by Jerome CARTILLIER OTTAWA, Canada (AFP) — US President Barack Obama heads to Ottawa Wednesday for talks with the leaders of Canada and Mexico, as the shockwave from Britain’s vote to leave the European Union reverberates on both sides of the Atlantic. Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who both made clear their desire to see Britain remain in the 28-member bloc, will join Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto for the so-called “Three Amigos” […]
International
US, S. Korea, Japan hold first anti-N. Korea missile drill
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — South Korea, Japan and the United States held an unprecedented trilateral missile defense exercise on Tuesday, aimed at countering the growing threat from nuclear-armed North Korea which denounced it as a “military provocation.” The drill in waters off Hawaii came less than a week after North Korea flight-tested a powerful new medium-range ballistic missile that leader Kim Jong-Un hailed as a strike threat to US military bases across the Pacific. […]
Explosion hits residential area in Mississauga, Ontario
ONTARIO, Canada (Eagle News) — A huge explosion in a residential area in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada flattened a house and damaged at least 50 more houses in the area where several had been reported injured, and at least one was feared dead. The explosion happened along Hickory Drive near Dixie Road and Rathburn Road East in Mississauga, Ontario on Tuesday, around 4 in the afternoon. One house exploded causing major damages on nearby properties. The […]
EU meets without Britain for first time since Brexit vote
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) — Europe’s leaders meet Wednesday without Britain for the first time following its shock decision to leave the EU, trying to pick up the pieces and prevent further disintegration. The 27 remaining members of the bloc agreed to give Britain some breathing space on Tuesday, accepting that it needs time to absorb the shock of the Brexit vote before triggering Article 50 that will begin the formal divorce proceedings. But German Chancellor […]
NASA tests deep space rocket booster ahead of 2018 mission
MIAMI, United States (AFP) — NASA on Tuesday performed its second and last test-fire of a rocket booster for the Space Launch System (SLS), a powerful engine that may one day launch astronauts to Mars, the US space agency said. Fire and gray smoke billowed from the booster, which lay on the ground during the two-minute test fire in the remote hills of Utah at 11:05 am (1605 GMT). NASA has described the SLS as […]
Michelle Obama in Morocco to launch girls’ fund
MARRAKECH, Morocco (AFP) — US First Lady Michelle Obama launched a $100 million aid package in Morocco Tuesday to promote the education of girls in a country where half of females over 15 are illiterate. Visiting Marakech with actresses Meryl Streep and Frieda Pinto of the “Slumdog Millionaire” film, she told girls in attendance she wanted them to be part of a global conversation on female education. “We want to share this conversation with young […]
No Clinton bombshell in Benghazi report by Republicans
by Dave Clark WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Republican lawmakers on Tuesday released a report on the deadly 2012 assault on the US mission in Benghazi, accusing then secretary of state Hillary Clinton of underestimating and then misrepresenting the extremist threat in Libya. As Washington insiders pored over the minutiae of an 800-page document that was two years and seven million taxpayer dollars in the making, there was no sign of the kind of bombshell […]
Turkish PM says first signs in Istanbul attack point to IS
ISTANBUL, Turkey (AFP) — Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said Wednesday that early signs suggested the Islamic State group was behind a triple suicide bombing at Istanbul airport, as he announced the death toll in the attack had risen to 36. “According to the most recent information, 36 people have lost their lives,” Yildirim told journalists at the scene of the attack, adding that “the evidence points to Daesh”, using another name for IS. The […]
UN chief condemns Istanbul airport attack
UNITED NATION, United States (AFP) — UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called for stepped-up cooperation in the fight against terrorism on Tuesday, following an attack on Istanbul’s Ataturk airport that left at least 36 dead and scores wounded. Ban “condemns today’s terrorist attack” and “expresses his deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims and to the government and people of Turkey,” his spokesman said in a statement. The UN chief “stands firmly […]
US condemns ‘heinous’ Istanbul attack, pledges support for Turkey
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States on Tuesday condemned what it called the “heinous” bombing and gun attack at Istanbul’s Ataturk airport that left at least 36 people dead, pledging “steadfast” support for Turkey. “Ataturk International Airport, like Brussels Airport which was attacked earlier this year, is a symbol of international connections and the ties that bind us together,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said in a statement. “We remain steadfast in our […]
Top US diplomat Kerry says Brexit may not happen
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday that Britain’s vote to leave the European Union might never be implemented and that London is in no hurry to go. Speaking one day after talks with Prime Minister David Cameron, Kerry said the outgoing British leader feels “powerless” to negotiate a departure he does not want. “This is a very complicated divorce,” Kerry told the Aspen Ideas Festival, referring to […]
At least 36 killed in suicide bomb attack at Istanbul airport
by Katy Lee with Burak Akinci and Fulya Ozerkan in Ankara ISTANBUL, Turkey (AFP) — A triple suicide bombing and gun attack at Istanbul’s Ataturk airport killed at least 36people and left scores wounded, in the latest deadly strike to rock Turkey’s biggest city. The attackers began spraying bullets at airport guards at the terminal entrance and a shootout erupted before they blew themselves up one by one at around 10:00 pm (1900 GMT) Tuesday, […]