International

Priest murdered in French church attack: what we know so far

by Pauline FROISSART PARIS, France (AFP) — An elderly priest had his throat slit in a church in northern France on Tuesday after two men stormed the building and took hostages. The attack in the Normandy town of Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray came as France was still coming to terms with the Bastille Day killings in Nice claimed by the Islamic State jihadist group. Here is what we know so far about the church attack: What happened? Two […]

Sanders camp nudges Democratic platform to left

PHILADELPHIA, United States (AFP) — Bernie Sanders is urging his most passionate supporters to back Hillary Clinton in the battle for the White House, assuring them they have already helped shape “the most progressive platform in the history of the Democratic Party.” The common statement of policy principles was adopted Monday on the opening day of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia. Here are its key points: The one percent Echoing a central message of […]

One French church attacker identified as Adel Kermiche, 19: prosecutor

PARIS, France (AFP) — French Prosecutor Francois Molins said Tuesday that one of two jihadists who attacked a church in a Normandy town, and slit a priest’s throat, was 19-year-old Adel Kermiche. Kermiche was known to security services, having twice been arrested on his way to Syria, and was under house arrest and wearing an electronic monitoring bracelet at the time of the attack. Molins said Kermiche and an unknown accomplice, armed with knives, had […]

Patient shoots dead doctor in Berlin before killing himself

  (Reuters)   A patient shot a doctor in a university clinic in Berlin on Tuesday before killing himself, but there were “no signs at all” of a link with Islamist militancy, police in the German capital said. Germany is on edge because of a spate of violent attacks on civilians by men of Middle Eastern or Asian origin since July 18 that have killed 10 people. Islamic State militants claimed responsibility for two of those […]

Elderly priest killed in French church, attack claimed by Islamic State

  (Reuters) Assailants loyal to Islamic State forced an elderly priest to his knees before slitting his throat and took several worshippers hostage in a French church on Tuesday before police shot the attackers dead. It was the latest in a wave of attacks in Europe inspired by the Islamist militant group based in Iraq and Syria that is on the defensive against a U.S.-led military coalition in which France is a major partner. The […]

Priest killed in French church before police shoot dead hostage-takers

  (REUTERS)  Two attackers killed a priest with a blade and seriously wounded another hostage in a church in northern France on Tuesday before being shot dead by French police. There were no immediate details on the identity or motives of the two assailants but the investigation was handed to the anti-terrorist unit of the Paris prosecutor’s office. A police source said it appeared that the priest had his throat slit. The Vatican condemned what […]

BREAKING NEWS: Two attackers ‘neutralized’, one hostage killed in France church attack

  (REUTERS)    French police “neutralized” two men armed with blades who had taken several people hostage in a church in northern France on Tuesday, the police said. A police source said that one of the hostages had been killed with a blade in the attack which took place in the Normandy town of Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, south of Rouen. French media reported the attackers cut the throat of the priest. French President Francois Hollande was on his […]

Australia probes youth detention abuse likened to Guantanamo

SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) by Martin PARRY The Australian government ordered an inquiry Tuesday after graphic evidence emerged of prison guards assaulting teenage boys, with one shown hooded and shackled in scenes likened to Guantanamo Bay. National broadcaster ABC on Monday night showed footage of offenders, many indigenous, being stripped naked, tear-gassed and held in solitary confinement for weeks at a youth detention centre in the Northern Territory in 2014 and 2015. In one video from last […]

FBI probes Democratic email hack, but is Russia to blame?

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) by Laurent BARTHELEMY The FBI announced Monday it was investigating the embarrassing hack of Democratic National Committee emails — a breach the Clinton campaign blamed on Russia, accusing Moscow of seeking to influence the US presidential election. The emails leaked by WikiLeaks, which reveal that party leaders sought to undermine the campaign of Hillary Clinton’s rival Bernie Sanders, threw the Democratic National Convention into disarray on its first day and prompted the […]

N. Korea warned of ‘real consequences’ over weapons programme

VIENTIANE, Laos (AFP)  – The United States warned North Korea Tuesday that it faces “real consequences” over its internationally condemned nuclear and missile tests, which have inflamed tensions in East Asia. “Together we are determined… to make absolutely certain that DPRK (North Korea) understands that there are real consequences for these actions,” US Secretary of State John Kerry told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of Asian nations in Laos. Tensions have soared since Pyongyang carried […]

Twin suicide bombs kill 13 near Mogadishu airport

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AFP) – At least 13 people were killed on Tuesday in twin bombings near UN and African Union buildings adjoining Mogadishu’s airport, police said, in what the jihadist Shabaab group claimed as a suicide attack. The Al-Qaeda aligned Shabaab group is blamed for a string of bloody assaults in Somalia and neighbouring Kenya, and is fighting to overthrow Mogadishu’s internationally-backed government. “At least 13 people were confirmed to have died in two explosions, […]

19 killed in knife rampage at Japan care home

by Hiroshi HIYAMA SAGAMIHARA, Japan (AFP) — A knife-wielding former employee killed 19 people and injured 25 at a care centre for the mentally disabled in Japan on Tuesday, in the country’s worst mass killing in decades. The 26-year-old man later turned himself in at a police station, admitting to officers: “I did it.” He reportedly also said: “The disabled should all disappear.” Authorities identified the attacker as Satoshi Uematsu and said he had worked […]