9TH JAN 2020-The US says it is “ready to engage without preconditions in serious negotiations” with Iran following the countries’ exchange of hostilities. In a letter to the UN, the US justified the killing of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani as an act of self-defence. Iran retaliated by firing missiles at airbases housing US forces in Iraq, causing no casualties. It also told the UN it was an act of self-defence. Gen Soleimani was widely regarded as Iran’s second most powerful man. As head of…

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2,904 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Baghdad, Iraq, Jan 7 – Iran fired missiles Wednesday at Iraqi bases housing the US military, officials in Washington and Tehran said, in the first act of the Islamic republic’s promised revenge for the US killing of a top Iranian general. Launched from Iranian territory and by Iranian forces not a proxy, the attack marked a new turn in the intensifying confrontation between the United States and Iran and sent world oil prices soaring. There was no immediate suggestion of any link to the…

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971 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Tehran, Iran, Jan 6 – A sea of black-clad Iranians on Monday mourned the top commander killed in last week’s US drone strike that inflamed tensions across the Middle East as NATO ambassadors met to discuss the spiralling crisis. Iranians clutching anti-American signs and portraits of their hero Qasem Soleimani massed as supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei presided over the emotional service for the slain head of the Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force. The targeted killing of 62-year-old Soleimani ordered by US President Donald Trump…

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1,421 total views, no views today BY AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, BAGHDAD, Iraq, Jan 3 – A furious Iran threatened to avenge a US strike that killed a top Iranian commander at Baghdad’s international airport Friday, raising fears of a wider regional conflict between the arch-foes. The Pentagon said US President Donald Trump had ordered Qasem Soleimani’s “killing” after a pro-Iran mob this week laid siege to the US embassy in the Iraqi capital. Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei swiftly promised “severe revenge” for Soleimani’s death, the biggest escalation yet in…

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2,972 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Jerusalem, ZZZ, Dec 27 – Embattled Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told supporters Friday he would win a March general election after scoring a landslide victory in the leadership primary of his right-wing Likud party. Israel’s longest-serving premier, who faces a corruption indictment as well as a third general election in 12 months, was expected to beat rival Gideon Saar in the leadership primary. But the convincing margin of victory — by 72.5 to 27.5 percent — strengthens his position in the party he…

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2,022 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Dec 27 – Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki promised Thursday to boost cooperation with Ethiopia on the last day of his two-day visit that came as the peace process was seen as having lost momentum. Isaias flew to Addis Ababa Wednesday for his first meeting with the Ethiopian prime minister since Abiy Ahmed won the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize for initiating a thaw between the countries which fought a border war in 1998-2000. That conflict left an estimated 80,000 dead before a…

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1,101 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, Dec 25 – Jihadists in Burkina Faso killed 35 civilians, almost all of them women, when they simultaneously attacked a town in the north and its military base in one of the deadliest assaults in nearly five years of jihadist violence in the West African country. Seven soldiers and 80 jihadists also died in the double attack Tuesday in Arbinda in Soum province which lasted “several hours” and was of a “rare intensity”, the army said. Burkina Faso, bordering Mali and…

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1,671 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Madrid, Spain, Dec 21 – The death toll from a storm that battered Spain, Portugal and France rose to eight on Saturday as the region braced for more violent winds and heavy rain. A 32-year-old South Korean woman died Saturday, a day after being struck on the head by falling debris from a building in central Madrid, the Madrid region’s interior minister said. The building had passed an inspection in 2015 “but weather like this, with heavy rain and wind, causes these fateful cases”,…

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1,875 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, New Delhi, India, Dec 21 – Thousands of people joined fresh rallies against a contentious citizenship law in India on Saturday, with 20 killed so far in the unrest. The death toll jumped after demonstrations turned violent on Friday in the most populous state of Uttar Pradesh, leaving at least 11 dead including an eight-year-old boy, who was trampled. On Saturday more protests began in cities including Chennai, capital of southern Tamil Nadu state, and Patna in eastern Bihar state. Crowds were also expected…

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2,522 total views, no views today BY REUTERS,13TH DEC 2019– It was a straight forward message: “Get Brexit done.” The mantra of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Conservative Party during the national election campaign was aimed at harnessing voter frustration at a parliamentary logjam over Britain’s exit from the European Union. It worked. Beyond the traditional strategy of swaying voters in swing districts held by the main opposition Labour Party, Johnson wanted to strike directly at Labour’s heartlands in the hopes of winning support from people who had never…

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5,137 total views, 1 views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Madrid, Spain, Dec 2 – Global talks tasked with neutralising the threat of global warming get underway in Madrid Monday, but their narrow focus on rules and procedures remains out of sync with the world’s climate-addled future. Mindful of this gap, UN chief Antonio Guterres warned on Sunday that a “point-of-no-return” in the climate crisis is “in sight and hurtling towards us.” Indeed, three decades after NASA scientist James Hansen made headlines by telling the US Congress global warming had begun, evidence of its dire…

