WORLD

Washington, United States | AFP |  US Attorney General Bill Barr on Thursday delivered a highly unusual public rebuke of Donald Trump, saying the president’s tweets were making his job at the Justice Department “impossible.” “I have a problem with some of the tweets,” Barr said in an interview with ABC …

San Francisco, United States | AFP |  Billionaire Amazon chief Jeff Bezos has purchased a Los Angeles-area estate for $165 million, setting a new record for the region, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday. Bezos bought the Warner Estate from media mogul David Geffen, according to the Journal. It said …

San Francisco, United States | AFP |  The Facebook-owned messaging service WhatsApp said Wednesday it now has more than two billion users around the world, as it reaffirmed its stand on the need for strong encryption to protect privacy. WhatsApp, acquired by Facebook in 2014, has grown into one of …

Dubai, United Arab Emirates | AFP | The coronavirus crisis, which has already battered oil prices, threatens to further undercut Gulf economies battling a downturn and struggling to wean themselves from a decades-old energy addiction. The six Gulf states — Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates …

Washington, United States | AFP |  US President Donald Trump faced fresh accusations of abuse of power Tuesday after appearing to pressure the Justice Department to seek a lighter prison sentence for his longtime political aide Roger Stone. Stone was convicted in November last year of lying to Congress, tampering with …

Rome, Italy | AFP |  Italian senators will decide Wednesday whether far-right leader Matteo Salvini should face trial on charges of illegally detaining migrants at sea last year, for which he could be jailed for 15 years. A court in Sicily has recommended that former interior minister Salvini stand trial for …

Manchester, United States | AFP |  Bernie Sanders won New Hampshire’s high-stakes Democratic primary on Tuesday, according to US network projections, leaving rivals including party stalwart Joe Biden in his wake as he staked his claim to challenge President Donald Trump in November. Sanders, the flag-bearer for the party’s progressive wing, …

Vatican City, Holy See | AFP |  Seven years after his surprise resignation, Benedict XVI — weakened by age but still intellectually spry — appears unable to remain in the shadow of his Argentinean successor Francis, creating the appearance of “two popes” at odds. On February 11, 2013, at the age …

Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | The head of the World Health Organization on Tuesday warned the novel coronavirus was a “very grave threat” for the world as he opened a conference to combat the epidemic. “With 99% of cases in China, this remains very much an emergency for that country, …

London, United Kingdom | AFP |  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was set Tuesday to announce his plans for the HS2 high-speed railway, with reports suggesting he will stick with the long-running project despite soaring costs. HS2, which would quicken rail journeys between London in southeast England and cities to the …