Politics

Bloomberg The death toll from a suicide bombing aimed at Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Roble has increased to 14. Among those killed in the explosion were members of the prime minister’s security team and top army officials, including the commander of the 21st Division of the Somali National Army, according to Somali police officer Nour Hersi. Ten people died on ...

Bloomberg The Trump administration told lawmakers that it plans to close its two remaining consulates in Russia, CNN reported, citing a State Department notification dated December 10. The US State Department intends to shut the Vladivostok consulate and suspend operations at the consulate in Yekaterinburg, according to a copy of the notification to Congress that was obtained by CNN. That ...

Bloomberg More than 300 students kidnapped in northwest Nigeria last week have been freed after being held captive for six days, according to officials. In all, 344 students have been released, Abdu Labaran, a spokesman for Governor Aminu Masari of Katsina state, where the mass kidnapping occurred, said by phone. Nigerian authorities didn’t pay a ransom to secure the release ...

Bloomberg India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi defended his government’s new laws that seek to deregulate food procurement, as tens of thousands of farmers continue to protest on the outskirts of capital New Delhi. Modi listed government measures taken to improve procurement and called on state administrations implementing the laws to explain them to farmers. He blamed opposition parties for fuelling ...

Bloomberg President-elect Joe Biden’s advisers are preparing for potential negotiations with Nicolas Maduro’s regime in Venezuela in an effort to end the Western Hemisphere’s worst economic and humanitarian crisis, according to three people familiar with the matter. The Biden administration intends to push for free and fair elections, offering sanctions relief in return, said the people, who requested anonymity because ...

Bloomberg Joe Biden officially clinched the presidency after the Electoral College confirmed his victory, capping a tumultuous period sparked by Donald Trump’s refusal to acknowledge he lost with the help of Republicans willing to support his unsubstantiated claims. Some Senate Republicans who had refused to recognize Biden’s overwhelming victory quickly started acknowledging that Trump lost and Biden will be inaugurated ...

Bloomberg Russian President Vladimir Putin sent Joe Biden a congratulatory telegram after the Electoral College formalised his victory in the November 3 election, making him among the last world leaders to recognise the US president-elect. Putin wished Biden luck and said Russia and the US can contribute to solving global problems, according to a Kremlin statement on Tuesday. “For my ...

Bloomberg Malaysia Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has survived his latest leadership test after lawmakers approved his 2021 budget during the final vote in the lower house of parliament. According to House Speaker Azhar Azizan Harun, 111 MPs voted in favour of the spending plan, versus 108 who were against. The budget’s defeat would have been tantamount to the prime minister ...

Bloomberg Somalia’s government cut diplomatic ties with neighbouring Kenya, citing interference in its internal affairs. The announcement was made a day after Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said he’s holding talks with the leader of a breakaway region of northern Somalia that’s lobbying for international recognition. The rift in relations comes as the two nations prepare to square-off at an international ...

Bloomberg Members of the Electoral College were expected to meet on Monday to officially elect Joe Biden, a moment some Republican lawmakers have targeted as the end of President Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn the results as far as they’re concerned. The constitutionally mandated procedure across the 50 states and the District of Columbia usually passes with little notice. But ...