Hong Kong, China | AFP | China’s President Xi Jinping said Saturday Hong Kong was freer than ever before but laid down an uncrossable “red line” for any challenge to Beijing’s authority as the city marked 20 years since it was handed back by Britain. Xi spoke in a televised …
Read More »China’s president Xi in landmark visit to Hong Kong
Hong Kong, China | AFP | President Xi Jinping arrives in Hong Kong on Thursday to mark 20 years since it was handed back to China by Britain, a trip that has already riled democracy activists in the politically divided city. The three-day visit is his first since becoming leader …
Read More »UK Labour leader Corbyn will ‘try to force early election’
London, United Kingdom | AFP | British opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn has vowed to “try to force an early general election” after Prime Minster Theresa May lost her parliamentary majority, in an interview published Saturday. Corbyn’s Labour Party outperformed expectations in this month’s election, turning what was predicted to be …
Read More »London tower blocks evacuated over fire fears
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Thousands of residents from 650 London flats were evacuated Saturday due to fire safety fears in the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy, but dozens refused to leave their homes, according to local officials. Four of the five Chalcots Estate towers in Camden, north …
Read More »UK parliament cuts e-mail access after cyberattack
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Britain’s parliament shut down external access to e-mail accounts on Saturday following a cyberattack. Parliamentary authorities described the attack as “sustained and determined”, in an email sent to lawmakers and published by the Daily Telegraph. “Earlier this morning we discovered unusual activity and evidence …
Read More »Five London towers being evacuated over fire safety fears
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Five residential London tower blocks were being evacuated on Friday due to fire safety concerns over their external cladding following the deadly Grenfell Tower inferno. The towers in the Swiss Cottage area of north London, containing around 800 homes, were deemed unsafe following urgent …
Read More »Anger simmers around burnt-out west London tower block
London, United Kingdom | AFP | One week on from the fatal London tower block inferno, the macabre smell of the burnt-out building clings to a traumatised neighbourhood, where every conversation is peppered with indignation. Some 79 people are presumed dead after last Wednesday’s blaze, which quickly engulfed the 24-storey …
Read More »London attacker who wanted to ‘kill all Muslims’ was saved by Imam
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Worshippers leaving a London mosque early Monday were helping an elderly man who had collapsed when a van deliberately rammed them, driven by an attacker who shouted: “I want to kill all Muslims”, witnesses said. Shortly after midnight, the van swerved towards people who …
Read More »Another London attack!
One dead as van rams pedestrians near London mosque London, United Kingdom | AFP | A van ran into pedestrians near a north London mosque, killing one man and injuring eight others in an incident that police on Monday said was being investigated by counter-terrorism officers. The 48-year-old driver of …
Read More »UPDATE: 58 presumed dead in London tower block blaze
London, United Kingdom | AFP | The presumed death toll from the London tower block inferno jumped to 58 on Saturday as embattled Prime Minister Theresa May, accused of misreading the growing anger over the tragedy, pledged action after meeting survivors desperately seeking answers. Dozens of people were still missing …
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