United Nations, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump on Monday revealed plans to transform America’s Independence Day celebrations next July 4 into a vast military parade, styled on France’s Bastille Day. “We’re actually thinking about Fourth of July, Pennsylvania Avenue, having a really great parade to show our …
Read More »Israel gets first joint US military base
Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Israel on Monday inaugurated with its US ally a joint missile defence base on Israeli soil, the first ever, a senior Israeli air force officer said. The new facility, at an undisclosed location in southern Israel, was announced as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was due …
Read More »US has ‘many’ military options in Korea crisis: Mattis
Washington, United States | AFP | The United States has “many” military options against North Korea, including some that don’t put Seoul at risk, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Monday. His comments come after President Donald Trump’s administration ramped up pressure on North Korea on Sunday, warning Pyongyang will be “destroyed” …
Read More »Trump says ‘bureaucracy’ holding UN back
United Nations, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump on Monday warned “bureaucracy” is holding the United Nations back, a barbed first message to an institution he once derided as a talking shop. Kicking off a frantic week of diplomacy with a panel discussion on UN reform, Trump noted …
Read More »Iraq set to expel 500 wives of IS jihadists
Baghdad, Iraq | AFP | Iraq moved 500 wives of Islamic State group jihadists to a detention centre in preparation to deport them after they were captured along with 800 children, a councillor said Monday. The women and children were detained in Iraq’s second city Mosul, capital of Nineveh province and …
Read More »Britain’s May says Trump visit still on despite terror tweets
Washington, United States | AFP | British Prime Minister Theresa May has insisted a long-awaited state visit by Donald Trump will go ahead as planned despite a diplomatic spat triggered by the US president’s comments after a terror attack in London. Speaking to ABC News from Downing Street in an interview …
Read More »US warns N.Korea will be ‘destroyed’ if threats continue
Washington, United States | AFP | Donald Trump’s administration ramped up the pressure on North Korea on Sunday ahead of a week of high-stakes diplomacy at the United Nations, warning Pyongyang will be “destroyed” if it refuses to end its “reckless” nuclear and ballistic missile drive. With US officials and their …
Read More »US flies bombers over Korean peninsula
Seoul, South Korea | AFP | The US flew four stealth fighter jets and two bombers over the Korean peninsula on Monday in a show of force after North Korea’s latest nuclear and missile tests, South Korea’s defence ministry said. Four F-35B stealth fighters and two B-1B bombers flew over …
Read More »Serbia’s gay PM at Pride takes tolerance ‘one step at a time’
Belgrade, Serbia | AFP | Serbia’s lesbian prime minister said Sunday that she was working “one step at a time” towards a more tolerant society, as she joined Belgrade’s annual gay march held under heavy security. Ana Brnabic, 41, became one of the few openly gay government leaders in the …
Read More »Ex-Pakistan PM’s wife on course to win his by-election seat
Lahore, Pakistan | AFP | The wife of former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was on course to win a parliamentary by-election for her husband’s seat, which became vacant when he was ousted from office, according to unofficial early results Sunday. The Supreme Court ended Sharif’s tenure as prime …
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