WORLD

Tehran, Iran | AFP |  Both Iran and Qatar on Saturday voiced support for Saudi Arabia over a suicide bombing near Islam’s holiest site in Mecca despite their severed ties. “Iran… as always expresses its readiness to assist and cooperate with other countries to confront these criminals, who deal death …

Seoul, South Korea | AFP |  A North Korean soldier defected to the South after crossing the heavily fortified border, a defence ministry spokesman said Saturday, the second soldier to defect this month. “A North Korean soldier defected to one of our Guard Posts at around 9:30 p.m. on Friday …

Beijing, China | AFP |  Chinese authorities launched a frantic search for around 100 people feared buried after a landslide smashed through a mountain village in southwest Sichuan province on Saturday, local authorities said. Some 40 homes in the village of Xinmo were swallowed by huge boulders after the side …

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | AFP | The United Arab Emirates warned Qatar Friday that it faces “divorce” from its Gulf neighbours unless it takes seriously a list of demands including the closure of Al-Jazeera television. The Qatar-based broadcaster, a long-standing source of conflict between Doha and neighbouring countries …

Mecca, Saudi Arabia | AFP |  Saudi Arabian police foiled on Friday a “terrorist action” against Islam’s holiest site, where millions of faithful from around the world have gathered, the state Al-Ekhbaria news channel said. Citing the Ministry of the Interior, it said 11 people were injured in the collapse of …

London, United Kingdom | AFP |  Five residential London tower blocks were being evacuated on Friday due to fire safety concerns over their external cladding following the deadly Grenfell Tower inferno. The towers in the Swiss Cottage area of north London, containing around 800 homes, were deemed unsafe following urgent …

The annual “drag race” through Chueca with men in high heels, wigs and figure-hugging dresses is another must, as well as the Mr Gay World competition Madrid, Spain | AFP |  Some two million revellers are expected in Madrid starting Friday as the Spanish capital hosts WorldPride 2017, one of …

Paris, France | Gina Doggett, Laurence Benhamou,  AFP | France’s new President Emmanuel Macron heads to his first EU summit on Thursday pledging to breathe new life into the bloc after Britain’s shock Brexit decision and to bolster European defences in the face of Donald Trump’s “America First” policy. The …

London, United Kingdom | AFP |  Queen Elizabeth II’s choice of headgear for a speech setting out how the government will implement Brexit raised more than a few eyebrows on Wednesday, causing some to draw comparisons to the European Union’s flag. Twitter users posted pictures of the queen’s blue hat …

Yulin, China | AFP |  A notorious Chinese dog meat festival opened on Wednesday with butchers hacking slabs of canines and cooks frying the flesh despite rumours that authorities would impose a ban this year. After initial reports that authorities would prohibit the meat at the summer solstice event in …