International

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 […]

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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 […]

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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 […]

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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 […]

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Iraq forces advance in Mosul, search for militants and bombs

by Tony Gamal-Gabriel Agence France-Presse MOUSL, Iraq – Iraqi forces said Monday that they have taken more territory from jihadists and were searching for militants and bombs on the edge of the Old City as they press an offensive in west Mosul. They are also striking IS with armed drones as part of a renewed push launched on March 5 that has forced the jihadists out of several neighbourhoods and key sites, including the famed Mosul […]

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Powerful Saudi prince to meet Trump

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Saudi Arabia’s powerful Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman left for the United States on Monday to meet President Donald Trump, state media said. Prince Mohammed, who is seeking foreign investment in an economic reform plan, is the highest-ranking Saudi official to hold talks with Trump since the US leader took office in January. The visit, which officially begins Thursday, focuses on the “strengthening of bilateral relations… and regional issues of […]

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Violence against Syria’s children ‘at its worst’ in 2016: UN

  BEIRUT, Lebanon (AFP) — Violence against children in war-ravaged Syria was “at its worst” in 2016, the United Nations children’s agency said Monday as the conflict nears its seventh year. The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund said that cases of children being killed, maimed, or recruited into armed groups were the “highest on record” last year. “The depth of suffering is unprecedented. Millions of children in Syria come under attack on a daily basis, […]

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Expanding Turkey President Erdogan’s powers will cripple democracy: opposition leader

by Raziye Akkoc and Luana Sarmini-Buonaccorsi Agence France Presse ISTANBUL, Turkey (AFP) — Turkey will vote against expanding President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s powers in an April referendum, the leader of the country’s main opposition party has predicted, warning the opposite outcome would cripple democracy by concentrating power in one man’s hands. In an interview with Agence France-Presse, Republican People’s Party (CHP) chief Kemal Kilicdaroglu said even some ruling party voters were against a plan that […]

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Landslide at Ethiopia garbage dump kills at least 46

by Chris STEIN Agence France Presse ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AFP) — At least 46 people died and dozens more were hurt in a giant landslide at Ethiopia’s largest rubbish dump outside Addis Ababa, a tragedy squatters living there blamed on a biogas plant being built nearby. Saturday’s landslide flattened dozens of homes of people living in the Koshe dump when part of the largest pile of rubbish collapsed, an AFP journalist said. Dagmawit Moges, head […]

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South Korea’s Moon vows ‘new history’ after impeachment

SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — The front-runner to succeed South Korea’s impeached president Park Geun-Hye on Sunday called for unity as the country writes a “new history”, while hundreds gathered outside the home of the ousted leader in a show of support. The Constitutional Court on Friday upheld a parliamentary vote to impeach Park, effectively removing her from office over a corruption scandal involving her close friend. A presidential election is to be held within […]

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Top Republican challenges Trump to prove wiretapping claim

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — A senior Republican lawmaker on Sunday challenged President Donald Trump to prove his claim that his phone was tapped by predecessor Barack Obama during last year’s campaign — or else retract the unsubstantiated allegation. Senator John McCain, a frequent Trump critic, issued his demand in an interview with CNN. “The president has one of two choices, either retract, or to provide the information that the American people deserve,” McCain said. […]

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Bus in Haiti flees accident, kills 34: officials

by Amelie BARON Agence France Presse GONAIVES, Haiti (AFP) –A bus speeding away from a hit-and-run accident plowed into dozens of street musicians in northern Haiti on Sunday, killing 34 people, officials said. Seventeen people also were injured in Gonaives, a city of some 300,000 people located about 150 kilometers (90 miles) northwest of the capital Port-au-Prince. “First, the bus plowed into two pedestrians, killing one of them, and injuring the other,” Marie-Alta Jean Baptiste, […]

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