Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday rapped his deputy foreign minister for “offensive” remarks in which she said US Jews were too “comfortable” to understand threats to Israel. Tzipi Hotovely of Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party apologised later on Israeli public television. “I apologise from the depth …
Read More »Pope prays for peace in South Sudan and DR Congo
Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis led a special prayer for peace in South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo on Thursday, saying the mass murder of women and children is where “war shows its most horrid face”. “This evening, in prayer, we want to sow …
Read More »PNG police start removing refugees from Australia camp
Sydney, Australia | AFP | Papua New Guinea police raided a shuttered Australian detention camp Thursday, removing dozens of refugees in an effort to end a stand-off that has drawn global attention to Canberra’s tough asylum-seeker policies. Hundreds of men sent to the remote camp on PNG’s Manus Island have refused …
Read More »Female-led investor groups ‘preparing offers’ for Weinstein company
Los Angeles, United States | AFP | Two female-led investor groups are interested in taking over The Weinstein Company, which is on the verge of bankruptcy after the sexual misconduct allegations that have poured in against co-founder Harvey Weinstein, said US media and a source close to the issue. One is …
Read More »Suu Kyi meets Bangladesh minister over Rohingya repatriation
Yangon, Myanmar | AFP | Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi met with Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister Thursday to hammer out a deal to return hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims who have fled violence in Rakhine state, as global pressure mounts over the refugee crisis. More than 620,000 people have poured into …
Read More »As Black Friday nears, US stores get creative to battle e-commerce
New York, United States | AFP | The photo op with Santa Claus has long been a holiday mainstay for American children. But this year, shopping malls in several states are scheduling glamour shots for man’s best friend. As the Christmas shopping season kicks into high gear on Black Friday, the …
Read More »Uber in legal crosshairs over hack cover-up
San Francisco, United States | AFP | Two US states said Wednesday they are investigating Uber’s cover-up of a hack at the ride-sharing giant that compromised the personal information of 57 million users and drivers. Uber purportedly paid data thieves $100,000 to destroy the swiped information — and remained quiet …
Read More »Health Canada considers restricting painkiller tramadol
Ottawa, Canada | AFP | Health Canada said Wednesday it is considering regulating the popular pain killer tramadol as an opioid, after seeing a spike in prescriptions over the past several years. Tramadol has been marketed as a non-opioid in Canada for more than a decade, despite concerns raised by the …
Read More »Italy says 1,100 migrants rescued from sea in one day
Rome, Italy | AFP | About 1,100 migrants from the Libyan coast were rescued from the sea on Wednesday, including a woman who gave birth in a rubber boat, the Italian coastguard and monitors said. They were recovered from 10 rubber boats and a small wooden boat in a rescue …
Read More »Hariri says resignation on hold, pledges to stay in Lebanon
Beirut, Lebanon | AFP | Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri said Wednesday he was suspending his surprise resignation, pending talks, providing a potential way out of a political crisis that has rocked the country. In a rousing address before large crowds of supporters gathered outside his Beirut home, he pledged he …
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