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- Cyril Ramaphosa chosen to lead South Africa's ruling ANC party
- Western leaders told to stop 'stoking the flames of war' in Yemen
- Amtrak train crash: several dead in Washington after derailment
- Crocodile lizard is one of 115 new species found in Greater Mekong
- Russian victims of domestic abuse forced to pay perpetrator’s fine
- Myanmar burned Rohingya villages after refugee deal, says rights group
- US could broaden its use of nuclear weapons, Trump administration signals
- Guardian to fight legal action over Paradise Papers
- Lead singer of South Korean boyband Shinee dies
- Paradise Papers legal action against BBC and Guardian condemned
- Let’s say Auf Wiedersehen to England’s embarrassing tuition fees
- Can Ramaphosa unite ANC and give South Africans new hope?
- Amtrak crash: train was going at nearly three times the speed limit
- Korean cryptocurrency exchange to close after second hacking in a year
- Coalition's $2.2bn education cut unfairly targets the poor, universities say
- Theresa May under fire after watchdog brands anti-slavery scheme a failure
- 'Illegal and primitive': Pakistan expels foreign aid groups in droves
- Public death sentences for 10 people show China's desperation
- 'Multiple fatalities' after Amtrak train derails near Seattle – video report
- US vetos ‘insulting’ UN vote over status of Jerusalem – video
- Jonghyun, lead singer of K-pop band Shinee, dies at 27 – video obituary
| Cyril Ramaphosa chosen to lead South Africa's ruling ANC party Posted: 18 Dec 2017 08:57 AM PST Deputy president defeats Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma in vote that could determine country's trajectory for decades Cyril Ramaphosa, an anti-apartheid activist turned tycoon and politician, has been chosen by the African National Congress as its leader for the next five years. The battle to lead South Africa's ruling party, which has been in power for 23 years but has been hit by declining support and a series of scandals, remained on a knife edge to the last minute. Continue reading... |
| Western leaders told to stop 'stoking the flames of war' in Yemen Posted: 18 Dec 2017 04:01 PM PST Generals, politicians and celebrities say US, France and UK must use their UN security council seats to ease humanitarian crisis More than 350 high-profile figures including six Nobel peace prize laureates, former military generals, politicians, diplomats and celebrities have marked the 1,000th day of the Yemen civil war by calling on leaders of France, the US and the UK to stop "stoking the flames of war" and instead use their seats on the UN security council to act as peace brokers. The signatories to the statement, including Juliette Binoche, Charlotte Rampling and Peter Gabriel, as well as religious leaders and heads of most of the main UK aid agencies, claim Yemen is at a tipping point. Continue reading... |
| Amtrak train crash: several dead in Washington after derailment Posted: 18 Dec 2017 11:34 PM PST
An Amtrak train traveling for the first time on a new high-speed route derailed in Washington state on Monday, killing several people and sending numerous cars flying off an overpass on to a busy highway. A US official told the Associated Press earlier in the day that at least six people died and that the number of fatalities could rise, though state officials only confirmed three deaths in an afternoon briefing. Continue reading... |
| Crocodile lizard is one of 115 new species found in Greater Mekong Posted: 18 Dec 2017 04:01 PM PST Three mammals, 11 amphibians, two fish, 11 reptiles and 88 plants were discovered by scientists in 2016, says WWF A snail-eating turtle found in a food market and a bat with a horseshoe-shaped face are among 115 new species discovered in the Greater Mekong region. A report from the conservation charity WWF reveals that three new mammals, 11 amphibians, two fish, 11 reptiles and 88 plants were found by scientists in Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Thailand and Vietnam in 2016. Continue reading... |
| Russian victims of domestic abuse forced to pay perpetrator’s fine Posted: 18 Dec 2017 09:00 PM PST Rights campaigners condemn law that orders wife to pay spouse's penalty for violence if they share bank account Russian women who are victims of domestic abuse are being forced to pay fines handed down to their abusers, campaigners have said. Controversial amendments to Russian law decriminalised some forms of domestic violence in February. The changes mean violence against a spouse or children that results in bruising or bleeding but not broken bones is punishable by 15 days in prison or a fine of 30,000 rubles (£380) if they do not happen more than once a year. Previously, these offences carried a maximum jail sentence of two years. Continue reading... |
