International

US ready to negotiate with N.Korea ‘immediately’: Pompeo

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo welcomed Pyongyang’s “important commitments” made by Pyongyang during Wednesday’s inter-Korean summit, adding Washington was ready to begin negotiating immediately to achieve the denuclearization of North Korea “by January 2021.” In a statement, Pompeo said he spoke with his North Korean counterpart Wednesday morning and invited him to meet in New York next week on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly. The statement […]

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Saudi King Salman hosts Pakistan PM on first foreign visit

RIYADH, Sudi Arabia (AFP) — Saudi King Salman hosted Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan Wednesday on his maiden foreign visit since coming to power, state media said, as Islamabad seeks to stave off a financial crisis. Khan also met Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and energy minister Khalid al-Falih as he concluded his two-day visit, the Saudi Press Agency said, amid speculation that he would seek economic assistance from the oil-rich ally. “Anyone who comes […]

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Iglesia Ni Cristo conducts “Aid to Humanity” for Queensbridge housing residents in New York

  (Eagle News) – The Iglesia Ni Cristo (Church Of Christ) recently conducted an International Aid to Humanity in Long Island City in New York, particularly for the tenants of Queensbridge Houses, the largest public housing development in North America. The INC, upon the directive of INC Executive Minister Brother Eduardo V. Manalo, gave more than 1,200 goodwill bags, containing food and other items of immediate need, to the residents of Queensbridge in the morning […]

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Syria’s Assad blames Israel for downing of Russian plane

DAMASCUS, Syria (AFP) — President Bashar al-Assad on Wednesday blamed Israel for the downing of a Russian plane, which was accidentally hit by Syrian anti-aircraft fire while seeking to intercept Israeli missile fire. “This unfortunate incident was the result of Israeli arrogance and debauchery,” the Syrian leader said, offering his condolences in a letter to his Russian counterpart for the death of 15 people killed in the incident over Syria on Monday. © Agence France-Presse

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Trump vows ‘100 percent’ support for storm-battered Carolinas

by Nicholas Kamm with Chris Lefkow in Washington Agence France Presse CONWAY, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump toured storm-battered areas of the Carolinas on Wednesday, handing out meals to residents and promising the “100 percent” support of the federal government to victims of Hurricane Florence. “Washington is with you. Trump is with you,” the president said during a briefing at emergency operations headquarters in Conway, South Carolina. Trump began his tour of […]

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North Korea’s Kim to visit Seoul, shut missile site

  SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will make a historic visit to Seoul “in the near future”, he said Wednesday after a summit with the South’s Moon Jae-in in Pyongyang. Moon — who went North looking to bring fresh momentum to the stalled effort to eliminate Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons — said the trip could happen this year unless there were “special circumstances”. Moon added that the North had agreed […]

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Record $27.5 million settlement in NY Catholic child sex abuse case

  NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — The Catholic church in New York has reached a record $27.5 million settlement with four men who said they were sexually abused as children, attorneys said Tuesday. The Diocese of Brooklyn, one of the city’s boroughs, agreed to make the payments to the four, who were sexually abused between 2003 and 2009 by their religion teacher, their lawyers said. The sum breaks down to $6.87 million for each […]

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Strawberry sabotage akin to ‘terrorism’: Australia PM

SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — The tainting of supermarket strawberries with sewing needles is comparable to “terrorism”, Australia’s prime minister said Wednesday, as he demanded tougher sentencing in response to a nationwide scare. Urging Australians to make a strawberry pavlova this weekend to help struggling farmers, Scott Morrison demanded a change in the law to put the perpetrators behind bars for 15 years. “We’re not mucking about” said Morrison, after at least 20 pieces of fruit […]

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North Korea to close missile test site: Moon

SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea will close its Tongchang-ri missile testing site, the South’s President Moon Jae-in said Wednesday after a summit with Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang. “The North agreed to permanently close the Tongchang-ri missile engine test site and missile launch facility in the presence of experts from relevant nations,” Moon told reporters. © Agence France-Presse

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Merkel removes spy chief to defuse row over far-right

by Frank ZELLER and Michelle FITZPATRICK in Frankfurt Agence France Presse BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — Angela Merkel’s government on Tuesday removed domestic spy chief Hans-Georg Maassen from office, transferring him to a different post to end an explosive row over immigration and the far right that once more rocked the German chancellor’s fragile coalition. “Mr Maassen will become state secretary in the interior ministry,” Merkel and the leaders of her coalition parties announced in a […]

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Pompeo to lead UN meeting on N. Korea

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will chair a meeting of the UN Security Council on North Korea September 27 to urge the international community to keep up the pressure on Pyongyang. The meeting of top diplomats will take place on the sidelines of the United Nations Annual General Assembly. “Secretary Pompeo intends to chair a UNSC ministerial on North Korea on Thursday September the 27th,” State Department spokeswoman Heather […]

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Qatar Airways files $69 million loss amid Gulf crisis

DOHA, Qatar (AFP) — Qatar Airways on Tuesday posted a net loss of over $69 million in the year to March 2018, blaming the “illegal blockade” against Doha by a Saudi-led bloc of countries. The tiny Gulf emirate’s national airline said the period had been “the most challenging year in its 20-year history”. Saudi Arabia and its allies broke off diplomatic relations with gas-rich Qatar on June 5, 2017. They closed all land, sea and […]

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