RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — British Prime Minister Theresa May has implored Saudi leaders to ease a blockade on Yemen to “avert a humanitarian catastrophe,” her office said on Thursday, echoing urgent appeals from the United Nations. May met both King Salman and powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on a brief visit to Riyadh late on Wednesday, with a worsening crisis in Yemen topping her agenda. May had promised to raise concerns over Yemen where […]
Tag: Britain
16 hurt fleeing false terror alert in London’s Oxford St
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Police rushed to London’s busy Oxford Street shopping district on Friday after reports that shots had been fired, sparking fears of a terror incident and leaving 16 people hurt in the panic. Armed officers locked down the area for more than an hour before the Metropolitan Police said it had not found “any trace of any suspects, evidence of shots fired or casualties.” British Transport Police said they believed the security scare […]
Britain’s Prince Charles steps up as Queen steps back
by Robin Millard © Agence France-Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — On Remembrance Sunday, Prince Charles will lay Queen Elizabeth II’s wreath honouring Britain’s war dead as she watches on — a rare public symbol of the 91-year-old gradually scaling back her duties. It will be a milestone moment in the otherwise imperceptibly slow-motion process, as her eldest son, now 69, increasingly steps up on her behalf. Experts said Britain’s oldest-ever monarch would never consider abdication or […]
UK asks Libya to extradite brother of Manchester bomber
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British police investigating the deadly concert bombing in Manchester earlier this year said Wednesday they had requested the extradition of the attacker’s brother from Libya. Salman Abedi killed 22 people when he detonated a suicide bomb after a concert by pop star Ariana Grande, Britain’s worst terror attack in more than a decade. Manchester-born to Libyan parents, Abedi is believed to have travelled to Libya in the run-up to the May 22 […]
Athletics: Farah splits with long-time coach Salazar
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) – British long-distance running star Mo Farah will no longer work with long-time coach Alberto Salazar but has denied the split is related to doping allegations surrounding the Oregon-based guru, it was reported on Monday. In an interview with The Sun newspaper, Farah, the four-time Olympic champion over 10,000m and 5,000m, said he was ending his association with Salazar because of a move back to Britain. The 34-year-old Somalia-born star began training with […]
HSBC Q3 profits up five-fold to $4.6 bn on booming Asia
by Elaine Yu Agence France-Presse HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Profits at banking giant HSBC leapt five fold in the third quarter to $4.6 billion, the company said Monday, as business booms in Asia and a huge restructuring drive bears fruit. The massive jump in pre-tax profits came weeks after a new chief executive was unveiled as part of a management overhaul that has seen the London-based behemoth roar back from costly write downs. John Flint, head […]
Britain defends Balfour Declaration, 100 years on
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Britain’s foreign secretary on Sunday defended his predecessor’s role a century ago in paving the way for the creation of Israel, saying two sovereign states for Israelis and Palestinians remains the “only viable solution” for peace. This Thursday marks the centenary of the Balfour Declaration — a 67-word letter from Britain’s then foreign secretary Arthur Balfour that threw London’s backing behind a homeland for the Jewish people in Palestine. Israeli Prime Minister […]
Britain calls for UN sanctions on Syria over sarin attack
UNITED NATIONS, United States (AFP) – Britain on Friday urged the United Nations Security Council to impose sanctionson Syria after a UN-led investigation found that government forces were responsible for the sarin gas attack on Khan Sheikhun. A joint UN-Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) panel said the Syrian air force had dropped a bomb on the opposition-held town on April 4, releasing the deadly nerve agent that killed more than 80 people. “A robust international response is now essential to hold those responsible for the Khan Sheikhun attack to account,” British […]
World’s oldest astrolabe found, says shipwreck hunter
LONDON, United States (AFP) — A British-based shipwreck hunter said Tuesday a navigation tool he found that guided Portuguese explorers on a perilous voyage to India in the 16th century has been confirmed as the world’s oldest astrolabe. David Mearns found the bronze disc during a dive on a shipwreck off the coast of Oman in 2014 but said Warwick University had only recently confirmed what it was after laser scans revealed etches on it. […]
Trump breaks with allies as US goes it alone on Iran
by Andrew Beatty Agence France-Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) – Donald Trump will unveil a more aggressive strategy to check Iran’s growing might Friday, withdrawing presidential backing for a landmark nuclear deal and targeting the country’s missile program and militia proxies. During a White House speech at 12:45 pm (1645 GMT), Trump is expected to declare a 2015 deal, which curbed Iran’s nuclear program in return for massive sanctions relief, is no longer in the US national […]
British PM refuses to say if she’d vote for Brexit now
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday refused to tell a radio station whether she would back EU membership in another referendum, as she leads her country out of the bloc. “I don’t answer hypothetical questions,” May told LBC radio station when asked how she would vote if a Brexit referendum were held now. The prime minister said she had “good reasons” when she backed European Union membership in the 2016 vote, […]
Scottish nationalists urge Spain to ‘respect’ Catalan vote
by Mark Mclaughlin Agence France-Presse GLASGOW, United Kingdom (AFP) — The Scottish National Party on Monday urged the Spanish government to “respect the overwhelming ‘si’ vote” in the Catalan independence referendum in a resolution at its annual conference. Members unanimously passed the motion, which called the banned referendum earlier this month an “expression of the democratic will of the people of Catalonia.” The motion also called on the UN and the EU to resolve the political impasse over […]





