WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — EU justice commissioner Vera Jourova warned Wednesday that data protection scandals such as that currently engulfing Facebook would become “very expensive” for companies from May under new EU regulations. “If some company tried this in Europe after May 2018, very likely this drastic sanction will be applied,” said Jourova, who is in charge of consumer and personal data protection, at the end of a visit to Washington. Facebook is […]
International
Pressure mounts on Putin over spy poisoning scandal
by Theo Merz Agence France Presse MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — International pressure mounted on Russia’s Vladimir Putin over the the Cold-War style poisoning of a spy on British soil, as an ugly war of words took a stinging new turn with comparisons to Hitler in the 1930s. US President Donald Trump agreed with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron “on the need to take action to hold Russia accountable” following the attempted murder of former double […]
EU: new rules will make data breaches ‘very expensive’ for firms
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — EU justice commissioner Vera Jourova warned Wednesday that data protection scandals such as that currently engulfing Facebook would become “very expensive” for companies from May under new EU regulations. “If some company tried this in Europe after May 2018, very likely this drastic sanction will be applied,” said Jourova, who is in charge of consumer and personal data protection, at the end of a visit to Washington. Facebook is under […]
Peru’s embattled president Kuczynski announces resignation
LIMA, Peru (AFP) — Peru’s President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski announced his resignation Wednesday in an address to the nation, the day before he was to face an impeachment vote in Congress. The 79-year-old former Wall Street banker, under fire over his links to Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht, denied allegations of bribe-taking but said his resignation was “the best thing for the country.” Kuczynski is the first president to lose his job over the scandal in […]
As Facebook scandal mushrooms, Zuckerberg vows to ‘step up’
by Glenn CHAPMAN / with Rob Lever in Washington and Robin Millard in London Agence France Presse SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg vowed Wednesday to “step up” to fix problems at the social media giant, as it fights a snowballing scandal over the hijacking of personal data from millions of its users. “We have a responsibility to protect your data, and if we can’t then we don’t deserve to serve […]
UK PM to urge EU to unite against long-term Russian threat
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British Prime Minister Theresa May will urge EU leaders Thursday to unite against a Russian threat that could last for “years to come”, following the nerve agent attack in Britain. At a summit in Brussels, May will say that the attempt to kill former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal in the city of Salisbury — which she has blamed on Moscow — could have happened anywhere. “The challenge of Russia […]
Texas bomb suspect blows himself up after police move in
by Mark Henricks © Agence France-Presse AUSTIN, United States (AFP) — A man suspected of carrying out a series of parcel bombings in the Texas capital Austin blew himself up Wednesday as police closed in, easing tensions in a city that had been on edge for weeks. Police said they surrounded Mark Conditt, a 23-year-old white male, outside a hotel in city suburbs, where a series of bombings that began on March 2 killed two people […]
Catalan parliament to vote on new president: speaker
BARCELONA, Spain (AFP) — Catalonia’s parliament is to hold a debate and vote Thursday on a new candidate for regional president, Jordi Turull, who risks being disqualified from holding office over his role in the region’s separatist drive. “I will propose to the chamber that Jordi Turull be candidate for president,” Catalan parliament speaker Roger Torrent told reporters late Wednesday, just hours after Turull was summoned to appear in court on Friday. Turull, a former […]
Trump to announce China trade sanctions on Thursday
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump is poised to unveil sanctions against China for the “theft” of US intellectual property Thursday, a White House official said, teeing up a second potential trade war in as many months. Spokesman Raj Shah told AFP that Trump will announce actions following an “investigation into China’s state-led, market-distorting efforts to force, pressure, and steal US technologies and intellectual property.” Beijing has already warned the Trump administration against the move, urging […]
Two wounded, shooter dead at Maryland high school
by Jim Watson, with Chris Lefkow in Washington Agence France Presse GREAT MILLS, United States (AFP) — A 17-year-old student armed with a handgun shot and critically wounded a female classmate at a Maryland high school on Tuesday, officials said, in an outburst of violence just days before a student-organized nationwide march for gun control. St. Mary’s County Sheriff Tim Cameron said the assailant, identified as Austin Rollins, died of a gunshot wound after a […]
N. Korea denies sanctions prompted diplomatic thaw
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — North Korea has broken its silence on the diplomatic thaw with Washington and Seoul, saying it is driving the “peace offensive” and rejecting suggestions that sanctions forced it to the negotiating table. The commentary from the state-run KCNA news agency came with a rapid rapprochement on the Korean peninsula underway, after a period of heightened tensions stoked by a missile and nuclear tests. But as diplomats scurry to arrange two […]
Sixth apparent explosion in Texas: authorities
CHICAGO, United States (AFP) — A sixth explosion was reported in the city of Austin, Texas late Tuesday, following a series of blasts that have so far killed two people, authorities said. Emergency officials said they were responding to a reported blast in the southern part of the state capital city. A man in his thirties was taken to hospital “with potentially serious, not expected to be life-threatening, injuries,” Austin’s medical services agency said on Twitter. […]





