Algiers, Algeria | AFP | Up to 6,000 Africans who fought for the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group in Iraq and Syria could return home, the African Union’s top security official warned Sunday, calling on countries to prepare for the threat. Smail Chergui, the AU’s commissioner for peace and security, said …

Tokyo, Japan | AFP | Tokyo organisers are back on track and will complete their 2020 Olympic venues on schedule, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said Monday at the start of a three-day visit. After bungling the rollout of the showpiece Olympic stadium two years ago, local organisers have come under …

Why inflation and monetary-policy adjustments by central banks might not impact its price COMMENT | JIM O’NEIL | Writing about oil prices is always risky. In a January 2015, I suggested that oil prices would not continue to fall, and even predicted that they would “finish the year higher than they …

New York, United States | AFP | Bitcoin surged past $18,000 after it began trading on its first major global exchange Sunday, the latest in a series of highs that have excited some investors while leaving others nervous of a bubble. Trading of the controversial digital currency on a futures contract …

Los Angeles, United States | AFP | The nominations will be unveiled Monday for the Golden Globes, kicking off an awards season expected to be overshadowed by the sexual misconduct scandal engulfing the movie industry. The announcements, which come two days before the influential Screen Actors Guild nominations, are the first …

Washington, United States | AFP | The United States accused the Palestinian Authority Sunday of “walking away” from a chance to discuss peace in the Middle East by snubbing Vice President Mike Pence on an upcoming visit. A top official in Pence’s office said the vice president was looking forward to …

New York, United States | AFP | Bitcoin makes its debut on a major exchange Sunday, a milestone for the digital currency that has some investors excited but others nervous. The Cboe Futures Exchange in Chicago will open trading in bitcoin futures at 2300 GMT on Sunday, a move that is …

Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | The bodies of 15 UN peacekeepers from Tanzania killed in the Democratic Republic of Congo will be repatriated in the coming days, the Tanzanian army said Sunday. The soldiers were all members of the Tanzania People’s Defence Forces participating in a UN peacekeeping operation in the …

Rabat, Morocco | AFP | Tens of thousands of protesters rallied in Morocco’s capital Rabat on Sunday as demonstrations against US President Donald Trump’s declaration of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital continued to spread. Waving Palestinian flags, a sea of demonstrators marched from Rabat’s Bab el-Had square to Morocco’s parliament building, down …

Cairo, Egypt | AFP | Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas was to meet Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo Monday over US President Donald Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, Egypt’s presidency said. Trump’s move has drawn near universal condemnation, and Palestinian officials say Abbas will refuse to meet …