International

Putin talks arms, nuclear deals in India

NEW DELHI, India (AFP) — President Vladimir Putin was expected Friday to sign a deal in India worth more than $5 billion for the S-400 air defense system, despite US warnings of sanctions against countries buying Russian military hardware. Putin, who arrived in New Delhi late Thursday, was also set to discuss with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi further agreements worth some $3 billion for Russian naval ships and military helicopters. Russia building its second […]

US court nominee in unusual plea as Senate nears vote

by Michael Mathes and Chris Lefkow Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — As angry protesters swamped Capitol Hill on the eve of a crunch vote Friday to advance the nomination of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, the judge made a highly unusual plea to defend his “impartiality.” The Wall Street Journal opinion piece by Judge Kavanaugh appeared as Republicans confidently declared that a week-long FBI investigation found nothing to corroborate sex assault allegations […]

Jordan receives $1 billion from Gulf aid package

AMMAN, Jordan (AFP) — Jordan on Thursday received over $1 billion in financial aid from three key Gulf backers as part of a broader package to help ease an economic crisis, a government source said. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait in June offered a $2.5-billion (2.2 billion euro) lifeline to Amman after a wave of protests. Finance ministers from the three countries officially signed off on the commitments at a meeting in […]

Fujimori, in hospital plea, says return to prison would be ‘death sentence’

LIMA, Peru (AFP) — Peru’s ex-president Alberto Fujimori said from his hospital bed Thursday that a return to prison would be a “death sentence,” the day after a court revoked a pardon for crimes against humanity. Fujimori, 80, addressed a plea to Peru’s President Martin Vizcarra and the South American country’s judiciary in a video recorded at his bedside. “Please do not kill me. If I return to prison my heart will not support it. […]

Pence paints China as enemy in US election

by Shaun TANDON Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Vice President Mike Pence on Thursday accused China of military aggression, commercial theft and rising human rights violations as he cast the Asian power as a villain bent on interfering in upcoming US elections. In a blistering speech that expands on complaints aired by President Donald Trump at the United Nations last week, Pence accused China of waging an “unprecedented effort to influence American […]

Chile church says sorry for conduct guidelines for priests

  By Luis Andres Henao and Patricia Luna Associated Press SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — Chile’s Roman Catholic Church has apologized for a set of conduct guidelines for priests dealing with children that has caused outrage just as the South American country is being rocked by a widespread clerical sex abuse scandal. The recommendations include asking priests not to “touch the area of the genitals or the chest” of minors, kiss them on the mouth, spank […]

International aid effort for Indonesia quake-tsunami swings into gear

  by Harry Pearl Agence France Presse PALU, Indonesia (AFP) — An international aid effort to help tens of thousands of victims of Indonesia’s quake-tsunami disaster swung into gear Thursday after days of delays, with planes flying in vital supplies for shattered communities. A total of 1,424 people have been confirmed dead and over 2,500 injured after the monster earthquake struck Friday, sending destructive waves barrelling into Sulawesi island. The double disaster reduced buildings in […]

South Koreans visiting North Korea for summit anniversary

By KIM TONG-HYUNG Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A South Korean government delegation arrived in North Korea on Thursday for a joint celebration of the anniversary of a 2007 summit and to possibly hold further peace talks. South Korean Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon said the visit is an opportunity to strengthen “reconciliation, cooperation and peace” between the rivals. Cho’s group was greeted at Pyongyang’s airport by Ri Son Gwon, chairman of the North […]

DFA: Two Filipinos killed in California car crash

(Eagle News) — Two Filipinos were killed in a car crash in Palmdale, California, on Saturday, Sept. 29. The Department of Foreign Affairs did not identify the Filipinas, but said they were in their 60s. Consul General Adel Angelito Cruz said in his report to Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano that the two were killed after the vehicle they were in crashed into a construction truck on 14 Freeway near Palmdale Boulevard. According to […]

Trump shrugs off report revealing a fortune in tax dodges, parental gifts

by Catherine Triomphe Agence France Presse NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump on Wednesday shrugged off a New York Times investigation that concluded he made his fortune with the help of more than $400 million from his parents, partly through tax schemes, as a boring, rehashed “hit piece.” Trump has often boasted that he built a multi-billion dollar real estate empire from a $1 million loan from his father, Fred, himself […]

US pulls out of international accord over Jerusalem embassy case

  WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States said Wednesday it was quitting an international accord related to the top UN court after the Palestinians challenged the US move of its Israel embassy to Jerusalem. It was the latest attack on the international justice system by the administration of President Donald Trump, who last month at the United Nations virulently rejected the authority of the International Criminal Court. Trump’s national security adviser, John Bolton, […]