Vatican City / AFP Pope Francis urged peace in the Middle East as tens of thousands gathered to hear his Christmas address on Sunday, while offering comfort to victims of terrorism after a year of bloody extremist attacks. The 80-year-old Argentine called for guns to fall silent in Syria, saying “far too much blood has been spilled” in the nearly …

  Washington / AFP US President-elect Donald Trump said on Saturday he intends to dissolve his controversial philanthropic foundation to avoid conflicts of interest, but the move was quickly complicated by an ongoing legal probe. Trump’s sprawling portfolio of US and overseas business interests and holdings—as well as his Donald J Trump Foundation—have come under increased scrutiny in the weeks since …

  Berlin / AFP An unwelcome Christmas surprise in southern Germany forced the evacuation of 54,000 people from their homes on Sunday after the discovery of a bomb dating from World War II, local authorities said. It was a British bomb that was found in the city of Augsburg and led to the biggest mobilisation in Germany—around 900 police officers—since …