The French foreign ministry on Wednesday denounced as "unacceptable" a meeting between Italy's Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio and France's "yellow vest" anti-government protesters.
"This new provocation is unacceptable between neighbouring countries and partners at the heart of the European Union," a ministry spokesman said in a statement a day after Di Maio met the protesters on French soil.
"Mr Di Maio, who has governmental responsibilities, should ensure that he does not impair with its repeated interferences our bilateral relations, in the interest of both France and Italy," the spokesman said.
Di Maio, head of the anti-establishment Five Star Movement (M5S), announced Tuesday he had met near Paris with yellow vest leader Christophe Chalencon and candidates on a yellow vest list for European Parliament elections in May, led by Ingrid Levavasseur.
He invited them and other yellow vests to a follow-up meeting in Rome, claiming on Twitter that "the wind of change has crossed the 

France says 'unacceptable' that Italy deputy PM met 'yellow vests'

PTI Automatic

Britain's main opposition Labour party has signalled it could back Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit deal if she commits to closer future ties with the EU after leaving the bloc.
In a letter sent to May as she meets EU leaders in Brussels on Thursday, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn suggested her efforts to modify the deal itself to amend or remove the controversial "backstop" arrangement on the Irish border would fail.
But he said that if she secured changes to an accompanying political declaration on future ties before Britain leaves the EU on March 29, then his party could support the agreement.
The changes include a commitment to a "permanent and comprehensive" UK-EU customs union, in which Britain has a "say" on future EU trade deals.
May has repeatedly rejected this idea, saying a customs union would stop Britain signing its own trade deals, one of the advantages of Brexit.
Labour also wants "close alignment" with the EU's single market, underpinned by shared institutions and ...

Britain's Labour signals shift on Brexit deal

Ousting US troops from Iraq despite Donald Trump's vow to stay is now the top goal of pro-Iranian Shiite armed groups. And their leaders say there are only two ways -- by passing a new law, or by force.
US-Iraq relations have grown tense once again, after a series of ups and downs over the years, from the 1990 Gulf war though crippling sanctions to the 2003 invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein and the fight against the Islamic State group.
But a year after Iraq declared victory over IS following a three-year war against the jihadists in which it was also backed by Iran, the Americans are seen by some as an unwanted "occupying force".
And if they do stay, "every Iraqi will have the legitimate right to confront them by any means," warned Mohammed Mohie, spokesman for the Hezbollah Brigades in Iraq, a force close to Iran that has also fought on the side of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria.
The powerful leader of the Asaib Ahel al-Haq (League of the Righteous) armed group, Qais ...

By law or force: Iraq's Shiite armed groups vow to oust US troops

The Iranian authorities arrested 860 journalists in the 30 years following the 1979 revolution, according to leaked files unveiled by a media watchdog Thursday.
Reporters Without Borders said the confidential records for the period from 1979-2009 were provided by whistleblowers to coincide with Tehran's marking the 40th anniversary of the Islamic republic's founding this week.
The file contains some 1.7 million records of judicial procedures, and although people's professions are not listed, RSF said researchers spent months to compile and verify the names of 860 journalists or citizen-journalists who were arrested or imprisoned.
At least four of them were executed, it said.
"The very existence of this file and its millions of entries show not only the scale of the Iranian regime's mendacity for years when claiming that its jails were holding no political prisoners or journalists, but also the relentless machinations it used for 40 years to persecute men and women for their opinions ..

Iran arrested 860 journalists in post-revolution decades: Watchdog

Renault said Thursday it would inform investigators that its former chief Carlos Ghosn, who is being held in Japan on allegations of financial misconduct, personally benefited from a corporate sponsorship deal.
The latest allegations concern Ghosn's lavish marriage at the Chateau de Versailles outside Paris in October 2016.
According to a report in the Figaro newspaper, the operators of the palace waived the usual 50,000-euro (USD 57,000) fee for the reception at the 17th-century Grand Trianon complex as part of a sponsorship deal between Versailles and Renault.
The firm's internal audits "identified that a contribution of 50,000 euros, under a sponsorship agreement signed with the Chateau de Versailles, was allocated to Mr. Ghosn's personal benefit", Renault said in its statement.
Ghosn threw an extravagant Marie Antoinette-themed wedding party at Versailles to celebrate his second marriage which featured actors in 18th-century clothing.
Ghosn's arrest in November in Japan and ...

