NEWSWORTHY
U.S. to pare counterterror forces in Africa as it shifts focus to threats from China and Russia
The Pentagon is reducing its counterterrorism forces in Africa and studying whether to make similar moves elsewhere in the world as part of a broad effort to shift American military focus toward what it calls threats from Russia and China. The planned 10 percent cut ...
Melania Trump calls for firing of national security aide as White House shakeup rumors swirl
U.S. first lady Melania Trump on Tuesday publicly pushed for the dismissal of deputy national security adviser Mira Ricardel — a rare criticism of a senior administration official by the president's wife. The rebuke — via a brief statement from the first lady's spokeswoman — ...
More women and girls in poor countries using contraception but population boom continues: report
More women and girls in poor countries are using modern contraception, signifying progress in efforts to involve women in family planning, according to a report released Monday. The number of women and girls using contraceptives in 69 of the world's poorest countries surpassed 317 million ...
Pressured by Europe as migrants surge, Morocco imposes entry permit rule for African travelers
Morocco, struggling with an influx of African migrants seeking passage to nearby Europe, on Thursday imposed a new rule requiring such travelers to fill out an online travel form for approval at least 96 hours before leaving home. The procedure on a website carrying the ...
As migration rises worldwide, so has its toll: The tens of thousands of people who die or simply disappear during their journeys. Barely counted in life, these migrants rarely register in death — almost as if they never lived at all. A growing number of ...
Prince Charles and Camilla start African tour in Commonwealth-returnee Gambia
Britain's Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, landed Wednesday in The Gambia for the first leg of a week-long African tour aimed at strengthening ties with Commonwealth nations. The Prince of Wales, heir to the throne, took over as head of the 53-member Commonwealth of ...
Africa governance gains hampered by fears over security and jobs: study
Security fears and a lack of jobs in African nations have hampered gains in governance across the diverse continent over the last decade, a study said Monday, warning that some promising nations had "lost momentum." The annual Ibrahim Index of African Governance, which is watched ...
After boasting 'gender-balanced' Cabinet, Ethiopia picks first female president
Ethiopian lawmakers on Thursday unanimously elected the country's first female president, days after approving one of the world's few "gender-balanced" Cabinets. As seasoned diplomat Sahle-Work Zewde takes the largely ceremonial post, many celebrated Africa's only current female head of state. Africa's first female president, Liberia's ...
African billionaire Mohammed Dewji returns home unharmed after release by kidnappers
Africa's youngest billionaire, snatched a week ago off the street outside a luxury hotel in Tanzania, has returned home unharmed after being released by his kidnappers, police said Saturday. Mohammed Dewji, 43-year-old CEO of the METL Group family conglomerate, was seized as he arrived for ...
Mothers of big families challenge Macron's fertility stance regarding women in Africa
French President Emmanuel Macron is facing criticism from mothers with big families both at home and abroad for comments he made about women and fertility in Africa. Hundreds of French and American women took offense at a September speech that Macron made at the Gates ...
Developing-world cities could make or break 1.5 C warming target, scientists say in key U.N. report
The future that fast-growing cities in South Asia and Africa choose — cleaner and safer, or dirtier and more dangerous — will be pivotal to efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, scientists said in a key U.N. report last week. Iconic metropolises ...
Italy's Matteo Salvini condemned as racist for moving migrants from 'model' town
Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini on Sunday defended his decision to move hundreds of migrants out of a southern Italian town widely seen as a model of successful integration as opposition groups accused him of racism. Riace, a small town in Calabria, Italy's southern toe, ...
