Politics

Bloomberg The US moved quickly to brief governments abroad and seek support for its decision to kill the Iranian commander in charge of its elite Quds force, with Secretary of State Michael Pompeo calling counterparts in France, the UK, Russia and other major powers. Foreign leaders largely reacted with caution to President Donald Trump’s decision to launch a strike that ...

Bloomberg Pedro Sanchez began his bid on Saturday to form a new government with assistance from a Catalan separatist party as he urged Spain’s parliament to help him end the country’s political deadlock. Sanchez, Spain’s acting prime minister, needs to win the endorsement of the 350-seat chamber in a voting process that will continue until Tuesday. He is likely to ...

Bloomberg Kim Jong-un is giving up on hopes that US President Donald Trump will lift sanctions anytime soon. Alongside the North Korean leader’s latest saber-rattling the first week of 2020 was a stunning admission: Efforts to engage the US had failed. Kim’s plan now is to find a way to survive under crushing economic sanctions while building an even stronger ...

Bloomberg Maverick politician Jess Phillips said Labour needs a “different kind of leader” as she launched her bid to succeed Jeremy Corbyn, following the UK opposition party’s worst electoral defeat since 1935. Labour needs to regain support from “huge parts” of the working class base it has lost and is in “big trouble” if it fails, Phillips, 38, said, according ...

Bloomberg China appointed a new top liaison official for Hong Kong, replacing the former director amid months of protests in the financial hub. Luo Huining will take over from Wang Zhimin as the Hong Kong liaison office director, the government said in a two-sentence statement that didn’t elaborate on the changes. Wang was former director of China’s liaison office in ...

Bloomberg Hong Kong began 2020 with a familiar sight: Tear gas, fires, vandalism and roadblocks in busy downtown areas as protesters vowed to maintain their fight for more democracy and less Chinese control. Running battles between riot police and demonstrators continued into the night after tens of thousands of mostly peaceful protesters flooded streets from Causeway Bay to Central. Tensions ...

Bloomberg Nine people have died as heavy monsoon rains lashed the Indonesian capital and nearby cities since New Year’s Eve, triggering the worst flooding in almost seven years. The rains submerged homes and cars and shut one of Jakarta’s airports. More than 700 areas in greater Jakarta region suffered from power outages, according to state-run electricity company PT Perusahaan Listrik ...

Bloomberg US troops fired tear gas to disperse protesters gathered outside the American complex in Iraq, local TV reported, a day after Iran-backed militiamen stormed the compound. Protesters had camped out overnight near the Baghdad embassy after Kataieb Hezbollah militiamen and their supporters attacked the compound to protest deadly American airstrikes on the group’s bases. More protesters had arrived on ...

Bloomberg North Koreans and outside observers expecting leader Kim Jong Un to make his traditional address on New Year’s morning instead were handed a new script that enhanced his unpredictable image. North Korea opened 2020 by issuing a “Report on the Fifth Plenary Meeting of the Seventh Central Committee of the Workers,” an almost 4,400-word text that outlined what Kim ...

Bloomberg Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari reaffirmed he will leave office in 2023, addressing concerns he wants to change the constitution to seek a third term. Buhari, 77, won a second four-year mandate in March, the last he’s permitted under the constitution of Africa’s largest oil producer. With speculation already mounting over who the ruling All Progressives Council and opposition People’s ...