Renault reports Ghosn's wedding to investigators

Malaysia's deputy foreign minister was urged to quit Thursday following allegations he lied about having a degree from Cambridge University, with an opposition lawmaker accusing him of "deceiving the people".
Marzuki Yahya's educational background came under scrutiny after doubts were raised on social media that he had a distance-learning degree in business administration from the British institution, which was previously listed on his Wikipedia profile.
After initially insisting he would prove he had the degree, Marzuki said late Wednesday that he had in fact not studied at the prestigious British university but at Cambridge International University in the United States.
"I think they (my critics) misunderstood (my credentials). I (studied) at the Cambridge International University in the US," Marzuki -- a member of Bersatu, a party in the ruling coalition -- told news portal Malaysiakini.
"I was doing logistics (before joining politics). So I just took that certificate for my ...

Malaysia politician urged to quit over 'Cambridge degree'

A growing measles outbreak in the Philippines killed at least 25 people last month, officials said Thursday, putting some of the blame on mistrust stoked by a scare over an anti-dengue fever vaccine.
Most of the dead are children and the toll is expected to rise as more cases are confirmed of the highly contagious disease, which has made a worldwide resurgence in recent years.
Figures from the Philippines' national health authorities show cases jumped from 791 in 2017 to 5,120 last year. There were 1,813 confirmed cases in January alone.
The most recent numbers available show measles killed 30 in the first eight months of last year, and five in all of 2017.
Authorities said vaccination rates in the Philippines have been declining for years, but also pointed to the recent controversy over the safety of the Dengvaxia dengue vaccine.
"The measles vaccination coverage has been in decline in the last five years," health undersecretary Eric Domingo told a press conference Thursday.
"In the .

Philippines hit by deadly measles outbreak

Suicides have fallen globally by more than a third since 1990, according to a far-reaching analysis released Thursday that highlighted profound differences in the number of men and women taking their own lives.
The World Health Organisation lists suicide as a critical public health issue and estimates at least 800,000 people kill themselves every year.
Although reporting of deaths from self-harm varies between nations, data models devised by the team behind the Global Burden of Disease -- which tracks all known causes of death by country -- show a clear downward trend in global suicide rates.
In results published in the BMJ journal, the study estimated that 817,000 people killed themselves in 2016 -- a slight increase of 6.7 per cent since 1990.
However, as the global population has boomed over the last three decades, the team found that the rate of suicide adjusted for age and population size fell from 16.6 to 11.2 deaths per 100,000 people -- a plunge of 32.7 per cent.
"Suicide is ..

Suicide rate falls by a third globally, data shows

British investigators on Wednesday said they had recovered a body from the wreckage of the plane carrying Argentine footballer Emiliano Sala in the Channel.
But bad weather has forced the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) to abandon hopes of pulling the plane to shore.
The light aircraft was carrying the 28-year-old footballer to his new Premier League team Cardiff City when it disappeared near the island of Guernsey on January 21, along with 59-year-old pilot David Ibbotson.
A shipwreck hunter hired by Sala's family with the help of funds donated by football stars such as Lionel Messi found the plane wreckage on Sunday.
The AAIB who then took over the operation revealed on Monday that an unidentified body had been found at the site.
"In challenging conditions, the AAIB and its specialist contractors successfully recovered the body previously seen amidst the wreckage," the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) said Wednesday.
"The operation was carried out in as dignified .

Body recovered from wreck of Sala plane: UK investigators

Two French journalists on Thursday told a terror trial in Brussels that Mehdi Nemmouche, the main defendant in the May 2014 Jewish museum murders, had imprisoned and tortured them in Syria.
The journalists who were freed in April 2014 came to the Belgian capital to testify about the character of Nemmouche, a 33-year-old Frenchman who faces a life sentence if convicted of the murders.
"I have absolutely no doubt about the fact that Mehdi Nemmouche who is present here was my jailer and torturer in Syria under the name of Abu Omar," former hostage Nicolas Henin told the trial.
His colleague Didier Francois also said he "had no doubt" Nemmouche had held him hostage along with fellow Frenchmen Edouard Elias and Pierre Torres who were not present Thursday.
Francois said Nemmouche hit him with "around 40 blows of a truncheon" among other abuses during the time the journalists were held by the Islamic State in the hospital turned prison.
He added that the violence and "tortures" meted out by .

