By PAN PYLAS and MASHA MACPHERSON Associated Press DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — The world could have its first trillionaire within a decade, anti-poverty organization Oxfam International said Monday in its annual assessment of global inequalities timed to the gathering of political and business elites at the Swiss ski resort of Davos. Oxfam, which for years
Continue ReadingBERLIN (AP) — Columns of tractors are rolling into Berlin as farmers gather for the climax of a week of demonstrations against a plan to scrap tax breaks on the diesel they use. The protest has tapped into wider discontent with Germany’s government. Police said late Sunday evening that the space set aside for vehicles
Continue ReadingSYDNEY (AP) — Australian-born Mary Donaldson’s unlikely journey from Tasmania to queen of Denmark is being celebrated across her homeland. She became the world’s first Australian-born queen when her husband, Crown Prince Frederik, was proclaimed king of Denmark on Sunday. Celebrations took place in several Australian towns and cities, including her hometown of Hobart, Melbourne
Continue ReadingBERLIN (AP) — The United Nations is appealing for $4.2 billion to help people in Ukraine and displaced outside the country this year. It said on Monday in Geneva that people on the front lines have “exhausted their meager resources” and many refugees also are vulnerable. About three-quarters of the total, $3.1 billion, is meant
Continue ReadingBy KANIS LEUNG Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — The government in China’s gambling hub of Macao says there will be no more horse racing in the city, after over 40 years of history. Authorities say they will terminate their concession contract with the city’s jockey club in April. The gaming hub on China’s south
Continue ReadingKUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Brunei’s Prince Abdul Mateen and his commoner wife is to be feted at a royal banquet to mark the end of a lavish nuptial festival in the oil-rich sultanate. The 32-year-old prince, once dubbed one of Asia’s most eligible bachelors, married Anisha Rosnah Isa-Kalebic in ceremonies steeped in tradition that
Continue ReadingANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish authorities have detained soccer club Antalyaspor’s Israeli player Sagiv Jehezkel for questioning after he displayed solidarity with people held hostage by the Hamas militant organization during a top-flight league game. The player told police he was simply calling for an end to the war when after scoring a goal he
Continue ReadingBy NINIEK KARMINI Associated Press BANDAR LAMPUNG, Indonesia (AP) — A former Jakarta governor seeking Indonesia’s presidency said democracy is declining in the country and pledged to make changes to get it back on track. Anies Baswedan said in an interview with The Associated Press on Sunday that concerns about neutrality in the current government
Continue ReadingBy Nectar Gan and Eric Cheung, CNN Hong Kong/Taipei (CNN) — Former senior US officials reaffirmed “rock solid” American support for Taiwan in a visit Monday after the self-ruled island defied threats from China by electing a new president loathed by Beijing. Lai Ching-te, a staunch defender of Taiwan’s sovereignty and democracy, on Saturday won
Continue ReadingTOKYO (AP) — Japanese police are searching for a suspect who fatally shot a customer at a Starbucks in what was reportedly a gang-related crime. Police said the male victim was shot in the chest on Sunday at a shopping mall in Ehime prefecture in southwestern Japan. Reports say he was in a terrace section
Continue ReadingBy Nectar Gan, Eric Cheung and Wayne Chang, CNN Hong Kong/Taipei (CNN) — Taiwan has lost another diplomatic ally to China just days after its presidential election in what Taipei said was both sudden and designed by Beijing to suppress the island’s “democratic achievements.” The Pacific Island nation of Nauru on Monday announced it had
Continue ReadingBy KIM TONG-HYUNG Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea says it has flight-tested a new, solid-fuel intermediate-range missile tipped with a hypersonic warhead as it pursues more powerful, harder-to-detect weapons designed to strike remote U.S. targets in the region. The report on Monday by North Korea’s state media came a day after
Continue ReadingBy TAIJING WU and KEN MORITSUGU Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The Pacific Island nation of Nauru says it is switching diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China. The move on Monday leaves Taiwan with 12 diplomatic allies around the world. Taiwan now has official ties with 11 countries and the Vatican. Seven are in
Continue ReadingBy CAROLYN THOMPSON, MATTHEW BROWN and VALERIE GONZALEZ Associated Press BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Brutally cold temperatures and dangerous wind chills stayed put across much of the U.S. Monday, promising the coldest temperatures ever for Iowa’s presidential nominating contest, holding up travelers, and testing the mettle of NFL fans in Buffalo for a playoff game
Continue ReadingBy HANDRIANUS BELUTOWE Associated Press FLORES TIMUR, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia has evacuated about 6,500 people on the island of Flores after Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki volcano spewed thick clouds of brownish ash for the past days. Authorities said on Monday that no casualties or major damage have been reported so far. The eruptions in East
Continue ReadingBy SONIA PÉREZ D. Associated Press GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Bernardo Arévalo was sworn in as Guatemala’s president on Monday minutes after midnight despite months of efforts to derail his inauguration, including foot-dragging and rising tensions right up until the transfer of power. Arévalo arrives in the presidency after winning August’s elections by a comfortable
Continue ReadingBy DAVE HOGG Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — Everything was in place for Matthew Stafford. The Los Angeles Rams quarterback was at Ford Field in front of a massive crowd with a chance to add to his long list of fourth-quarter comebacks — and ruin his former team’s shot at its first playoff win in
Continue ReadingBy HUIZHONG WU Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — Taiwanese democracy activist Shih Ming-teh, who helped lead the island from authoritarianism to democracy and a former chairman of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, has died at 83. His family said in a Facebook post that he died on Monday. He was being treated at Taipei’s Veterans
Continue ReadingTOKYO (AP) — Japanese police are searching for a suspect who fatally shot a customer at a Starbucks in what was reportedly a gang-related crime. Police said the male victim was shot in the chest Sunday at a shopping mall in Ehime prefecture in southwestern Japan. Reports say he was in a terrace section of
Continue ReadingBy SONIA PÉREZ D. Associated Press GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Guatemalan President-elect Bernardo Arévalo waited to be sworn into office Sunday as the old-guard Congress dawdled and delayed the inauguration, sparking angry protests by demonstrators tired of months-long attempts to keep him from taking office. Supporters who had been waiting hours for a festive inauguration
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