WORLD

Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump’s top military and diplomatic aides told US lawmakers Monday that the administration was not seeking new authority for conducting military operations in the world’s hot spots. Congress first passed an authorization to use military force, or AUMF, on September 14, 2001 — …

Singapore, Singapore | AFP | A fast-rising cabinet minister and former army chief seen as a frontrunner to succeed Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said Monday that he and other younger officials were ready to lead Singapore if asked. Political succession in the affluent city-state was thrust into the limelight …

Washington, United States | AFP |  Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman was placed under house arrest Monday, as an investigation into Russia’s manipulation of the 2016 election shifted to a new and more perilous stage for the White House. After a first wave of indictments were unsealed, Paul Manafort and …

Seoul, South Korea | AFP | North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un took his stylish wife and powerful sister to a make-up plant for a “field guidance trip” amid the country’s nuclear standoff with the US. During a visit to the Pyongyang Cosmetics Factory in the capital, Kim hailed its “world-level” products …

Barcelona, Spain | AFP | Spain enters uncharted and potentially perilous territory on Monday as Madrid moves to take over the running of Catalonia in response to the rebellious region’s parliament unilaterally declaring independence. Catalan leaders, dramatically sacked late Friday by the central Spanish government, have urged “democratic opposition” to …

Beijing, China | AFP | Chinese billionaires are boasting about their Marxist bonafides. The Communist Party is tightening its grip on state-owned companies. And foreign companies are being asked to invite party cells into their offices. Under President Xi Jinping, the country’s ruling party is muscling back into business, expanding …

Washington, United States | AFP |  Hillary Clinton got a reminder that exactly one year ago, then FBI director James Comey said he was re-opening a probe into her emails. “Oh is that today?” the former Democratic presidential candidate quipped on Twitter late Saturday, in response to a post by …

New York, United States | AFP |  George W. Bush issued a sharp denunciation of bigotry, white supremacy and falsehoods on Thursday, in what was seen as a clear rebuke of politics in the age of President Donald Trump. In a New York speech, the two-term former president warned that …

Richmond, United States | AFP |  Barack Obama is returning to the political arena for the first time in months after keeping a low profile and avoiding direct confrontation with his White House successor. The 56-year-old former president is scheduled to attend campaign rallies in New Jersey and Virginia on …

Los Angeles, United States | AFP | The Weinstein revelations have once again shone a light on Hollywood’s seedy underbelly — but rampant sexual harassment in the workplace is hardly confined to the glamorous world of show business. From the cleaning industry to the corporate world, a common thread is …