Pope, on Christmas Eve, says faith demands respect of immigrants
VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis strongly defended immigrants at his Christmas Eve Mass on Sunday, comparing them to Mary and Joseph finding no place...
N. Korea declares H-bomb test ‘a perfect success’
SEOUL -- North Korea declared itself a thermonuclear power on Sunday, after carrying out a sixth nuclear test more powerful than any it has...
The 2.5 seconds that sealed Shinzo Abe’s fate
NARA, Japan — Bodyguards could have saved Shinzo Abe if they shielded him or removed him from the line of fire in the 2.5 seconds between a missed first shot and a second round of gunfire that fatally wounded him, according to eight security experts who reviewed footage of the former Japanese leader’s assassination.
Germany’s Merkel suggests Iran-style nuclear talks to end North Korea crisis
BERLIN -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel told a newspaper she would be prepared to become involved in a diplomatic initiative to end the North...
China needs more than ‘incremental’ consumer stimulus longer term
HONG KONG - China's efforts to boost household spending are expected to help the economy hit the government's 2024 growth target of roughly 5%, but the...
Mexico will leave NAFTA talks in Trump’s wake
MEXICO CITY -- Mexico will leave the NAFTA negotiating table if US President Donald J. Trump decides to trigger a 6-month process to withdraw...
Oil prices surge, markets narrow odds on Fed hike
SYDNEY — Oil prices surged on Monday after Saudi Arabia and other OPEC+ oil producers announced a surprise round of output cuts, a potentially...
Dozens of HK activists arrested under security law as crackdown intensifies
HONG KONG — Hong Kong (HK) police arrested dozens of leading democratic activists on Wednesday on suspicion of violating the city’s controversial security law in the biggest crackdown yet against the opposition camp since Beijing imposed the law in 2020.
South Asia’s poorest city dwellers bear brunt of worsening floods
KATHMANDU - Each summer, the thousand or so families living in a floodplain informal settlement on the edge of Kathmandu brace themselves for flash flooding as...
Trump tariffs pile stress on ailing world economy
LONDON/TOKYO - The latest round of U.S. trade tariffs unveiled on Wednesday will sap yet more vigor from a world economy barely recovered from the post-pandemic inflation...
Judge halts deportation of more than 1,400 Iraqi nationals from the US
DETROIT -- A federal judge in Michigan halted on Monday the deportation of more than 1,400 Iraqi nationals from the United States, the latest...
End of the line for King Charles’ royal train
LONDON - King Charles has decided to scrap Britain's royal train, a service dating back to Queen Victoria, because it is no longer cost-effective,...