San Francisco, United States | AFP | Key parts of the internet infrastructure face large-scale attacks that threaten the global system of web traffic, the internet’s address keeper warned Friday. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) declared after an emergency meeting “an ongoing and significant risk” to key …
Read More »Sudan: three decades under Bashir
Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | Here are key dates in Sudan since Omar al-Bashir, who Friday announced a nationwide state of emergency following two months of deadly anti-government protests, came to power three decades ago. – 1989: coup – In June 1989. army brigadier Bashir seizes power in a coup backed …
Read More »Nigeria’s Buhari promises security for rescheduled election
Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | President Muhammadu Buhari vowed Friday on the eve of troubled elections that Nigerians would be able to vote in security, despite a week-long postponement and violence in the north of the country. In a televised address, Buhari promised “adequate security measures are in place” for the ballot. “You will be …
Read More »No Brexit ‘deal in the desert’ for May: EU source
Brussels, Belgium | AFP | British Prime Minister Theresa May will have a chance to speak to fellow EU leaders at their summit with the Arab League, but she should not expect a Brexit breakthrough, an EU source said Friday. Arab and European leaders will meet for two days from Sunday in the Egyptian resort …
Read More »Chelsea banned from signing new players for next two transfer windows
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Premier League club Chelsea have been banned from signing new players in the next two transfer windows as punishment for breaking rules on registering under-age players, FIFA said on Friday. It means the club — who immediately said they would appeal the decision — …
Read More »Pope’s guidelines for concrete change over sex abuse
Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis on Thursday handed the world’s top Catholic bishops guidelines to shape the debate at a landmark Vatican summit on tackling clerical sex abuse. “As a help, I would share with you some important criteria formulated by the various episcopal commissions and …
Read More »‘Xi cult’ app is China’s red hot hit
Beijing, China | AFP | A propaganda app that puts China’s powerful President Xi Jinping in anyone’s pockets has become a hit in the country — with a helpful nudge from Communist Party officials. Millions have downloaded the app, which tracks the amount of time users spend browsing inspirational quotes from …
Read More »Samsung launches folding smartphone in bid to rev up market
San Francisco, United States | AFP | Samsung on Wednesday unveiled its first folding handset as part of an effort to rev up demand in the slumping smartphone sector. The South Korean giant’s Galaxy Fold, unveiled at a San Francisco event, services as a smartphone with a 4.6-inch display and unfolds …
Read More »Nairobi attack highlights ‘new generation’ of Shabaab recruits
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Profiles of key suspects in last month’s terror attack in Nairobi point to the worrying rise of a new generation of Kenyan jihadists, analysts say. Police are hunting Ali Salim Gichunge, the suspected mastermind of the January 15 attack on the Dusit hotel and office complex …
Read More »Air France-KLM more than doubles profits in 2018 despite strikes
Paris, France | AFP | Air France-KLM, which was badly hit last year by strikes and management upheaval, reported on Wednesday that its annual net profits rose by 150 percent to 409 million euros ($463 million). “The strong performance of our front-line teams and continued cost control helped partly offset the …
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