Politics

Bloomberg The United Nations (UN) asked Ethiopia to grant humanitarian agencies access to the embattled Tigray region and allow independent investigations into alleged war crimes. The continuing lack of access, coupled with an ongoing communications blackout in many areas, increases concerns about the circumstances for civilians, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said in a statement on ...

Bloomberg The US Commerce Department added more than 100 Chinese and Russian companies to a new list of firms it says have links to their nations’ militaries, a move that will sharply curtail certain types of exports. The list of 58 Chinese and 45 Russia companies means anyone seeking to sell items that could eventually be used for military purposes ...

Bloomberg Afghan President Ashraf Ghani ordered authorities to investigate the shooting death of a prominent Afghan journalist — the fifth reporter to be killed in less than two months as the government and the Taliban push ahead with peace talks to end the country’s 19 year conflict. Ghani described the murder as an “attack on freedom of speech and a ...

Bloomberg Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was questioned by prosecutors looking into allegations political funds were improperly used to subsidise parties for voters, Kyodo News reported, in a case casting a shadow over the current premier. Abe submitted to voluntary questioning by prosecutors, Kyodo cited sources close to the matter as saying. The Kyodo report added prosecutors are seeking ...

Bloomberg Boris Johnson faces a choice that will define his premiership: accept a trade deal with the European Union (EU) or go it alone. It could scarcely have come at a more difficult time for him. As he faces a binary choice about the UK’s relationship with its nearest and biggest trading partner, his government is battling a new highly ...

Bloomberg The UK plunged into Christmas chaos with police blocking people from boarding packed trains, holidays abroad scrapped and travel with Europe banned after London went into an emergency lockdown. France has suspended inbound travel from the UK for 48 hours and Germany halted arriving flights from Britain, which is in the middle of delicate Brexit negotiations with its European ...

Bloomberg The storm over a cyber attack on US government agencies only helps Russian President Vladimir Putin’s image at home as a strong leader unafraid to confront the former Cold War enemy, even as the Kremlin denies involvement amid fears of a backlash when Joe Biden enters the White House. “Inside the country it bolsters the authorities’ prestige,” said Andrey ...

Bloomberg Unprecedented virus control measures including curfews and shutdowns of non-essential businesses may be considered in Hong Kong, according to a government health adviser, as the city continues to see a high number of locally-transmitted cases and the holiday season looms. Limiting the number of people per household allowed to shop for groceries, shuttering all businesses deemed non-essential and shortening ...

Bloomberg The Philippine government said it would prosecute a police officer over deaths of a mother and son, after a video of point blank shooting went viral in social media, prompting renewed calls against police violence and extrajudicial killings. Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny, who is recovering from a near-fatal poisoning that he blames on President Vladimir Putin, said he ...

Bloomberg President Donald Trump downplayed the severity of a massive cyber-attack on the US government and suggested China may have been responsible — even as other US officials are convinced Russia was the perpetrator. In doing so on Twitter, the president contradicted assessments from senior officials within his own administration who’ve blamed Moscow for the intrusion of at least half ...