In explaining his decision to give up his work as a senior member of Britain's royal family, Prince Harry laid part of the blame at the feet of the media, which he called a "powerful force."
Indeed, in a 2017 BBC documentary, Harry decried the paparazzi who hounded his mother Diana as a "pack of dogs." He surely hoped that with a move to Canada, the family could tame the tabloid scrum.
But sure enough, journalists from as far away as Australia have arrived on Vancouver Island, and pictures of Harry's wife Meghan walking the dogs, their son Archie strapped to her, quickly surfaced.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have threatened legal action over the pictures, but the photographers are also under fire from locals who say they are not going to tolerate invasions of privacy.
"It is a quiet place here," said Kathryn Sandberg, a long-time resident of North Saanich, the tiny seaside community where Harry, Meghan and son Archie are living, in the greater Victoria area.
"I think maybe one of ..

Harry, Meghan, their new neighbors and the paparazzi

PTI Automatic

A new SARS-like virus has killed 17 people in China, infected hundreds and reached as far as the United States, with fears mounting about its spread as hundreds of millions travel for Lunar New Year celebrations, which start Friday.
Many countries have stepped up screening of passengers from Wuhan, the Chinese city identified as the epicentre, and the World Health Organization has called an emergency meeting.  Here's what we know so far about the virus: - It's entirely new -
The pathogen appears to be a never-before-seen strain of coronavirus -- a large family of viruses that can cause diseases ranging from the common cold to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), which killed 349 people in mainland China and another 299 in Hong Kong between 2002 and 2003.
Arnaud Fontanet, head of the department of epidemiology at the Institut Pasteur in Paris, told AFP the current virus strain was 80 percent genetically identical to SARS.
China has already shared the genome sequencing of this ...

What we know so far about the new China virus

Canadian government lawyers on Wednesday laid out a case for extraditing a senior Huawei executive to the United States, saying it is based on "a fraud on a bank."
The US alleges Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of tech giant Huawei, lied to the bank HSBC about Huawei's relationship with its Iran-based affiliate Skycom, putting the bank at risk of violating US sanctions against Tehran.
Meng has denied the allegations.
"Fraud is at the heart of this case," Crown counsel Robert Frater told the court.
"Lying to a bank to obtain financial services is fraud," he said, disputing defense claims that the US was effectively, through its extradition treaty, seeking to get Canada to enforce US banking sanctions against Iran that Canada and other allies repudiated.
Were Canada to agree to Meng's extradition, defense lawyer Eric Gottardi said earlier this week, "we would be allowing a foreign state to criminalize conduct in Canada" that is not illegal in this country.
Frater said the ...

Canada lawyers argue for Huawei exec's extradition to US

Rocket fire targeted the Libyan capital's sole functioning airport on Wednesday, dealing another setback to peace efforts a day before regional foreign ministers meet in Algeria to discuss the crisis.
Tripoli's Mitiga airport was forced to suspend all flights for several hours after it was targeted by six Grad rockets, just nine days after it reopened following a truce.
The airport has been hit multiple times since the start of an offensive by forces led by eastern-based commander Khalifa Haftar to seize the capital from the UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA).
World powers have stepped up efforts in recent weeks to find a political solution to the grinding conflict, with neighbouring Algeria to become the latest country to host a meeting Thursday to discuss ways forward.
The Algerian foreign ministry said chief diplomats from Tunisia, Egypt, Sudan, Chad, Niger and Mali would meet in Algiers to advance "a political settlement to the crisis through an inclusive dialogue ..

Rockets target Libya airport ahead of regional peace talks

Venezuela opposition leader Juan Guaido declared himself acting president a year ago in a bid to oust Nicolas Maduro, winning the backing of more than 50 countries.
As he meets with political leaders in Europe this week, here is an overview of the power struggle.  - 'Acting president' -
Guaido -- head of the opposition-dominated National Assembly -- declares himself acting president at a massive rally in Caracas on January 23.
It comes two weeks after Maduro started a second term following elections boycotted by the opposition and internationally dismissed as fraudulent.  Venezuela is in economic collapse.
Guaido is recognized by the United States, Canada, European Union countries and major Latin American powers.
But China, Cuba and Russia remain behind Maduro, as does the military.
On January 28, Washington orders sanctions on Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA and hands control of its US bank accounts to Guaido.  - Maduro closes borders -
Trucks loaded with international supplies ..

