Starry Sundance fest moves ahead in wake of LA fires

Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – The US film industry’s first big gathering since fires devastated Los Angeles will begin Thursday at the Sundance festival, where highlights include a glitzy new Jennifer Lopez musical and a dark Benedict Cumberbatch drama.

Hollywood's annual pilgrimage to Sundance, to premiere the coming year's most-anticipated indie films, is taking place in somber circumstances due to the Los Angeles fires

Trump's climate retreat shines light on green leaders

Paris (AFP) – The United States withdrawing from the Paris Agreement is a blow to global cooperation on climate change, but other countries are marching ahead and stepping up leadership on the issue.

The United States withdrawing from the Paris Agreement on climate change could create space for more ambitious countries to forge new alliances, observers say

Brazil drought lights a fire under global coffee prices

Caconde (Brazil) (AFP) – Brazilian coffee producer Moacir Donizetti first smelled the smoke, and then watched in desperation as a blaze consumed his family coffee plantation last year.

Moacir Donizetti lost acres of coffee crop amid a drought-fueled fire last year

Revitalised Man City confident for PSG 'final': Guardiola

London (AFP) – Pep Guardiola insists Manchester City will rise to the occasion in their crucial Champions League showdown against Paris Saint-Germain after rebuilding their shattered morale with a 6-0 demolition of Ipswich.

Manchester City are ready for their crucial clash with Paris Saint-Germain

Conceicao demands more hunger as AC Milan eye Champions League top eight

Milan (Italy) (AFP) – Sergio Conceicao has been in charge of AC Milan for less than a month but has already diagnosed a lack of hunger as the source of his new team’s woes, as the seven-time kings of Europe host Girona on Wednesday with the last 16 of the Champions League firmly in their sights.

Sergio Conceicao is trying to put some bite into his AC Milan players' performances

The global forces sending coffee prices skyward

Paris (AFP) – Climate change, political headwinds and diverging market dynamics around the world have pushed coffee prices to fresh records, jacking up the cost of your everyday brew or a barista’s signature macchiato.

Harvesting coffee beans at a farm in Chinchina, Colombia

Trump leaves Paris climate agreement, doubles down on fossil fuels

Washington (AFP) – President Donald Trump on Monday announced the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris climate accord for a second time, a defiant rejection of global efforts to combat planetary warming as catastrophic weather events intensify worldwide.

"I'm immediately withdrawing from the unfair, one-sided Paris Climate Accord rip off," President Donald Trump said to cheering supporters at a Washington sports arena after being sworn in

Prince Harry's battle against Murdoch UK tabloids goes to trial

London (AFP) – Prince Harry’s hotly anticipated lawsuit trial against a British tabloid publisher alleging it carried out unlawful information gathering will start Tuesday, after years of legal wrangling during which dozens of other claimants settled.

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, leaves Britain's High Court with his Barrister David Sherborne after testifying in June that he had suffered lifelong press invasion

Musk raises eyebrows with salute gesture at Trump rally

Washington (AFP) – Billionaire Elon Musk sparked controversy Monday after making a gesture at an event celebrating US President Donald Trump’s inauguration, with some calling it a “Nazi” or “fascist” movement.

Elon Musk's gesture at a rally for US President Donald Trump has generated controversy for its resemblance to a Nazi salute