NewsAFP NewsPro-China winner vows to unite Maldives, releases ex-leader
The president-elect of the Maldives, Mohamed Muizzu, secured the release of his jailed mentor on Sunday, a day after divisive polls that saw the pro-Beijing leader vow to rebalance relations with New Delhi.Bowing to Muizzu's request, outgoing president Ibrahim Mohamed Solih ordered the transfer of his predecessor Abdulla Yameen from a high-security prison island to house arrest in the capital Male.
NewsAFP NewsBaku denies Nagorno-Karabakh ethnic cleansing claims
Azerbaijan denied accusations of ethnic cleansing to clear the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh of its ethnic Armenian population, and told AFP its inhabitants were free to stay or go."We cannot accept accusations of ethnic cleansing or genocide," Hikmet Hajiyev, diplomatic advisor to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, told AFP in an interview Saturday.
NewsAFP NewsUN mission arrives in Karabakh, first visit in 30 years
A United Nations mission arrived in Nagorno-Karabakh on Sunday, Azerbaijan said, after almost the entire ethnic-Armenian population fled since Baku recaptured the breakaway enclave.An Azerbaijani presidency spokesman told AFP that a "UN mission arrived in Karabakh on Sunday morning" -- mainly to assess humanitarian needs.
NewsAFP NewsUK Tories bid to kickstart resurgence at annual conference
The UK's Conservative Party begins its annual conference Sunday, bidding to kickstart a resurgence before a general election expected next year that it is currently on track to lose."The stakes in the general election next year have never been higher," Sunak said, adding voters will have a choice between "two different ways of doing politics" and vowing to govern "in the long-term interests of the country".
NewsAFP NewsNigeria announces measures to offset rising costs as strikes loom
Nigeria's President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Sunday proposed a temporary minimum wage hike and more cheap gas-powered public transport among other measures to help offset the impact of his economic reforms as labour unions threatened a national strike. He said the government was also preparing to speed up the introduction of gas-powered buses for public transport, which would lower the costs of transport -- one of the main complaints for Nigerians since the fuel subsidy removal.
NewsAFP NewsAfghan embassy in India suspends operations
Afghanistan's embassy in India suspended operations on Sunday, more than two years after the Taliban's return to power in Kabul following the collapse of the Western-backed government.In January last year, Italian police were called to Afghanistan's Rome embassy after scuffles broke out when a junior diplomat claimed he had been appointed by the Taliban's leaders to take over from an ambassador loyal to the former government.
NewsAFP NewsPro-China winner in Maldives vows to unite archipelago
The president-elect of the Maldives, Mohamed Muizzu, said he wanted to unite the Indian Ocean archipelago after divisive polls that saw the pro-Beijing leader vow to rebalance relations with New Delhi.New Delhi is "committed to strengthening the time-tested India-Maldives bilateral relationship", Modi said in a post on the social media platform X. The Maldives, a chain of atolls scattered 800 kilometres (500 miles) across the equator better known for its upmarket beach resorts, sits in a strateg
PoliticsHuffPostMSNBC Anchor Alicia Menendez Says She Won't Cover Father's Indictment
Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) was indicted on corruption charges last month.
NewsAFP News'No more dreams': Ukraine war widows in their twenties
Twenty-year-old Erika Martyniuk only had five days together with her newly-wed husband before he was killed fighting Russian forces in southern Ukraine.Her 22-year-old friend Katya came to pick her up from her interview with AFP. Two days prior, Katya's own fiancee was killed in combat.
PoliticsHuffPostCongress Cancels The Government Shutdown Apocalypse — For Now
President Joe Biden signed the last-minute bill to prevent a government shutdown. But there are no guarantees the threat won’t return.
PoliticsAFP NewsLast-gasp deal averts US government shutdown
The US Congress passed an 11th-hour funding bill Saturday to keep federal agencies running for another 45 days and avert a costly government shutdown -- although the deal left out aid to war-torn Ukraine requested by President Joe Biden. "I fully expect the speaker will keep his commitment to the people of Ukraine and secure passage of the support needed to help Ukraine at this critical moment," said the president, who signed the measure late Saturday, according to the White House.
BusinessAFP NewsIndia's private space sector skyrockets
When Indian entrepreneur Awais Ahmed founded his satellite startup in Bangalore in 2019, his country was still a year away from opening the space industry to the private sector.- Modest budget - Prior to the 2020 opening up of the sector, "all Indian space activity was under the supervision of the ISRO space agency, which managed absolutely everything," said Isabelle Sourbes-Verger, an Indian space sector expert at France's National Scientific Research Centre.