Venezuela: a year of power struggle

Liberian President George Weah on Wednesday appealed for patience and "unflinching support" as the West African country grapples with rampant inflation on his two-year anniversary in power.
The footballer-turned-president entered office on January 22, 2018, promising to revive an ailing economy and create jobs for the poor.
But Weah is under growing pressure as inflation is soaring at around 30 percent, according to the World Bank. Civil servants also regularly go unpaid.
"I want to assure you that our government remain(s) resolute in fulfilling the promises we made when we sought your trust and confidence," Weah said in a Facebook post on Wednesday.
"But all we need is your continuous prayers, a bit more patience and cooperation; as well as your unwavering and unflinching support," he said.
The president said he was confident the country of 4.8 million was "headed towards an upward trajectory".
Liberia's economy was already decimated after back-to-back civil wars and the 2014-2016 ...

Liberia president asks for 'unflinching support' as downturn bites

Democratic frontrunners Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders are trading barbs, each accusing the other of lying and having a smaller chance of defeating Donald Trump in November, as the race for the party's nomination tightens.
Biden holds the lead in national polling averages, but Sanders has been on the rise since December.
A new CNN/SSRS poll puts Sanders in first place with 27 percent, within the margin of error but slipping ahead of Biden, who came in at 24 percent.
Results from another survey Wednesday by Morning Consult were virtually the inverse: Barack Obama's former vice president scored 29 percent to 24 percent for the US senator from Vermont.
As the race has narrowed, the two septuagenarians -- Biden the moderate, Sanders a self-described "Democratic socialist" -- have grown testy, accusing each other of dishonesty.
The change in tone recalls the bitter 2016 primary battle between Sanders and Hillary Clinton, who in the end won the Democratic nomination but lost the election to ..

Biden, Sanders trade barbs as US Democratic primary race tightens

Four people were killed in central Mozambique after assailants targeted a health centre, witnesses said Wednesday, the first attack since President Filipe Nyusi began his second term last week.
Mozambique's government has blamed factions of the former guerilla group and opposition movement Renamo for attacks in the centre of the country in violation of last year's peace deal.
Attackers hit the health centre in a village in central Sofala province on Tuesday night, where they "fired several shots and entered the health centre and stole all the medicines," a local nurse told AFP.
"The people who died were at the health centre and were hit by stray bullets," she said.
Mozambique's recent unrest began after October's disputed election won by Nyusi and following a peace deal between his ruling Frelimo party and Renamo.
Frelimo and Renamo, whose 1976-92 civil war left one million dead in the former Portuguese colony, agreed to the deal in August under which Renamo has promised to disarm its 

Four killed in Mozambique health centre assault: witnesses

A funding offer by a billionaire Zimbabwe telecoms tycoon on Wednesday prompted the country's doctors to consider ending a long-running strike over wage payments.
Doctors and the government have failed to agree on a wage increase since September last year, leading the medics to walk off the job.
Strive Masiyiwa, a philanthropist and owner of Econet Global, has now offered to pay the doctors a subsidy to cover living costs through his Higherlife Foundation.
"We have asked all our members to apply so we can go back to work, and provide patients with the best service we can under the circumstances," Tawanda Zvakada, the acting secretary general of the Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors' Association, told AFP.
Under the offer, doctors have until Friday to submit their applications for the subsidies which are due to be rolled out starting February 1.
Junior doctors have been taking home the equivalent of less than US$200 a month.  The subsidies will see a junior doctor pockets an additional US$300 .

Zimbabwe tycoon's offer seeks to end to doctor strike

The United States pressed France on Wednesday to take "strong security measures" against potential breaches from 5G services provided by Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei, saying failure to do so could imperil intelligence exchanges.
Concerns about Huawei's 5G rollout topped the agenda of a third US-France cybersecurity meeting, Washington's top cyber diplomat Robert Strayer told reporters in Paris.
The United States did not ask France for a Huawei ban, he said, but for strong protections against potential "malicious intrusions" from software and firmware updates of any systems provided by the company.
If France failed to take adequate steps, said Strayer, the United States "will have to reassess how we conduct operations" that require sensitive information-sharing including joint military exercises and counter-terrorism operations.
"The real risk that we see is that if there are unsecure 5G networks coming from untrusted vendors, that that could compromise the data that we want .

