WORLD

Los Angeles, United States | AFP |  War epic “1917” shocked the Golden Globes on Sunday by claiming the top prize for best drama film, while Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood” won the most honors, massively boosting their prospects for next month’s Oscars. “Once Upon a Time…” — …

Berlin, Germany | AFP |  The leaders of Germany, France and Britain on Sunday agreed to work towards bringing about de-escalation in the Middle East amid heightened tensions following the US drone strike that killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, a German government spokesman said. “The chancellor, the French president and …

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | AFP |  Saudi Arabia on Sunday condemned the Turkish parliament’s approval of a military deployment to Libya, which is aimed at shoring up the UN recognised government in Tripoli. Turkey’s parliament approved the deployment on Thursday following a request for assistance by the beleaguered Government of …

LIGHT-SIDE | The Independent | A teacher who became fed up with students using their mobile phones to find answers and cheat on university exams came up with a tricky way to catch them out—and failed the pupils who fell for the scam. After leaving the exam hall, the pupils …

Tehran, Iran | AFP |  Iran’s army chief said Sunday that Washington lacked the “courage” to initiate a conflict after US President Donald Trump threatened to hit dozens of targets inside the Islamic republic. “I doubt they have the courage to initiate” a conflict in which the Americans threatened to …

  New York, United States | AFP |  The neutral pronoun “they” has been voted word of the decade by US language experts, beating out other contenders that included “climate” and “meme”. “They” is used in English by a growing number of non-binary individuals, people who do not identify as …

Baghdad, Iraq | AFP |  Two rockets Saturday hit Iraq’s Al-Balad air base, where US troops are stationed, while two mortars hit Baghdad’s Green Zone, a high-security enclave housing the US embassy, security sources said. Sirens immediately rang out at the American compound in Baghdad hosting both diplomats and troops, …

Tehran, Iran | AFP | US and Israeli flags were set alight in Iran’s capital Saturday as thousands mourned the loss of top military commander Qasem Soleimani, a day after he was killed by American forces. “We are with you,” they chanted as they waved their hands in unison during the …

  Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump did Friday what previous presidents did not dare to do — eliminate a top Iranian general who aggressively expanded Tehran’s power while obstructing US efforts across the Middle East. Trump’s predecessors thought killing Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Islamic Revolutionary …

Washington, United States | AFP | The US is deploying up to 3,500 more troops to the Middle East in a show of force, a Pentagon official said Friday, after an American drone killed a top Iranian general. The reinforcements will come from the 82nd Airborne Division’s Global Response Force, …