London, United Kingdom | AFP | Britain’s historic rail industry is destined for the biggest shakeup in decades that could end in renationalisation and significant investment to vastly improve services amid costly fares and delays. Full state-control of the industry is a distinct possibility should a looming general election triggered …
Read More »Five things to watch for in Russian polls
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russians vote in local and regional elections on Sunday. Here are five things to watch for during the elections that will take place in each of the country’s 85 regions. – How the Kremlin fares – Gubernatorial elections will take place in 16 regions. Elections to …
Read More »Spain struggles to accommodate thousands of young migrants
Barcelona, Spain | AFP | Spain is struggling to accommodate thousands of young migrants who over the years have arrived alone on rickety boats or hidden in trucks, some of whom have ended up on the streets or even become involved in crime. There are currently around 14,000 unaccompanied young migrants …
Read More »Hurricane Dorian death toll climbs to 43, expected to rise ‘significantly’
Marsh Harbour, Bahamas | AFP | The death toll from Hurricane Dorian’s devastating rampage across the Bahamas rose to 43 Friday, a number authorities said is likely to climb “significantly,” even as rescuers plucked desperate survivors from the debris. More than 260 residents of brutally damaged Abaco Island arrived in the …
Read More »Russians go to polls after summer of protests
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russians are set to vote in local elections on Sunday following a hugely controversial campaign in Moscow that degenerated into the biggest police crackdown on protesters in nearly a decade. Municipal and regional polls will be held across the vast country, but most attention will be …
Read More »Johnson in election mode as he visits Scotland after Brexit setbacks
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Prime Minister Boris Johnson heads to Scotland on Friday in campaign mode despite failing to call an early election after MPs this week thwarted his hardline Brexit strategy. Johnson, who will make a fresh attempt next week to force the mid-October snap election, is set …
Read More »Selfies from the disaster zone: how TV show changed Chernobyl tourism
Chernobyl, Ukraine | AFP | The hit TV series “Chernobyl” has attracted a new generation of tourists to the nuclear disaster zone but guides say that many are more interested in taking selfies than learning about the accident. “They do not need information anymore, they just want to take a selfie,” …
Read More »Dorian strengthens to Category 3 storm as it threatens US east coast
Nassau, Bahamas | AFP | Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis on Wednesday lamented the “generational devastation” wrought by Hurricane Dorian, as it was upgraded to a major Category 3 storm while bearing down on the Carolinas on the US east coast. Minnis confirmed the storm’s death toll had risen to at …
Read More »UK Johnson’s Brexit plans in tatters after stinging defeats
London, United Kingdom | AFP | British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s hardline Brexit strategy stood in tatters on Thursday after a humiliating week left him without a working majority but unable to call an election. His supporters ended a night-long filibuster in the upper House of Lords when the government gave …
Read More »Twitter CEO account hacked, tweets by text halted
Washington, United States | AFP | Twitter on Wednesday halted users’ ability to fire off tweets via text messages as it seeks to fix a vulnerability that led to CEO Jack Dorsey’s account being hijacked. Dorsey last week was the target of so-called “SIM swap” fraud, which enables a hacker …
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