China’s north-east inundated in Typhoon Doksuri’s wake
Shenzhen, China Reuters Floodwaters from Typhoon Doksuri continued to deluge farms and cities in northeast China on Saturday, while authorities in other parts of the country struggled to deal with the aftermath of one of the strongest storms in years. Almost 15,000 residents were moved out of the city of Shulan in corn-growing Jilin province, […]
Pakistan former premier Imran Khan held after court hands down three-year sentence
Lahore, Pakistan Reuters Police arrested Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan in Lahore on Saturday after a court sentenced him to three years in prison for illegally selling state gifts, potentially barring the opposition leader from contesting an upcoming election. Legal experts say the guilty verdict reached by an Islamabad district court could eliminate Prime […]
Updated: Pilgrims brave scorching heat for Pope’s vigil in Lisbon after Francis ditches Fatima peace prayer
Updated: 8:15am, 6th August, 2023 (AEST)Lisbon, Portugal AP An estimated 1.5 million young people filled a field in the Portuguese capital Lisbon on Saturday for Pope Francis’ World Youth Day vigil, braving scorching heat to secure a spot for the evening prayer and to camp out overnight for his final farewell Mass on Sunday morning. […]
South Koreans shocked after back-to-back stabbing rampages
Seongnam, South Korea Reuters An apparently random stabbing attack in a commuter town near Seoul, the second such rampage in South Korea in less than two weeks, has sparked fear in a country that has long been considered safe with a low murder rate and strict firearm curbs. A man rammed his car into passers-by […]
Will Trump’s latest indictment hurt him with evangelical Christians? Probably not.
Washington DC, US RNS As President and since, Donald Trump has repeatedly sought to blunt the impact of scandals and prosecutions by leaning into his nearly ironclad support among evangelical Christian pastors and other leaders. Some of those figures are again rallying to Trump after his arraignment Thursday on charges of plotting to overturn the […]
Putin critic Alexei Navalny has 19 years added to jail term, West condemns Russia
Melekhovo, Russia Reuters Jailed Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny had an extra 19 years in a maximum security penal colony added to his jail term on Friday in a criminal case that he said was designed to cow the Russian people into political submission. Navalny, President Vladimir Putin’s fiercest domestic critic, is already serving sentences […]
US mulls backing Kenya-led multi-national force in Haiti
Reuters The United States is discussing what support it would be prepared to offer a Kenya-led multi-national force to help police in Haiti fight armed gangs amid a worsening humanitarian crisis there, a State Department official said on Friday. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Caribbean Affairs and Haiti Barbara Feinstein told reporters that US […]
Political showdown: A feud between a patriarch and a militia leader adds to the woes of Iraqi Christians
ABBY SEWELL and SALAR SALIM, of Associated Press, report…
Lebanon marchers mourn port blast victims three years on, angry at stalled probe
Beirut, LebanonReuters Thousands of mourners and protesters marched in the Lebanese capital on Friday to remember those killed in a huge port blast three years ago, as religious leaders and rights groups decried the lack of accountability amid a stalled investigation. The explosion killed at least 220 people and wounded thousands when hundreds of tonnes […]
West African leaders plan possible Niger intervention as deadline looms
Abuja, Nigeria/Niamey, Niger Reuters West African defence chiefs have drawn up a plan for military action if Niger’s coup is not overturned by Sunday, the regional bloc said on Friday, after mediation failed in a crisis that threatens regional security and has drawn in global powers. The Economic Community of West African States has given […]