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3,697 total views, no views today  BYAGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, HONG KONG, China, Dec 1 – Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protesters returned to the streets on Sunday for a series of marches and rallies after a rare period of calm in nearly six months of unrest. Sunday’s demonstrations come after brief skirmishes erupted overnight, with a man assaulted as he tried to clear barricades and police firing tear gas for the first time since November 24 district council elections that saw pro-democracy candidates win a landslide. Three events are planned for Sunday, including a…

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3,762 total views, 1 views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Hong Kong, China, Nov 28 – China on Thursday summoned the US ambassador and threatened retaliation after US President Donald Trump signed legislation supporting Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters, just as the world’s top two economies edge towards a trade truce. Trump signed the legislation under heavy pressure from Congress, where it attracted rare bipartisan support, and in a statement spoke of his “respect” for Chinese President Xi Jinping, calling for both sides to “amicably settle their differences”. The main points of The Hong Kong Human…

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2,313 total views, 1 views today  BY AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Nagasaki, Japan, Nov 24 – Pope Francis Sunday described the use of nuclear bombs as “a crime”, as he took his appeal for an end to atomic weapons to Hiroshima in an emotional meeting with survivors. The visit came hours after a highly symbolic stop in the city of Nagasaki, where Francis railed against all nuclear weapons, including their use as a deterrent. At least 140,000 people died after the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima in 1945, with another 74,000 killed after a…

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2,310 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Moscow, Russian Federation, Nov 23 – Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday told United Russia to take initiative rather than wait for his lead as the ruling party struggles to overcome plummeting popularity after a long period of political dominance. Putin addressed the annual convention of the party, which is widely seen as a rubber-stamp for the Kremlin and analysts say often takes the heat for any unpopular government decisions. United Russia, which was established in 2001 and turns 18 next weekend, has been…

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1,982 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Jerusalem, ZZZ, Nov 22 – Benjamin Netanyahu’s indictment on corruption charges prompted speculation Friday that the end of his decade-long tenure was nigh, though several key allies expressed support for the beleaguered Israeli premier. The Jewish state woke up to an indicted sitting prime minister for the first time, after the attorney general announced late Thursday he had charged the 70-year-old with bribery, fraud, and breach of trust. After months of speculation Avichai Mandelblit’s decision was the worst possible outcome for Netanyahu, hitting him…

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3,915 total views, 2 views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Gaza City, Palestinian Territory, Occupied, Nov 13 – Exchanges of fire triggered by Israel’s targeted killing of a top militant in Gaza raged for a second day Wednesday and showed little sign of easing, with 22 Palestinians killed. Fresh rocket barrages were fired at Israel, which responded with strikes on what it said were Islamic Jihad militant sites and rocket-launching squads in the Gaza Strip.   Air raid sirens wailed and fireballs exploded as air defence missiles intercepted rockets, sending Israelis rushing to bomb shelters.…

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3,921 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Washington, United States, Nov 12 – Former US president Jimmy Carter was hospitalized on Monday for a procedure to relieve brain pressure after recent falls, his organization said. The 95-year-old Nobel laureate spent three days in hospital last month after suffering a pelvic fracture. The injury came weeks after he injured his head in a fall at home, recovering quickly to volunteer the next day — with a black eye and a bandage covering 14 stitches — at a Habitat for Humanity site. He…

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1,461 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Yala, Thailand, Nov 6 – At least fifteen people were gunned down in an ambush by suspected Muslim militants in Thailand’s violence-wracked south, an army spokesman said on Wednesday, one of the bloodiest days in the 15-year insurgency. Thailand’s three southernmost provinces have been in the grip of a conflict that has killed more than 7,000 people, as Malay-Muslim militants fight for more autonomy from the Thai state. Despite the high death toll, the highly localised unrest garners few international headlines. The region is…

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1,854 total views, 1 views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Rahim Yar Khan, Pakistan, Oct 31 – At least 71 people were killed and dozens injured after cooking gas cylinders exploded on a train packed with pilgrims in Pakistan on Thursday, some dying after leaping from carriages to escape the inferno, authorities said. Television footage showed flames pouring out of three carriages as people could be heard crying during the incident, in a rural area of central Punjab province. Some of the passengers — many of whom were pilgrims travelling to one of Pakistan’s biggest…

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1,819 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Beijing, China, Oct 30 – Beijing expressed “approval and support” Wednesday for the disqualification of Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong from upcoming local elections, after months of protests in the semi-autonomous city. Wong, one of the most prominent figures in the otherwise leaderless movement, accused the Hong Kong government of “political screening” after an election officer ruled his nomination for the November poll invalid on Tuesday. But a spokesman for China’s top policy body on Hong Kong affairs said Wednesday that Wong…

