International

Malaysia’s Mahathir wins elections, toppling long-ruling regime

  by Sam Reeves  and Martin Abbugao Agence France Presse Malaysia’s veteran ex-leader Mahathir Mohamad, 92, won a historic election victory Thursday, in a political earthquake that toppled the country’s scandal-plagued premier and ousted a regime that had ruled for over six decades. In a stunning political upset that took pundits by surprise, Mahathir’s opposition alliance ended the long hold on power of the Barisan Nasional coalition, which has been in power in Malaysia since […]

“This is fantastic” say guests from Sierra Leone and Ghana who joined INC walk in Greece

(Eagle News) — Guests from Sierra Leone and Ghana who joined the Iglesia Ni Cristo Worldwide Walk to Fight Poverty in Athens, Greece described the global charity walk as “fantastic” as they saw the sincerity of the INC’s efforts to help the poor communities in Africa. Ishmael Kamara and Aruna Rashid Kamara from Sierra Leone said they “liked” the event very much. Adjetey Sowah from Ghana also said they enjoyed joining the INC walk that […]

East Asian powers back N. Korea denuclearization

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — East Asian powers on Wednesday threw their weight behind breakneck diplomacy to rid North Korea of nuclear weapons, setting aside their differences on the process to endorse an intra-Korean deal. Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is hosting his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang and South Korean President Moon Jae-in as preparations for a summit between Washington and Pyongyang heat up. On Wednesday, top US diplomat Mike Pompeo was in Pyongyang to prepare […]

Saudi ready to raise oil supply after US pullout from Iran deal

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, has said it will take all necessary measures to prevent supply shortages following the US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal. “The kingdom will work with major oil producers within and outside OPEC, and with major consumers as well to limit the impact of any shortages in supplies,” the Saudi energy ministry said in a statement late Tuesday. The kingdom’s assurance came just […]

Netanyahu heads for Putin talks after Trump pullout from Iran deal

JERUSALEM, Israel (AFP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu headed to Moscow on Wednesday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, hours after US President Donald Trump announced he would pull out of the Iran nuclear deal. Netanyahu and Putin have held a series of meetings and phone conversations in recent months, mainly over Syria and the involvement there of Israel’s arch-rival Iran. “The meetings between us are always important and this one is especially […]

Seoul expects N.Korea will release 3 US detainees to Pompeo

SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea is expected to release three US detainees as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visits Wednesday, an official at the South’s presidential office said according to the Yonhap news agency. Pompeo arrived in Pyongyang to discuss preparations for a summit between leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump on the North’s nuclear weapons. But the three Korean-Americans detained in the North is a significant domestic political issue […]

S. Korea ex-president Park leaves jail for medical care

SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Disgraced former South Korean president Park Geun-hye briefly left prison to receive medical care at a hospital in Seoul on Wednesday, a spokesman for the medical facility said. Park was convicted of corruption and jailed for 24 years last month, completing a dramatic fall from grace for the country’s first female leader who became a figure of public fury and ridicule. The 66-year-old has been allowed out of prison several […]

Anger, dismay, support: how the world sees US withdrawal from Iran deal

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal prompted a furious reaction in Tehran, regret in Europe and cheers from Israel and Saudi Arabia. The following is a selection of reactions from around the globe to Trump’s biggest foreign policy move since taking office: ‘Psychological warfare’ “This decision was an act of psychological warfare against Iran.” — Iranian President Hassan Rouhani Uranium enrichment to resume?  “I […]

Pompeo in Pyongyang as Korean whirlwind gathers pace

PYONGYANG, North Korea (AFP) — America’s top diplomat Mike Pompeo arrived in Pyongyang Wednesday, landing at the center of a whirlwind of diplomacy ahead of a planned US-North Korea summit. Pompeo was dispatched on an unannounced visit — his second in weeks, but first as secretary of state — to lay the groundwork for Donald Trump’s unprecedented meeting with Kim Jong Un. His visit also comes as rumors fly over the fate of three US […]

CIA nominee Haspel to vow not to restart torture program

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Gina Haspel, President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the CIA, will pledge Wednesday to prevent the restart of the 2002-2005 interrogation program that saw detainees tortured. The three-decade veteran of the Central Intelligence Agency’s covert operations is facing opposition over her role at a secret CIA prison in Thailand in 2002 where Al-Qaeda detainees were waterboarded. “I understand that what many people around the country want to know about are […]

China’s Xi, North Korea’s Kim meet ahead of Trump summit

by Laurent THOMET Agence France Presse BEIJING, China (AFP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping met Kim Jong Un in China for the second time in six weeks on Tuesday and later spoke with Donald Trump, in an intensifying whirlwind of diplomacy as the North Korean and US leaders prepare for a historic summit. Kim reiterated his commitment to the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula during his meeting with Xi, and the Chinese leader later in […]