US presses France for 'strong security measures' against Huawei

Authorities will suspend on Thursday flights and trains out of the Chinese city at the centre of a deadly virus outbreak, and say residents should not leave without a special reason, state media said.
The move, effective at 10:00 am (0200 GMT), is meant to "resolutely contain the momentum of the epidemic spreading" and protect lives, the central city's special command centre against the virus said, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

China halts flights and trains out of virus outbreak city: state media

In a somber and hushed Senate chamber, Democrats began presenting their opening arguments in the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump on Wednesday, accusing him of using the power of his office to cheat in the upcoming election.
Adam Schiff, the head of the prosecution team from the House of Representatives, took the floor of the Senate after lawmakers were told by the sergeant-at-arms to remain silent during the historic proceedings.
"President Trump solicited foreign interference in our democratic elections, abusing the powers of his office to seek help from abroad to improve his re-election prospects at home," the California lawmaker said.
"And when he was caught, he used the powers of that office to obstruct the investigation into his own misconduct," said Schiff, who headed the probe that led to Trump's December 18 impeachment by the Democratic-controlled House.
Schiff shrugged off Republican arguments that American voters -- and not the Senate -- should decide in November 

Democrats make case against Trump at historic impeachment trial

Independent UN rights experts said Wednesday they had received information that Amazon owner Jeff Bezos's phone was hacked through a WhatsApp account belonging to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman.
Riyadh has rejected the allegations, its embassy in Washington branding them "absurd".
"The alleged hacking of Mr Bezos's phone, and those of others, demands immediate investigation by US and other relevant authorities," UN Special Rapporteurs Agnes Callamard and David Kaye said in a statement in Geneva.
Any investigation into the alleged incident in May 2018 should also look at the "continuous, multi-year, direct and personal involvement of the Crown Prince in efforts to target perceived opponents", they added.
Callamard, the UN expert on summary executions and extrajudicial killings, and Kaye, the expert on freedom of expression, said they were "gravely concerned".
"The information we have received suggests the possible involvement of the Crown Prince in surveillance of Mr Bezos, in .

UN experts urge probe into alleged Saudi hacking of Bezos phone

Iraq's president warned Wednesday against pushing the country to choose sides in escalating tensions between neighbouring Iran and the US, both allies of Baghdad.
Addressing world leaders at the World Economic forum in Davos, Switzerland, Barham Saleh said a recent parliamentary vote to oust foreign forces from Iraq should not be understood as a sign of "hostility".
Parliament held the vote two days after a US drone strike near Baghdad airport killed top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani and prompted retaliatory strikes from Tehran on an Iraqi base hosting American and other foreign troops.
The Iraqi president said the vote was "not a sign of ingratitude or hostility," but a response to a violation of his country's sovereignty.
"The escalating tensions between Iran, the Gulf states, and the United States over the past month have reminded us that our aspirations remain subject to political disputes beyond our control and to unwelcome foreign interference," Saleh said.
"It is not in our ..

Iraq president warns against making Baghdad pick sides in US-Iran tensions

A Canadian guide died and five French tourists were missing after their snowmobiles plunged through ice into freezing water in northern Quebec, police said on Wednesday.
The group were riding near where a river exits the Saint-Jean lake, and were outside the approved area for snowmobiles, police spokesman Hugues Beaulieu told AFP.
Nine people, including the excursion guide, were on the trip when the ice broke underneath them in the dark on Tuesday evening.
Police said they were alerted by two of the tourists who had rescued a third tourist from the water.
The 42-year-old guide was pulled out by emergency response teams and taken to hospital, but he died overnight, Beaulieu said, adding "five French tourists are still missing." Officials said that details of the accident remained unclear.
Survivors were hospitalized in the nearby town of Alma and treated for minor injuries and hypothermia.
Ice on the lake is often very thick, but it is thinner where the lake funnels into the Saguenay ..

One dead, five missing as snowmobiles fall through ice in Canada

After years of acrimonious debate, British lawmakers on Wednesday finally approved the terms of their country's historic departure from the European Union -- due in just nine days time.
MPs in the lower House of Commons had already backed the EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill, which ratifies the divorce deal that Prime Minister Boris Johnson struck with Brussels last year.
But the unelected upper House of Lords made some changes this week, including on the rights of EU citizens and child refugees after Brexit.
In a series of votes on Wednesday, the Commons -- where Johnson's Conservatives have a large majority -- rejected all five amendments and sent the bill back to the Lords, who then reluctantly agreed to back down.
The only hurdle left to formal ratification now is royal assent by Queen Elizabeth II, which could come as soon as Thursday, paving the way for Britain to leave the EU on January 31.
The European Parliament still has to back the deal in a vote next week but its approval in ..

