World News

Protests strand 5,000 tourists in Machu Picchu gateway city

Around 5,000 tourists have been left stranded in Cusco, the Peruvian gateway city to the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, due to protests against the ousting of president Pedro Castillo, a local mayor said Friday.. "There are 5,000 tourists stranded in the city of Cusco, they are in their hotels waiting for flights to restart," Darwin Baca, mayor of the nearby town of Machu Picchu, told AFP. The rail service that serves Machu Picchu has been suspended since Tuesday, leaving around 800 tourists stranded in the small town at the foot of the mountain where the Inca citadel stands.

Fri, Dec 16, 2022 1 mins read

World News

France confirms contract to develop next-generation fighter jet

The French army on Friday officially awarded the contract to develop a new European combat jet, a key project in the push to integrate the continent's military capabilities and reduce its reliance on American equipment.. So far no other European nations have signed on to build the new plane, and a previous French-German plan to build a common fighter failed, leading to the development of the Rafale and Eurofighter jets currently in use.

Fri, Dec 16, 2022 1 mins read

World News

Iranian protesters in Germany stage hunger strike

A group of Iranians reached the final day of a hunger strike on Friday while camped out in tents outside the Islamic republic's consulate in Frankfurt in support of the protest movement back home.. Outside the Islamic republic's Frankfurt consulate, a group of Iranian demonstrators had camped out in tents in the freezing winter weather to show support for the protest movement.

Fri, Dec 16, 2022 1 mins read

World News

France accused as parcel bomb wounds Russian in Central Africa

The head of the Russian cultural centre in the Central African Republic was badly wounded Friday after opening a parcel bomb, Moscow's embassy said, amid accusations France was behind the blast.. "The head of the Russia House (cultural centre) received an anonymous parcel on Friday, opened it and an explosion happened," the embassy said, quoted by the official TASS news agency.

Fri, Dec 16, 2022 2 mins read

World News

Timeline: Twitter mayhem since Musk takeover

Since buying Twitter, Elon Musk has made radical changes that have sparked fears for the future of the platform, from firing half the staff to restoring ex-president Donald Trump's account and suspending those of several journalists.. - Journalists' accounts suspended - On December 15, Twitter suspends the accounts of more than a half-dozen journalists, including reporters from CNN, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.

Fri, Dec 16, 2022 3 mins read

World News

Kevin Spacey in UK court on new sex offence charges

Oscar-winning Hollywood actor Kevin Spacey appeared in court in London via videolink from the Middle East on Friday, accused of seven new sexual offences against a man in the early 2000s.. But his "travel plans had changed", and he was instead appearing from the Middle East, without elaborating.

Fri, Dec 16, 2022 2 mins read

World News

UK royals declare peace after race row with charity head

Buckingham Palace on Friday declared a reconciliation between Prince William's godmother and a black British woman who was repeatedly asked where she was "really" from.. After Fulani revealed the exchange, the 83-year-old Lady Hussey stepped down from her role as a household companion to Queen Consort Camilla, the wife to King Charles III. Fulani and Hussey on Friday held a meeting at Buckingham Palace that royal officials said was "filled with warmth and understanding".

Fri, Dec 16, 2022 1 mins read

World News

Putin 'planning for a long war' in Ukraine: NATO chief

Russia is readying for a protracted war in Ukraine and Kyiv's NATO backers must keep sending weapons until President Vladimir Putin realises he "cannot win on the battlefield", alliance chief Jens Stoltenberg told AFP on Friday.. "We have to understand that President Putin is ready to be in this war for a long time and to launch new offensives."

Fri, Dec 16, 2022 3 mins read

World News

Pope to return three Parthenon fragments to Athens

Pope Francis is to return to Greece three fragments of Athens' Parthenon temple, in what the Vatican called Friday a gesture of friendship.. In 2008, the Vatican returned a fragment from the North frieze of the Parthenon, which it had been given in the early 19th century.

Fri, Dec 16, 2022 1 mins read

World News

Angelina Jolie steps down as UN refugees envoy

Angelina Jolie announced Friday that she is stepping down from her role as the UNHCR's special envoy after more than 20 years of working with the United Nations' refugee agency.. "After 20 years working within the UN system I feel it is time for me to work differently, engaging directly with refugees and local organisations, and supporting their advocacy for solutions," Jolie said in a statement.

Fri, Dec 16, 2022 1 mins read