Ottawa, Canada | AFP | A Canadian judge will deliver a key decision Wednesday on the extradition of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou that could set her free and help repair Canada-China relations. Four days of legal arguments in January focused on whether US charges against the “Huawei Princess” would stand up …
Read More »Twitter stands up to Trump over facts
Twitter calls Trump tweets ‘unsubstantiated’ for the first time San Francisco, United States | AFP | Twitter labelled two Donald Trump tweets “unsubstantiated” and accused him of making false claims Tuesday, a first for the social network which has long resisted calls to censure the US president over truth-defying posts. …
Read More »Belarus volunteers plug gaps in supplies to virus-hit medics
Minsk, Belarus | AFP | Young men in dark hoodies and tracksuit bottoms form a human chain to pass down black sacks from a storeroom and pile them in the back of a car. These Belarusian volunteers have stepped in to rush free supplies of much-needed protective equipment to hospitals as authorities …
Read More »Chinese in Canada a target of increased hate during pandemic
Vancouver, Canada | AFP | Vancouver resident Trixie Ling recalls her disgust and anger after a passing stranger taunted her with racial and sexual slurs in early May. Then he spat on her face. “I was feeling a mixture of shock, disgust and sadness that it happened to me,” Ling said …
Read More »EU’s Von der Leyen to unveil trillion-euro recovery plan
Brussels, Belgium | AFP | European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen will on Wednesday propose a roughly one-trillion-euro post-virus recovery fund for Europe, but will have to win over sceptical member states. The global coronavirus outbreak has thrust the EU into its deepest ever recession, and Von der Leyen’s proposal …
Read More »Mourning New York pastor feeds faithful devastated by COVID-19
New York, United States | AFP | New York pastor Fabian Arias has been in constant mourning these past two months — the coronavirus has killed 44 of his mostly Hispanic parishioners, highlighting inequalities he says are being worsened by Donald Trump’s government. Amid the tragedies, the Argentine priest is providing a …
Read More »Trump, Biden turn to new presidential campaign field — Snapchat
Washington, United States | AFP | Gone are the lively meetings, the distribution of flyers on busy campuses. The coronavirus pandemic has put an abrupt stop to traditional US political means of courting young voters — forcing presidential candidates to turn to Snapchat instead. The photo-sending app that boasts 229 million …
Read More »Corruption prosecutions nearly double in China over last year
Beijing, China | AFP | The number of prosecutions related to corruption in China nearly doubled last year, according to a report by Beijing’s top prosecutor, as President Xi Jinping ramped up his crackdown on graft. According to the annual report from the Supreme People’s Procuratorate submitted to the national parliament, …
Read More »Russia begins building first stealth bomber: report
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia has begun manufacturing the prototype of its first strategic stealth bomber, state news agency TASS reported on Tuesday, as the country presses ahead with the modernisation of its military. Quoting defence industry sources, TASS said the state-controlled United Aircraft Corporation was overseeing the project. It said material was being shipped …
Read More »Stock markets rise as reopenings trump geopolitical tensions
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Further easing of countries’ coronavirus lockdowns pushed equities higher Tuesday, with optimism stoked by the reopening of bars, cafes, pools and beaches outweighing China-US tensions that hurt the dollar. While countries including Brazil, Chile and Russia are enduring rising death and infection tolls from COVID-19, …
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