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  Kunduz / AFP A NATO airstrike killed at least 30 Afghan civilians, including women and children, on Thursday in the volatile northern province of Kunduz, officials said, after a Taliban assault there left two American soldiers dead. The airstrike, which occurred early Thursday, triggered emotionally-charged protests in the provincial capital, with the victims’ relatives rallying outside the governor’s office while ...

  Moscow / AFP President Vladimir Putin signed off on Thursday on a decree granting Russian citizenship to US action hero actor Steven Seagal, the latest high-profile passport handout to a Western celebrity. Hollywood star Seagal and judo-loving Kremlin tough guy Putin have struck up a bromance in recent years, with Seagal visiting Russia repeatedly and defending Moscow’s 2014 annexation of ...

  Jakarta/ AFP Indonesian police on Thursday offered prayers for peace and called for unity ahead of a massive protest by Muslim hardliners against Jakarta’s governor that authorities fear could turn violent. The much-hyped rally, planned for Friday, is expected to draw tens of thousands to the streets of the Indonesian capital in protest against governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, a Christian ...

  Washington / AFP With five days to go until the election and time running out to sway undecided voters, President Barack Obama is stumping for Hillary Clinton on Thursday in the bitterly contested must-win state of Florida. Republican Donald Trump will hold a rival rally in the city of Jacksonville just hours before Obama’s event, highlighting both candidates’ laser ...

  Manila / AFP An influential leader of the Philippines’ decades-long Muslim separatist insurgency voiced support on Thursday for peace efforts after rebellion charges against him were suspended and he held a surprise meeting with President Rodrigo Duterte. Moro National Liberation Front founder Nur Misuari was flown on a government-commissioned plane more than 900 kilometres (550 miles) from his southern ...

  Seoul / AFP A snowballing political scandal moved closer to embattled South Korean President Park Geun-Hye on Thursday, with her newly nominated prime minister warning she could face a probe, hours after prosecutors detained a former presidential aide. Ahn Jong-Beom was taken into custody late Wednesday over suspicions he helped Park’s friend Choi Soon-Sil coerce companies into donating large sums ...

  Johannesburg/ AFP South African President Jacob Zuma on Thursday faced increasing calls to resign after a damaging probe unearthed further evidence of alleged corruption at the top of the ANC government. The country’s anti-graft watchdog ordered a judicial inquiry into possible criminal activity in Zuma’s relationship with the Guptas, a wealthy Indian family accused of wielding undue political influence. Zuma, ...

  Eau Claire / AFP Syrian rebels renewed their bid to break a government siege on eastern Aleppo on Thursday, shelling regime-held parts of the city, hours before a brief Russian-declared ceasefire was due to begin. State media said at least 12 people had been killed in rebel rocket and gunfire on western neighbourhoods, after an assault that began with a ...

  Riyadh / AFP Twelve people have been arrested in southern Saudi Arabia on suspicion of belonging to a Yemeni rebel group fighting the kingdom, a newspaper reported on Thursday. They were detained during a wide-ranging crackdown in the border region of Najran, Al-Riyadh newspaper said. “The campaign also resulted in the arrest of 12 Yemenis suspected of belonging to ...

  Riyadh / AFP Thousands of Yemenis protested on Thursday against a UN plan to end a 19-month conflict between rebels and the government, which the president rejected as “not a map for peace.” Protesters in Aden rallied against the plan following a call by authorities in the southern city, which is serving as a temporary capital as Sanaa remains ...