Former Guinea Bissau PM Embalo wins presidential election
Former Guinea-Bissau Prime Minister and ex-army general Umaro Cissoko Embalo won Sunday’s presidential election with 54% of the vote, the electoral commission said on Wednesday.
Indonesia rejects China’s claims over South China Sea
Indonesia said on Wednesday it rejected China’s claims over a disputed part of the South China Sea as “having no legal basis”, after two days earlier protesting to Beijing over the presence of a Chinese coastguard vessel in its territorial waters.
Sixteen inmates killed in fight in Mexican prison
Sixteen inmates were killed and five were wounded in a prison fight in the northern Mexican state of Zacatecas, authorities said, in one of the worst outbreaks of violence in the country’s troubled penal system since President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrad…
Iraqi paramilitaries call for withdrawal from U.S. embassy
Paramilitary groups who have been protesting against U.S. air strikes in Iraq told their supporters to withdraw from the perimeter of the U.S. embassy in Baghdad on Wednesday, although there was no immediate sign of a pullout.
Australian authorities scramble to reach victims of deadly fires as death toll rises
A third person was confirmed dead on Wednesday in devastating bushfires that engulfed Australia’s southeast coast this week and a fourth was missing and feared dead, as navy ships rushed to provide supplies and assist with evacuations.
Iraqi paramilitary groups tell supporters to withdraw from U.S. Embassy perimeter
Paramilitary groups who have been protesting against U.S. air strikes in Iraq told their supporters to withdraw from the perimeter of the U.S. Embassy in Baghadad on Wednesday.
Floods in Indonesia’s capital kill nine, force thousands to evacuate
Flash floods inundated swathes of Indonesia’s capital and nearby towns on the first day of the New Year after torrential rainfall overnight, killing at least nine people and forcing thousands of people to evacuate, authorities said on Wednesday.
Tear gas fired at Hong Kong new year’s mass march as protesters vow to keep fighting
A march drawing tens of thousands of anti-government protesters in Hong Kong on New Year’s Day spiralled into chaotic scenes as police fired several rounds of tear gas and water cannon at crowds including families before halting the event.
In New Year message, pope decries violence against women
Pope Francis, in his first message of the new year, denounced on Wednesday the use and abuse of women in modern society, and called for an end to the exploitation of the female body.
Mother of Briton jailed for alleging gang rape backs boycott of Cyprus
Holidaymakers should boycott Cyprus after a court found a British woman guilty of lying about being gang-raped by a group of Israeli youths, the woman’s mother said on Thursday.