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727 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Brussels, Belgium, Oct 29 – Lawyers for former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont vowed Tuesday to fight Spain’s efforts to extradite him from Belgium on charges of sedition and misuse of public funds. Spain, where courts this month jailed several of Puigdemont’s allies, has demanded he be sent home to face justice for his part in a banned 2017 referendum. According to the former regional president’s legal team, Belgian prosecutors have advised a court honour Madrid’s request, in a case that could last several months.…

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926 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Baghdad, Iraq, Oct 28 – Students and schoolchildren hit the streets of Baghdad and southern Iraq on Monday to join escalating calls for the government to quit, defying the education minister, legal threats and even their parents. Swathes of the country have been engulfed by protests this month, with anger over unemployment and accusations of graft evolving into demands for a total political overhaul. More than 200 people have been killed and 8,000 wounded, the majority protestors, since the movement erupted…

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698 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Diwaniyah, Iraq, Oct 28 – Students and schoolchildren hit the streets of Baghdad and southern Iraq on Monday to join escalating calls for the government to quit, defying the education minister, legal threats and even their parents. “No school, no classes, until the regime collapses!” protestors shouted in Diwaniyah, 180 kilometres (120 miles) south of the capital. The capital and the country’s south have been rocked by a second wave of rallies over perceived government corruption, unemployment and poor services. The…

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1,178 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Gaborone, Botswana, Oct 25 – Incumbent president Mokgweetsi Masisi on Friday won a five-year term in Botswana’s elections which saw his ruling party secure more than 51 percent of parliamentary votes, the chief justice said. “Dr. Mokgweetsi Eric Keabetswe Masisi is elected President of the Republic of Botswana,” chief justice Terrence Rannowane announced. The Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), which has ruled since independence from Britain in 1966, was declared the winner after attaining the minimum 29 parliamentary seats required to form a government after…

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1,202 total views, 1 views today BY AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Beijing, China, Oct 24 – Chinese embassy staff are heading to Essex in Britain to verify reports that 39 people found dead in a truck were its nationals, the foreign ministry said Thursday. The victims were discovered in a container on the back of a truck in Grays, east of London, on Wednesday, shortly after arriving by ferry from Belgium. The local Essex Police force, which is working with immigration officials, said their initial priority was to try to identify the 39 victims.…

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1,376 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, London, United Kingdom, Oct 23 – British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was “appalled” by the discovery Wednesday of 39 dead bodies in a truck container east of London. “I’m appalled by this tragic incident in Essex. I am receiving regular updates and the Home Office will work closely with Essex Police as we establish exactly what has happened,” he said on Twitter.

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1,241 total views, no views today BY BBC NEWS,21ST OCT 2019-Five people died after looters torched a garment factory near Chile’s capital Santiago, bringing the death toll in violent protests to at least seven. The military and police used tear gas and water cannon against protesters and a curfew was imposed in major cities. A state of emergency already in place in Santiago is to be extended to cities in the country’s north and south. The unrest, sparked by a now suspended metro fare hike, has widened to reflect anger over…

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2,092 total views, 1 views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Brussels, Belgium, Oct 16 – Turkey’s Syria offensive has created fresh divisions within NATO and, while there is no chance of Ankara being thrown out, the crisis adds to pressures on the alliance as it heads towards a crucial summit in December. Ankara’s assault on Kurdish forces who played a key role in the fight against the Islamic State group has drawn widespread international criticism and prompted some NATO countries to suspend new arms sales. President Donald Trump has authorised sanctions on Turkish leaders and…

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5,033 total views, 1 views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Hong Kong, China, Oct 4 – Hong Kong’s leader invoked colonial-era emergency powers Friday to ban protesters wearing face masks, but the move aimed at quelling months of unrest sparked immediate fresh rallies and vows to defy the new law. Chief executive Carrie Lam said she had made the order under the Emergency Regulations Ordinances, a sweeping provision that grants her the ability to bypass the legislature and make any law during a time of emergency or public danger. “We believe that the new law…

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4,368 total views, 1 views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Taipei, Taiwan, Oct 2 – Five bodies have been recovered from under a collapsed bridge in Taiwan, rescuers said Wednesday, as the search continued for the last person missing after the structure smashed onto fishing boats moored underneath. Taiwan’s National Fire Agency said the deceased were fishing workers from Indonesia and the Philippines whose bodies were found in waters near two damaged boats late Tuesday and earlier Wednesday. “The search and rescue mission continues,” transport minister Lin Chia-lung told reporters, adding evidence was being collected…

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1,140 total views, no views today By AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE, Mogadishu, Somalia, Sep 30 – The Al-Shabaab militant group has claimed responsibility for an attack on a US base in Somalia on Monday, as a security officer confirmed a separate strike against a convoy of EU advisers. The militants hit the US base at Baledogle, about 110 kilometres (70 miles) northwest of the capital Mogadishu, with explosives before gunmen opened fire on the compound. In a statement, Al-Shabaab said: “In the early hours of Monday morning, an elite unit of soldiers… launched a daring raid…

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