Politics

Three more charged over Nice truck attack

  Paris / AFP A French anti-terrorist judge has charged three more men suspected of helping to arm the radical who crushed 86 people to death with a truck in Nice, a judicial source said on Saturday. The three, who were among 11 arrested on Monday in Nice and the western city of Nantes, were remanded into custody on Friday, said ...

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Polish opposition MPs block parliament over media freedom

  Warsaw / AFP Dozens of Polish MPs protested in parliament over plans to restrict journalists’ right to cover proceedings, as thousands of demonstrators marched outside in support for their stance. The demonstration at the gates of parliament in Warsaw was called by the KOD pro-democracy movement, which is critical of the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party’s policies on ...

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China: ‘Appropriately handling’ US Navy drone

  BEIJING / AP China said on Saturday that its military was in contact with its American counterparts on “appropriately handling” the Chinese navy’s seizure of a US Navy unmanned underwater glider, one of the most serious incidents between the two militaries in years. The one-sentence comment by the foreign ministry offered no details on what discussions were underway or ...

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7.9-magnitude quake hits PNG, tsunami threat over

  Sydney / AFP A major 7.9-magnitude earthquake struck off Papua New Guinea on Saturday, the US Geological Survey said, but no immediate casualties were reported and an initial tsunami threat was later deemed to have passed. The earthquake struck 60 km to the east of Taron, New Ireland, at 8.51 pm local time (1051 GMT) at a depth of ...

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S Korea protests put pressure on impeachment court

  Seoul / AFP Tens of thousands of protestors turned out in Seoul for the eighth straight week on Saturday, pushing for the immediate and permanent removal of impeached South Korean President Park Geun-Hye. Unlike previous weeks, the demonstrators didn’t have the streets of the capital all to themselves, with a sizeable rally by Park loyalists seeking to buttress support for ...

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Ban leaves door open for S Korea president run

  United Nations/ AFP Ban Ki-moon left the door open to possibly running for president of South Korea in his final press conference as United Nations secretary general, noting that the country is “in turmoil”. Ban, a South Korean citizen who leaves his current post at the end of the year, was at first evasive when asked Friday about his ...

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Hundreds leave Aleppo under rebel withdrawal deal

  Aleppo / AFP Hundreds of civilians and rebels left Aleppo on Thursday under an evacuation deal that will allow Syria’s regime to take full control of the city after years of fighting. The rebel withdrawal began a month to the day after President Bashar al-Assad’s forces launched a new offensive to recapture Aleppo and will hand the regime its biggest ...

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Obama allows Iran sanctions renewal without signing bill

  Washington / AFP President Barack Obama allowed US sanctions against Iran to be renewed on Thursday, but in a surprise move declined to actually sign the legislation that brings the sanctions into force. “The extension of the Iran Sanctions Act is becoming law without the president’s signature,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said in a statement. The president, who had ...

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HRW says Turkey ‘silencing’ independent media

  Ankara / AFP Human Rights Watch on Thursday accused Turkey of “silencing” independent media in its bid to prevent scrutiny or criticism of its huge crackdown following the failed July coup. In a report, the US-based rights watchdog said Turkey’s “assault” on critical journalism had accelerated since the attempted overthrow of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan—but said it began several years ...

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Iraqi children battle trauma after life under IS rule

  Hasansham Camp / AFP Years of life under extremist rule and war have left thousands of Iraqi children old beyond their years and in desperate need of playtime to overcome their trauma. Malak, 11, says she has “come back from hell”. She huddles in a long black coat at the Hasansham displacement camp where thousands of people have lived since ...

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