| Myanmar burned Rohingya villages after refugee deal, says rights group Posted: 18 Dec 2017 06:00 AM PST Villages were still being damaged as late as 2 December, contradicting government assurances, says Human Rights Watch Satellite images show that dozens of Rohingya villages were burned the week Myanmar signed an agreement with Bangladesh to repatriate hundreds of thousands of refugees, Human Rights Watch has claimed. The evidence that villages were still being damaged as late as 2 December contradicted assurances by the Burmese government that violence had ceased and that the Rohingya could safely return to Myanmar, the watchdog said. Continue reading... |
| US could broaden its use of nuclear weapons, Trump administration signals Posted: 18 Dec 2017 02:58 PM PST Wider role for weapons to counter 'non-nuclear strategic attacks' unveiled as part of Trump's new security strategy, which also failed to address climate change The Trump administration signaled that it could broaden the use of nuclear weapons as part of a new security strategy, unveiled by the president on Monday. The wider role for nuclear weapons against "non-nuclear strategic attacks" was one of several ways in which Trump's approach differed from his predecessor. The threat of climate change went unmentioned. The word "climate" was only used four times in the National Security Strategy (NSS), and three of those mentions referred to the business environment. Americans were instead urged to "embrace energy dominance". Continue reading...This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Guardian to fight legal action over Paradise Papers Posted: 18 Dec 2017 08:39 AM PST Offshore firm at heart of story, Appleby, is seeking damages and has demanded Guardian and BBC hand over documents The Guardian is to defend robustly a legal action seeking to force the disclosure of the documents that formed the basis of its Paradise Papers investigation. The offshore company at the heart of the story, Appleby, has launched breach of confidence proceedings against the Guardian and the BBC. Continue reading... |
| Lead singer of South Korean boyband Shinee dies Posted: 18 Dec 2017 06:08 AM PST News reports say Kim Jong-hyun, 27, was unconscious when taken to hospital and suggest cause of death was suicide Kim Jong-hyun, the lead singer of the hugely popular and influential South Korean boyband Shinee, has died at the age of 27. The star, better known as Jonghyun, was found unconscious at his home in Seoul on Monday evening in an apparent suicide, South Korean media reported. Continue reading... |
| Paradise Papers legal action against BBC and Guardian condemned Posted: 19 Dec 2017 12:00 AM PST Key media partners in investigation warn Appleby case could endanger sources and threaten freedom of expression in UK Two of the key media partners in the Paradise Papers investigation have condemned the legal action that is seeking to force the Guardian and the BBC to disclose documents used by reporters. Wolfgang Krach, the editor-in-chief of Süddeutsche Zeitung, the German paper that obtained the data, said he was "extremely worried about the attempt to force a journalistic enterprise to hand over highly sensitive data that could endanger the life and wellbeing of sources". Continue reading... |
| Let’s say Auf Wiedersehen to England’s embarrassing tuition fees Posted: 18 Dec 2017 11:00 PM PST Just look at Germany: no university tuition fees, no fat-cat pay scandals. The UK system is indefensible As pay scandals continue to embarrass British higher education, with university chiefs receiving eye-watering salaries and golden handshakes, it's time to ask: why can't we be more like Germany? A scandal erupted there a few years ago when the vice-chancellor of Cologne University increased his salary from €78,876 (£69,403) a year in 2006 to €133,781 in 2012. In 2014 a table revealing this was leaked, prompting outrage. Since then top salaries in German universities have been held in check. Germany is far from perfect, but we can only wish we had its problems. Continue reading...This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Can Ramaphosa unite ANC and give South Africans new hope? Posted: 18 Dec 2017 09:00 PM PST The problems facing new leader extend well beyond the rehabilitation of a divided and increasingly unpopular party Cyril Ramaphosa, who was elected leader of South Africa's ANC on Monday, faces many challenges. As he will almost certainly become president of South Africa after polls scheduled in 2019, the problems extend well beyond the rehabilitation of a divided and increasingly unpopular party. Twenty-three years after the end of the racist, repressive apartheid regime, South Africa remains a country with enormous resources and great wealth but also massive inequality and deep poverty. Continue reading... |
