Tag Archives: politics

Paris, France | AFP | Remarks by French President Emmanuel Macron that he wanted to repair church-state ties caused uproar Tuesday, sparking charges he was tampering with France’s longstanding secular tradition. The Catholic Church and the state were for centuries virtually indistinguishable in France but the 1789 Revolution and 19th …

Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | It was a handshake that drew a line under Kenya’s bruising election, left many people bewildered and swung open the starting gate for the 2022 presidential race. After months of insults during a deadly and divisive election, the two heirs of Kenya’s most powerful political …

Washington, United States | AFP | A furious Donald Trump blasted the investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller as a “disgrace” and a “witch hunt” Monday after FBI agents raided the New York offices of the president’s longtime personal lawyer Michael Cohen. Agents seized files relating to Cohen’s work, …

Luanda, Angola | AFP | The son of Angola’s former president Jose Eduardo dos Santos planned to siphon off $1.5 billion when he ran the oil-rich country’s sovereign wealth fund, the finance ministry said Monday. The figure is three times higher than an initial sum illegally transferred to a London …

Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari declared Monday he would seek re-election next year, in a move that put an end to months of speculation. “President @Buhari has just announced his intention to seek the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and contest for a …

Washington, United States | AFP | North Korean officials have told their US counterparts that Kim Jong Un is ready to discuss denuclearization, an assurance that could pave the way for a meeting with President Donald Trump, reports said Sunday. It is the first time the offer was made directly to …

Freetown, Sierra Leone | AFP | Sierra Leone’s beaten presidential hopeful Samura Kamara, who narrowly lost a run-off vote, congratulated victor Julius Maada Bio Saturday and vowed to throw his party’s support behind a new administration. “I’m here to congratulate our new president with executive members of my party,” Kamara …

Los Angeles, United States | AFP | Action hero Arnold Schwarzenegger is back home in Los Angeles and in good spirits after undergoing open heart surgery following complications with a routine operation, his spokesman said on Friday. The 70-year-old “Terminator” and “Predator” star, and former governor of California, was at the …

Washington, United States | AFP | Facebook announced Friday it will require political ads on its platform to state who is paying for the message and would verify the identity of the payer, in a bid to curb outside election interference. The social network, which is under fire for enabling manipulation …

Freetown, Sierra Leone | AFP | Sierra Leone’s new president, Julius Maada Bio, on Friday promised civil servants they need not fear a purge despite a historic shift in the country’s politics. Bio, whose election has ended decade-long rule by the All People’s Congress (APC), praised state workers and “gave them …