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by Amber Wang and Jerome Taylor in Hong Kong Agence France Presse TAIPEI, Taiwan (AFP) — Chinese fighter jets crowding Taiwan’s radar screens are Beijing’s latest tool to ramp up pressure on the democratic island, sparking fears that one mistake could suddenly turn a festering cold conflict into an all-out war. Self-ruled Taiwan has lived under the threat of a Chinese invasion since the two sides split at the end of a civil war […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China on Friday urged Washington to tread carefully on Taiwan after President Joe Biden said the US would defend the self-ruled island from attacks by Beijing. “China has no room for compromise on issues involving its core interests,” foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said, warning that Washington “should act and speak cautiously on the Taiwan issue.” © Agence France-Presse
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett arrived in Russia on Friday to meet with President Vladimir Putin for the first time for talks expected to focus on Iran. Russian state television showed images of Bennett’s plane landing in the Black Sea resort town Sochi, where the pair will meet. Naftali took office in June, taking over from Benjamin Netanyahu who was in power for 12 straight years and had close ties with […]
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Fifteen people died as a result of a fire at a Russian explosives factory southeast of Moscow on Friday, local authorities said. The government of the Ryazan region, where the factory is based, said “15 people died and one person has serious burns” and is in critical condition. It said one more person is missing. © Agence France-Presse
BALTIMORE, United States (AFP) — The United States would defend Taiwan if the island were attacked by China, President Joe Biden said Thursday, a declaration welcomed by the democratic island that risks fury from Beijing. Authoritarian China regards self-ruled Taiwan as its own territory and has vowed to one day seize the island, by force if needed. Beijing’s sabre-rattling has ramped up in recent years, exacerbating fears the island of 23 million people could become […]
US actor Alec Baldwin fired a prop gun that killed a cinematographer and wounded the director on a film set in New Mexico, US law enforcement officers said Thursday. The incident happened on the set of “Rust” in the southwestern US state, where Baldwin is playing the lead in a 19th-century western. Halyna Hutchins and Joel Souza “were shot when a prop firearm was discharged by Alec Baldwin,” the sheriff in Santa Fe said in […]
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AFP) — The use of so-called “mix and match” Covid-19 vaccine boosters may give a stronger immune response than sticking to one type of jab, the EU’s drug watchdog said on Thursday. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) said it was studying data to see if it will follow a decision by US authorities on Wednesday to allow the use of a different vaccine for follow-up shots. The Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Daily virus cases in the UK on Thursday soared to over 50,000 a day for the first time since July but the government again resisted calls to reimpose restrictions. According to the latest statistics, there were 52,009 new cases recorded in the UK — the highest figure since July 17. The UK has managed to administer two vaccine doses to 79 percent of those aged 12 and over and the […]
BANGKOK, Thailand (AFP) — Thai Premier Prayut Chan-O-Cha announced Thursday that vaccinated travellers from more than 40 countries will be allowed to enter the kingdom without undergoing quarantine come November 1, as it readies for a much-anticipated re-opening. The 46 countries and territories is a significant jump from the 10 initially announced last week by Prayut, when he unveiled plans to reopen the country next month. The ballooning list is due to Thailand’s urgent need […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Queen Elizabeth II spent a night in hospital after being advised to rest and cancel a visit to Northern Ireland this week, Buckingham Palace said on Thursday. “Following medical advice to rest for a few days, The Queen attended hospital on Wednesday afternoon for some preliminary investigations, returning to Windsor Castle at lunchtime today (Thursday), and remains in good spirits,” a statement said. Britain’s domestic Press Association news agency said […]
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Australian authorities on Thursday offered Aus$1 million (US$750,000) for information leading to the discovery of a missing four-year-old girl feared abducted from a remote campsite last weekend. Cleo Smith disappeared from her family’s tent in Western Australia during the early hours of Saturday, sparking an extensive air, sea and ground search. But after six days of fruitlessly combing in the area surrounding the Blowholes campsite — a coastal tourist spot about […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — Authorities in China cancelled hundreds of flights, closed schools and ramped up mass testing on Thursday to try and stamp out a new Covid-19 outbreak linked to a group of tourists. Beijing has maintained a relentless zero-Covid approach with strict border closures and targeted lockdowns, even as other countries tentatively try to ease restrictions. Domestic outbreaks have largely been eliminated, but as China logged a fifth straight day of new cases […]
