WASHINGTON – Hillary Clinton has told reporters she used private emails out of “convenience” during her time as secretary of state. But Mrs Clinton said it “would have been better” to have two accounts to separate work and personal emails. The issue of whether Mrs Clinton breached federal records rules has gained attention as she…
SEOUL – South Korean police say they are seeking charges of attempted murder against a man who slashed the US ambassador to Seoul. Ambassador Mark Lippert is recovering in hospital after Kim Ki-jong attacked him with a knife on Thursday. During the attack, Mr Kim called for reunification of the two Koreas. Police said they…
SEOUL – South Korea’s Constitutional Court on Thursday struck down a controversial adultery law which for more than 60 years had criminalised extra-marital sex and jailed violators for up to two years. The nine-member bench ruled by seven to two that the 1953 statute aimed at protecting traditional family values was unconstitutional. “Even if adultery…
DOHA – The 2022 World Cup in Qatar should take place in November and December, a Fifa taskforce has recommended. Key football officials met in Doha to discuss a number of options following fears a summer event would endanger the health of players and fans. Qatari temperatures in June and July can exceed 40 degrees…
LOS ANGELES – “Birdman,” the 21st Century Fox Inc. feature about a washed-up film superhero trying to stage a comeback, won the Oscar for best picture, Hollywood’s highest honor. Its director, Alejandro González Iñárritu, also won. “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)” collected four awards in all, including best original screenplay. The film stars…
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama defended his decision not to call war against ISIS as a religious one during remarks at an anti-extremism summit on Wednesday. “We are not at war with Islam, we are at war with those who have perverted Islam,” he said. Original Post: At this week’s summit on combating violent extremists,…
BEIJING – Former senior official Su Rong has been expelled from the Chinese Communist Party for corruption and faces prosecution, said the country’s top anti-corruption body. Mr Su was a vice-chairman of China’s parliamentary advisory body. The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) said he had used his position to obtain “large bribes”. State media…
MOSCOW – A ceasefire will begin in eastern Ukraine on 15 February, Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced. “We have managed to agree on the main issues,” he said following marathon talks involving Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, as well the leaders of France and Germany. French President Francois Hollande said it was a “serious deal”…
SEOUL – South Korea’s former spy chief has been sentenced to three years in jail for trying to influence the results of the 2012 presidential election. Won Sei-hoon, who headed the National Intelligence Service (NIS) until 2013, was found guilty of violating election laws. He was convicted of directing NIS agents to conduct an online…
AMSTERDAM – Amsterdam is looking for an investor to buy five buildings where sex workers can work collectively in their own prostitution business, a spokesman for the city’s mayor says. Currently, prostitutes in the city work individually, renting the windows where they stand on view for prospective customers from the brothel owners. But this system…
