World News

Biden, Republican leader clash -- with US economy at stake

President Joe Biden and the new Republican speaker of the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, face off Wednesday at the White House to discuss the US debt standoff -- but so far apart they can't even agree on how to describe their get-together.. - Budget brass tacks - The White House says it won't allow the current debt ceiling to be part of any negotiation on future government spending because that $31.4 trillion is money already agreed to by Congress.

Wed, Feb 1, 2023 3 mins read

World News

Massive crowds expected for papal mass in DR Congo capital

Up to a million people are tipped to celebrate a papal mass in DR Congo's capital on Wednesday, on the second day of Pope Francis' visit to the conflict-torn country.. - Meeting conflict victims -   Francis is also due to meet victims of the conflict in eastern Congo in Kinshasa on Wednesday afternoon after the mega-mass. 

Tue, Jan 31, 2023 3 mins read

World News

Australian Church mourns cardinal Pell, despite protests

Australia's Catholic Church held a prayer vigil for late cardinal George Pell who lay in state Wednesday, as sexual abuse survivors tied ribbons to the cathedral gates in protest. . In a symbolic act of protest, sexual abuse survivors tied coloured ribbons to the gates of Sydney's St Mary's Cathedral, where Pell's body lay in repose ahead of his funeral on Thursday. 

Tue, Jan 31, 2023 3 mins read

World News

Myanmar marks coup anniversary with eyes on junta election plan

Myanmar democracy activists called  for businesses to close nationwide on Wednesday to mark the second anniversary of the coup that toppled Aung San Suu Kyi's government, with the junta hinting it may extend a state of emergency and delay new elections.. Junta opponents, including the anti-coup "People's Defence Forces" (PDF) and a shadow government dominated by lawmakers from Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) had tried to seize "state power by means of unrest and violence", the council said.

Tue, Jan 31, 2023 3 mins read

World News

Police beating victim Tyre Nichols to be laid to rest in Memphis

An African American man who died after he was brutally beaten by police in the southern US city of Memphis will be laid to rest Wednesday, as the shockwaves from his death keep pulsating across the country.. The 29-year-old was beaten viciously by the police and died in hospital three days later.

Tue, Jan 31, 2023 2 mins read

World News

Australian Church mourns polarising cardinal despite protests

Australia's Catholic Church held a prayer vigil as late cardinal and Vatican power broker George Pell lay in state Wednesday, as sexual abuse survivors protested his legacy.. Chrissie Foster has spent more than 20 years campaigning for church reform after two of her daughters were sexually abused by a Catholic priest in suburban Melbourne in the 1990s.

Tue, Jan 31, 2023 3 mins read

World News

US charges four more in assassination of Haitian president

Four men were transferred from Haiti to the United States Tuesday to face criminal charges in the July 7, 2021, assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise, the US Justice Department announced.. "On July 6, 2021, Solages, Vincent, Rivera and others met at a house near President Moise's residence, where firearms and equipment were distributed and Solages announced that the mission was to kill President Moise," the department alleged.

Tue, Jan 31, 2023 1 mins read

World News

20 years sought for former Suriname strongman Bouterse

Prosecutors in Suriname on Tuesday asked a court to uphold a 20-year-sentence against former strongman Desi Bouterse over the deaths of 15 political prisoners in 1982.. On Tuesday, Attorney General Carmen Rasam formally asked the High Court of Justice to uphold the guilty verdict and the 20-year sentence.

Tue, Jan 31, 2023 1 mins read

World News

Ukraine announces EU-Ukraine summit in Kyiv on Friday

Ukraine's prime minister announced that a summit with the European Union summit will take place in Kyiv on Friday that would send a "powerful signal" to Moscow and the world, almost a year after Russia launched its invasion.. "The fact that this summit will be held in Kyiv is a powerful signal to both partners and enemies."

Tue, Jan 31, 2023 3 mins read

World News

IOC rejects Russian demand that its athletes compete without restrictions

The International Olympic Committee on Tuesday rebuffed a Russian demand that its athletes be treated the same as those of other countries, in a growing row over Russian and Belarusian participation in the 2024 Paris Games.. - 'Russian propaganda efforts' - Latvia's Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics said on Tuesday his country opposed any participation of Russian athletes at the Paris Olympics, saying it would be "immoral and wrong".

Tue, Jan 31, 2023 3 mins read