BAGHDAD, Iraq (AFP) — At least eight people were killed in a rocket attack on Baghdad airport, Iraqi security sources said Friday, days after a pro-Iran mob laid siege to the American embassy. “Three rockets hit the international airport in Baghdad,” said a statement from the Iraqi military, adding that two cars exploded. At least eight people died, added a security official who asked to remain anonymous. © Agence France-Presse
Asia
Ghosn used one of two French passports to flee: media
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn, who fled to Lebanon to avoid a Japanese trial, was carrying one of his two French passports, local media said Thursday, as Japan launched a probe into the embarrassing security lapse. Ghosn, who faces multiple charges of financial misconduct that he denies, won bail in April but with strict conditions, including a bar on overseas travel. His lead lawyer Junichiro Hironaka has said lawyers hold […]
Singapore economy grew just 0.7 pct in 2019: government
SINGAPORE, Singapore (AFP) — Singapore’s economy, a closely watched barometer for the rest of Asia’s export-driven countries, grew just 0.7 percent last year as the US-China trade war hammered global markets. The city-state has traditionally been the first among Asia’s economies to be affected during a downturn, and the country narrowly escaped tipping into recession in the third quarter. The trade ministry said in a statement Thursday that based on advance estimates, the economy […]
Indonesia floods leave two dozen dead, several missing: official
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AFP) — Indonesia’s disaster agency warned Thursday of more deaths after torrential rains pounded the Jakarta region, triggering floods and landslides that killed at least 23 and left vast swaths of the megalopolis underwater. Tens of thousands of residents have been evacuated to temporary shelters in the area, home to some 30 million, with scores of homes damaged. Images from across the region showed waterlogged homes and cars covered in muddy […]
Massive Hong Kong pro-democracy rally ends in police clashes
by Yan ZHAO / Xinqi SU HONG KONG, China (AFP) — A huge New Year’s Day pro-democracy rally in Hong Kong ended in mass arrests and clashes between police and hardcore protesters, as demonstrators sought to carry their movement’s momentum into 2020. Hong Kong has been battered by nearly seven months of unrest — its biggest political crisis in decades — which has seen millions come out on the streets demanding greater democratic freedoms. Organizers […]
North Korea ends test moratoriums, threatens ‘new’ weapon
by Sebastien BERGER SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has declared an end to moratoriums on nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile tests and threatened a demonstration of a “new strategic weapon” soon. Analysts said the announcement, reported by state media on Wednesday, amounted to Kim putting a missile “to Donald Trump’s head” — but warned that escalation by Pyongyang would probably backfire. Washington was swift to respond, with Secretary of […]
Microsoft seizes web domains used by North Korean hackers
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Microsoft said Monday it obtained a court order allowing it to seize web domains used by North Korean hacking groups to launch cyber attacks on human rights activists, researchers and others. The US technology giant said a federal court allowed it to take control of 50 domains operated by a group dubbed Thallium, which tricked online users by fraudulently using Microsoft brands and trademarks. “This network was used to target victims […]
N. Korea’s Kim holds top party meeting ahead of US deadline
Seoul, South Korea (AFP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has convened a key meeting of top ruling party officials, state media said Sunday, ahead of a year-end deadline for Washington to shift its stance on stalled nuclear talks. The plenary session, which opened on Saturday, follows widespread speculation that Pyongyang is preparing to test an intercontinental ballistic missile — as a threatened “Christmas gift” for Washington. Kim presided over the meeting which discussed a […]
Plane crashes into house in Kazakhstan killing 14
ALMATY, Kazakhstan (AFP) — At least 14 people died Friday when a passenger plane carrying 100 people crashed into a house shortly after takeoff from Kazakhstan’s largest city, authorities said. The Bek Air plane “fell off the radar” minutes after it took off from Almaty airport at 7.05 am (01:05 GMT) on its way to the capital, Nur-Sultan, the airport authority said in a statement. “There are 14 dead at the (crash) site,” the city […]
Quake strikes near Iran nuclear power plant
TEHRAN, Iran (AFP) — An earthquake struck Iran on Friday less than 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the country’s only nuclear power plant, monitors said. There were no immediate reports of any damage. The US Geological Survey said the 5.1 magnitude quake struck 44 kilometers (27 miles) from the southwestern city of Borazjan and at a depth of 38 kilometers. Its reported epicenter is 45 kilometers east of the Bushehr nuclear power plant, on the […]
‘Ring of fire’ eclipse wows across Asia
SINGAPORE, Singapore (AFP) — Skywatchers from Saudi Arabia and Oman to India and Singapore were treated to a rare “ring of fire” solar eclipse Thursday. Annular eclipses occur when the Moon is not close enough to the Earth to completely obscure the Sun, leaving a thin ring of the solar disc visible. While these types of eclipses occur every year or two, they are only visible from a narrow band of Earth each time […]
China hosts Japan, South Korea with eyes on nuclear North
by Jing Xuan TENG Agence France Presse China hosted the leaders of squabbling neighbors South Korea and Japan for their first official meeting in over a year on Tuesday, flexing its diplomatic muscle with America’s two key Asian allies and seeking unity on how to deal with a belligerent North Korea. The gathering in the southwestern city of Chengdu was held with the clock ticking on a threatened “Holiday gift” from North Korean leader Kim […]
