Bloomberg The European Union is poised to blacklist six people and one entity in Russia over the attempted murder of opposition leader Alexey Navalny. EU member-state envoys in Brussels cleared the way on Wednesday for bloc-wide asset freezes on the Russian officials and the organisation as well as travel bans on the individuals, according to a person familiar with the ...
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Malaysia party warns to leave ruling bloc
Bloomberg The largest party in Malaysia’s ruling coalition threatened to pull out unless it gets better terms, adding pressure on PM Muhyiddin Yassin to shore up his unstable government or call a snap election. The United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), which holds about a third of the seats in Muhyiddin’s 12-party government, said in a statement that it would enter ...
Read More »Kyrgyzstan confirms Sadyr Japarov as PM
Bloomberg Kyrgyzstan’s parliament confirmed Sadyr Japarov as prime minister for the second time in five days after President Sooronbay Jeenbekov gave in to pressure to appoint the politician freed from prison by protesters last week. Jeenbekov’s move came a day after he’d rejected parliament’s unanimous appointment of Japarov as premier. In an address to the nation published on the presidential ...
Read More »Biden tiptoes on ‘court packing’ to avoid lead in polls
Bloomberg Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden spent weeks refusing to answer whether he would give in to liberals and agree to expand the number of seats on the Supreme Court, but when he finally responded, he left himself plenty of wiggle room. The answer — “I’m not a fan of court packing†— was open enough to give comfort to ...
Read More »Wave of demonstrations shutter schools in Nigeria
Bloomberg A wave of demonstrations in Nigeria against police brutality showed no signs of letting up on Wednesday, with a 10th straight day of marches being staged in Abuja, the capital, and Lagos, the commercial hub. Several main streets and bridges in Lagos will be sealed off until police officers who shot dead a participant in an October 12 march ...
Read More »Anwar’s bid for power fails to convince king in Malaysia
Bloomberg Anwar Ibrahim’s latest push to finally take power in Malaysia appears to be stalled. The long-time opposition leader claimed on Tuesday that he showed the king evidence of a “convincing majority†of more than 120 lawmakers in the 222-member in parliament. He called on PM Muhyiddin Yassin to resign and said the monarch would now determine whether the opposition ...
Read More »South China Sea remains volatile: Philippine official
Bloomberg The situation in the South China Sea remains volatile and uncertain amid “aggressive actions†by China and as the US patrols the area to ensure freedom of navigation, the Philippines’ military chief said. The Philippines wants a code of conduct in the disputed area in place soon to prevent hostile actions as it’s “a potential flash point,†Armed Forces ...
Read More »Thai police disperse protesters in Bangkok
Bloomberg Thai police arrested protesters and dispersed crowds at a small demonstration in the capital, Bangkok ahead of a key anti-government demonstration on Wednesday. Live television footage from the event showed officers pulling down one of the protest leaders who was standing on top of a van and carrying him away into a police vehicle, while using megaphones to ask ...
Read More »Trump boasts at Florida rally of feeling ‘so powerful’
Bloomberg President Donald Trump returned to the campaign trail, boasting at a rally in Florida that he felt “so powerful†after his recovery from Covid-19 that he wanted to walk into the audience and “kiss everyone.†“I am so energised by your prayers and humbled by your support,†Trump said at the outdoor rally at the Orlando Sanford International Airport, ...
Read More »UK scientists clash with PM over virus lockdown
Bloomberg Boris Johnson clashed with his own government’s scientific advisers who wanted tougher action against the resurgent coronavirus outbreak in the UK in September. The British prime minister said he hoped to avoid another full national lockdown and that his plan would work if people followed the advice. Options in a SAGE document circulated on September 21 included a short ...
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