Tag: US

IS chief Baghdadi buried at sea by US military

  by Paul HANDLEY Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US officials have said the body of Islamic State group chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was buried at sea, as fresh details surfaced about the US special forces operation that led to his death over the weekend. Syrian Kurds claimed to be a key source of the intelligence that led Americans to Baghdadi after years of tracking the man behind a five-year reign of […]

Dog wounded in Baghdadi raid back on duty

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The military dog slightly wounded in the US raid which resulted in the death of jihadist leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is recovering and back on duty, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff said Monday. General Mark Milley said the dog had performed a “tremendous service” during the special forces weekend assault in Syria that led to the death of the leader of the Islamic State group. Announcing […]

Protecting oil: Trump’s latest Syria strategy under question

by Sylvie LANTEAUME WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — After abruptly pulling US troops who protected Kurdish fighters, President Donald Trump has identified protecting oil as the new goal in Syria. But experts question if the new strategy is realistic, or even legal. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Friday that US troops were reinforcing their positions, including with mechanized forces, in Deir Ezzor in northern Syria. Their mission will be to prevent the Islamic State group […]

Trump vows China trade deal will help farmers

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump on Monday again said a trade deal is imminent with Beijing that will help American farmers hurt by retaliation in the grinding conflict between the economic powers. “We’re looking probably to be ahead of schedule to sign a very big portion of the China deal, and we will call it to phase one,” Trump told reporters. The deal will “take care of the farmers” as well as […]

Death of IS chief ‘important milestone’: Netanyahu

JERUSALEM, Undefined (AFP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday said US President Donald Trump’s announcement of the death of Islamic State group leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in neighboring Syria was “an important milestone”. “I want to congratulate President Trump on the impressive achievement of bringing about the elimination of al-Baghdadi,” Netanyahu said on a visit to an Israeli air force base in remarks broadcast by army radio. “This reflects the united resolve of […]

State of emergency as California fires spread

by Josh Edelson with Jocelyne Zablit in Los Angeles HEALDSBURG, United States (AFP) — California’s governor declared a state-wide emergency on Sunday as a huge wind-fueled blaze forced evacuations and massive power blackouts, threatening tourist towns in the state’s famed Sonoma wine region. The so-called Kincade Fire, north of San Francisco, spread to 30,000 acres (12,000 hectares) overnight, with only 10 percent containment by early afternoon Sunday, state fire authorities said. The blaze, the largest […]

Powerful winds fan flames as ‘historic’ California blaze spreads

  by Philip Pacheco Agence France Presse HEALDSBURG, United States (AFP) — Powerful winds were fanning wildfires in northern California in “potentially historic fire” conditions, authorities said Sunday, as tens of thousands of people were ordered to evacuate and sweeping power cuts began in the US state. Gusts of 80 miles per hour (130 kph) were fueling the Kincade blaze — which threatens tens of thousands of structures — causing it to burn with greater […]

IS head Baghdadi believed dead after US strike in Syria: reports

  by Omar Haj Kadour with Paul Handley in Washington Agence France Presse NEAR BARISHA, Syria (AFP) — Jihadist supremo Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the world’s most wanted man, was believed Sunday to have been killed in a US special operation in northwest Syria. The elusive chief of the Islamic State group was thought to be dead after a US military raid in the Idlib region, US media reported early Sunday. The White House announced President […]

Pentagon says $10 billion cloud computing contract going to Microsoft

  WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The Pentagon said Friday it was awarding a $10 billion cloud computing contract to Microsoft, following a highly scrutinized bidding process which Amazon had been favored to win. The 10-year contract for the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure program, better known as JEDI, ultimately will see all military branches sharing information in one system that can be scoured in real time with the help of artificial intelligence. The Pentagon earlier […]

Firefighters battle fierce wildfires across California

  by Jocelyne ZABLIT Agence France Presse LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — Firefighters on Friday battled several wildfires raging across California that destroyed homes and forced evacuations, as more than 18 million people were under a red flag warning in the southern part of the state. Tens of thousands of residents near Santa Clarita, north of Los Angeles, fled their homes as the so-called Tick Fire scorched 4,300 acres (1,740 hectares) and was only […]

US senators call for security probe of TikTok

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Two senior US senators called for the government to study national security risks possibly posed by Chinese-owned video app TikTok, saying it could leave American users vulnerable to Beijing’s spying. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and Republican Senator Tom Cotton asked the Directorate of National Intelligence to “conduct an assessment of the national security risks” posed by TikTok. “With over 110 million downloads in the US alone, TikTok is a […]

Twitter says finances impacted by ‘bugs;’ stock slides

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Twitter shares skidded Thursday after reporting weak growth in the past quarter resulting from glitches that made it harder to bring in advertising revenue. Profit for the third quarter was $37 million, a sharp drop from last year when Twitter was helped by a large tax benefit. Revenue rose nine percent from a year earlier to $824 million, well below analyst forecasts, impacted by what the company called “revenue product […]