International

Iran resumes hunt for missing plane

TEHRAN, Iran (AFP) — Iranian rescue teams resumed their search on Monday for a passenger plane that disappeared high in the Zagros mountains the previous day with 66 people onboard, local media reported. State television said the weather had improved after blizzard conditions hampered search efforts Sunday, and that helicopters were now able to take part in the hunt for Aseman Airlines flight EP3704. The authorities had called off the rescue effort overnight as heavy […]

Togo talks offer ‘last chance’ to resolve crisis

  by Emile Kouton with Celia Lebur in Lagos © Agence France-Presse LOME, Togo (AFP) — After six months of political crisis, a dialogue between Togo’s government and the opposition opening on Monday is seen by many as the last chance to resolve a bitter dispute over the rule of embattled President Faure Gnassingbe. But the talks have raised a welter of emotions in this tiny west African country, ranging from hope to incredulity. “It’s a ‘last […]

Trump slams FBI over school shooting, blames preoccupation with Russia probe

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump slammed the FBI Saturday for failing to heed signs that could have prevented the Florida school shooting, charging the agency was too preoccupied with probing his campaign team over Russian election meddling. Allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential race and collusion with the Trump campaign are being investigated by several congressional committees and by special prosecutor Robert Mueller, who took charge of the federal […]

Iran airline retracts toll of 66 dead in plane crash: media

TEHRAN, Iran (AFP) — Iran’s Aseman Airlines on Sunday retracted its statement that all 66 people aboard a passenger plane had died after it crashed, as rescue teams struggled to find the wreckage. The ATR-72 twin-engine plane crashed amid severe weather in the Zagros mountains after taking off on a domestic flight from Tehran. “Given the special circumstances of the region, we still have no access to the spot of the crash and therefore we […]

‘Do not test Israel’s resolve’, Netanyahu warns Iran

by Michelle Fitzpatrick and Joseph Schmid Agence France Presse MUNICH, Germany (AFP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Tehran on Sunday over aggressions by Iran and its “proxies” in Syria, saying he would not allow them to “put a noose of terror around our neck.” Calling it “a message to the tyrants of Tehran”, he warned in a speech at the Munich Security Conference: “Do not test Israel’s resolve.” His fiery comments came as […]

Florida students to march on Washington in call for gun reform

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Students who survived a mass shooting at their Florida school on Sunday announced plans to march on Washington in a bid to “shame” lawmakers into reforming laws that make powerful firearms readily available. The “March for our Lives” will take place on March 24, with sister marches planned across the country, a group of students told ABC News, vowing to make Wednesday’s shooting a turning point in America’s deadlocked debate […]

Death toll rises to 14 in Mexico helicopter crash

SANTIAGO JAMILTEPEC, Mexico (AFP) — The death toll from a helicopter crash that followed a strong earthquake in southern Mexico rose to 14 Sunday, as the defense minister said the government assumed full responsibility. The tragedy struck Friday night as a military helicopter flew the interior minister and other officials to an area near the epicenter of a 7.2-magnitude earthquake that shook Mexico earlier that evening. Officials say a dust cloud caused the pilot to […]

Pope revives sexual abuse panel

  by Olivier Baube Agence France Presse VATICAN CITY, Holy See (AFP) — The Vatican said Saturday it has renewed its anti-pedophile panel as Pope Francis acts to quell the global scandal over the sexual abuse of children by priests. The panel had come under fire from two high-profile members, former sex abuse victims who quit at what they saw as a lack of reform and obstruction at the highest level of the Catholic Church. […]

13 killed in minister’s quake zone helicopter crash

  by Joshua Howat Berger Agence France Presse   MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AFP) — A 7.2-magnitude earthquake that rattled Mexico on Friday triggered a tragedy when a minister’s helicopter killed 13 people during a crash-landing on the way to the epicenter. The UH-60 Black Hawk military helicopter landed on its side, crushing a van. There were no reported casualties from the quake itself, which damaged buildings. The chopper was carrying Interior Minister Alfonso Navarrete and […]

Mexico minister survives helicopter crash that kills two on ground

  MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AFP) — A helicopter carrying the Mexican interior minister and a governor crashed near the epicenter of a powerful earthquake in the country’s south on Friday, killing two people who were on the ground, officials said. Interior Minister Alfonso Navarrete and Alejandro Murat, governor of the state of Oaxaca, were on their way to survey the scene of the destruction left by the 7.2 magnitude earthquake when the accident occurred, the […]

Cameroon separatists prepare for guerrilla war

by Célia Lebur  IKOM, Nigeria (AFP) — For the first time in his life, Victor Obi believes that the only way to win freedom in Cameroon is with a gun. “I don’t want to die, but the only future is our independence, and they will not give it to us,” said the student, whose name has been changed for his own safety. The 25-year-old is camped out in a small Nigerian village just kilometres from his home […]

Trump visits Florida school shooting survivors, FBI admits it missed tip

  by Leila Macor / with Andrew Beatty in Washington Agence France Presse POMPANO BEACH, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump on Friday visited a Florida hospital to offer comfort to those wounded in a mass school shooting, after the FBI admitted it mishandled a tip about the troubled teen behind the massacre that left 17 dead. The arrival of Trump and his wife Melania came at the end of a difficult day […]