Reporters tell trial alleged Brussels museum killer held them hostage

Pep Guardiola saluted Manchester City's never-say-die spirit as the champions knocked Liverpool off the top of the Premier League with a 2-0 win against Everton on Wednesday.
Guardiola's side were in danger of being blown away by Liverpool in the title race after a damaging defeat at Newcastle last week.
But Liverpool have faltered with successive draws against Leicester and West Ham, allowing City to get back in the hunt.
A hard-fought victory at Goodison Park, secured by goals from Aymeric Laporte and Gabriel Jesus, lifted City above Liverpool on goal difference.
And boss Guardiola insisted City's return to the summit was a tribute to his players' refusal to accept they were out of the hunt.
"Goodison Park, 2-0, we have to be happy. In terms of consistency, we didn't concede one shot on target. To score in the last minute of the first half helped us a lot," Guardiola said.
"We are not the tallest team in the world so we don't expect to score from set-pieces, but (assistant coach) ...

'A lesson never to give up': Guardiola pride as City go top

Investigators recovered a body from the wreckage of a plane carrying Argentine footballer Emiliano Sala in the Channel and transported it to Britain on Thursday for identification.
Britain's Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) also said that bad weather meant they were not able to recover the plane and it was therefore closing down the operation.
The light aircraft was carrying the 28-year-old footballer to his new Premier League team Cardiff City when it disappeared near the British island of Guernsey on January 21, along with 59-year-old pilot David Ibbotson.
Sala's disappearance prompted outpourings of grief across the footballing world, including at his former club Nantes in France where the plane was flying from.
After search operations were suspended, a shipwreck hunter hired by Sala's family with funds donated by football stars such as Lionel Messi found the wreckage on Sunday.
The AAIB, who then took over the operation, revealed on Monday that an unidentified body had ...

Body from wreck of Sala plane taken to Britain

Germany's Federal Competition Office (FCO) said Thursday it would impose new limits on how Facebook collects data from subsidiaries Whatsapp and Instagram, as well as third-party websites with embedded Facebook features such as "Like" buttons.
Rather than requiring users to accept that such data can be folded into their Facebook accounts under a one-off agreement to the social network's terms and conditions, users must in future be asked for their specific consent in both cases, the authority said.
"In future, Facebook will no longer be allowed to force its users to agree to the practically unrestricted collection and assigning of non-Facebook data to their Facebook user accounts," FCO chief Andreas Mundt said in a statement.
"If users do not consent, Facebook may not exclude them from its services and must refrain from collecting and merging data from different sources."
The FCO found that Facebook has a "dominant" position in social networking in Germany, with its 23 million daily ..

Germany sets new limits on Facebook data collection

Germany's Federal Competition Office (FCO) said Thursday it would impose new limits on how Facebook collects data from subsidiaries Whatsapp and Instagram, as well as third-party websites with embedded Facebook features such as "Like" buttons.
"In future, Facebook will no longer be allowed to force its users to agree to the practically unrestricted collection and assigning of non-Facebook data to their Facebook user accounts," FCO chief Andreas Mundt said, insisting on "voluntary consent" for every kind of data collection.

German competition watchdog sets new limits on Facebook data collection

Renault said Thursday it has informed investigators that its former chief Carlos Ghosn, who is being held in Japan on allegations of financial misconduct, personally benefited from a corporate sponsorship deal.
The firm's internal audits "identified that a contribution of 50,000 euros, under a sponsorship agreement signed with the Chateau de Versailles, was allocated to Mr Ghosn's personal benefit", Renault said, adding it had informed the authorities.
The French daily Le Figaro reported late Wednesday that contribution was for Ghosn's June 2016 wedding reception at the Grand Trianon, one of several at the Versailles former royal palace complex outside Paris.

Renault says Ghosn received personal benefit from corporate sponsorship deal

Australia's decision to ban a well-connected Chinese businessman for his political activity is being seen as a potential watershed moment, the start of pushback against Beijing's long-running operations to buy influence overseas.
In less than a decade, Huang Xiangmo went from a new arrival in Australia to hosting swanky waterside parties with political elites, to finally being kicked out of the country and declared persona non grata -- as a result of his alleged links to China's Communist Party.
The 49-year-old Guangdong native is currently believed to be in Hong Kong, after the same officials he long courted and bankrolled revoked his residency, denied him citizenship and prevented him from returning to his multi-million-dollar Sydney mansion.
Experts say his case -- which has prompted a furore in Australia over foreign donations to political parties -- is a signal that Canberra is ready to curb China's ambitious operations to influence foreign political elites.
"It's a very ...

