International

Scotland sows confusion in May’s grand Brexit plan

by Dario THUBURN Agence France-Presse LONDON, United Kingdom – Scotland’s plans for a second independence referendum have wrong-footed Prime Minister Theresa May, who could now be forced into giving the go-ahead for the vote — but only after Brexit. Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon’s bombshell announcement on Monday came at the start of a week in which May had been expected to announce the start of the process for extracting Britain from the EU. Downing […]

S.Korea prosecutors to summon ex-president Park for questioning

  SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — South Korean prosecutors will summon former president Park Geun-Hye for questioning as a criminal suspect, a spokesperson said on Tuesday. Park has been named as an accomplice to the secret confidante at the heart of a corruption and influence-peddling scandal that triggered her dramatic downfall, Choi Soon-Sil. Confirmation of Park’s impeachment by the nation’s top court last week stripped her of immunity from criminal prosecution. “We will decide Wednesday when […]

50 North Koreans to be deported from Malaysia for overstaying

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AFP) — Malaysia will deport 50 North Koreans for overstaying their visas, the deputy prime minister said Tuesday, in an apparent exception to a departure ban after the assassination of Kim Jong-Nam. The killing of the half-brother of North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-Un last month in Malaysia with VX nerve agent triggered an angry standoff between Kuala Lumpur and Pyongyang that has seen them expel each other’s ambassador and refuse to let their citizens […]

Colombia approves constitutional reform for special war crimes courts

BOGOTA, Colombia (AFP) — Colombia’s Senate late Monday approved a constitutional reform that creates special war crimes courts, a key component of the historic peace agreement reached with Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia guerrillas ending five decades of warfare. The announcement was made via Twitter by Interior Minister Juan Fernando Cristo, who was in the Senate at the time of the vote. President Juan Manuel Santos won the Nobel Peace Prize in October for his efforts […]

Family of Trump son-in-law in $4-bn deal with Chinese company

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A company owned by the family of President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is set to receive more than $400 million from a Chinese firm that is investing in its Manhattan office tower, Bloomberg reported Monday. The Kushner Companies deal with Anbang Insurance Group for the property at 666 Fifth Avenue is worth $4 billion, with real estate experts calling it an unusually favorable deal for the Kushners, the report said. […]

17 killed in China coal mine accident, state media reports

    BEIJING, China (AFP) — Seventeen Chinese coal miners were killed when a lift used to move workers fell down a shaft, state media reported, the latest deadly mishap in the country’s accident-prone coal-mining industry. The accident occurred Thursday when a cable supporting a mining cage caught fire, causing the rig to tumble down into a state-operated coal mine in northeast China’s Heilongjiang province, Xinhua news agency said. An operation to extract the trapped […]

State of emergency declared in parts of US due to Winter Storm Stella

by Jennie MATTHEW Agence France Presse NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Large swaths of the United States East Coast declared a state of emergency, cancelled flights and shut schools as millions braced for potentially the worst winter storm of the season with up to two feet of snow forecast to fall. Winter Storm Stella is expected to begin overnight with accumulation becoming most intense Tuesday morning, combined with winds of up to 60 miles per […]

Merkel says Erdogan terror comments ‘absurd’

BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel regards accusations by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that she supports “terrorists” as “clearly absurd”, her spokesman Steffen Seibert said late Monday. “The chancellor has no intention of taking part in a game of provocation,” Seibert said in a brief written statement. “These accusations are clearly absurd.” Erdogan, whose government is embroiled in a spiralling row with European governments over the cancellation of pro-Ankara rallies on their […]

14 million more uninsured under Republican plan in 2018: US budget office

by Michael Mathes Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — About 14 million fewer Americans will have health insurance next year under the new Republican plan to replace Obamacare, a nonpartisan congressional analysis projected Monday, heaping pressure on President Donald Trump to make good on his pledge for broader coverage. By 2026, that number would shoot up to 24 million, the Congressional Budget Office projected, in perhaps the most alarming revelation in its highly-anticipated […]

Scotland takes a step towards new independence vote

by Mark McLAUGHLIN with Robin MILLARD in London Agence France-Presse EDINBURGH, United Kingdom – Scotland’s announcement on Monday that it will begin preparations for a new independence bid raised the spectre of one of Brexit’s most feared consequences — the break-up of the United Kingdom. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she would seek the semi-autonomous Scottish parliament’s authority next week to ask the UK government in London for the powers to hold a referendum before Brexit […]

Green light given for Egypt’s Mubarak to walk free

by Haitham El-Tabei Agence France-Presse CAIRO, Egypt – The release of Egypt’s ex-president Hosni Mubarak approved on Monday ends “talk of the Arab Spring” uprising that toppled him in 2011 after 30 years in power, an analyst said. An Egyptian prosecutor approved a request by Mubarak’s lawyer for his release after a top court acquitted him of involvement in the killing of protesters during the popular revolt. Mubarak’s expected release comes as many leaders of […]

Northeast US braces for worst snowstorm of season

by Jennie MATTHEW Agence France-Presse NEW YORK, United States – Millions of Americans braced for potentially the worst winter storm of the season with blizzards forecast to dump up to two feet of snow in New York on Tuesday, closing schools and spelling travel chaos. The National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning from midnight Monday (0400 GMT) Tuesday to midnight Tuesday for America’s financial capital and largest city, stretching north into Connecticut and south into New […]