WORLD

Brussels, Belgium | AFP | Tighter measures to fight crime and terrorism in the European Union took effect on Friday as the 28-nation bloc seeks to improve security by sharing information more efficiently. New rules that strengthen the Schengen Information System (SIS) should help border guards and law enforcement agencies, …

Paris, France | AFP | The “yellow vest” anti-government protests that have rocked France will be held on Saturday and New Year’s Eve, and continue into 2019, several sources in the movement said Thursday. “The yellow vests are still mobilised,” said Laetitia Dewalle, one spokeswoman of the protest movement which …

Washington, United States | AFP | The US government partial shutdown was set to stretch deep into next week after legislators failed Thursday to make a breakthrough in the row over President Donald Trump’s demand for a US-Mexico border wall. After convening for just a few minutes following the official …

Washington, United States | AFP | Former First Lady Hillary Clinton’s 17-year run as the woman Americans admire most is over. Another former First Lady, Michelle Obama, has deposed Clinton as America’s most admired woman, according to a Gallup poll published on Thursday. Former president Barack Obama was named the …

Paris, France | AFP | Climate change-induced disasters cost nations at least $100 billion in 2018, a watchdog said Thursday, warning the spate of deadly wildfires, floods and superstorms was “a shadow” of things to come if greenhouse gas emissions aren’t slashed. This year is set to be the fourth …

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | AFP | Saudi Arabia’s King Salman ordered a sweeping government reshuffle Thursday, replacing key security and political figures including the foreign minister, as the kingdom grapples with the international fallout over critic Jamal Khashoggi’s murder. The surprise shake up saw the appointment of a new National …

Washington, United States | AFP | Instagram said Thursday it accidentally rolled out a design change to a large number of users and quickly ended the test after complaints from users of the Facebook-owned social network. The redesign required users to swipe horizontally instead of the normal vertical scroll to …

Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was to head Thursday on the first trip by an Israeli premier to Brazil, where he will attend the inauguration of incoming president Jair Bolsonaro. Netanyahu will also hold talks with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on the sidelines of …

Baghdad, Iraq | AFP | President Donald Trump’s lightning Christmas visit with US troops in Iraq has triggered questions and criticism in a country deeply divided over Washington’s influence since the 2003 US invasion. The Wednesday visit, Trump’s first with US troops in a conflict zone since he took office …

Mumbai, India | AFP | An Indian woman cut off the penis of a man who had been stalking her, before rushing him to hospital to save his life, police said Thursday. The 47-year-old woman and two men lured her neighbour to an isolated spot in Mumbai before hacking off …