Tunisia rocked by fourth night of street riots

Tunisia was rocked by a fourth night of street clashes between riot police and youths in mostly working class neighbourhoods, and there were calls on social media for more rallies yesterday.
19 January 2021

Macron hails French Muslim charter against extremism

President Emmanuel Macron has praised French Muslim leaders after they agreed on a “charter of principles” aimed at combatting sectarianism and radicalised teachings blamed for a surge in jihadist attacks in France in recent years.
19 January 2021

Be passionate, but not violent

First Lady Melania Trump released a farewell message Monday as she prepares to leave the White House, saying that “violence is never the answer,” weeks after the president’s supporters stormed the US Capitol.
19 January 2021

US will lead the world again

Antony Blinken, President-elect Joe Biden’s choice to be secretary of state, was to vow yesterday that the United States will “outcompete” a rising China while reviving frayed alliances, in a sea change from Donald Trump’s go-it-alone “America First” approach.
19 January 2021

Road accident in India: Truck crushes 15 sleeping people

An out-of-control dumper truck crushed fifteen people to death as they slept by the roadside early yesterday in western India, authorities said.
19 January 2021

A ‘difficult’ balancing act

Converting large areas of land for farming to boost food supplies increases planet-heating emissions and places a greater burden on poorer nations already bearing the brunt of climate change, researchers warned yesterday.
19 January 2021

Uganda accuses US envoy of subversion for trying to visit candidate

Uganda accused the US ambassador today of seeking to subvert last week’s presidential election by trying to visit the main opposition candidate at his home, which has been surrounded by security forces since the vote.
19 January 2021

IMF chief sees 'high degree of uncertainty' in global outlook

The head of the International Monetary Fund on Monday said the global lender needed more resources to help heavily indebted countries, citing a highly uncertain global economic outlook and a growing divergence between rich and poor countries.
19 January 2021

47 killed in Sudan S Darfur fighting

Clashes between rival ethnic groups in Sudan’s South Darfur have left 47 dead, a local leader said yesterday, a day after over 80 people were killed in separate clashes elsewhere in the restive region.
18 January 2021

Handwritten note seeds hope for 12 injured

At least 12 gold miners trapped hundreds of metres underground in China for more than a week have sent up a note warning that they are injured, surrounded by water and urgently need medicine.
18 January 2021

Kremlin foe Navalny held in pre-trial detention

A Russian judge yesterday remanded Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny in pre-trial detention for 30 days for violating the terms of a suspended jail sentence, ignoring calls from Western countries to free the opposition politician immediately.
18 January 2021

Medics overwhelmed by casualties

Medics battled exhaustion and the risk of Covid-19 as they raced yesterday to treat scores of people injured by a devastating earthquake on Indonesia’s Sulawesi island.
18 January 2021

Thousands skip India’s vaccine drive launch

India yesterday stepped up efforts to bolster trust in coronavirus vaccines after it was revealed that nearly a third of those invited to get jabs at the launch of a nationwide drive failed to turn up.
18 January 2021

Saudi reports sharp drop in executions in 2020

Saudi Arabia yesterday reported a sharp drop in executions in 2020, as the kingdom seeks to blunt international criticism of its human rights record. The Gulf state, an absolute monarchy, has long faced criticism for one of the world’s highest rates of executions and what human rights campaigners call an opaque judicial system.
18 January 2021

Mein Kampf published in Poland

An academic edition of Adolf Hitler’s “Mein Kampf” is being published in Poland this week for the first time, with its editor responding to critics by calling it “a homage to the victims”.
18 January 2021

India exposed on Balakot strike

Pakistan said a 2019 air raid by India was a “false flag” operation conducted by India’s governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)​ for electoral gains and urged the world community to stop its long-time rival’s “reckless, militarist agenda”.
18 January 2021

‘It was a non-event’

Law enforcement officers far outnumbered protesters at state capitol grounds on Sunday, as few Trump supporters who believe the president’s false claim that he won the 2020 election turned out for what authorities feared could be violent demonstrations.
18 January 2021

WHO chief lambasts vaccine profits, demands elderly go first

The World Health Organization chief on Monday lambasted drugmakers’ profits and vaccine inequalities, saying it’s “not right” that younger, healthier adults in wealthy countries get vaccinated against Covid-19 before older people or health care workers in poorer countries and charging that most vaccine makers have targeted locations where “profits are highest.”
18 January 2021

Kremlin critic Navalny decries 'mockery of justice' at hearing

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny said Monday his treatment was beyond a "mockery of justice" as he was brought before a hastily organised court a day after his dramatic airport arrest.
18 January 2021

'It was a non-event': Pro-Trump protests quiet amid massive police presence across US

Law enforcement officers far outnumbered protesters at state capitol grounds on Sunday, as few Trump supporters who believe the president’s false claim that he won the 2020 election turned out for what authorities feared could be violent demonstrations.
18 January 2021