WORLD

United Nations, United States | AFP | The United States on Wednesday abstained for the first time in 25 years from a vote at the United Nations calling for an end to the US embargo against Cuba. The UN General Assembly adopted the annual resolution by an overwhelming vote of …

New Delhi, India | AFP | The chefs who cook for the world’s leaders usually keep a low profile, leaving the limelight to their bosses. But once a year it is their turn to be wined and dined and treated as honoured guests in a foreign country. Billed as the …

Beijing, China | AFP |  Most Chinese people want Communist Party chief Xi Jinping to be a “core” leader in the mould of Mao Zedong, official media said a survey showed, as he seeks to consolidate his control. The People’s Tribune magazine, an affiliate of the Communist Party mouthpiece People’s …

Caracas, Venezuela | AFP |  Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro accused the opposition-majority legislature Tuesday of staging a “parliamentary coup” after lawmakers voted to put him on trial amid a tense political and economic crisis. “I have called a meeting tomorrow at 11:00 am (1500 GMT) at the National Defense Council …

Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | The Vatican on Tuesday urged Catholics not to scatter the ashes of the dead after cremation and instead to store them in places approved by the Church. The new guidelines published by the Church also say that the ashes of the dead should …

Washington, United States | AFP | Donald Trump vowed Tuesday to overturn President Barack Obama’s signature health insurance program after the government announced Americans will see costs jump an average of 25 percent next year. “Obamacare has to be repealed and replaced and it has to be replaced with something …

Mexico City, Mexico | AFP |  Authorities have discovered 2.3 tons of marijuana in a lengthy illicit tunnel connecting the Mexican city Tijuana to San Diego in the United States, the Mexican Attorney General said Monday. The 1847-foot (563-meter) long passage was found after agents of the attorney general requested …

Manila, Philippines | AFP | Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s fiery rhetoric and deadly crime war are becoming a growing concern around the world, the top US envoy for Asia warned on Monday in Manila. US assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Russel met the Philippines’ …

Seoul, South Korea | AFP | South Korean President Park Geun-Hye on Monday called for constitutional reforms that could allow future presidents to serve two terms — as she struggles with plunging popularity ratings and a widening corruption scandal. While its constitution grants enormous power to the executive, South Korea …

Mumbai, India | AFP | Industrialist Ratan Tata sensationally returned to the helm of India’s biggest conglomerate on Monday as Tata Sons dumped Cyrus Mistry as chairman in a shock announcement that stunned analysts. The 78-year-old takes interim charge of the sprawling $100 billion tea-to-steel group almost four years after …