Western embassies in Sudan expressed “deep concern” on Tuesday over the case of a woman who activists say risks a death sentence for apostasy. Meriam Yahia Ibrahim Ishag, who says she is Christian, was convicted last Sunday in the Khartoum-area district…
Browsing: AFP
North Korea vowed “merciless” reprisals on Tuesday after a South Korean military official suggested the isolated Stalinist nation should simply disappear. Speaking to reporters in Seoul on Monday, Defence Ministry spokesman Kim Min-Seok had argued that…
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday rejected growing criticism that his government was muzzling the press, saying many Western countries had even worse records on media freedom. Erdogan’s speech to parliament followed a report by…
Colombia coach Jose Pekerman maintained hopes that star striker Radamel Falcao could make the World Cup finals by naming him in his 30 man provisional squad on Tuesday. Falcao is recovering from surgery on ruptured cruciate ligaments. Despite major…
Global wine consumption fell marginally in 2013 and the United States outstripped France as the top consumer, the International Organisation of Wine and Vine (OIV) said Tuesday. Consumption dipped 1 percent last year to 238.7 hectolitres of wine in…
A French journalist has been killed while on a reporting assignment in Central African Republic, French President Francois Hollande said Tuesday in a statement, vowing to make every effort to shed light on the murder. “The president learned with great…
Middle-aged municipal worker Masha bent down in her green parks department overall to tend the pristine flowerbeds on a tree-lined avenue in downtown Donetsk. “We don’t know who will be paying our salaries from now on,” she said, digging around in the…
France coach Didier Deschamps on Tuesday left Manchester City midfielder Samir Nasri out of a young 23-man squad for this year’s World Cup in Brazil. Neither 26-year-old Nasri, who has won 41 caps, nor Monaco captain Eric Abidal, capped 67 times, feature…
Italy coach Cesare Prandelli on Tuesday lifted the World Cup hopes of Giuseppe Rossi, Antonio Cassano, Ciro Immobile and Mattia Destro by naming them in his 30-man squad for Brazil. Prandelli is to trim his squad to 23 by June 2. Rossi only recently…
Nigeria on Tuesday said it was willing to talk to Boko Haram militants, as the United States sent its top Africa general for talks on the rescue mission of more than 200 kidnapped schoolgirls. The governor of Nigeria’s northeastern Borno state, Kashim…
President Barack Obama has been briefed by his top advisors after a second case of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) was discovered on US soil, the White House said Tuesday. “The president has been briefed on this development … Our team…
Chelsea captain John Terry ended speculation over his future by signing a one-year contract extension with the Premier League club on Tuesday. Terry is said to have turned lucrative offers from foreign teams to extend his stay at Stamford Bridge after…
Tim Sherwood has been sacked as manager of Tottenham Hotspur, the English Premier League club announced Tuesday. The 45-year-old former England international replaced the axed Andre Villas-Boas on an 18-month deal in December but the short-term nature…
Nigeria’s President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday asked the country’s parliament for a six-month extension to the state of emergency in three northeastern states riven by Islamist militant violence. “I most respectfully request the distinguished senators…
The EU was intensifying diplomatic efforts Tuesday to get Ukraine’s leadership and pro-Moscow rebels to the negotiating table, as the OSCE said Moscow supports a de-escalation roadmap for the crisis. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier kicks…
Oscar Pistorius’s murder trial debated his mental state Tuesday, as the athlete faced a possible stint in a psychiatric hospital to establish if he has a “general anxiety disorder.” Under cross-examination on Tuesday, defence psychiatrist Meryll Vorster…
Italian coach Alberto Zaccheroni believes his “love affair” with Japan will bear fruit at the World Cup after four roller-coaster years which has seen Asian Cup success but also intense criticism for reverses. The 61-year-old has been in charge of a…
Damian Lillard scored 25 points as the Portland Trail Blazers stayed alive in the NBA playoffs with a 103-92 victory over San Antonio. LaMarcus Aldridge on Monday added 19 points for the Trail Blazers, whose victory in game four of the Western Conference…
Australian coach Darren Lehmann says he is excited by the prospect of facing England for the Ashes again next year and played down the second-division county opposition dished up for warm-up games. The England and Wales Cricket Board on Monday announced…
Iran’s World Cup coach and players have hit out at the country’s football federation and kit sponsor for providing shrinking socks, boots that are too small and not enough equipment. The row has worsened tensions between coach Carlos Queiroz and the…