WORLD

Queen’s Speech: Brexit bills dominate government agenda

Of 27 bills, eight relate to Brexit and its implications for key industries. As well as a bill to convert EU rules into UK law, there are measures on trade, customs, immigration, fisheries, agriculture, nuclear and sanctions.But other key manifesto plans have either been axed or delayed after the Conservatives lost their majority. The main non-Brexit proposals include: a Civil ...

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Congo-backed militia mutilates toddlers, burns villages: UN

The government-backed Bana Mura militia in Congo has committed horrific crimes in ethnically-motivated attacks in the past few months, including cutting off toddlers’ limbs and slicing open pregnant women, the U.N. human rights chief said on Tuesday. “Refugees from multiple villages in the Kamonya territory indicated that the Bana Mura have in the past two months shot dead, hacked or ...

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Suspect fatally shot in Brussels Central Station terror attack

A suspect was fatally shot at Brussels Central Station Tuesday after a failed bombing that Belgian authorities are calling a terrorist attack. A “small explosion” went off in the transportation hub around 8:30 p.m., Belgium Prosecutor’s Office spokesman Eric Van Der Sypt said in a news conference Tuesday. “The suspect was neutralized by soldiers,” Van Der Sypt said. He later ...

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Uber chief executive Kalanick ‘resigns’

Uber boss Travis Kalanick has resigned as chief executive after pressure from shareholders, according to media reports. Mr Kalanick will remain on the board of the firm, however, the New York Times said. His resignation comes after a review of practices at the firm and scandals including complaints of sexual harassment. Last week he said he was taking an indefinite ...

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Car bomb in Somalia capital kills at least 15, police say

Mogadishu – At least 15 people are dead after a suicide car bomber posing as a milk delivery van detonated at a district headquarters in Somalia’s capital, police said on Tuesday. The death toll may rise, as some were badly hurt in the explosion at Wadajir district headquarters in Mogadishu, Captain Mohamed Hussein told The Associated Press. Most of the ...

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Two Tanzanian energy tycoons charged over graft scandal

Nairobi – Two Tanzanian energy magnates on Monday became the first big industrialists to be charged over a multi-million-dollar graft scandal that led to the sacking of several top officials three years ago. A 2014 audit created an uproar after showing fraudulent payment of some $120m in state funds to an independent power producing company, prompting several foreign donors to ...

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At least eight drown in boat capsize off Kenya coast

Nairobi – Eight people died and at least two were missing after an overloaded boat capsized off Kenya’s Lamu Island on Tuesday, police said. The small boat, carrying 30 passengers and cargo, was travelling from the island to the mainland when it capsized in rough seas. “Eight bodies have so far been retrieved. The bodies include one male, four females ...

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DR Congo Kasai conflict: ‘Thousands dead’ in violence

More than 3,300 people have been killed in the violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Kasai region since last October, the Catholic Church says. The figure, reported by the Reuters news agency, is from Church sources. The deaths are the result of clashes between the army and a rebel group, but civilians have also been caught up in the ...

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Man jailed for dangling baby from window in Algeria

A court in Algeria has sentenced a man to two years in prison for dangling his baby out of a window in order to attract “likes” on Facebook. The father posted a picture of himself holding the baby out of a window in a high-rise building with the caption: “1,000 likes or I will drop him.” It prompted other social ...

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