WORLD

Algiers, Algeria | AFP | President Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrived in Algeria on Monday as he embarked a new tour of Africa in a bid to ramp up Turkey’s growing influence throughout the continent. The Turkish strongman touched down in Algiers, the first leg of the trip that he described as …

Seoul, South Korea | AFP | South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in on Monday threw his support behind the #MeToo campaign spreading across the country, urging measures to combat the widespread abuse of women and punish offenders. The remarks came as a growing number of South Korean women accused prominent figures …

Brussels, Belgium | AFP | The EU’s diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini on Monday demanded that a UN-backed ceasefire in Syria be implemented “immediately”, as fresh government strikes on rebel-held enclave of Eastern Ghouta killed 10 civilians. Mogherini said a UN Security Council resolution passed Saturday calling for a 30-day ceasefire …

Berlin, Germany | AFP | German Chancellor Angela Merkel has decided to give a cabinet role to an outspoken critic within her conservative party, as she looks to quell surging discontent in the right wing of the group, a senior party official said Sunday. Merkel is to name 37-year-old Jens Spahn …

Washington, United States | AFP | Russian military spies hacked hundreds of computers used by Winter Olympics organizers and tried to make it look like the work of North Korea, the Washington Post reported Sunday, quoting US intelligence sources. South Korea had previously announced that it was investigating the failure of …

Washington, United States | AFP | The US on Sunday said talks with North Korea could lead to a “brighter path” for the isolated regime but cautioned any dialogue must result in its denuclearization. The White House issued a statement after a North Korean delegation to the neighboring South reportedly expressed …

Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is to be questioned as a suspect in a further case of alleged corruption and as a witness in another, Israeli media reported Sunday. The police, who have questioned the prime minister seven times since the beginning of 2017, in mid-February …

Sydney, Australia | AFP | A 7.5-magnitude earthquake struck Papua New Guinea early Monday, US seismologists said, but no tsunami warning was issued. The quake’s epicentre was around 90 kilometres (55 miles) south of Porgera in Enga province, according to USGS, and hit at a depth of 35 kilometres. USGS said …

Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis on Sunday called for an immediate end to violence in Syria to allow aid deliveries, especially in the rebel enclave of Eastern Ghouta which has been hit by regime bombardment. “This February has been one of the most violent (periods) in …

Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Christian leaders took the rare step on Sunday of closing Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre, built where tradition holds Jesus was buried, in protest at Israeli tax measures and a proposed property law. It was not clear how long the closure of the church, …