The Hague, Netherlands | AFP | A total of 556 people died in 15 plane crashes in 2018, significantly more than the previous year, but long-term trends show safety improving, an aviation watchdog reported. The year 2017 was the safest year in aviation history with only 44 people killed in …
Read More »Trump says looks forward to new meeting with N.Korea’s Kim
Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump said Tuesday he looked forward to another summit with Kim Jong Un, a day after the North Korean leader warned Pyongyang could take a different approach to nuclear talks if US economic sanctions persist. “I also look forward to meeting with …
Read More »‘CALM DOWN,’ Trump tells detractors in New Year’s message
Washington, United States | AFP | For many, the New Year presents an opportunity for introspection and vows of self-improvement. Not so for US President Donald Trump, who kicked off 2019 in characteristically belligerent fashion, tweeting an all-caps message to his critics, telling them to “CALM DOWN AND ENJOY THE …
Read More »Israel opposition in dramatic split ahead of election
Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Israel’s centre-left opposition dramatically split on Tuesday ahead of an April 9 election, with leader Avi Gabbay announcing he would no longer partner with veteran politician Tzipi Livni as she sat stone-faced next to him. The announcement means the end of their Zionist Union alliance, …
Read More »Serena in inspirational message to working mums
Perth, Australia | AFP | Serena Williams has posted an inspirational New Year message to mums and dads juggling parenthood with work, saying “anything is possible”. The 23-time Grand Slam champion began 2019 in Perth at the mixed teams Hopman Cup, with baby Alexis Olympia in tow. She posted a …
Read More »Around 100 Central Americans try to enter US on New Year’s Eve
Tijuana, Mexico | AFP | Around 100 Central American migrants made a failed attempt on New Year’s Eve to cross over from Mexico into the United States. They were among 1,500 migrants who have remained in Tijuana after a once-5,000-strong caravan of travelers largely gave up and dispersed. An AFP …
Read More »Far-right Bolsonaro sworn in as Brazil’s new president
Brasília, Brazil | AFP | Jair Bolsonaro, a far-right politician vowing a crackdown on crime and corruption, was sworn in Tuesday as Brazil’s new president in front of Congress in Brasilia. The 63-year-old former paratrooper and deputy for the past 27 years pledged to uphold the constitution as he embarked …
Read More »Netanyahu says Israel is Arabs’ ‘ally’ against Iran
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | AFP | Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that Arab countries viewed Israel as an “indispensable ally” fighting Iran and the Islamic State group. That evaluation, he told Brazil’s Globo TV during a visit to Rio, has caused “a revolution in relations with the Arab …
Read More »US military apologizes for tweet about dropping bombs
Washington, United States | AFP | US Strategic Command apologized Monday for a joke in “bad taste” after tweeting it was ready to drop something “much bigger” than the traditional Times Square crystal ball at New Year. In a message posted, and later deleted, on Twitter, the military force that …
Read More »Thai man guns down six family members, including kids at New Year party
Bangkok, Thailand | AFP | A Thai man who felt slighted by his in-laws shot dead six family members including his two young children at a New Year’s Eve party before turning the gun on himself, police said Tuesday. The mass shooting took place 10 minutes after midnight as Sucheep …
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