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by Matthew WALSH Agence France-Presse BEIJING, China (AFP) — Xi Jinping will secure a third term as China’s president at a rubber-stamp parliament that starts this weekend, enjoying unchallengeable status despite criticism over his handling of Covid and the economy. Xi is certain to be reappointed as president after he locked in another five years as head of the Communist Party (CCP) and the military — the two more significant leadership positions in Chinese […]
by Valerie LEROUX and Thomas GROPALLO Agence France-Presse LIBREVILLE, Gabon (AFP) — President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday said the era of French interference in Africa was “well over” as he began a four-nation tour of the continent to renew frayed ties. Anti-French sentiment runs high in some former African colonies as the continent becomes a renewed diplomatic battleground, with Russian and Chinese influence growing in the region. Macron said France harbored no desire to return […]
HONG KONG, China (AFP) — A high-rise building under construction in Hong Kong erupted in flames and was still burning hours later, with some nearby residential blocks evacuated early Friday after the fire threatened to spread. Officials said the fire initially broke out at 11:11 pm (1511 GMT) Thursday in the heart of Tsim Sha Tsui, a busy shopping and tourist district on the city’s harborfront. It eventually escalated to the fourth level of severity […]
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Moscow on Thursday claimed that Ukrainians had crossed into southern Russia and killed two civilians, an allegation dismissed by Kyiv as a “deliberate provocation”. Russia says its regions bordering Ukraine are routinely shelled by Ukrainian forces, but the alleged incursion, if confirmed, would be a rare instance of fighting inside its territory. Russia’s FSB security service said in a statement that the “Ukrainian nationalists” had later been pushed back over the […]
by Louise Dewast with Alexandre Martins Lopes in Lagos Agence France-Presse ABUJA, Nigeria (AFP) — The two major defeated candidates in Nigeria’s disputed election on Thursday challenged the victory of ruling APC party’s Bola Tinubu, with one rival appealing to courts and the other calling the results “a rape of democracy”. Tinubu, a former Lagos governor of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), was declared winner of Saturday’s election with 8.8 million votes and the […]
OTTAWA, Canada (AFP) — A six-year-old boy was sent to hospital after being shot by his four-year-old friend in an Indigenous community in Canada’s Manitoba province, police said Thursday. The two children were at a home on Peguis First Nation, about 185 kilometers (115 miles) north of Winnipeg, Monday night “when they gained access to a firearm,” the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a statement. “The four-year-old child discharged the firearm, which struck a […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States has “no indication” that China has decided to supply arms to Russia, but the possibility remains “on the table,” a White House spokesman said Thursday. “This is not a move that would be in the best interest of the Chinese and their standing in the international community, which we know they highly prize,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told journalists. “We’ve communicated to the Chinese our […]
PORT VILA, Vanuatu (AFP) — Vanuatu was under a state of emergency Friday, after back-to-back earthquakes and cyclones struck the Pacific nation. An initial 6.5-magnitude quake struck at 1804 GMT off the island of Espiritu Santo in the north of the archipelago at a depth of 10 kilometres, the US Geological Survey said. An aftershock with a magnitude of 5.4 rocked the island shortly after. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said there was “no tsunami […]
South African Paralympic champion Oscar Pistorius, who killed his girlfriend 10 years ago, will know in about a month whether he will be released on parole, his lawyer said Thursday. “We have been advised by the parole board that the hearing will take place on the 31st of March, 2023,” his lawyer Julian Knight told AFP. “It’s an internal process.” Pistorius, who is now 36, shot dead Reeva Steenkamp in the early hours of Valentine’s […]
The involvement of the United States and NATO in the war in Ukraine risks bringing “catastrophic consequences”, Russia warned Thursday in a speech boycotted by many Western diplomats. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva that “the most acute strategic threat is posed now by the US and NATO policy aimed at further fomenting the conflict in and around Ukraine.” “Their growing involvement in an armed confrontation is […]
Vietnam’s rubber stamp National Assembly voted in a new president on Thursday, who immediately pledged to crack down on corruption following the resignation of his predecessor in an anti-graft campaign. The appointment of Vo Van Thuong comes during a period of political upheaval in Vietnam, where the all-powerful Communist Party’s anti-graft purge and factional fighting have seen several ministers fired. Members of the National Assembly elected 52-year-old Thuong — the sole candidate — for a […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US has approved the sale to Taiwan of $619 million in munitions for F-16 fighter jets, the Pentagon announced Wednesday, in a move likely to anger Beijing. The package includes 100 AGM-88B High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missiles (HARM), 200 AIM-120C-8 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles(AMRAAM), and launchers and dummy missiles for training, the Pentagon said in a statement. The sale will boost Taiwan’s “capability to provide for the defense of its […]