Billionaire's ban seen as pushback against Chinese foreign influence ops

Bangladesh has protested to Myanmar over a new influx of refugees fleeing troubled Rakhine state after clashes between security forces and an insurgent group, an official said Wednesday.
Bangladesh's foreign ministry summoned Myanmar's ambassador late Tuesday to protest over the arrivals from Rakhine, already notorious following a military clampdown on Muslim Rohingya in August 2017 which sent more than 700,000 people across the border.
The new arrivals are from Rakhine Buddhist and other tribal groups, a senior foreign ministry official told AFP on condition of anonymity, without giving a figure.
"The number is increasing. Some people are already waiting on the border and they may also enter. We have asked them (Myanmar) to take effective and urgent steps so that violence is stopped," the official said.
A Bangladesh border guard official said the refugees had crossed in a remote hill area of Bandarban district in the southeast of the country.
Bangladesh is already struggling to cope .

Bangladesh protests to Myanmar over new arrivals from troubled state

Venezuelan military officers blocked a bridge on the border with Colombia ahead of an anticipated humanitarian aid shipment Tuesday, as opposition leader Juan Guaido stepped up his challenge to President Nicolas Maduro's authority.
The opposition-dominated National Assembly had earlier warned the armed forces, which make up much of Maduro's power base, not to cross a "red line" by blocking aid.
Guaido, who proclaimed himself acting president on January 23 -- sparking an international crisis -- claims that up to 300,000 people face death if the aid is not delivered.
"You know there's a red line, you know well there's a limit, you know that medicines, food and medical supplies are that limit," lawmaker Miguel Pizarro said in a message to the military.
Maduro, though, said humanitarian aid would be the forerunner of a US-led invasion, insisting that "no one will enter, not one invading soldier."
Venezuelan military officers used a tanker truck and huge shipping container to block access .

Venezuela's military blocks humanitarian aid shipment

The EU's powerful anti-trust sheriff, Margrethe Vestager, is set to veto the merger of the Siemens-Alstom rail businesses on Wednesday, in defiance of France and Germany.
The tie-up, announced to great fanfare last year, was hailed as the birth of a much needed European industrial champion, an Airbus for the railways to face down a formidable Chinese rival.
But, after months of investigation, and a failed concession offer by the companies, the European Commission will turn down the proposal, sources close to the matter told AFP.
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire Wednesday conceded the likelihood of a veto, terming the expected decision "an economic mistake".
Such a decision "will serve the interests of China," he told France 2 television.
The likely veto has infuriated Paris, where ministers lobbied hard for the tie-up, seeing it as a necessary defence to compete against China's state-backed CRRC.
The red light by Brussels will also leave a scar on Vestager in the eyes of France .

EU to veto rail merger in defiance of France, Germany

The Japanese government has ordered a veteran freelance journalist to surrender his passport to prevent him from going on a reporting trip to Yemen.
The decision came amid debate in Japan about whether journalists should be prevented from going to war zones after the capture and release of a Japanese reporter in Syria last year.
Kosuke Tsuneoka, 49, told local media that immigration officers stopped him at Tokyo's Haneda airport on February 2, citing an order for him to surrender his passport.
Foreign Minister Taro Kono said Tuesday the government issued the order to "a male Japanese national" at Haneda airport.
When asked whether the action violated Tsuneoka's right to travel, Kono said the journalist had the right to legal recourse.
"I wish to express my utmost respect to journalists who are reporting in dangerous places," Kono said, while declining to disclose other details.
Tsuneoka was about to leave for the war-torn nation via Qatar and Sudan.
The rare step came amid mixed views 

Japan stops journalist going to Yemen

Philippine prosecutors said Wednesday they will file a libel charge carrying up to 12 years in prison against journalist Maria Ressa, who leads a news website that has clashed with President Rodrigo Duterte's administration.
The case -- under a controversial cybercrime law penalising online libel -- adds to legal pressure on Ressa and her site Rappler, which has already been hit with tax evasion charges that could shutter the outlet and put her behind bars.
Ressa, who was named a Time Magazine "Person of the Year" in 2018 for her journalistic work, slammed the fresh case as a new front of "harassment" intended to silence her website.
Rappler has drawn the administration's ire since publishing reports critical of Duterte's signature anti-drug crackdown that has killed thousands of alleged users and pushers since 2016.
However, the new case against Ressa and former Rappler reporter Reynaldo Santos, Jr stems from a 2012 report written about a businessman's alleged ties to a then-judge on 

AFP

AFP

Page 760 - Afp