WORLD

Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump on Friday tried to shut down reports that he is on the verge of sacking or forcing out his chief diplomat, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Trump took to Twitter to brand reports of Tillerson’s imminent replacement “FAKE NEWS!” — although …

Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump on Friday stepped up his demands for a wall to stem illegal immigration from Mexico after an undocumented migrant was acquitted of murdering a woman in California — in a dramatic conclusion to a polarizing case. “His exoneration is a complete …

Washington, United States | AFP | Donald Trump’s son-in-law and Middle East peace envoy Jared Kushner will make a rare public appearance on Sunday, as the president mulls whether to move the US embassy to Jerusalem. The coincidence of a policy forum, the embassy decision and an imminent trip to …

Ottawa, Canada | AFP | Arctic and major fishing nations, including China, announced Friday that they have agreed to a moratorium on commercial fishing in Arctic waters before a fishery in the icy region is even feasible. The far north is warming at nearly twice the global average rate, causing …

New York, United States | AFP | The war between Donald Trump and CNN has taken a new turn with the government’s challenge to a tie-up between AT&T and the cable news channel’s parent firm Time Warner. Even as his Justice Department moved to block the deal, the president has stepped …

Colombo, Sri Lanka | AFP | Sri Lankan police have arrested five men for allegedly killing a wild elephant, with officers seizing ivory and tusk-cutting tools, officials said Friday. Villagers in the island’s northwest had alerted wildlife authorities after a popular local elephant called “Dala Poottuwa”, or crossed tusker, disappeared. Its …

Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | Blessing wanted to believe the advert on Facebook that promised “a cure for AIDS”. Infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), she felt the ad was her only hope — so against her better judgement, she clicked on the link. The 30-year-old Nigerian had created …

Paris, France | AFP | “It’s magic,” said Francois, smiling. “Every time I take a pill I think about the people who aren’t so lucky as to have this option.” Taking a drug normally prescribed to treat AIDS as a way to shield against the deadly disease — known as …

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | AFP | North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un’s half-brother was carrying a VX ‘antidote’ when he was assassinated with the deadly nerve agent in a stunning Cold War-style hit, a lawyer said Friday. Kim Jong-Nam had 12 tablets of Atropine in his backpack when he was attacked, said …

Paris, France | AFP |  Ahead of World AIDS Day on Friday, here is a snapshot in numbers, based on UN data, of the deadly disease which was identified in the early 1980s. – 17 seconds – Roughly 1.8 million people worldwide contracted the virus that causes AIDS in 2016. …