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Ukraine said Friday that it was fending off a new missile attack on its energy system, the latest in Russia’s campaign targeting the war-torn country’s power grid during the winter season.Russia has escalated its strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, plunging hundreds of thousands into temporary blackouts as temperatures hit -5 degrees Celsius (23 Fahrenheit).To fend …

Ukraine facing ‘massive’ Russian attack on energy sector Read More »

President Emmanuel Macron was expected Friday to name a new prime minister after days of deadlock over finding a candidate to replace Michel Barnier, whose ousting by parliament pushed France into a fresh crisis.Centrist French politician Francois Bayrou, leader of the centrist MoDem party and seen as one of Macron’s possible picks for prime minister, …

Macron expected to name new French PM after deadlock Read More »

Georgian ex-footballer turned far-right politician Mikheil Kavelashvili is set to become Tbilisi’s next figurehead president in an indirect election denounced as “illegitimate” by the current pro-EU leader.Picked by the governing Georgian Dream party as a loyalist, the former forward for the English Premier League’s Manchester City is known for his expletive-laden parliament speeches and tirades …

Ex-Man City striker set to be Georgia’s new far-right president Read More »

A Filipina inmate on death row in Indonesia told AFP from prison Friday that her planned transfer was a “miracle”, in her first interview since Manila and Jakarta signed an agreement last week to repatriate her.Mother of two Mary Jane Veloso, 39, was arrested and sentenced to death in 2010 after the suitcase she was …

Filipina on Indonesia death row says planned transfer ‘miracle’ Read More »

Some callers are women fearful they have been drugged and sexually assaulted; others are doctors worried they have misdiagnosed them — a helpline set up amid France’s notorious mass rape trial has tapped a nation’s unease.The helpline, known as the Reference Centre on Drug-Facilitated Sexual Assault (or CRAFS, its acronym in French), was launched by …

France gets new helpline amid trauma of mass rape trial Read More »

Manchester’s crisis-hit clubs face off in the Premier League when City host United on Sunday while Newcastle boss Eddie Howe badly needs a win against Leicester at St James’ Park.Leaders Liverpool, playing Fulham at Anfield, will expect to stretch their lead at the top of the table a day before second-placed Chelsea take on Brentford.AFP …

Man City host Man Utd in crisis derby, Newcastle need win Read More »

G7 leaders will attempt Friday to forge a common approach to the new government of Syria, which has pledged to protect the rule of law after years of abuses under ousted president Bashar al-Assad.Assad fled Syria after a lightning offensive spearheaded by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group and its allies, which brought a …

G7 to meet on Syria, government pledges ‘rule of law’ Read More »

South Korea’s opposition leader warned his ruling party colleagues on Friday that “history will remember” if they do not back the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol, with just over 24 hours until a vote to remove him from office.Yoon’s short-lived imposition of South Korea’s first martial law in over four decades plunged the country’s …

Second martial law impeachment vote looms for S. Korean president Read More »

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Thursday said he discussed with French President Emmanuel Macron the possibility of stationing foreign troops in Ukraine in case of a ceasefire, but that Warsaw was not currently “planning any such actions”.Macron for his part called for a path out of Russia’s war in Ukraine — which has been …

Macron, Tusk discuss idea of foreign peacekeepers in Ukraine Read More »

People with missing teeth may be able to grow new ones, say Japanese dentists testing a pioneering drug they hope will offer an alternative to dentures and implants.Unlike reptiles and fish, which usually replace their fangs on a regular basis, it is widely accepted that humans and most other mammals only grow two sets of …

Japanese researchers test pioneering drug to regrow teeth Read More »