EU ambassador in Uganda Schmidt baffled by Trump decision on climate By Independent Reporter and AFP Ambassador Kristian Schmidt, the European Union (EU) Head of Delegation to Uganda, has joined a chorus of world leaders to criticize US President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Paris climate accord. Many …
Read More »Ex-FBI director Comey to testify on Russia probe next week
Washington, United States | AFP | Former FBI director James Comey will testify on June 8 before a congressional panel probing allegations of Russian interference in last year’s US election, the Senate Intelligence Committee said Thursday. Comey was fired by President Donald Trump early last month as the FBI’s own …
Read More »Obama slams Trump for exiting Paris climate deal
Washington, United States | AFP | Barack Obama slammed his successor President Donald Trump on Thursday for pulling out of the Paris climate deal, warning that the move would see the United States “reject the future.” “The nations that remain in the Paris Agreement will be the nations that reap …
Read More »Trump will not move US embassy to Jerusalem for now
Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump postponed moving the US embassy in Israel to Jerusalem on Thursday, avoiding what would be a provocative decision as he tries to revive the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. On the campaign trail Trump repeatedly pledged that he would shift the embassy from …
Read More »China vows to adhere to Paris climate deal
Berlin, Germany | AFP | China will “steadfastly” implement the Paris climate pact, Premier Li Keqiang said Thursday, urging others to do likewise as US President Donald Trump was due to announce whether he will keep Washington in the deal. “China will continue to implement promises made in the Paris …
Read More »British PM boycotts TV debate as election looms
London, United Kingdom | AFP | British Prime Minister Theresa May boycotted a primetime television debate Wednesday, just days before the June 8 general election, prompting accusations of a floundering campaign as polls slashed her ruling Conservative party’s lead. The pound wobbled overnight after a shock projection forecast that May …
Read More »Comedian sacked by CNN, isolated over grisly Trump stunt
New York, United States | AFP | US comedian Kathy Griffin may have hoped to make art in holding up a prop depicting Donald Trump’s bloodied, severed head. But the stunt cost her a job with CNN and achieved the unthinkable — uniting conservatives and liberals in outrage. The president …
Read More »Trump poised to pull out of Paris climate deal
Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump’s administration is poised to announce the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement, US media reported on Wednesday. According to the Axios website, the first to break the news citing two sources with direct knowledge of the matter, Trump has …
Read More »COMMENT: Trump’s strongman weakness
Praising strongmen without also mentioning their human-rights abuses condones repressive practices By Aryeh Neier US President Donald Trump has made his affinity for authoritarian leaders abundantly clear. When Trump entertained Abdel Fattah el-Sisi at the White House in April, he praised the Egyptian military ruler for doing “a fantastic job.” …
Read More »Massive truck bomb kills over 80 in Kabul
BBC says driver killed, four journalists injured in Kabul attack London, United Kingdom | AFP | The BBC’s Afghan driver was killed and four of its journalists were injured on Wednesday in a massive truck bomb blast that ripped through Kabul’s diplomatic quarter, the British broadcaster said. “It is with …
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