WORLD

Melbourne, Australia | AFP | From country priest to trusted top Vatican aide, Australia’s most senior Catholic cleric George Pell has seen his reputation plagued in the twilight of his career by controversy swirling around a 1970s paedophile scandal in the former gold rush town of Ballarat. To his admirers, …

Paris, France | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin and French leader Emmanuel Macron launched a joint defence of the Iranian nuclear deal on Monday but expressed differences on how to move forward as US President Donald Trump weighs up whether to scrap it. The Kremlin said Putin and Macron were …

Ramallah, Palestinian Territories | AFP | President Mahmud Abbas called on Monday for Palestinians to keep their children from protests along the border between Israel and Gaza, warning of a “handicapped” generation. “Keep the young men from the border, move the children away, we do not want to become handicapped people,” …

Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised address Monday he had new “proof” of an Iranian nuclear weapons plan that could be activated at any time, as the US considers whether to pull out of the atomic accord with Tehran. But while Netanyahu accused …

Washington, United States | AFP | Nigeria’s fight against the Boko Haram jihadist group was expected to top the agenda in talks Monday between President Donald Trump and Nigeria’s Muhammadu Buhari, leader of Africa’s most populous and wealthiest country. Buhari became the first leader from sub-Saharan Africa to visit Trump when …

Top Trump aide denies calling president an ‘idiot’ Washington, United States | AFP | White House Chief of Staff John Kelly firmly denied a report Monday that he called President Donald Trump an “idiot” in front of other staff — the latest suggestion of possible tensions in Trump’s inner circle. …

Seoul, South Korea | AFP | South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Monday played down the prospect of winning the Nobel Peace Prize for his historic summit with North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un, saying Donald Trump can have it instead. Friday’s summit between Moon and Kim has been hailed …

Dhaka, Bangladesh | AFP | The UN Security Council will press Myanmar to ensure that Rohingya who fled the country can return home in safety and freedom, an envoy said Monday after UN diplomats ended a tour of Bangladesh’s refugee camps. “This is a humanitarian crisis and a human rights …

Paris, France | AFP | French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Theresa May on Sunday urged the world to keep up the fight against chemical weapons on the anniversary of an international convention banning their use. “On the 21st anniversary of the Chemical Weapons Convention, and following Douma and …

Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis on Sunday praised North and South Korean leaders for their “brave commitment” to peace after they agreed to work towards the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula. The pontiff hailed the “positive outcome” of their historic summit in Seoul on Friday, when Kim …