Berlin (AFP) – German politicians make a lot of laws and regulations but on the campaign trail many rage against the country’s notorious bureaucracy, labelling it a monster that needs to be slayed.
German 'bureaucracy monster' on everyone's election hit list
Why Brazil's Lula is bleeding support
Brasília (AFP) – Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, 79, has been on a whirlwind campaign of interviews and public appearances in recent weeks to shore up dwindling support, but the numbers keep getting worse.
Japan to allow Taiwan as place of origin in family registry
Tokyo (AFP) – Japan will allow people from Taiwan to list the island as their place of origin in the country’s family registry instead of China, a justice ministry official said Tuesday.
Survivors recount horrific RSF attack on famine
Tawila (AFP) – Sarah had survived famine, multiple wars and years of displacement in Sudan’s Zamzam camp and never considered fleeing, until a paramilitary attack turned the site into a “killing field”.
Musk launches 'scary smart' AI chatbot
San Francisco (AFP) – Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company unveiled on Monday the latest version of its chatbot, Grok 3, which the billionaire hopes will find traction in a highly competitive sector contested by the likes of ChatGPT and China’s DeepSeek.
Syrians return to Homs, 'capital of the revolution'
Homs (Syria) (AFP) – Once dubbed the capital of the revolution against Bashar al-Assad, Homs saw some of the fiercest fighting in Syria’s civil war. Now, displaced people are returning to their neighbourhoods, only to find them in ruins.
'They knew': Victims of paedophile French surgeon blame systemic failure
Rennes (France) (AFP) – A French surgeon to stand trial over raping or sexually assaulting almost 300 patients, mostly children, practised for decades right up until his retirement despite a conviction for owning abusive images of children and colleagues sounding the alarm, an AFP investigation shows.
Fishing trawlers, not sabotage, behind most undersea cable damage: UN
Geneva (AFP) – Much has been written about suspected sabotage of undersea cables in the Baltic Sea, but the UN says fishing trawlers are causing the most damage by far, rather than spies.
UN nuclear chief to view soil removed from Fukushima
Tokyo (AFP) – The UN nuclear watchdog chief arrives in Japan on Tuesday for a trip that will include his first visit to storage facilities for vast quantities of soil contaminated in the 2011 Fukushima disaster.
India's infrastructure push engulfs Kashmir farmers' land
Srinagar (India) (AFP) – Farmers in Indian-administered Kashmir say a major government infrastructure drive is taking their deeply cherished land, fearing it spearheads a push to “Hinduise” the disputed Muslim-majority territory.
