Tennessee on Thursday electrocuted a convicted murder who had been on death row for 36 years, in a case that renewed debate on use of the death penalty so long after a crime. David Earl Miller, 61, was put to death at 7:25 pm (0125 GMT) at a high security prison in Nashville, authorities said, over the beating and stabbing death of a young woman with a mental disability. It was the second use of […]
International
Universal Declaration of Human Rights: a 70-year-old aspiration
Paris, France | AFP | Friday 12/7/2018 – 02:59 UTC+1 | by Claude CASTERAN On December 10, 1948 — three years after the Allied victory over the Nazis — the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the hopes of creating a better world after the horrors of the war. It was the first time that countries agreed on fundamental rights and freedoms to be protected on a universal scale, for all people. It was also one of […]
Paris shops, monuments to close as fears of protest violence mount
The Eiffel Tower, the Louvre museum and scores of shops on the Champs-Elysees are set to close as authorities warned Thursday of fresh violence this weekend during protests which have ballooned into the biggest crisis of Emmanuel Macron’s presidency. The government is scrambling to stave off another Saturday of burned cars and running street battles with police by “yellow vest” protesters furious over rising costs of living they blame on high taxes. An interior ministry […]
Conditions met for Assange to leave Ecuador embassy in London: president
QUITO, Ecuador (AFP) — Ecuador’s president said Thursday that conditions have been met for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to leave the country’s embassy in London, which would end a six-year standoff with British authorities. “The way has been cleared for Mr Assange to take the decision to leave in near-liberty,” President Lenin Moreno told reporters, explaining that he still had to answer in Britain for violating the terms of his bail. Moreno, however, said Britain […]
One dead, five missing after two US military planes crash off Japan
by Miwa Suzuki with Thomas Watkins in Washington Agence France Presse TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — One US Marine died and five were missing Thursday after two American military aircraft crashed during a refuelling operation off the coast of Japan, officials said. Japanese and US military officials earlier said two of the seven crew of the planes had been found. “One is in fair condition and the other has been declared deceased by competent medical personnel,” […]
Bus carrying people with disabilities crashes in Poland, one dead
WARSAW, Poland (AFP) — A charter bus carrying people with disabilities including children crashed in southwest Poland on Thursday, leaving one passenger dead and 20 others injured, rescue services said. The bus was carrying 51 people when it overturned, landing on its side in a ditch near the town of Kazimierzow, local Polkowice county rescue services said on their Facebook page. “One person is dead… the total number of participants in the accident is 51… […]
White House knew in advance about Huawei arrest
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The White House said Thursday it knew in advance that Canada planned to arrest an executive of Chinese tech giant Huawei on the same day as a summit between Washington and Beijing. National security advisor John Bolton said he did not know if President Donald Trump was also aware of the operation to detain Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou on a US request as she was changing planes in […]
Black heritage museum, ‘crucible of creativity’, opens in Dakar
by Malick Rokhy BA Agence France Presse DAKAR, Senegal (AFP) — A museum showcasing black heritage from the dawn of time to the modern era opened in the Senegalese capital Dakar on Thursday. The opening came as African countries press harder for the restitution of artwork from their former colonial masters — and as France made its first steps in that direction, pledging to return artworks to Benin. The Museum of Black Civilisations will foster […]
Politics played no role in Huawei exec’s arrest: Trudeau
OTTAWA, Canada (AFP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Thursday that politics played no part in the arrest of a top executive of Chinese tech giant Huawei, who was detained on a US extradition request. “I can assure everyone that we are a country (with) an independent judiciary,” Trudeau told a tech conference in Montreal. “And they took this decision without any political involvement or interference.” The prime minister declined to comment further on […]
Paris shops, monuments to close as fears of protest violence mount
by Simon Valmary and Joseph Schmid Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — The Eiffel Tower, the Louvre museum and scores of shops on the Champs-Elysees are set to close as authorities warned Thursday of fresh violence this weekend during protests which have ballooned into the biggest crisis of Emmanuel Macron’s presidency. The government is scrambling to stave off another Saturday of burned cars and running street battles with police by “yellow vest” protesters furious […]
OPEC eyes output cuts to prop up plunging oil prices, defying Trump calls for boost
by Joseph Sotinel and Simon Morgan Agence France Presse VIENNA, Austria (AFP) — OPEC members and other oil-producing countries mulled cuts in output Thursday to prop up plunging prices, defying repeated calls by US President Donald Trump that they keep the taps open. “We’re looking for a sufficient cut to balance the market, equally distributed between countries,” Saudi oil minister Khalid al-Falih told reporters ahead of an OPEC meeting in the Austrian capital. Oil […]
Five missing after two US military planes crash off Japan
by Miwa Suzuki with Thomas Watkins in Washington Agence France Presse TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Rescue operations were underway Thursday for five US marines missing after two American military aircraft crashed during a refuelling operation off the coast of Japan, the Japanese defence minister said. One crew member has already been rescued and is thought to be in a stable condition, Takeshi Iwaya told reporters. A spokesman for the Japan Self-Defense Forces (SDF) said […]
