WORLD

Paris, France | AFP | Israel has formally notified the UN’s culture and education body of its withdrawal from the organisation, two months after it announced it would follow the US by walking out over resolutions critical of the Jewish state. In a statement UNESCO chief Audrey Azoulay said she …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | Social media giants Facebook and Twitter are facing a deadline in Britain to cooperate with an inquiry into so-called fake news in the Brexit referendum campaign, a parliamentary committee chairman said Friday. The companies have been given until January 18 to share information requested …

Kabul, Afghanistan | AFP | Mourners on a cold, barren hill outside Kabul wept Friday as they buried loved ones killed in a suicide attack targeting Shiites, the latest victims in one of the bloodiest years in the war-torn country. At a Shiite cemetery spread over the hills dozens of …

Hanoi, Vietnam | AFP | A Vietnamese court has jailed nine people for “attempting to overthrow the state”, official media reported Friday, the latest heavy sentence doled out in a harsh crackdown this year against activists in the one-party state. Communist Vietnam routinely jails its critics, but 2017 has been …

Paris, France | AFP |  Former Chelsea star Didier Drogba led plaudits on Friday from the world of football to George Weah after the only African to win the Ballon d’Or was elected President of Liberia. “Congratulations Mr. George” the Ivory Coast legend posted on Twitter. “Thanks Didier for your …

Washington, United States | AFP | The United States and Turkey on Thursday turned the page on a visa crisis triggered nearly three months ago by the arrest of a staff member at the American mission in Ankara, but relations between the NATO allies remain tense. The two sides announced the …

Monrovia, Liberia | AFP | Ex-football superstar George Weah was announced the winner on Thursday of Liberia’s presidential run-off, beating Vice President Joseph Boakai in the first democratic transfer of power in decades following two devastating civil wars. Weah is set to replace incumbent Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who took over …

Istanbul, Turkey | AFP | Turkey “laughed off” a demand from the International Criminal Court (ICC) to arrest Sudan’s wanted leader when he attended a summit in Istanbul, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was quoted as saying Thursday. Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who is wanted on charges of genocide and war crimes, …

Washington, United States | AFP | Defeated US Senate candidate Roy Moore has filed a last-minute legal challenge to his stunning loss at the hands of Democrat Doug Jones in a special election held in the right-leaning state of Alabama earlier this month. Christian conservative Moore, a former judge who …

Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday called an explosion that tore through a Saint Petersburg supermarket, wounding 13 people, “an act of terror.” “As you know, an act of terror took place in Saint Petersburg yesterday,” he said at a meeting of military officers in …