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HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Hong Kong customs officers unveiled a record seizure of pangolin scales on Friday, the latest huge haul to underscore the city’s central role in the lucrative and booming illegal wildlife trade. Officials said they conducted a joint investigation with mainland customs officers on 16 January, seizing 8,300 kilos of pangolin scales and 2,100 kilos of ivory tusks hidden inside a container at a customs facility. “This is a record high […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A Japan Airlines plane from New Delhi skidded off a snow-bound runway at Narita Airport on Friday, officials told AFP, briefly closing part of Tokyo’s main hub. Spokespeople from the airport and the carrier said the 201 passengers and crew had all been escorted off the Boeing 787 jet with no serious injuries. The accident forced the airport to close one of its two runways for an hour from 7 am […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — The US and Chinese negotiators made “important progress” in their trade talks in Washington, China’s official Xinhua news agency said on Friday. The two sides held “candid, specific and fruitful” discussions, the agency said, citing a statement from the Chinese delegation. © Agence France-Presse
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — The world’s biggest shipbuilder, South Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries, has reached a deal to acquire a majority stake in ailing number two Daewoo from the government, Seoul said Thursday. The world’s top three shipbuilders are South Korean — Samsung Heavy ranks third — but the industry has been hammered in recent years by overcapacity and plunging ship prices. Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering has struggled in particular and has repeatedly […]
by Aaref Watad Agence France Presse KAFR LUSIN, Syria (AFP) — Outside a camp for the displaced in northwest Syria, 15-year-old Sabaa al-Jassim hacked away at a mountain of trash hoping to find scraps to sell for food. Using a hooked metal rod, he stabbed at acrid household waste in the village of Kafr Lusin, looking for plastic to trade for a few dollars to feed his 11-member family. “I go to the dump to […]
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AFP) — Spain’s King Felipe VI on Wednesday visited special forces helping Iraq fight jihadists, during the first trip by a Spanish monarch to the war-ravaged country in four decades, a diplomat said. The king, whose country is a member of an international coalition battling the Islamic State group, also later met President Barham Saleh. Iraq in 2017 declared victory over IS following a bruising months-long campaign backed by the coalition, which continues […]
BANGKOK, Thailand (AFP) — Toxic smog forced Bangkok authorities to issue an unprecedented order to shut nearly 450 schools on Wednesday, as authorities struggle to manage a pollution crisis that has stirred widespread concern. The Thai capital has been shrouded in murky haze for weeks, forcing residents to don masks and sparking social media criticism of the uneven response by the government. Reasons given for the lingering pall include exhaust from traffic, unfettered construction, the […]
by Delphine TOUITOU Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Top US and Chinese trade officials return to the bargaining table on Wednesday, with extra tension in the atmosphere amid Washington’s sweeping prosecution of Chinese telecoms giant Huawei. The world’s two largest economies are battling for nothing less than future dominance in critical high-tech industries, according to US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, the lead US negotiator. A little over three years ago, Beijing launched […]
MANILA, Philippines (AFP) — French urban free-climber Alain Robert was arrested on Tuesday, police said, after he scaled one of Manila’s tallest towers in his latest high-risk ascent. The 56-year old adventurer dubbed the “French spiderman” climbed the 47-storey GT Tower without safety equipment, leaving watchers on the ground staring in amazement. “This is my path, this is my way of living. It is as important to me as eating, sleeping. I need that. It […]
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — A bomb attack in a market killed seven Yemeni civilians including a photographer for a UAE television channel in the government-controlled town of Mokha, medics and military sources said Tuesday. At least 20 people were wounded in the overnight blast in the Red Sea town, where pro-government forces backed by a Saudi-led coalition battling the Huthi rebels are based. The improvised explosive device was planted on a motorcycle parked […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — Chinese authorities on Tuesday executed a man who killed 15 people after ramming a car into a crowded square in central Hunan province last year. Last September, Yang Zanyun ploughed a Land Rover into pedestrians at a public square in Hengdong city before slashing at people with a shovel and dagger. Fifteen people were killed and 43 others were injured. The Hengyang Intermediate People’s Court in Hunan province said Tuesday it […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China on Tuesday decried the “political manipulations” behind the US case against Huawei as Washington indicted the tech giant’s chief financial officer and leveled sweeping charges against the company. “For some time, the US has used state power to discredit and crack down on specific Chinese companies in an attempt to strangle the enterprises’ legitimate and legal operations,” China’s foreign ministry said in a statement. “There are strong political motivations and […]
