Mutsamudu, Comoros | AFP | Comoros security forces intensified their crackdown against anti-government rebels on the island of Anjouan on Thursday, with witnesses reporting heavy gunfire and residents fleeing on the fourth day of clashes. Moroni sent in reinforcements to quell the unrest that follows months of tension as President …
Read More »Putin says US bears some responsibility for Khashoggi disappearance
Sochi, Russia | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday said the US bears a “certain responsibility” for the fate of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, adding that there is not enough evidence that Riyadh is behind his disappearance. “As far as I know, the journalist that disappeared lived in …
Read More »Harry and pregnant Meghan get baby gifts, meet koalas Down Under
Sydney, Australia | AFP | British royals Harry and Meghan received baby gifts, met a koala couple and posed in front of Sydney’s dazzling Opera House Tuesday, on their first public outing since announcing they are to become parents. The happy prince and his US-born wife laughed as they were …
Read More »Angola president vows investment drive, graft fight
Luanda, Angola | AFP | President Joao Lourenco pledged on Monday to kickstart the ailing Angolan economy with a push to attract foreign investment to end its “excessive” dependence on oil revenue and return to growth. Delivering his state of the nation address to parliament, Lourenco also vowed to continue a …
Read More »Zimbabwe says VP Chiwenga in South Africa to treat blast injuries
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Zimbabwean Vice President Constantino Chiwenga is in South Africa receiving treatment for injuries sustained during a blast at a ruling party rally in June, state media reported Monday. A grenade blast at an election rally in the second city Bulawayo killed two people and narrowly …
Read More »King steps in as Riyadh defends itself in Khashoggi case
Dubai, United Arab Emirates | AFP | Saudi King Salman has begun weighing in to try to defuse the growing crisis over missing journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as the kingdom goes on the offensive triggering a fierce online media campaign. In a phone call with US President Donald Trump on Monday, …
Read More »Trump says Mattis ‘could be’ leaving as US defense chief
Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump said in an interview airing Sunday that Defense Secretary Jim Mattis “could be” leaving, referring to him as “sort of a Democrat.” Mattis, seen as one of the steadiest but also more independent members of Trump’s cabinet, has served as a …
Read More »Lewinsky affair not an abuse of power, says Hillary Clinton
Washington, United States | AFP | Hillary Clinton has said her husband Bill’s affair with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky was not an abuse of power and he was right to not resign from the US presidency in the wake of the scandal. The two-decades old episode has …
Read More »China bemoans ‘confusing’ US signals but holds hope for a Trump-Xi meet
Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will “probably” meet at a G20 summit next month, a US official said Sunday, as both sides seek answers for a badly strained relationship that a Chinese official called “very confusing.” “The presidents will probably meet …
Read More »S.Africa’s Ramaphosa promises to accelerate land reform
Empangeni, South Africa | AFP | President President Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday symbolically handed back land to a community of black South Africans who were forcibly removed from it under apartheid and promised to accelerate land reform. “We are making history and celebrating the return of your land today. We are …
Read More »