WORLD

United Nations, United States | AFP | The UN General Assembly on Monday rejected a bid by African countries to block the appointment of the first-ever UN expert tasked with investigating violence and discrimination against LGBT minorities. It was the second time that the African group had tried to push …

Washington, United States | AFP | America’s Electoral College was poised Monday to make Donald Trump’s victory official, despite a last-ditch campaign by Democrats hoping against the odds its members could revolt and keep the Republican billionaire out of the White House. Normally, this step in a US presidential election …

One person detained over Berlin Xmas market suspected attack, Police call on Berliners to ‘stay at home’ Berlin, Germany | AFP | A lorry ploughed into a busy Christmas market in Berlin on Monday, killing at least nine people and wounding 50 more in what police said was a possible terror …

Istanbul, Turkey | AFP | A Turkish policeman crying “Aleppo” and “revenge” shot dead Russia’s ambassador to Turkey at an art exhibition in Ankara on Monday, in what Moscow said was a “terrorist act”. Andrei Karlov died of his wounds after the shooting, which occurred on the eve of a …

Oxon Hill, United States | AFP |  Stephanie del Valle of Puerto Rico was crowned Miss World 2016 on Sunday, edging out runners-up from the Dominican Republic and Indonesia, and beauties from around the globe. Del Valle, 19, is a brown-eyed brunette student who speaks Spanish, English and French, and …

Aleppo, Syria | AFP |    Evacuations Sunday of fighters and civilians from the devastated Syrian city of Aleppo were postponed until further notice after gunmen attacked buses for a similar operation from two rebel-besieged villages. The development came as Syria ally Russia warned it would veto a French-drafted resolution …

Chairperson of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians Rebecca Kadaga has urged fellow legislators to help end violence targeted at women during elections. She said there are many incidents of women being  victims of election related violence compared to men, which indicates that women are often targeted not necessarily because of their …

Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis turns 80 on Saturday with no sign of slowing down in his drive to reshape the Catholic church to reflect his own vision of compassion and humility. Three years and nine months after his election, the first pope from the Americas …

Berlin, Germany | AFP | The fall of Aleppo has unleashed a mixture of outrage and impotence in the West, in which fury at the relentless carnage has mingled with guilt over the failure to stop it. Even the European public — who marched in the millions over the siege …

Madrid, Spain | AFP |  A Spanish university chancellor who’s institution developed a system to catch plagiarists was forced to quit his post on a national education commission on Thursday — having been accused of plagiarism. Head of the King Juan Carlos University in Madrid since 2013, Fernando Suarez has …