WORLD

Beijing, China | AFP | Authorities in a Muslim-majority county in northwest China have banned schoolchildren from going to mosques during their winter holidays, a state-run daily reported Friday, the latest tightening of regulations on religious freedoms. The decision was outlined in a notice sent to all high schools, primary …

Paris, France | AFP | The United States are set to overtake Saudi Arabia as the world’s number two oil producer after Russia this year, as shale companies, attracted by rising prices, ramp up drilling, the International Energy Agency said on Friday. “This year promises to be a record-setting one …

Moscow, Russia | AFP | A teenage boy injured six people, five of them minors, in an axe attack in a Siberian classroom on Friday, local authorities said, days after 15 were injured in a knife fight at another Russian school. Investigators said the boy, thought to be 15 or …

Manila, Philippines | AFP | Facebook has emerged as the top site for wildlife trafficking in the Philippines, a watchdog said Friday, with thousands of endangered crocodiles, snakes and turtles illegally traded in just three months. Monitoring network TRAFFIC said Facebook had not done enough to shut down the trade, …

Sandhurst, United Kingdom | AFP | Prime Minister Theresa May and her French counterpart Emmanuel Macron agreed a new border security deal on Thursday, through which the UK will pay more to France to stop migrants trying to reach British shores. May also confirmed the loan of the Bayeux Tapestry from …

Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | The last three years were the hottest on record, the United Nations weather agency said Thursday, citing fresh global data underscoring the dramatic warming of the planet. Consolidated data from five leading international weather agencies shows that “2015, 2016 and 2017 have been confirmed as the …

Paris, France | AFP | Small electrical appliances such as microwave ovens, kettles and hair dryers harm the environment in a dozen different ways, and consumers can do far more to reduce the impacts, researchers said Thursday. In the European Union, the electricity used by 130 million microwaves puts 7.7 …

Seoul, South Korea | AFP | North Korea is preparing a lavish display of its military strength in a parade on the eve of next month’s Winter Olympics in the South, despite a rare sporting detente with Seoul, it was reported Thursday. Pyongyang, which has rattled the international community with …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | Europe’s major stock markets churned lower Wednesday as investors took their cue from downbeat sentiment in Asia, while Wall Street resumed its upward trend. Virtual currency bitcoin meanwhile dived, falling below $10,000 for the first time in six weeks in what one analyst called a …

Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump will appear via video link during this year’s March for Life, a mass rally of anti-abortion activists taking place Friday in Washington, the White House said. Trump “will become the first sitting president to address the March for Life from the …