United Nations, UNITED STATES | AFP | A record 175 countries, including the world’s top polluters China and the United States, signed the Paris climate deal Friday, boosting hopes of quick action on combating global warming. French President Francois Hollande was the first leader to put his signature to the …
Read More »Music legend Prince dead at 57
Los Angeles, United States | AFP | Pop icon Prince, whose pioneering brand of danceable funk made him one of the most influential figures in music, died Thursday at his compound in Minnesota. He was 57. The announcement came just a week after the enigmatic Grammy and Oscar winner — …
Read More »Britain cheers Queen on 90th birthday
Windsor, United Kingdom | AFP | Britain celebrates Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th birthday on Thursday, with her eldest son Prince Charles paying tribute in a special radio broadcast and Prime Minister David Cameron leading a parliamentary homage. The sovereign, who last year overtook her great-great grandmother queen Victoria to become …
Read More »UNHCR fears 500 dead in Mediterranean shipwreck
Rome, Italy | AFP | The UN refugee agency said on Wednesday it feared around 500 migrants from Africa had drowned in the Mediterranean after witnesses said their overcrowded boat sank. UNHCR spokeswoman Carlotta Sami said in a statement sent to AFP that survivors from Somalia, Sudan, Ethiopia and Egypt …
Read More »Verizon a leading contender to buy Yahoo: reports
San Francisco, United States | AFP | US telecoms giant Verizon has emerged as a leading contender to take over struggling Internet pioneer Yahoo as other big names reportedly drop out, US financial media said ahead of quarterly results Tuesday that are expected to show the portal suffering a further …
Read More »Brazil lawmakers authorize Rousseff impeachment
April 18 5.00am Uganda time Brazil lawmakers give green light to Rousseff impeachment trial Brasília, Brazil | AFP | Brazilian lawmakers on Sunday authorized impeachment proceedings against President Dilma Rousseff in a rowdy, circus-like showdown that plunged Latin America’s biggest country into profound political crisis. Opposition deputies in the lower …
Read More »US transfers nine Yemenis from Guantanamo to Saudi Arabia
Washington, United States | AFP | Nine Yemeni inmates have been transferred from Guantanamo Bay to Saudi Arabia, the Pentagon said on Saturday, bringing the controversial military prison’s remaining population down to 80. It is the largest transfer from the facility since 10 Yemenis were sent to Oman in January …
Read More »We are all migrants, Pope says as he takes 12 refugees to Vatican
Lesbos, Greece | AFP | Declaring “we are all migrants,” Pope Francis on Saturday brought a message of hope to thousands of people facing expulsion from Greece as he slammed the world community for failing to end the wars fueling the crisis. In an emotional visit that saw people kneeling …
Read More »US Army approves first females for ground combat
Washington, United States | AFP | The US Army is commissioning 22 women as infantry and armor officers under historic new rules allowing females to serve in ground combat roles, USA Today reported Friday. Defense Secretary Ash Carter in December announced a sweeping directive to open all military occupations to …
Read More »Mali and EU agree on African immigration programme
Bamako, Mali | AFP Mali and the European Union agreed Friday to combat immigration into Europe by financing projects to fight its causes and promote legal migration, according to a joint statement released on Friday. Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders, whose country currently holds the rotating EU presidency, began a …
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