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By Amber WANG and Xinqi SU TAIPEI, Jan 13, 2024 (AFP) – Taiwan’s president-elect Lai Ching-te vowed Saturday to defend the self-ruled island from “intimidation” by China, after voters defied warnings from Beijing and swept him to election victory. Lai — branded by Beijing as a threat to peace in the flashpoint region — secured an unprecedented third consecutive term for the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in Saturday’s poll after a raucous campaign in which […]
By Romain FONSEGRIVES LOS ANGELES, Jan 11, 2024 (AFP) – Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to tax evasion charges when he appeared in federal court Thursday, in a case that adds further pressure on US President Joe Biden as he readies for a bare-knuckle election rematch with scandal-plagued Republican Donald Trump. Hunter Biden is a lightning rod for Republicans, who have hammered the recovering drug addict, alleging — without evidence — that he and his […]
By Dene CHEN, Xinqi SU TAIPEI, Jan 11, 2024 (AFP) – China warned Taiwan’s voters Thursday to make the correct choice in the island’s weekend elections, describing the presidential frontrunner as a “severe danger” who would threaten peace by following the “evil path” of independence. Democratic Taiwan is two days from a pivotal election that is being watched from Beijing to Washington because the next president will determine the island’s future relations with an increasingly […]
By Frankie Taggart and Caitlin Wilson WASHINGTON, Jan 11, 2024 (AFP) – Republicans recommended Wednesday that Hunter Biden be held in criminal contempt of the US Congress for snubbing a summons — after scenes of chaos erupted on Capitol Hill when the president’s son turned up in person to defend himself. Two Republican-led House of Representatives committees — oversight and judiciary — had gathered separately to debate contempt resolutions after the younger Biden defied their […]
By W.G. DUNLOP WASHINGTON, Jan 9, 2024 (AFP) – President Joe Biden was kept in the dark over his defense secretary’s cancer diagnosis and subsequent hospitalizations for about a month, the White House admitted Tuesday, as details of Lloyd Austin’s deeply unusual disappearance raised questions about leadership of the world’s top military. The 70-year-old’s failure to disclose his hospitalization has prompted an extraordinary row in Washington and could be embarrassing for Biden, who faces multiple […]
KATHMANDU, Jan 4, 2024 (AFP) – Nepal signed a deal with India on Thursday for the Himalayan republic to export 10,000 megawatts of hydroelectricity over the next decade to its energy-hungry neighbour. More than four in five Nepalis did not have access to electricity in 2000, according to the International Energy Agency, but a dam building spree in the years since has helped connect nearly all of its 30 million people to the grid. It […]
WASHINGTON, Jan 3, 2024 (AFP) – Several state capitol buildings across the United States were evacuated Wednesday over multiple bomb threats, according to officials, one of whom said a “mass email” was responsible for triggering the security response. No explosives or threatening items were found as police evacuated and swept the statehouses in Connecticut, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Montana following an apparent hoax threat, officials and local media reported. “While everyone is […]
WASHINGTON, Jan 3, 2024 (AFP) – Former president Donald Trump urged the US Supreme Court on Wednesday to toss out a ruling by Colorado’s highest court that would keep him off the presidential primary ballot in the western state. The Colorado Supreme Court barred Trump last month from appearing on the Republican primary ballot in the state because of his role in the January 6, 2021 assault on the US Capitol by his supporters. Lawyers […]
BUENOS AIRES, Jan 4, 2024 (AFP) – Argentine judges on Wednesday suspended labor law changes that form part of a mega-decree of sweeping economic reforms and deregulation announced by the country’s libertarian new president, Javier Milei. The CGT trade union body had challenged the changes, which technically took effect last Friday, on grounds that they erode basic worker protections such as the right to strike and parental leave. The three judges of Argentina’s labor appeals […]
TEHRAN, Jan 3, 2024 (AFP) – At least 103 people were killed in Iran Wednesday as two bombs in quick succession struck a crowd commemorating slain general Qasem Soleimani on the anniversary of his killing, state media reported. The blasts, which state television called a “terrorist attack”, came with tensions running high in the Middle East a day after Hamas number two Saleh al-Aruri — an Iran ally — was killed in drone attack on […]
TAIPEI, Jan 3, 2024 (AFP) – The Taiwanese people “will resist” China’s attempts to influence the island’s January 13 election, frontrunner presidential candidate Lai Ching-te told AFP on Wednesday as he hit the campaign trial 10 days before the pivotal poll. Beijing claims the self-ruled island as part of its territory, and rejects the stance of Lai’s Democratic Progressive Party which maintains that Taiwan is “already independent”. Dubbed a “troublemaker” and a “separatist” by Beijing, […]
By Michael BLUM JERUSALEM, Jan 1, 2024 (AFP) – Israel’s top court ruled Monday against a key component of the government’s controversial legal overhaul, which challenged the powers of the judiciary and sparked mass protests. A Supreme Court statement said eight of 15 justices had ruled against an amendment passed by parliament in July which scraps the “reasonableness” clause, used by the court to overturn government decisions which are deemed unconstitutional. “This is due to […]
