by Alice RITCHIE with Joe STENSON in Dublin LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday insisted he would not ask for a Brexit delay despite the approval of a new law that could force him to do so, as MPs prepared to vote against holding an early election next month. Johnson said that if MPs refused to support his call for an election then he would go to an EU […]
International
N. Korea fires ‘projectiles’ after offering talks with US
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea on Tuesday fired projectiles toward the sea, South Korea’s military said, hours after Pyongyang said it is willing to hold working-level talks with the United States in late September. Negotiations between Pyongyang and Washington have been gridlocked since a second summit between the North’s leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump in February ended without a deal. North Korea twice launched “unidentified projectiles” Tuesday morning in an […]
Labor report alleges violations by China iPhone supplier
BEIJING, China (AFP) — Apple and its supplier Foxconn admitted they have been using too many temporary workers to staff an iPhone factory in central China, as a labour rights group accused them Monday of a number of workers rights violations. China Labor Watch said it had its investigators working inside the factory in the central Chinese city of Zhengzhou — which makes around half of the iPhones produced worldwide — assessing working conditions […]
British Airways says almost all UK flights cancelled over strike
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British Airways said Monday it has been forced to cancel almost all its flights from UK airports on the first day of a strike by pilots. “After many months of trying to resolve the pay dispute, we are extremely sorry that it has come to this,” BA said in a statement. The airline said it remains willing to return to talks with the British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA). “Unfortunately, with […]
One dead after powerful typhoon hits Tokyo
by Kyoko HASEGAWA TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A powerful typhoon that battered Tokyo overnight with ferocious winds killed one person, police said Monday, as halted trains caused commuter chaos and more than 100 flights were cancelled. Typhoon Faxai, packing record winds of up to 207 kilometers (129 miles) per hour, made landfall in Chiba just east of the capital before dawn, after barrelling through Tokyo Bay. The transport disruptions unleashed by the storm came less […]
Clashes after peaceful crowd takes Hong Kong message to US consulate
by Jerome TAYLOR / Yan ZHAO Agence France Presse HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Pro-democracy activists jammed Hong Kong streets in a march to the United States consulate on Sunday in a bid to ramp up international pressure on Beijing, but hardcore protesters later clashed with riot police across the city’s core. Millions have demonstrated over the last 14 weeks in the biggest challenge to China’s rule since the city’s handover from Britain in […]
One week after Dorian, Bahamians struggle amid the ruins
by Cyril JULIEN NASSAU, Bahamas (AFP) — One week after Hurricane Dorian devastated the Bahamas, residents struggled amid the ruins Sunday, with many forced to seek refuge far from their shattered homes as the death toll from the top-intensity storm hit 44 in the islands. Dorian, now classified as a post-tropical storm, caused “severe damage” in eastern Canada and was expected to move soon into the North Atlantic after cutting a destructive swath through the […]
Morocco floods kill 11 in bus accident: local officials
RABAT, Morocco (AFP) — At least 11 people were killed Sunday in Morocco after their bus was overturned by a flood in the kingdom’s southeast, authorities said. Rescue crews evacuated 27 passengers from the bus, including several injured, after it flipped over on a bridge by “flood waters” in El Khank, local officials said in a statement. Search operations were ongoing, they said, adding that the evacuees had been transferred to hospital in the city […]
Clashes after peaceful crowd takes Hong Kong message to US consulate
by Jerome TAYLOR / Yan ZHAO HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Pro-democracy activists jammed Hong Kong streets in a march to the United States consulate on Sunday in a bid to ramp up international pressure on Beijing, but hardcore protesters later clashed with riot police across the city’s core. Millions have demonstrated over the last 14 weeks in the biggest challenge to China’s rule since the city’s handover from Britain in 1997. The protests were […]
Powerful typhoon Faxai in direct hit on Tokyo
by Shingo ITO TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — A powerful typhoon with potentially record winds and rain battered the Tokyo region early Monday, sparking evacuation warnings to tens of thousands, widespread blackouts and transport disruption. Typhoon Faxai, packing winds of up to 216 kilometers (134 miles) per hour, made landfall in Chiba just east of the capital before dawn, after barrelling through Tokyo Bay. About 5,000 people in Chiba and Kanagawa prefectures were ordered to evacuate, […]
Merkel in Beijing says Hong Kong freedoms must be ‘guaranteed’
BEIJING, China (AFP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Friday the rights and freedoms of people in Hong Kong “must be guaranteed”, after meeting with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in Beijing. Hong Kong has faced months of pro-democracy protests, and ahead of her three-day visit to China this week, demonstrators in the semi-autonomous city appealed to the German chancellor to support them in her meetings with China’s leadership. Merkel said she had discussed tensions […]
Hong Kong protesters aim to ‘stress test’ airport
by Jasmine Leung and Jerome Taylor HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protesters are planning to disrupt transport links to the airport Saturday in the first mobilization of their movement since the city’s leader made a surprise concession earlier this week. Millions of pro-democracy supporters have taken to Hong Kong’s streets for the past three months in the biggest challenge to China’s rule since the city’s handover from Britain in 1997. On […]





