Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg called Friday on the Pentagon chief to “protect us” from President Donald Trump by resisting orders to launch military actions or use nuclear weapons. “The situation is closer to the possible use of nuclear weapons since any time I would …
Read More »Russia says West only interested in overthrowing Assad
United Nations, United States | AFP | Russia on Friday accused the West of having the sole aim in Syria of overthrowing the government as it urged US, French and British leaders to refrain from military action. “We continue to observe dangerous military preparations for an illegal act of force …
Read More »Alcohol guidelines in many countries may not be safe: study
2500, France | AFP | Recommended limits for safe alcohol consumption are too high in many developed countries and should be lowered to save lives, a study suggested Friday. Regularly drinking more than 100 grammes (3.5 ounces) of alcohol per week — about five or six medium glasses of wine …
Read More »UK govt agrees on ‘need to take action’ over Syria
London, United Kingdom | AFP | The British government on Thursday agreed on the “need to take action” alongside the US and France over a chemical weapons attack in Syria, Prime Minister Theresa May’s office said. “Cabinet agreed on the need to take action to alleviate humanitarian distress and to …
Read More »UN calls urgent Syria meeting after Trump threat
Washington, United States | AFP | The United Nations warned world powers against letting the crisis over an alleged chemical attack against civilians in Syria from “spiraling out of control” after US President Donald Trump said “missiles will be coming.” As tensions mounted over a face-off with Damascus-ally Russia, opponents …
Read More »Chinese baby born four years after parents’ death in car crash
Beijing, China | AFP | A surrogate mother has given birth to a baby boy in China four years after his parents died in a car crash, Chinese media reported. The deceased couple was undergoing fertility treatments before the fatal accident in 2013. Their parents fought a drawn-out legal battle …
Read More »Learning computer programming, with no teachers and no tuition
San Francisco, United States | AFP | Aspiring software engineers Kevin Yook and Becky Chen are hunched over a computer screen, fervently discussing lines of code indecipherable to the average person. The pair of twenty-somethings are students at the Holberton School in San Francisco, founded two years ago by French …
Read More »Russia vetoes UN bid to set up Syria chemical weapons probe
United Nations, United States | AFP | Russia on Tuesday vetoed a US-drafted United Nations Security Council resolution that would have set up an investigation into chemical weapons use in Syria following an alleged toxic gas attack in rebel-held Douma. It was the 12th time that Russia has used its …
Read More »Trump praises Xi’s ‘kind words,’ predicts ‘great progress’ on trade
Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump on Tuesday seized on seemingly conciliatory remarks from Chinese leader Xi Jinping, praising Beijing’s “kind words” as a breakthrough in the looming trade war between the two countries. “Very thankful for President Xi of China’s kind words on tarrifs [sic] and …
Read More »Bill Clinton hails ‘genius’ of N.Ireland peace deal 20 years on
Belfast, United Kingdom | AFP | Former US president Bill Clinton on Tuesday celebrated the “genius” of the Northern Ireland peace deal 20 years ago, as he joined key political figures in Belfast to mark the anniversary of the historic accord. “The Good Friday Agreement is the work of genius that’s …
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