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by Heather SCOTT Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US Federal Reserve raised the benchmark interest rate on Wednesday, a move sure to anger President Donald Trump, but it also sent a clear signal it expects to slow its rate increases next year. The Fed’s fourth rate increase of the year, which sent Wall Street tumbling in mid-afternoon, moved the central bank squarely into the crosshairs of the president, who said a […]
VATICAN CITY (AFP) — Catholic Church’s Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of Los Angeles auxiliary bishop Alexander Salazar over his “inappropriate behaviour” with a minor, the Vatican said Wednesday. The case is the latest in a litany of child sexual abuse scandals to have rocked the Roman Catholic Church of 1.3 billion followers around the world. The Vatican said an investigation by the Archbishop of Los Angeles had found suspicions about Salazar’s behavior […]
by Damon Wake Agence France Presse BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) — The EU announced an urgent investigation Wednesday after hackers with possible links to China accessed thousands of sensitive diplomatic cables. In the latest embarrassing data breach to hit a major international organisation, the New York Times reported that hackers using similar techniques to the Chinese military gained entry to EU communications. The cables from European Union diplomatic missions around the world reveal anxiety about how […]
by Matthieu DEMEESTERE Agence France Presse BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) — Nationalist anger over migration brought down the Belgian government on Tuesday, forcing Prime Minister Charles Michel to offer the king his resignation. With only five months to go until planned legislative elections in May, in was not immediately clear whether King Philippe would accept Michel’s sudden departure. The palace said a decision is pending but a senior source told AFP the “most likely” outcome […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A safety panel set up by US President Donald Trump in the wake of numerous school shootings recommended Tuesday that schools consider arming staff, using veterans as guards and reversing Obama-era guidelines. The Federal Commission on School Safety panel, led by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, was set up after the February massacre in Parkland, Florida, when a former student shot dead 17 people, sparking mass gun control protests. The […]
by Michael Mathes Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump backed off his demand for $5 billion in border wall funding Tuesday, but his subsequent offer was rejected by congressional Democrats, leaving the opposing sides struggling to avert a partial US government shutdown. Trump had stood firm for days, declaring he needed the funds to build the controversial wall, defiantly proclaiming last week that he would be “proud” to stop some […]
NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — A powerful cyclone left one person dead and forced thousands to flee their homes on India’s east coast, officials said Tuesday. Cyclone Phethai packed winds up to 90 kilometres (55 miles) per hour, felling thousands of trees and electricity pylons, and bringing heavy rains to the coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh state after making landfall on Monday. Officials said 10,600 people were moved to relief camps after being evacuated from […]
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — One of South Korean largest human rights groups will strip Myanmar’s de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi of its 2004 prize because of her “indifference” to the atrocities against the Rohingya minority, organizers said Tuesday. Suu Kyi was unable to receive the Gwangju human rights award at the time because she was under house arrest by the military junta. Her party has since taken office in Myanmar and the […]
NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — The new Maldives president, seen as closer to the West and India than his predecessor, secured $1.4 billion from New Delhi on Monday in his first visit abroad to his country’s “closest friend”. Ibrahim Mohamed Solih said after talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi that they would also “strengthen maritime security” through patrols, aerial surveillance and exchanging information. “India is our closest neighbour and our people are bound by ties […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — President Xi Jinping vowed Tuesday to push ahead with China’s “reform and opening up” but warned that no one can “dictate” what it does, as the Communist Party celebrated the policy’s 40th anniversary. “No one is in a position to dictate to the Chinese people what should or should not be done,” Xi said as China faces a stern challenge from the United States over trade and diplomacy. © Agence France-Presse
NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — Hope has all but faded for 13 miners trapped deep underground four days ago when an illegal “rat hole” coal pit flooded in remote northeastern India. Emergency crews have been pumping water from the site since the accident last Thursday in mineral-rich Meghalaya state, but no contact has been made with the workers believed trapped below, police say. Authorities have declined to comment on their fate, but concede the operation […]
by Michael Mathes Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — An intensifying spending standoff sent US lawmakers scrambling Monday to avert a partial government shutdown, with Republican and Democratic leaders deadlocked over President Donald Trump’s demands for border wall funding. As Washington barreled toward a shuttering of key federal agencies in just four days, the White House appeared dug in on Trump’s call for Congress to budget $5 billion in 2019 to fund a […]
