Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | A 25-year-old American journalist charged with attempting to overthrow Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe, on account of an alleged tweet that described the ageing leader as “selfish and sick”, was remanded in custody Saturday after denying the accusations. Martha O’Donovan, who appeared in court in the capital …
Read More »US warns diplomatic staff of ‘specific threat’ at Mogadishu airport
Mogadishu, Somalia | AFP | The US mission to Somalia on Saturday urged all of its non-essential staff to leave Mogadishu immediately following a specific threat against them at the capital’s international airport. The warning came just hours after US forces confirmed carrying out their first-ever drone strikes targeting Islamic State …
Read More »N. Korea rules out negotiations as Trump heads to Asia
Seoul, South Korea | AFP | North Korea ruled out talks and threatened to increase its nuclear arsenal in a fresh warning to Donald Trump’s administration Saturday as the US President set off on a tour of Asia. Trump departed for his first presidential trip to Asia Friday, with tensions …
Read More »US strikes IS in Somalia for first time
Washington, United States | AFP | The US conducted a pair of drone strikes against Islamic State fighters in Somalia on Friday, the first time America has hit the jihadists in the Horn of Africa nation, officials said. The strikes occurred in northeastern Somalia and killed “several terrorists,” the US …
Read More »Zimbabwe arrests US woman for Mugabe ‘goblin’ tweet
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Zimbabwean police arrested a US citizen on Friday for allegedly tweeting that President Robert Mugabe is a “goblin whose wife and step-son bought a Rolls-Royce,” lawyers said. Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR) said officers detained Martha O’Donovan in a dawn raid at her …
Read More »Spacey, Weinstein in police crosshairs over assault claims
New York, United States | AFP | Hollywood’s explosive sexual harassment scandal deepened Friday as New York police revealed they were gathering evidence for a possible arrest warrant against Harvey Weinstein in a credible double rape allegation. Weinstein, once one of the most powerful men in Hollywood, and Oscar-winner Kevin …
Read More »Long queues, protests as Apple’s iPhone X hits stores
Paris, France | AFP | Apple’s iPhone X hit stores around the world Friday, drawing crowds in many locations and protests in others as the new flagship device hit stores in some 50 markets worldwide. Apple enthusiasts around the globe were lining up to get their hands on the new device …
Read More »Trump departs for Asia, leaving trail of controversy
Andrews Air Force Base, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump departed Washington for an almost two week trip to Asia Friday, leaving in his wake a trail of scandal and invective that risks overshadowing efforts at top-level diplomacy. Trump left Joint Base Andrews, just outside Washington, bound for …
Read More »Iran denounces CIA ‘fake news’ in Bin Laden files
Tehran, Iran | AFP | Iran has accused the CIA of spreading “fake news” about the Islamic republic with newly declassified files seized in the 2011 raid in Pakistan in which Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden was killed. The CIA on Wednesday released 470,000 additional files found in May 2011 when …
Read More »US sends supersonic bombers over South Korea
Washington, United States | AFP | US bombers overflew the Korean peninsula Thursday as part of an exercise with Japanese and South Korean warplanes, the US Air Force said, days before President Donald Trump arrives in the region for a trip set to be dominated by the nuclear-armed North. Tensions are …
Read More »