Seoul / AFP South Korean President Park Geun-Hye on Tuesday agreed to dump her nominee for prime minister and cede control of some state affairs in a major climbdown forced by a corruption scandal battering her administration. The same scandal saw prosecutors carry out a morning swoop on the offices of South Korea’s largest conglomerate Samsung Electronics, looking for incriminating …

  Colombo / AFP Sri Lanka slammed China’s ambassador on Tuesday for criticising Colombo’s attitude to aid in the local media, as the island nation distances itself from its once-close ally and economic lifeline. Colombo took exception to ambassador Yi Xianliang’s comments at a press conference last week, where he said his host nation should stop criticising “expensive” loans granted …

  Budapest /AFP Hungary’s radical right Jobbik dealt all-powerful Prime Minister Viktor Orban a rare defeat on Tuesday as it blocked his bid to change the constitution to bar the resettlement of refugees. While all 131 MPs of Orban’s ruling right-wing coalition voted in favour, the bill failed to pick up an extra two votes to reach a required two-thirds …