International

S. Korea’s ex-president Park indicted for bribery: Prosecutors

(AFP) — South Korea’s ousted President Park Geun-Hye was Monday charged with bribery involving millions of dollars over the corruption scandal that sparked her downfall. Park, whose impeachment was confirmed by Seoul’s top court last month, also faces charges of abusing her powers and leaking state secrets, Seoul prosecutors probing the scandal said in a statement. “We have formally charged Park… with multiple offenses including abuse of power, coercion, bribery and leaking state secrets,” they […]

PM Hwang: US, South Korea agree early deployment of THAAD

SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — The United States and South Korea agreed on the early deployment of a controversial US missile defense system in the region, the South’s acting president said Monday after talks with visiting US Vice President Mike Pence. “We have agreed to further strengthen the readiness posture of ROK-US alliance that matches the threats posed by North Korea through a swift deployment of THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense),” said Hwang Kyo-Ahn at […]

More than 1,000 Palestinians in Israeli jails launch hunger strike

Palestinian Territories (AFP) — More than 1,000 Palestinians in Israeli jails launched a hunger strike on Monday following a call from Palestinian leader and prominent prisoner Marwan Barghouti, a Palestinian Authority official said. Issa Qaraqe, head of prisoners affairs for the Palestinian Authority, said that “around 1,300 Palestinian prisoners” were participating in the hunger strike and the number could rise. The Palestinian Prisoners Club put the number at 1,500. © Agence France-Presse

US VP Pence arrives near DMZ after failed N.Korea missile test: AFP

MUSAN, South Korea (AFP) — Mike Pence arrived at the gateway to the Demilitarized Zone dividing the two Koreas on Monday, an AFP correspondent reported, in a show of United States resolve hours after North Korea failed in its attempt to test another missile. The US vice president flew by helicopter into Camp Bonifas, a US-led United Nations command post just a few hundred meters (yards) south of the DMZ. From there, he was expected to […]

N.Korea behavior ‘can’t continue’, Trump advisor warns after missile test

by Thomas WATKINS Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States slammed North Korea’s latest missile test as a provocation and insisted Sunday it is working closely with China to resolve a crisis that Washington sees as reaching a critical stage. Amid broader fears that North Korea may again test a nuclear bomb, the Pentagon said Sunday’s missile launch was a failure, with the weapon blowing up almost immediately after its early […]

‘We expected more:’ Erdogan supporters relieved after narrow ‘Yes’ win

    by Fulya Ozerkan and Luana Sarmini-Buonaccorsi in Ankara Agence France Presse ISTANBUL, Turkey (AFP) — Flag-waving supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took to the streets late Sunday following a referendum victory in favor of boosting his powers, though by a much narrower margin than many had expected. Shortly after results showed a tight win for Erdogan, crowds of flag-waving supporters flocked to the Istanbul headquarters of his ruling Justice and Development […]

68 children among dead in bomb attack on Syria evacuees

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AFP) — At least 68 children were among those killed in the car bomb attack on a convoy carrying evacuees from besieged government-held towns in Syria, a monitor said on Sunday. Saturday’s attack in Rashidin west of Aleppo killed at least 126 people, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, updating a previous toll of 112 dead. At least 109 of those killed were evacuees from the towns of Fuaa and Kafraya, it […]

Mother, daughter die in grisly Czech sauna accident

PRAGUE, Czech Republic (AFP) — Two women died in a sauna in the northern Czech Republic after the door handle came off, trapping them inside, police said Sunday. “The mother and daughter aged 65 and 45 were taking a sauna at their friends’ place in a garden colony,” police spokesperson Iva Kormosova said in a statement. “The owner thought they were taking too long to come out so she went to check and found them […]

Death toll in bomb attack on Syria evacuees rises to 112

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AFP) — The death toll in a suicide car bomb attack on buses carrying Syrians evacuated from two besieged government-held towns has risen to at least 112, a monitoring group said Sunday. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that 98 evacuees from the northern towns of Fuaa and Kafraya were killed when an explosives-laden vehicle hit their buses at a transit point west of Aleppo on Saturday. It said the remainder of […]

Troops mass in Pyongyang in show of strength

By Sebastien Berger Agence France Presse PYONGYANG, North Korea — North Korea’s military forces were massed in Pyongyang Saturday for a show of strength by leader Kim Jong-Un as tensions mount over his nuclear ambitions. Hundreds of flatbed trucks packed with soldiers lined the banks of the Taedong river ahead of a parade through the North Korean capital. Ostensibly the event was to mark the 105th anniversary of the birth of Kim’s grandfather, the North’s […]

Hacked files suggest NSA penetrated SWIFT, Mideast banks

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Files released by the mysterious hacker Shadow Brokers suggested Friday the United States National Security Agency had penetrated the SWIFT banking network and monitored a number of Middle East banks. The files, according to computer security analysts, also showed the NSA had found and exploited numerous vulnerabilities in a range of Microsoft Windows products widely used on computers around the world. Analysts generally accepted the files, which show someone exploiting so-called […]

‘Conflict could break out at any moment’ over N. Korea: China

BEIJING, China (AFP) — A “conflict could break out at any moment” over North Korea, China’s foreign minister Wang Yi said Friday, warning there would be “no winner” in any war, as tensions soar with the US. “Dialogue is the only possible solution”, he said during a joint press conference with his French counterpart Jean-Marc Ayrault in Beijing. © Agence France-Presse