Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini was defiant Friday as he arrived for the verdict in his long-running trial for blocking a migrant rescue ship at sea, for which he risks six years in jail.The far-right leader denies charges of abuse of office and the deprivation of liberty of 147 migrants on board the Open …
Italy’s Salvini defiant as verdict due in migrant trial Read More »
Australia said Friday it had agreed to boost Solomon Islands’ police force with a multi-year funding, training and infrastructure package for the Pacific nation, which has fostered close ties with China.But in a sign of the competition it faces from Beijing, the Solomons police announced the same day it had received a modest donation from …
Australia agrees deal to strengthen Solomons police Read More »
US diplomats have arrived in Syria to speak directly to the new Islamist-led rulers, hoping to encourage a moderate, inclusive path and to find clues on missing Americans, the State Department said Friday.It is the first formal US diplomatic mission to Damascus since the early days of the brutal civil war that broke out in …
Rescuers say they have expanded a search for trapped survivors in quake-rocked Vanuatu to “numerous places of collapse” beyond the capital on Friday, after the death toll climbed to at least 10.The 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck off the main island on Tuesday, toppling concrete buildings in Port Vila and setting off landslides.It has damaged water supplies, …
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Taiwanese lawmakers tackled and doused each other with water on Friday as President Lai Ching-te’s party tried to block the passage of bills they say could harm the self-ruled island’s “democratic system”.Scores of lawmakers from Lai’s Democratic Progressive Party had occupied the podium of the parliament’s main chamber since Thursday night and barricaded themselves inside …
Taiwan lawmakers brawl over bills that would ‘damage democracy’ Read More »
Lyubov Voronova still remembers a time before the war when the Oskil river flowing by her east Ukraine home was an idyll where families would swim, picnic and make memories.Now, nearly three years into Russia’s invasion, Kremlin forces have brought panic and destruction to its banks in a war of attrition that has pit invader …
Ambushes and nostalgia on banks of frontline Ukraine river Read More »
In Pakistan’s largest city, cars inch forward in bumper-to-bumper traffic. But some seamlessly carve through the jam: SUVs flanked by Toyota Hilux pickup trucks.The Hilux has become a symbol of power, affluence and intimidation in a society marked by significant class divisions.”The vehicle carries an image that suggests anyone escorted by one must be an …
Imposing pickup trucks symbolise Pakistan’s power gulf Read More »
French President Emmanuel Macron extended his visit to cyclone-devastated Mayotte on Friday after angry residents vented exasperation and despair over the scale of the disaster.Locals jeered and shouted their grievances Thursday during Macron’s visit to the Indian Ocean archipelago, five days after Cyclone Chido left a trail of destruction in its wake.”I decided to sleep …
Macron extends visit to cyclone-hit Mayotte after locals vent anger Read More »
Australia said Friday it has agreed to help boost Solomon Islands’ police force with a finance and training package for the Pacific nation, which has fostered close ties with China.The deal includes Aus$190 million (US$118 million) in financing over four years, training and infrastructure including a police training centre in the Solomons’ capital Honiara, Canberra …
Australia agrees deal to finance, train Solomons police Read More »
Investigators probing suspended South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol over his foiled martial law bid on Friday ordered him to appear before the country’s corruption watchdog on Christmas Day — after he snubbed a previous summons this week.Conservative leader Yoon was stripped of his duties by parliament last weekend following his short-lived December 3 martial …
South Korea probe team issues Christmas Day summons for Yoon Read More »
