Washington, United States | AFP | Google was supposed to be focusing Tuesday on its launch of a new smartphone and other devices, but the event was being overshadowed by a firestorm over a privacy glitch that forced it to shut down its struggling social network. The Silicon Valley giant …
Read More »Court orders diesel ban on major Berlin roads
Berlin, Germany | AFP | Berlin could shut out diesel drivers from major arterial roads next year, after a court Tuesday ordered the German capital to follow in the footsteps of Hamburg, Frankfurt and Stuttgart with exclusion zones. A renewed focus on air quality in the wake of Volkswagen’s 2015 …
Read More »Nikki Haley resigns as Trump’s UN ambassador
Washington, United States | AFP | Nikki Haley resigned Tuesday as the US ambassador to the United Nations, in the latest departure from President Donald Trump’s national security team. Meeting Haley in the Oval Office, Trump said that Haley had done a “fantastic job” and would leave at the end …
Read More »North Korea wants Pope to visit, South to tell Vatican
Seoul, South Korea | AFP | North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has invited Pope Francis to visit, saying he would be “ardently welcomed”, South Korea’s presidency said Tuesday, adding it would pass on Pyongyang’s message to the Vatican. South Korean President Moon Jae-in will have an audience with the …
Read More »US-China trade war sparks IMF global growth cut warning
Bali, Indonesia | AFP | The US-China trade war will hobble global growth, the International Monetary Fund warned Tuesday, cutting its forecast for this year and next and predicting that “everyone is going to suffer” from a clash between the world’s two biggest economies. At a meeting on the Indonesian …
Read More »Trump says America owes Kavanaugh apology after Supreme Court battle
Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump said Monday he was apologizing on behalf of the whole country to his new conservative Supreme Court justice after one of the most contentious confirmation processes in US history. At a White House swearing-in ceremony, Trump stood next to Justice Brett …
Read More »Hunger and fighting persist despite ‘peace’ in South Sudan
Kandak, South Sudan | AFP | South Sudan’s warring leaders signed another peace deal last month, but while the political elites prepare to carve up power once again, hunger and fighting continue far from the capital. “We heard they signed peace, but we’ve yet to see it here,” said Mary …
Read More »Pompeo: Sanctions to remain until N. Korea ‘final’ denuclearisation
Tokyo, Japan | AFP | Sanctions on North Korea will remain in place until Pyongyang carries out “final” denuclearisation, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday. “Sanctions will remain in place until final, fully verified denuclearisation as agreed to by Chairman Kim (Jong Un) occurs,” Pompeo said, speaking in …
Read More »Twitter rooting out fake accounts at record rate: report
San Francisco, United States | AFP | Twitter has been suspending more than one million fake and dubious accounts per day, according to The Washington Post, in an aggressive bid to stem the flow of false information. The social media platform has more than doubled its crackdown rate since late …
Read More »Iran says Trump ‘destabilising’ oil market
Tehran, Iran | AFP | Iran on Saturday accused US President Donald Trump of destabilising the oil market with his flurry of tweets taking aim at the OPEC cartel. “These days… the price is dependent on the behaviour of Mr. Trump,” Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said on state television. …
Read More »