Washington, United States | AFP |President Donald Trump acknowledged Tuesday that Saudi prince Mohammed bin Salman could have known of the murder of a dissident journalist — but said there would be no fallout anyway for Saudi-US relations. “It could very well be that the Crown Prince had knowledge of …
Read More »Pro-Kabila candidate Shadary unveils platform for DR Congo polls
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | President Joseph Kabila’s chosen successor on Monday unveiled his platform ahead of a landmark election in the Democratic Republic of Congo next month. Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary set out an $86 billion (75 billion euro) five-year development plan for the sprawling central African country. Making his first public remarks …
Read More »Now, S.Africa’s ex-president Zuma backs fired tax boss
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South Africa’s former president Jacob Zuma on Tuesday threw his weight behind the ex-head of the country’s tax collection agency who was recently sacked by President Cyril Ramaphosa. The move pitted Zuma directly against his successor Ramaphosa, who came to power in February when …
Read More »Zambian police quiz opposition leader over attacks on Chinese
Lusaka, Zambia | AFP | Zambian police on Tuesday questioned opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema for allegedly fuelling attacks on Chinese nationals, in a sign of growing political tension in the country. Hichilema, of the United Party for National Development, was last year detained for four months for alleged treason in …
Read More »US Muslim lawmaker-elect in proposal to end head-covering ban in Congress
Washington, United States | AFP | A Muslim congresswoman-elect has co-authored changes to a longstanding rule banning the wearing of head coverings on the US House floor, an effort supported Monday by the nation’s largest Muslim rights group. Ilhan Omar, a Somali refugee who was one of the first two …
Read More »Ivanka Trump used personal email for govt business: report
Washington, United States | AFP | The US president’s daughter and senior advisor Ivanka Trump used a personal email account for government business in violation of federal records rules, The Washington Post reported Monday. The Post, citing anonymous sources, said the discovery was made by White House officials reviewing emails …
Read More »Saudi King Salman praises judiciary amid Khashoggi fallout
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | AFP | Saudi King Salman heaped praise on the kingdom’s judiciary Monday, in his first public remarks since critic Jamal Khashoggi’s murder tipped the country into one of its worst international crises. The public prosecutor last week exonerated powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of involvement …
Read More »CNN says White House preparing to eject reporter again
Washington, United States | AFP | CNN said Monday it asked for a new emergency hearing to allow its reporter Jim Acosta to remain at the White House, saying officials are threatening to again revoke his press pass. The statement from the cable news channel came just three days after …
Read More »Man charged over Nigerian ‘First Lady’ email scam
Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | A 48-year-old man appeared in court on Monday accused of attempting to defraud people around the world of $20.5 million by pretending to be Nigeria’s First Lady. Julius Anyawu Uche was charged with 10 offences under cybercrimes legislation after scam emails were sent in the …
Read More »May wins business support for draft Brexit deal
London, United Kingdom | AFP | British Prime Minister Theresa May on Monday won support from big business for her draft Brexit deal ahead of “intense negotiations” with Brussels in the coming week. May told the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), the UK’s main business lobby group, that she was “determined …
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