World News

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — The most serious outbreak of locusts in 25 years is spreading across East Africa and posing an unprecedented threat to food security in some of the world’s most vulnerable countries, authorities say. Unusual climate conditions are partly to blame. The locust swarms hang like shimmering dark clouds on the horizon […]

PARIS (AP) — Paris’ Louvre museum was closed Friday as dozens of protesters blocked the entrance to denounce the French government’s plans to overhaul the pension system. Also closed, therefore, was the Louvre’s Leonardo Da Vinci exhibit marking the 500th anniversary of the Italian master’s death, the museum said. Several dozen protesters, including some Louvre […]

NEW DELHI (AP) — Hundreds of demonstrators perched themselves on the steps of an iconic mosque in the Indian capital on Friday to protest against a new citizenship law that excludes Muslim immigrants. Demonstrators carried placards and shouted slogans accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist government of pursuing policies aimed at forcing people to […]

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Black magic, drug addiction, attempted murder and a wrestling match over luxury cars and overseas properties. Zimbabwe is riveted by the explosive charges being made in the divorce of First Vice President Constantino Chiwenga and his wife Marry. A glimpse of the luxurious lives of Zimbabwe’s ruling elite, as the rest […]

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s foreign policy chief on Friday blamed what he described as “aggressive” U.S. policies for growing global tensions, noting Washington’s reluctance to extend a key nuclear arms pact. Sergey Lavrov, who serves as acting foreign minister in the wake of Wednesday’s resignation of the Russian Cabinet, said this week’s meeting of top […]

BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s population rose to 83.2 million last year, but its growth was the slowest for seven years, according to official figures released Friday. About 200,000 more people were living in Germany at the end of 2019 than a year earlier, the Federal Statistical Office said in a preliminary estimate. It added that […]

LONDON (AP) — Christopher Tolkien, who played a major role protecting the legacy of his father’s “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, has died. He was 95. The Tolkien Society and publisher HarperCollins UK confirmed Tolkien’s death. The Centre Hospitalier de la Dracenie, a hospital in southern France, said the son of author J.R.R. Tolkien […]

LONDON (AP) — Will the real Robert Shapiro please take the microphone? BBC radio presenter Evan Davis was left in an embarrassing situation Thursday while introducing a segment on a proposal to allow cameras to record sentencing remarks in U.K. courts. During a live telephone interview on “PM,” an evening public affairs program, Davis thought […]

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — In the first such case in South Korea, military officials will determine next week whether to discharge a solider who recently undertook gender reassignment surgery, officials said Friday. South Korea bans transgender people from joining its military but has no specific regulations on what to do with those who have […]

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Japan’s SoftBank is offering to invest $30 billion to $40 billion in the development of a new Indonesian capital, an official said Friday. The billionaire founder and chief executive of SoftBank Group Corp., Masayoshi Son, hinted at partnering with the Indonesian government to fund the project when he met President Joko […]