WORLD

The British government and lottery fund has spent hundreds of millions of pounds on sporting success in the past two decades. And it has paid off. London, United Kingdom | AFP | Twenty years after a stinging Olympic failure, Britain has risen from the ashes to become a sporting “superpower” …

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | AFP | From the dizzying gymnastics heights of African-American Simone Biles to Indian wrestler Sakshi Malik and Brazilian golden girl Rafaela Silva in judo — Rio proved a groundbreaking Games for women. Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps had already arrived in Rio as global superstars …

Ankara, Turkey | AFP |  At least 22 people were killed in an attack on a wedding Saturday in Gaziantep in Turkey’s troubled southeast, Turkish MP Mehmet Erdogan told CNN-Turk broadcaster. “There are people who lost their lives and we have initial information suggesting it was a bomb attack. We don’t …

New York, United States | AFP | Donald Trump sought to reboot his flagging presidential bid Friday, dismissing his tainted campaign chairman, seeking to broaden his shrinking support base by appealing to black voters and visiting flood-ravaged Louisiana. The resignation of the seasoned Republican strategist Paul Manafort — under fire …

Abidjan, Ivory Coast | AFP | Ten years after an international oil-trader dumped 500 tonnes of toxic waste in Ivory Coast, killing 17 people and harming 100,000, the stench remains, though the compensation is unpaid. A decade on, Ivorians “still complain of the smell from the waste when it rains …

Washington, United States | AFP |  US Secretary of State John Kerry will travel next week to Kenya, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia on a three-nation tour focused on counterterrorism, the State Department said Thursday. The top US diplomat arrives in Nairobi on Monday for talks with Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta …

  Miami, United States | AFP | Soaring temperatures worldwide made July the Earth’s hottest month in modern times, setting a new high mark for global heat in 137 years of record-keeping, US government scientists said Wednesday. The report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration came just two days …

Gonzales, United States | AFP | The death toll from historic flooding in Louisiana climbed to 11 on Tuesday as the expanding flood zone prompted authorities to declare disasters in 20 parishes of the southeastern US state. While flooding receded in parts of southern Louisiana, other areas saw rising waters. …

Montreal, Canada | AFP |  US R&B star Usher and Canadian indie rock groups Metric and Half Moon Run will headline a free concert in Montreal next month aimed at ending AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. Advocacy group Global Citizen, the concert sponsor, said the September 17 show would be held …

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | AFP | Joao Havelange, who has died at 100, was the man who made FIFA a global powerhouse, only to resign under a cloud of corruption that has darkened the world footballing body’s reputation. His death was confirmed Tuesday by the Samaritano Hospital in Rio …