UK Parliament ratifies Brexit divorce law

Democrats began presenting their opening arguments at the historic impeachment trial of President Donald Trump on Wednesday.
Adam Schiff, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, took the podium on the floor of the Senate to make the case that Trump should be removed from office for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
Democrats have 24 hours over the next three days to make their case and will be followed by White House lawyers who will defend the Republican president.

Opening arguments begin in Trump impeachment trial

Harvey Weinstein is a "seasoned" sexual predator and rapist who abused his power as a movie-producing titan to prey on vulnerable aspiring actresses, prosecutors said Wednesday during opening arguments in his trial.
Weinstein, wearing a dark suit, sat shaking his head and scribbling notes for his lawyers as New York Assistant District Attorney Meghan Hast painted a picture of a 300-pound (140 kilogram) bully who violently raped, humiliated and manipulated several women, leaving them traumatised for years.
"It will be clear throughout this trial that the defendant knew he was preying on the naive and the defenceless," Hast told the court, saying many of his victims had come from broken homes.
"They didn't know they were being lured in on false pretenses. They thought they had got their big break. He was the old lady in the gingerbread house luring the kids."
Hast said Weinstein raped "The Sopranos" actress Annabella Sciorra" in the winter of 1993-94 after a pursuit which included him ..

Prosecutors say Weinstein a 'seasoned' predator in opening arguments

The head of Italy's anti-establishment Five Star Movement (M5S), which co-governs the country, stepped down as party leader Wednesday in a move that could trigger political shockwaves.
M5S is the largest party in Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte's coalition government, and Luigi Di Maio's exit could further weaken an already fragile alliance with the centre-left Democratic Party (PD).
"Today I'm here to hand in my resignation as head of the Five Star Movement," Di Maio, 33, told a meeting of party members on Wednesday.
In a nearly hour-long speech for which he received a standing ovation, he called the party a "visionary project that has never been seen before."
The move comes days ahead of a key regional poll pitting the M5S and PD against Matteo Salvini's far-right opposition League.
The League, which enjoys a significant lead in national polls, hopes that defeating the M5S and PD on Sunday in Emilia Romagna -- a historic heartland of the left -- will spark a crisis and bring down the .

Italy's Di Maio steps down as M5S head

The death toll from a storm that has lashed Spain with strong winds and heavy snow rose to six on Wednesday, while four people are missing, officials said.
Police found the body of a man on Wednesday in a flooded area in the eastern region of Valencia where they were looking for a 67-year-old man who went missing when his car got swept up in a flash flood, a local police spokesman said.
Two other deaths were recorded in the southern region of Andalusia -- among them a 77-year-old farmer killed after a greenhouse collapsed on him in a hailstorm, police said.
The death toll could rise further, officials said. Four people are still thought to be missing after Storm Gloria crashed into eastern Spain on Sunday with gusts of over 100 kilometres (60 miles) per hour, massive waves, snow and freezing rain.
The gale-force winds and huge waves smashed into seafront towns, damaging many shops and restaurants, wrecking beach facilities and flooding some streets.
Officials are looking for four ...

Death toll in Spain from storm hits six

United Airlines will keep the Boeing 737 MAX out of service for even longer, and does not expect to fly the plane this summer, executives said on Wednesday.
The additional delay follows Boeing's announcement Tuesday postponing until mid-2020 the target date for winning approval from regulators to return the MAX to the skies.
"We do not anticipate flying the MAX this summer," United Executive Vice President Andrew Nocella said on a conference call to discuss the airline's earnings.
United Chief Executive Oscar Munoz said the carrier remains confident the plane will ultimately return to service, dismissing a "worst-case" scenario where it is permanently removed from the lineup.
"We're actually encouraged at what we hope is a more realistic timeline and target," Munoz said, alluding to Boeing's goal dates that repeatedly lapsed in 2019.
The MAX has been grounded since mid-March following two crashes that killed 346 people.
On Tuesday, Boeing signaled the new "mid-2020" target to ...

AFP

AFP

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