Tag: US

Arnold Schwarzenegger held over luxury watch at Munich airport

MUNICH, Germany, Jan 17, 2024 (AFP) – Hollywood action hero Arnold Schwarzenegger was held at Munich airport on Wednesday for failing to declare an expensive watch, a customs spokesman told AFP. The Austrian-born actor and former governor of California, 76, was detained in the customs area on Wednesday afternoon after arriving from the United States, spokesman Thomas Meister said. Schwarzenegger was expected to be able to continue his journey later in the day but “the […]

Sexual assault accuser confronts Trump in NY trial

NEW YORK, Jan 17, 2024 (AFP) – The woman whom Donald Trump was found liable of sexually assaulting faced off with the former president Wednesday in a New York courtroom to say he subsequently ruined her reputation. E. Jean Carroll, 80, is seeking more than $10 million alleging that Trump defamed her in 2019, when she first made her assault allegations public, by saying she “is not my type.” “It means I’m too ugly to […]

US strikes in Yemen after Huthis re-designated ‘terrorist’ entity

WASHINGTON, Jan 18, 2024 (AFP) – American forces targeted 14 missiles that were ready to launch in Yemen, the US military said Wednesday, after Washington re-designated the Iran-backed Huthi rebels as a “terrorist” entity for their attacks on merchant vessels. The Huthis — who have already faced multiple rounds of air strikes in response to their targeting of international shipping — struck a US-owned bulk cargo carrier in the wake of the designation announcement, and […]

US strikes Yemen missiles that posed threat to ships

By W.G. DUNLOP WASHINGTON, Jan 16, 2024 (AFP) – American forces destroyed four anti-ship missiles in Yemen on Tuesday that threatened civilian and military vessels, the US military said, as attacks by Iran-backed Huthi rebels continue despite multiple strikes against them. It is at least the third time in less than a week that the United States has carried out strikes against the Huthis, who have repeatedly taken aim at merchant vessels in the vital […]

Huthi missile hits US-owned ship off Yemen: US military

By Talek HARRIS DUBAI, Jan 15, 2024 (AFP) – Yemen’s Huthi rebels hit a US-owned cargo vessel with a missile on Monday, the US military said, heightening fears for the volatile region after repeated attacks on shipping triggered American and British strikes. After the Western strikes against scores of rebel targets last Friday, the Huthis said they would not be deterred and declared that US and British interests were “legitimate targets”. The Marshall Islands-flagged Gibraltar […]

In final Iowa caucuses poll, Haley beats DeSantis but Trump triumphs

DES MOINES, United States, Jan 14, 2024 (AFP) – Nikki Haley has overtaken Ron DeSantis for coveted second place in the Iowa caucuses, the last poll before the event showed Saturday, but former US president Donald Trump still leads by nearly 30 percentage points. The Midwestern state of three million people officially kicks off the 2024 US presidential election on Monday when its residents participate in its unusual “caucus” system to mark their preference for […]

We do not support’ Taiwan’s independence Biden says after vote

WASHINGTON, Jan 13, 2024 (AFP) – The United States on Saturday congratulated Taiwan’s president-elect Lai Ching-te, but maintained that Washington does not support independence for the self-ruled island claimed by Beijing. Asked by reporters for Washington’s position on Taiwan, where independence-leaning Lai has pitched himself as a defender of the island’s democratic way of life, US President Joe Biden said: “We do not support independence.” In a statement, Secretary of State Antony Blinken saluted Lai […]

Fresh strikes target Yemen rebels over Red Sea threat

By Amal Mohammed with Talek Harris in Dubai HODEIDA, Yemen, Jan 13, 2024 (AFP) – Fresh strikes targeted Yemen’s Huthis on Saturday, security sources and the US military said, after the Iran-backed rebels warned of further attacks on Red Sea shipping. The strikes came a day after US and British forces hit scores of targets across the country, heightening fears that Israel’s war with Palestinian Hamas militants could engulf the region. Violence involving Iran-aligned groups […]

US, UK air strikes pound Yemen as Mideast conflict spreads

By AFP correspondents in Yemen with Danny Kemp in Washington SANAA, Jan 12, 2024 (AFP) – Heavy US and British air strikes pounded targets in rebel-held Yemen early on Friday after weeks of disruptive attacks on Red Sea shipping by Iran-backed Huthi forces acting in solidarity with Hamas. The Huthis have carried out a growing number of attacks on what they deem to be Israel-linked shipping in the key international trade route since the eruption […]

Five dead in US storms, country girds for more fierce weather

WASHINGTON, Jan 10, 2024 (AFP) – Swaths of the United States braced for more snow and punishingly low temperatures Wednesday as millions in the east dug out from a previous round of severe winter weather that left at least five people dead. The latest storm, already bringing precipitation to the West, was expected to tear across the country this week, bringing an Arctic blast to northern regions and prompting weather advisories or warnings in dozens […]

Hunter Biden pleads not guilty to tax evasion charges

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 […]

Trump berates NY fraud trial judge at closing arguments

By Gregory WALTON NEW YORK, Jan 11, 2024 (AFP) – Donald Trump ignored warnings from the judge in his New York civil fraud trial Thursday and turned closing arguments into an election campaign attack, claiming that prosecutors are out to stop his political comeback. Prosecutors are demanding $370 million from Trump over fraud allegations — and to bar him from conducting business in the state where he made his name as a celebrity real estate […]