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SHANGHAI, China (AFP) – Handheld crossbows that can fire out needles and nails are the latest must-have toy in China but anxious parents want them banned before a young child gets blinded or worse. Selling online and in shops for as little as seven yuan ($1), so-called toothpick crossbows were originally designed to shoot out just that — toothpicks. But if swapped out for needles they are potent enough to crack glass, said the Shanghai […]
by Chris Stein Agence France-Presse WERDER, Ethiopia (AFP) – The Somali people of Ethiopia’s southeast have a name for the drought that has killed livestock, dried up wells and forced hundreds of thousands into camps: sima, which means “equalized.” It’s an appropriate name, they say, because this drought has left no person untouched, spared no corner of their arid region. And it has forced 7.8 million people across the whole of Ethiopia to rely on […]
MARYLAND, United States (Reuters) — The National Aeronautics and Space Administration on Wednesday (June 21) is expected to detail its plans to study and promote a celestial show that will darken skies from Oregon to South Carolina. During the August 21 eclipse, the moon will pass between the sun and Earth, blocking the face of the sun and leaving only its outer atmosphere, or corona, visible in the sky. It is the first coast-to-coast total eclipse […]
LISBON, Portugal (AFP) – Angolan Vice President Manuel Vicente will face trial in Portugal over allegations he bribed a magistrate to drop two investigations against him, according to a Wednesday ruling cited in Portuguese media. Vicente, who was the president of Angolan national oil company Sonangol at the time of the alleged crimes, is accused of bribery, money laundering and document falsification, the public prosecutor’s office said, according to Portugal’s main news agency Lusa. Lisbon’s […]
by Katy Lee Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Europe sizzled in a continent-wide heatwave on Wednesday, with London seeing Britain’s hottest June day since 1976 as Portugal battled to stamp out deadly forest fires. More than 1,000 firefighters were still fighting to control the flames that broke out in central Portugal at the weekend, killing 64 people. Cooler weather was aiding their efforts, but thermometers were still hovering around 35 degrees Celsius (95 […]
by Robin Millard Agence France Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Prince Philip, the 96-year-old husband of Queen Elizabeth II, has been admitted to hospital as a “precautionary measure” for treatment of an infection, Buckingham Palace said Wednesday. The infection arose from “a pre-existing condition,” the palace said. The Duke of Edinburgh, who is to retire from public duties later this year, was admitted to King Edward VII Hospital in London on Tuesday night. Prince Philip […]
by Dave Clark / Thomas Watkins Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — United States Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Wednesday urged Chinese officials to apply greater diplomatic and economic pressure on North Korea to force Pyongyang to rein in its nuclear weapons program. Tillerson’s remarks came after he and Pentagon chief Jim Mattis met with the Chinese visitors at the State Department, where Mattis said he saw scope for an improved defense relationship. […]
by Marianne Barriaux with Emmanuelle Michel in Lisbon Agence France Presse A fire chief reopened the debate over Portugal’s deadly forest blaze Wednesday, arguing it had a criminal origin, as hundreds of firefighters struggled to contain it. Politicians added their voice to those of local people who have questioned the handling of the disaster by the emergency services, as the funerals of the 64 killed took place. The president of the League of Firefighters, Jaime Marta […]
by Jean Marc Mojon and Ali Choukeir Agence France Presse BAGHDAD, Iraq (AFP) — Jihadists on Wednesday blew up Mosul’s iconic leaning minaret and the adjacent mosque where their leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2014 declared himself “caliph” in his only public appearance, Iraqi officials said. The Islamic State group swiftly issued a statement via its Amaq propaganda agency blaming a United States strike, but the US-led coalition condemned the destruction as a crime against […]
by Ian Timberlake Agence France-Presse RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Saudi Arabia’s King Salman ousted his nephew as crown prince on Wednesday and installed his son Mohammed bin Salman, capping a meteoric rise for the 31-year-old that puts him one step from the throne. The young prince already wielded huge power before he became heir, spearheading a sweeping economic and social reform programme for the ultraconservative kingdom. His rise comes at a crucial time for Saudi Arabia […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Prime Minister Theresa May on Wednesday presented eight draft laws to take Britain out of the European Union in a legislative program read out in parliament by Queen Elizabeth II. The laws include the “Great Repeal Bill” to overhaul existing EU legislation and separate bills on customs, trade, immigration, fisheries and agriculture. The queen said the “Great Repeal Bill” would repeal the European Communities Act, the 1972 legislation that enshrined […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Prince Philip, the 96-year-old husband of Queen Elizabeth II, has been admitted to hospital as a “precautionary measure” for treatment of an infection, Buckingham Palace said Wednesday. The infection arose from “a pre-existing condition”, the palace said. The Duke of Edinburgh, who is to retire from public duties later this year, was admitted to hospital on Tuesday night.
