International

Updated: At least 25 dead in Indonesian earthquake: official

by Chaideer Mahyuddin Agence France Presse BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AFP) — At least 25 people died and dozens were feared trapped in rubble after a strong earthquake struck off Aceh province on Indonesia’s Sumatra island on Wednesday, officials said. The shallow 6.5-magnitude quake struck Pidie Jaya district at dawn, as some in the predominantly Muslim region prepared for morning prayers. Mosques and shops were flattened in the small town of Meureudu, where the force of the […]

75 years ago, Pearl Harbor attack brought US into WWII

PARIS, France (AFP) — The December 7, 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor triggered the United States to join its European allies in World War II. With Prime Minister Shinzo Abe due later this month to become the first Japanese leader to visit Pearl Harbor, AFP looks at the sequence of events that led to the US changing the course of the war. Japanese expansionism Japan’s policy of territorial expansionism, launched in the late 19th […]

Klan leaders charged after stabbing ahead of pro-Trump rally

LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — Two leaders of the Ku Klux Klan group were set to appear in court on charges of stabbing a fellow white supremacist before a parade to celebrate Donald Trump’s presidential election, a sheriff’s official said Tuesday. William Hagen and Christopher Barker were arrested Saturday in Caswell County in the southeastern US state of North Carolina after allegedly stabbing Richard Dillon, a sheriff’s official in the county said. The official, […]

Trump says new Air Force One too costly: ‘Cancel order!’

by Jean-Louis Doublet WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President-elect Donald Trump called Tuesday — via Twitter — for the cancellation of a multi-billion dollar Boeing contract to build the next Air Force One, calling the ballooning costs “ridiculous.” Converting a pair of 747-8 jumbo jets to state-of-the-art luxury command centers by 2024 had been estimated to cost $3 billion when Boeing was picked for the job in January 2015, but since then costs have apparently […]

Obama called Italy’s PM Renzi: White House

TAMPA, United States (AFP) — US President Barack Obama on Tuesday phoned Italy’s Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who formally resigned after a crushing referendum defeat. “The president emphasized that Italy will remain one of the United States’ closest and strongest allies and an indispensable partner,” the White House said in a statement. Obama made the call from Air Force One on a flight from Washington to Tampa, Florida, thanking Renzi “for the close friendship and […]

War crimes court told of LRA warlord’s reign of terror

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AFP) – by Jan HENNOP and Maude BRULARD War crimes prosecutors Tuesday unveiled a campaign of terror led by ‘ferocious’ Lord’s Resistance Army commander Dominic Ongwen, including showing shocking images of an aftermath of an attack on a refugee camp. The former LRA commander became the first-ever member of the notorious rebel group to go on trial before the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague, where he faces a litany of charges […]

Trump says new Air Force One too costly: ‘Cancel order!’

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) – President-elect Donald Trump called Tuesday for the cancellation of a multi-billion dollar Boeing contract to build the next Air Force One, calling the ballooning costs “ridiculous.” “Boeing is building a brand new 747 Air Force One for future presidents, but costs are out of control, more than $4 billion. Cancel order!” Trump tweeted. Converting a pair of 747-8 jumbo jets to state-of-the-art luxury command centers by 2024 had been estimated […]

Merkel launches election bid with tough line on immigration

ESSEN, Germany (AFP) – by Hui Min NEO Chancellor Angela Merkel Tuesday lashed populists seeking to exploit Germany’s refugee influx, but set down a tough line on integration — including a ban on the full-face veil — as she launched into election campaign mode. Outlining a strategy to counter populism that has consumed key allies abroad, Merkel vowed there would be no repeat of last year’s record refugee arrivals. She also stressed it was legitimate […]

Brexit deal needed by October 2018, says EU negotiator

BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) – by Danny KEMP Britain must broker its deal to leave the EU by October 2018, the bloc’s chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said on Tuesday, warning that time for talks was running out. Frenchman Barnier added that an interim deal to soften the blow of Britain’s departure was “difficult to imagine” unless it quickly told Brussels what it wanted from a Brexit deal. Despite the tight new timeline Prime Minister Theresa […]

Battle over early elections grips Italy in limbo

ROME, Italy (AFP) – by Ella IDE A fight over whether to hold early elections gripped Italy Tuesday after Prime Minister Matteo Renzi’s resignation left the eurozone’s third largest economy in political limbo. Renzi’s exit Monday after a crushing referendum defeat over constitutional reforms unleashed the political hounds, with all parties vying to take advantage of the power vacuum. “Italy is now entering into troubled waters,” Giovanni Orsina, political science professor at the Luiss University in […]

21,000 Rohingya flee to Bangladesh from Myanmar: IOM

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AFP) – by Shafiqul ALAM More than 20,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh in recent weeks, humanitarian officials said on Tuesday, following a bloody crackdown by the army in neighbouring Myanmar. Bangladesh has stepped up patrols on the border to try to stem the tide of refugees since an eruption of unrest in Myanmar’s western state of Rakhine in early October. But Sanjukta Sahany, head of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) office […]

Syria army closes in on key Aleppo district

ALEPPO, Syria (AFP) – by Karam al-Masri with Maya Gebeily in Beirut Syrian regime forces were on the verge Tuesday of seizing a major rebel district of Aleppo as Moscow and Washington traded barbs over stalled efforts to end fighting in the battle-worn city. After retaking control of about two-thirds of east Aleppo in recent days, forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad were advancing Tuesday in the large residential district of Shaar. The Syrian Observatory […]