Tokyo, Japan | AFP | Washington will soon unveil its “toughest and most aggressive sanctions” ever against North Korea, US Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday after talks with Japan’s prime minister in Tokyo. He also warned that North Korea, which will participate in this month’s Winter Olympics as part …

Cape Town, South Africa | AFP | South Africans were facing political uncertainty on Wednesday after the ruling ANC party cancelled a meeting that could have removed embattled President Jacob Zuma from office. Zuma is under growing pressure to resign in favour of his deputy and African National Congress party …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | Chelsea’s troubled season hit a new low on Monday as the Premier League champions crashed to a 4-1 defeat at Watford that heaped fresh pressure on beleaguered boss Antonio Conte. Less than a year after being hailed as the mastermind of Chelsea’s title triumph, …

San Francisco, United States | AFP | Former Uber chief executive Travis Kalanick appeared tense and tentative as he took the witness stand Tuesday seeking to counter allegations that his company stole autonomous driving secrets from former Google car unit Waymo. A key witness in the blockbuster trade secrets case, Kalanick …

Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump has asked for a large-scale military parade, the White House said Tuesday, an unconventional move that would showcase American muscle and underscore his role as commander-in-chief. Trump — who has toyed with the idea of a parade in Washington since …

Holot Detention Centre, Israel | AFP | At a detention centre in Israel’s Negev desert, African migrants facing deportation say they would rather be imprisoned than sent to a country they know nothing about. “I won’t go there,” Abda Ishmael, a 28-year-old Eritrean, said in excellent Hebrew outside Holot, an …

Sanaa, Yemen | AFP | Thousands of Yemenis suffering from kidney failure risk dying unless dialysis centres in the war-torn country receive more supplies and their staff are paid, the Red Cross said Tuesday. Yemen’s health sector has been devastated by three years of war between the Saudi-supported government and …

United Nations, United States | AFP | UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is sharply criticizing a bid by Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza to make changes to the constitution that could see him hold onto power for another decade or more, according to a report obtained by AFP on Tuesday. Guterres said …

Bamako, Mali | AFP | Mali’s Supreme Court has ordered the government to pay more than $48 million to a local military equipment firm, in a legal battle dating back to 2014 triggered by corruption allegations. The World Bank and IMF froze aid to Mali that year over state dealings …

Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | Thirty-one people have died from Lassa fever in Nigeria since the start of this year, the health minister said, with cases of the viral disease recorded across the country. Isaac Adewole told reporters in Abuja on Monday that the outbreak was currently “active in 15 …