WORLD

Tegucigalpa, Honduras | AFP | Honduras appeared to have pulled back from the brink of crisis on Friday, after the opposition candidate admitted defeat in a disputed presidential poll and the United States recognized the incumbent as the victor. Leftist flag-bearer Salvador Nasralla conceded shortly after Honduras’ key ally Washington endorsed …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | The Economist named France as its country of the year on Thursday, saying new President Emmanuel Macron had upset the odds to strike a victory for open societies and reform. The London-based weekly news magazine said the battle between open and closed visions of society …

Stockholm, Sweden | AFP | The Swedish government proposed on Thursday a law that would make any involuntary sex rape, even without explicit threats or violence, after the country was rocked by the #MeToo campaign denouncing sexual harassment and assault. “The incidence of sexual offences is increasing in Sweden, with younger …

Barcelona, Spain | AFP | Catalonia’s ousted separatist leader Carles Puigdemont saw his independence drive vindicated after he led the separatist bloc to a big win in a crucial election on Thursday from exile in Belgium. “The Spanish state has been defeated,” he told supporters in Brussels after his Together for …

Istanbul, Turkey | AFP | Turkey summoned a senior United Arab Emirates diplomat on Thursday to complain about a tweet by an Emirati minister that infuriated Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, state media reported. The Emirates’ foreign minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan this week retweeted a post on Twitter in …

Warsaw, Poland | AFP | British Prime Minister Theresa May was left smirking at a press conference with her Polish counterpart on Thursday after a translator accidentally called her “Madam Brexit”. May was in Warsaw for talks with Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, with the discussions inevitably turning to Britain’s 2019 departure …

United Nations, United States | AFP | The United States on Thursday presented a draft UN Security Council resolution ramping up sanctions on North Korea by cutting oil supplies vital for Pyongyang’s military programs, according to the text obtained by AFP. The council is expected to vote on the new sanctions …

New York, United States | AFP | Facebook announced a licensing deal Thursday with Universal Music Group, its first with a major label, as the social media giant promised more personalized, interactive music features for its two billion users. The move marks a new foray into music by Facebook, which despite …

United Nations, United States | AFP | The UN General Assembly on Thursday adopted by a decisive vote of 128 to nine, with 35 abstentions, a motion rejecting the US decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. President Donald Trump had warned ahead of the vote in the 193-nation assembly that …

Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dubbed the United Nations a “house of lies” on Thursday, ahead of a General Assembly vote on a resolution rejecting US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. “The State of Israel rejects outright this vote, even before it passes,” he said …