NewsHuffPostWoman Who Set Fire To Wyoming Abortion Clinic Sentenced To 5 Years In Prison
Lorna Roxanne Green, the 22-year-old abortion opponent, said she regretted torching the state's only full-service abortion clinic.
PoliticsHuffPostDianne Feinstein’s Fight Against The CIA Made A Difference
The first woman to lead a key intelligence committee went toe-to-toe with the powerful intelligence agency — and the president. She won.
NewsAFP NewsMuizzu: Pro-China winner of Maldives election
The next president of the Maldives is an ardent advocate of Chinese investment who promised to steer the luxury tourism hotspot back towards Beijing's orbit if he wins.Muizzu has also vowed to pardon Yameen, the architect of their party's eager embrace of Beijing's financial largesse through the Belt and Road Initiative.
NewsReutersAfghan embassy in Delhi to cease operations from Oct. 1
The embassy also said a failure to meet expectations in serving Afghanistan's interests is another key factor in shutting of the embassy. "Given these circumstances, it is with deep regret that we have taken the difficult decision to close all operations of the mission with the exception of emergency consular services to Afghan citizens till the transfer of the custodial authority of the mission to the host country," the embassy said in the statement dated Sept. 30. India does not recognise the Taliban government, and closed its own embassy in Kabul after the Taliban took control in 2021, but New Delhi had allowed the ambassador and mission staff appointed by the Western-backed government of ousted Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to issue visas and handle trade matters.
NewsHuffPostDemocrat Jamaal Bowman Pulls Fire Alarm In House Building Amid Chaotic Shutdown Votes
“An investigation into why it was pulled is underway,” tweeted the GOP chairman of the House Administration Committee.
NewsAFP NewsPope appoints 21 new cardinals to fill highest ranks of Church
Pope Francis on Saturday elevated 21 clergymen from the four corners of the world to the rank of cardinal, saying diversity was indispensable to the future of the Catholic Church."Diversity is necessary; it is indispensable.
PoliticsHuffPostSenate Clears Bill To Prevent Government Shutdown
Despite the lack of aid for Ukraine, President Joe Biden is expected to sign the measure.
NewsAFP NewsPro-China candidate wins Maldives presidency
Pro-China candidate Mohamed Muizzu won Saturday's presidential election in the Maldives, a result set to once again upend the archipelago's relationship with traditional benefactor India.The result upends Solih's efforts to revert the country's diplomatic posture back towards New Delhi since taking office five years ago.
NewsHuffPostFamily Comes Home And Finds Tiny Seal Pup Sleeping On Front Porch
"You never know where these adventurous animals might pop up," New Zealand's conservation department said.
NewsAFP NewsPope joins other Christian leaders in prayer ahead of Synod
Leaders of various Christian denominations joined an unprecedented ecumenical prayer at the Vatican on Saturday in the presence of Pope Francis, ahead of the opening of a major Synod. Since becoming pope in 2013, 86-year-old Francis has repeatedly reached out to other Christian denominations and to other religions.
NewsAFP NewsAt least nine killed in Zimbabwe gold mine collapse
At least nine miners were killed after a shaft in a Zimbabwean gold mine collapsed, an engineer at the site and the miners federation said Saturday."Four bodies have been recovered so far" and five others are still stuck under rubble, Henrietta Rushwaya, president of the Zimbabwe Miners Federation, told AFP. Mine engineer Hussein Phiri confirmed to AFP that rescuers had located the bodies of the five miners stuck under the rubble.
NewsReutersIndia's monsoon rains hit five-year low due to El Nino
India's monsoon rainfall this year was its lowest since 2018 as the El Nino weather pattern made August the driest in more than a century, the state-run weather department said on Saturday. The monsoon, which is vital for India's $3 trillion economy, brings nearly 70% of the rain the country needs to water crops and replenish reservoirs and aquifers. The summer rainfall deficit could make staples such as sugar, pulses, rice and vegetables more expensive and lift overall food inflation.
NewsHuffPostSea Lion Escapes Enclosure As Floodwaters Rise At Central Park Zoo
The animal, named Sally, returned to her pool after a brief swim around the flooded zoo grounds in New York.
