United Nations, United States | AFP | The UN Security Council on Friday blacklisted 27 ships, 21 companies and a businessman for helping North Korea circumvent sanctions, as the United States keeps up pressure on Pyongyang despite its recent overtures toward talks, diplomats said. Acting on a request from the …
Read More »Irish pubs open on Good Friday for first time in 91 yrs
Dublin, Ireland | AFP | Pubs in Ireland were open on Good Friday for the first time in almost a century after the repeal of a law banning sales of alcohol on the Christian holiday. The Intoxicating Liquor Act, passed in 1927, prohibited sales in shops and bars on three …
Read More »Russia hits back against EU countries in spy row
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia on Friday expelled Dutch diplomats and told Britain it had one month to reduce its diplomatic presence in the country, hitting back at EU countries after a coordinated campaign by the UK and its allies over a nerve agent attack on a former spy. …
Read More »Erdogan ‘saddened’ by France’s stance on Kurdish militia
Ankara, Turkey | AFP | Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday said he was “extremely saddened” by France’s position after Paris offered to mediate with the Syrian Democratic Forces dominated by a Kurdish militia deemed a terrorist group by Ankara. “We are extremely saddened by France’s… wrong stance on …
Read More »China’s aircraft carrier spotted in huge naval drill
Beijing, China | AFP | Beijing flexed its military muscle this week as its sole operational aircraft carrier apparently took part in a huge naval drill with dozens of other vessels in the South China Sea, satellite images showed. The pictures, taken by Planet Labs Inc., appear to show the …
Read More »Pope washes prisoners’ feet in Holy Week ritual
Rome, Italy | AFP | Pope Francis washed prisoners’ feet at a Rome jail on Thursday, including two Muslims, an Orthodox Christian and a Buddhist, once again choosing to celebrate Holy Thursday among Italy’s incarcerated. “Everyone always has the opportunity to change life and one cannot judge,” said Francis to …
Read More »Trump says US withdrawing from Syria ‘very soon’
Richfield, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump insisted Thursday that US forces would pull out of Syria “very soon” and lamented what he said was Washington’s waste of $7 trillion in Middle East wars. In a populist address to industrial workers in Ohio, Trump said US forces …
Read More »UN losing support from countries, says outgoing top official
United Nations, United States | AFP | The UN’s outgoing political chief expressed concern Thursday in a parting message that the United Nations was losing support from a growing number of countries. Jeffrey Feltman, an American who served as under-secretary-general for political affairs since 2012, said it was “quite worrying” …
Read More »Putin spokesman calls Weinstein accusers ‘prostitutes’
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia’s President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the actresses who have claimed sexual abuse by disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein “prostitutes” and poured scorn on journalists who have accused a Russian lawmaker of sexual harassment. Peskov, speaking to students in Moscow, said that the …
Read More »White House says Russia expulsion of diplomats marks ‘deteroriation’ in ties
Washington, United States | AFP | Russia’s expulsion of 60 US diplomats and shuttering of one of its consulates marks a “further deterioration” in relations between Washington and Moscow, the White House said Thursday. The US had ordered a similar number of diplomats from Russia to leave and the shuttering …
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