Tag Archives: politics

Tokyo, Japan | AFP | Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Monday called a snap election, seeking a fresh term at the helm of the world’s third-largest economy as tensions with nearby North Korea reach fever-pitch. Abe hopes to capitalise on a weak and fractured opposition to sweep back into power, …

Beijing, China | AFP |  Chinese authorities appear to have severely disrupted the WhatsApp messaging app in the latest step to tighten censorship as they prepare for a major Communist Party congress next month. Users in China have reported widespread disruptions in recent days to the Facebook-owned service, which previously …

Brighton, United Kingdom | AFP | The BBC’s political editor is attending the main opposition Labour Party’s annual conference with a bodyguard after being accused of bias for the governing Conservatives, The Times newspaper reported Monday. Laura Kuenssberg was seen at the conference in Brighton accompanied by a shaven-headed man identified …

Berlin, Germany | AFP | The nationalist Alternative for Germany was hit by party infighting Monday, just hours after winning its first seats in parliament, with its co-chief Frauke Petry declaring that she won’t join its Bundestag group. Citing “dissent” with more hardline colleagues, Petry dropped her bombshell at a morning …

Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | A court in Sudan on Sunday sentenced a university student to death after convicting him of killing a policeman during protests in the capital last year, a defence lawyer said. Asim Omer, who was studying at Khartoum University, was arrested in December 2016 and charged with …

Washington, United States | AFP | Two Republican senators signalled strong opposition Sunday to their party’s latest bid to overhaul Obamacare, dealing a potentially fatal blow to one President Donald Trump’s top legislative goals. Senator Susan Collins of Maine said she cannot “envision a scenario” in which she would back the …

N. Korea, Venezuela, Chad among 8 countries on new US travel ban Washington, United States | AFP |  President Donald Trump issued a new open-ended travel ban Sunday that saw North Korea, Venezuela and Chad among a list of eight countries cited for poor security and lack of cooperation with …

Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP |  Zimbabwean activist pastor Evan Mawarire was on Sunday arrested during a church service after he posted a video bemoaning the country’s worsening economic troubles, his lawyer said. The charismatic pastor who has been arrested several times for his dissenting views informed the congregation about his …

Lome, Togo | AFP | Togo’s government was surprised by how many people took to the streets earlier this month to demand the removal of President Faure Gnassingbe. But with no end in sight to the protesters’ calls for change, questions are mounting about whether the pressure can be maintained to …

Washington, United States | AFP | US Senator John McCain announced Friday his opposition to the latest Republican attempt to replace Barack Obama’s signature health care law, likely dooming the repeal effort. It is the second time in two months that he has defied his party and President Donald Trump over …