| Amtrak crash: train was going at nearly three times the speed limit Posted: 19 Dec 2017 12:53 AM PST Train was travelling at 80mph in 30mph zone when it derailed south of Seattle, killing at least three people An Amtrak train that hurtled off an overpass south of Seattle on Monday was travelling at almost three times the speed limit for that section of track, according to investigators. Some of the carriages from the train – which had been making its first-ever run along a new, faster route – fell on to the highway below, killing at least three people, injuring dozens and crushing two vehicles, authorities said. Continue reading... |
| Korean cryptocurrency exchange to close after second hacking in a year Posted: 19 Dec 2017 12:42 AM PST Youbit is to file for bankruptcy after announcing it has lost 17% of its assets A South Korean cryptocurrency exchange is to file for bankruptcy after it was hacked for the second time this year, highlighting concerns about security amid booming trade in bitcoin and other virtual currencies. The exchange, called Youbit, had been hacked once before in April when nearly 4,000 bitcoins were stolen in a cyber-attack that the country's spy agency linked to North Korea, according to a recent South Korean newspaper report. Continue reading... |
| Coalition's $2.2bn education cut unfairly targets the poor, universities say Posted: 19 Dec 2017 12:20 AM PST Regional universities say decision will 'freeze' participation rates for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds Regional universities catering to disadvantaged students have hit out at the government's decision to effectively end the demand-driven funding system in higher education, saying the policy unfairly targets those with a larger low socioeconomic cohort. On Monday the federal government announced that it would cut $2.2bn from university funding through a two-year freeze in commonwealth grants funding. Continue reading... |
| Theresa May under fire after watchdog brands anti-slavery scheme a failure Posted: 18 Dec 2017 11:00 PM PST Prime minister pilloried over inability to translate 'warm words' into action as damning report questions clarity, scope and impact of Modern Slavery Act MPs and rights groups have criticised Theresa May's flagship strategy to tackle modern slavery, after a damning report by the public spending watchdog found it had failed victims. A National Audit Office report said the Home Office had limited means of tracking the strategy's progress, an "incomplete picture" of the crime, victims and perpetrators, and that prosecution rates last year remained "very low". Continue reading... |
| 'Illegal and primitive': Pakistan expels foreign aid groups in droves Posted: 18 Dec 2017 09:29 AM PST Warnings of negative impact on ordinary people and damage to Pakistan's international standing as 29 organisations are given two months to leave The Pakistani government has ordered a number of foreign charities and rights groups to close down their operations and leave the country by the end of January. Over the past few days, the interior ministry has sent letters to 29 major international non-government organisations (INGOs), including Action Aid and Marie Stopes, telling them to shut their offices and leave within 60 days. Continue reading... |
| Public death sentences for 10 people show China's desperation Posted: 18 Dec 2017 10:44 PM PST Negative public reaction could prompt Beijing to try to rein in practice of delivering death sentences in public A public trial in a Chinese sports stadium at which 10 people were sentenced to death shows the desperation of government officials, experts have said, as negative reaction spread online. Thousands – including children in their school uniforms – crowded into a stadium at the weekend to watch 10 people be sentenced in a public trial in Lufeng, southern China. The accused were then immediately taken away and executed. Continue reading... |
| 'Multiple fatalities' after Amtrak train derails near Seattle – video report Posted: 18 Dec 2017 01:54 PM PST Fatalities are being reported after an Amtrak train derailed and hit cars travelling on a nearby interstate on Monday. The accident, which happened around 40 miles south of Seattle, took place just before 8am local time. The Amtrak train had been travelling on a new high-speed rail route, when it left the track and carriages fell to the road below. Continue reading... |
| US vetos ‘insulting’ UN vote over status of Jerusalem – video Posted: 18 Dec 2017 01:53 PM PST The US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, says a resolution calling for the withdrawal of Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel is 'an insult which will not be forgotten'. The US used its veto in order to stop the resolution passing, after every other security council member supported it Continue reading... |
| Jonghyun, lead singer of K-pop band Shinee, dies at 27 – video obituary Posted: 18 Dec 2017 10:45 AM PST Kim Jong-hyun, better known as Jonghyun, joined Shinee in 2008 and they have had hit albums in South Korea and Japan. He also had a successful solo career, releasing three albums and hosting his own radio show Continue reading... |
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