OUAGADOUGOU, May 20, 2023 (AFP) – At least twelve civilians were killed in an attack by suspected jihadists in an area of western Burkina Faso bordering Mali, a local official and residents told AFP on Saturday. The attack was the latest in a series of similar recent jihadist offensives which a week ago led the government to extend a state of emergency across most of the West African nation for another six months. The village […]
International
Wagner claims Bakhmut captured, Kyiv says fighting ongoing
MOSCOW, May 20, 2023 (AFP) – Russia’s private army Wagner claimed Saturday the total control of the east Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, the epicentre of fighting, as Kyiv said the battle was continuing, while admitting the situation was “critical”. The announcement by Wagner came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky took part in the G7 summit in Japan. Bakhmut, a salt mining town that once had a population of 70,000 people, has been the scene of […]
G7 vows economic coercion will ‘face consequences’
HIROSHIMA, Japan, May 20, 2023 (AFP) – G7 leaders vowed Saturday that attempts to “weaponise” trade and supply chains would “fail and face consequences,” in a thinly veiled warning to China over its economic practices. Pushing back against Beijing’s willingness to wield trade measures in diplomatic disputes has been a key theme of the bloc’s meeting in Hiroshima though, in the end, its statement on economic security did not directly reference China. Still, the target […]
G7 calls for ‘responsible’ use of generative AI
HIROSHIMA, Japan, May 20, 2023 (AFP) – The world must urgently assess the impact of generative artificial intelligence, G7 leaders said Saturday, announcing they will launch discussions this year on “responsible” use of the technology. A working group will be set up to tackle issues from copyright to disinformation, the seven leading economies said in a final communique released during a summit in Hiroshima, Japan. Text generation tools such as ChatGPT, image creators and music […]
New magnitude 7.1 quake strikes east of New Caledonia
SYDNEY, May 20, 2023 (AFP) – A 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck Saturday in the Pacific Ocean to the east of New Caledonia, the US Geological Survey said, a day after a major quake hit the same area. The epicentre was 35 kilometres (22 miles) deep and located about 300 kilometres (190 miles) east of the New Caledonian archipelago, it said. “It lasted maybe two seconds, not too big,” said Nancy Jack, manager of the beachfront […]
Russian PM to visit China next week: Beijing
BEIJING, May 19, 2023 (AFP) – Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin will visit China from May 23 to 24, Beijing’s foreign ministry and the Kremlin said on Friday. “At the invitation of Premier Li Qiang of the State Council, Russian Federation Prime Minister Mishustin will pay an official visit to China from May 23 to 24,” foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said in a statement. Confirming the visit, the Kremlin said: “Russian-Chinese cooperation in trade […]
Tsunami alert lifted after 7.7-magnitude Pacific quake
SYDNEY, May 19, 2023 (AFP) – A tsunami warning in the Pacific has been lifted after a 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck on Friday, sending many islanders fleeing coastal areas. The quake hit at 0257 GMT, prompting people on multiple South Pacific islands to race to higher ground as sirens warned of possible hazardous waves. “Based on all available data the tsunami threat from this earthquake has now passed,” the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said in a […]
Indonesians fall prey to fake shaman ‘magic money’ scams
By Irvan Maulana with Dessy Sagita and Safrin Labatu in Jakarta Agence France-Presse KARAWANG, Indonesia, May 19, 2023 (AFP) – Indonesian mother-of-three Aslem was a domestic worker in Dubai when she started wiring cash to a self-professed shaman, believing that he would honor his promise to magically multiply her hard-earned wages. But she returned home last year penniless and in shock, saying she had been swindled out of her life savings by a trickster who […]
Wagner chief says Bakhmut ‘unlikely’ to fall soon
KYIV, Ukraine (AFP) — Ukraine’s eastern city of Bakhmut is “unlikely” to fall to Russian forces in the coming days, Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner mercenary group, said early Friday. Wagner has led the grinding, months-long assault on Bakhmut, which has seen the longest and bloodiest battle of the war. “Bakhmut is unlikely to be completely taken tomorrow or the day after tomorrow,” Prigozhin wrote on Telegram, reporting heavy fighting in the southwestern suburbs […]
Colombia president retracts claim children found after plane crash
BOGOTÁ, Colombia (AFP) — Colombian President Gustavo Petro on Thursday retracted his claim that four Indigenous children missing for more than two weeks after an airplane crash in the Amazon had been found alive. Writing on Twitter, Petro said he had deleted his tweet from Wednesday night in which he had announced the rescue of the four children, including an 11-month-old baby. “I am sorry for what happened. The military forces and Indigenous communities will […]
Montana TikTok ban unrealistic and misguided: experts
By Glenn CHAPMAN Agence France-Presse SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — A total ban of TikTok in the US state of Montana is set up to face an epic battle in the courts, but many experts wonder whether the law is even technically possible. Montana is the first US state to ban TikTok, with the law set to take effect next year as debate escalates over the impact and security of the popular video app […]
Tensions high as Israel nationalists march into east Jerusalem
By Rosie Scammell Agence France-Presse JERUSALEM, May 18, 2023 (AFP) — Tens of thousands of Israeli nationalists marched to Jerusalem’s Old City Thursday in an annual flag-waving march commemorating Israel’s capture of it, as tensions on the Gaza border remained high. Palestinians in annexed east Jerusalem closed their shops and were banned from the Damascus Gate entrance to the Old City, a social hub, to make way for the marchers, some of whom attacked journalists […]
