WORLD

Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | Heavy snowfall has trapped some 13,000 tourists at Zermatt, one of Switzerland’s most popular ski stations, the Alpine resort said Tuesday. The snow has blocked all roads and the train leading to the resort in the southern Swiss canton of Valais, which was also hit by …

Seoul, South Korea | AFP | North Korea will send its athletes to the Winter Olympics in the South, the rivals said Tuesday after their first formal talks in more than two years following high tensions over Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons programme. The two sides also decided to hold military talks to …

Beijing, China | AFP | Chinese President Xi Jinping and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron oversaw the signing Tuesday of business deals worth billions of dollars, seeking better trade ties even as France’s finance minister boasted of rejecting those investments he likened to “pillaging”. The two sides signed deals in the …

Beijing, China | AFP | French President Emmanuel Macron toured Beijing’s sprawling Forbidden City on Tuesday before a day of business deals and talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping as the two rising global leaders seek closer ties. Macron, who has positioned himself as the leading voice of the European …

Washington, United States | AFP | The US Supreme Court ruled Monday ordered a re-examination of the case of a black death row inmate after one of the jurors at his trial questioned whether black people have souls. The high court in September halted the execution of Keith Tharpe, who was …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | British Prime Minister Theresa May sought to refresh her government with a ministerial reshuffle Monday as she faces a crucial year for Brexit, but the shake-up was limited and marred by a botched announcement. A new chairman of May’s Conservative party was announced on Twitter, …

Beaucaire, France | AFP |  A far right local authority in southern France on Monday scrapped pork-free school meals, a move branded “anti-Muslim” or “anti-Jewish” by an equality minister. Julien Sanchez, the National Front mayor of Beaucaire, a town south of Avignon, abolished the scheme, brought in by his predecessor, …

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | 2017 was the safest year for civil aviation since plane crash statistics were first compiled in 1946, according to two industry studies. A total of 10 crashes of civil passenger and cargo planes claimed 44 lives, said the Aviation Safety Network in a statement …

Los Angeles, United States | AFP |  The organization behind the Golden Globe Awards on Sunday announced $2 million to a journalism consortium and a media rights group as it hoped to combat growing threats to press freedom. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which runs the first gala of the …

Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump on Sunday assailed as a “Fake Book” an explosive behind-the-scenes account that questions his fitness for office, as allies lined up to defend the US leader, with one dubbing him a “political genius.” The White House has been pushing back hard …