Tokyo, Japan | AFP | From describing his flankers as “kamikaze kids” to feeling uneasy near Russia, outspoken England coach Eddie Jones hasn’t held back at the Rugby World Cup. Here are 10 of his more memorable quotes from the tournament: – Russia with love – “The stadium was fantastic, …
Read More »Volkswagen unveils new Golf as end of era nears
Francfort, Germany | AFP | Volkswagen unveiled the newest incarnation of its iconic Golf hatchback on Thursday, counting on the bestseller to help fund a costly switch to the electric era and bridge the gap to the cars of the future. The eighth generation of the unglamourous but trusted …
Read More »Russian soft power on display at Africa summit
Sochi, Russia | AFP | Aboubakary Guiro, a financial expert from Ivory Coast, is full of hope after attending the first ever Russia-Africa summit this week in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. “We forget about Russians when we talk business,” said Guiro, the co-partner of a financial advisory …
Read More »‘It’s the jungle’: Bosnian migrant camp in crisis
Bihac, Bosnia and Herzegovina | AFP | No running water, putrid portable toilets and surrounding woods littered with land mines — these are the bleak conditions of a camp where hundreds of migrants brace for winter in Bosnia. “It’s the jungle,” says Mohammad Nawaz, a 30-year-old Pakistani living in the tent-city built …
Read More »Republicans storm secure impeachment deposition, delay testimony
Washington, United States | AFP | Furious about being left out of the Donald Trump impeachment process, US congressional Republicans stormed a closed-door witness deposition and refused to leave for several hours in an escalation of the showdown over the investigation of the president. More than two dozen lawmakers barged into …
Read More »Boeing 737 MAX flight control system key factor in Lion Air crash
Jakarta, Indonesia | AFP | Mechanical and design problems with a Boeing 737 MAX flight control system were key factors in the crash of a Lion Air jet last year, Indonesian investigators told victims’ families in a briefing on their findings Wednesday. But some grieving relatives expressed anger that investigators were …
Read More »British PM could target election as EU mulls Brexit extension
London, United Kingdom | AFP | British Prime Minister Boris Johnson could pivot towards a general election as the EU mulls granting a Brexit deadline extension on Wednesday, after a fresh twist to the divorce saga cast doubt over his hopes of leaving on October 31. In tense parliamentary votes on …
Read More »Row over plans to move Greek antiquities from construction site
Thessaloniki, Greece | AFP | Opposition politicians, archaeologists and locals have denounced Greek government plans to displace the fragile remnants of an ancient city district unearthed during work on a subway tunnel in Thessaloniki. Experts say the early Byzantine site, which includes the city’s main 6th-century highway, ancient buildings and hundreds …
Read More »Social media app TikTok removes Islamic State propaganda videos
Beijing, China | AFP | Social media app TikTok has taken down accounts that were posting propaganda videos for the Islamic State group, a company employee said Tuesday, in the latest scandal to hit the popular platform. TikTok, which is owned by Chinese firm ByteDance, claimed some 500 million users globally …
Read More »Video stars: Russian child bloggers score millions of ‘likes’
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Liza Anokhina was 11 when people started recognising her in the street. Now a year older, she is one of Russia’s most popular child bloggers with 2.3 million followers on Instagram. In a Moscow park, her producer jogs backwards, using his phone to film as …
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