HARARE (Reuters) – Zimbabwe will hold presidential and parliamentary elections on Aug. 23, with the southern African country’s extended economic crisis and accusations of a government crackdown against its opponents expected to once again take centre stage. WHO IS RUNNING? There are 11 candidates vying for the presidency. However, the key contest is between incumbent…
By Fanny Potkin, Sam Nussey and Supantha Mukherjee SINGAPORE/TOKYO/STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – The European Union is lobbying Asian countries to follow its lead on artificial intelligence in adopting new rules for tech firms that include disclosure of copyrighted and AI-generated content, according to senior officials from the EU and Asia. The EU and its member states…
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -Hollywood’s striking Writers Guild of America (WGA) and SAG-AFTRA actors’ union filed a grievance with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against Comcast’s NBCUniversal on Tuesday, accusing the company of blocking a picket area. The unions said NBCUniversal infringed its freedom to picket and endangered its members by obstructing a public sidewalk…
By James Pomfret and Greg Torode HONG KONG (Reuters) – China’s appointment of a top intelligence official to run Hong Kong’s national security regime underscores its determination to tighten its grip on the financial hub, according to diplomats and analysts. Dong Jingwei, 59, is the highest-level Chinese security official to be appointed to a senior…
By Ed Davies (Reuters) -The U.S. military identified a soldier who made an unauthorised crossing into North Korea on Tuesday as Private Travis T. King and said he was facing disciplinary action before he fled during a tour of the heavily fortified border area. He is believed to be in custody in the North, but…
By Dan Williams TEL AVIV (Reuters) – Protests against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul intensified on Tuesday with demonstrations nationwide, and a retired Israeli air force general said 161 of the corps’ reserve officers had vowed to no longer report for duty. The officers, with ranks ranging from major to brigadier-general, notified the military…
TAIPEI (Reuters) -There is no reason for China to take “provocative” action in response to brief visits to the United States next month by Taiwan Vice President William Lai, the top U.S. diplomat in Taipei said on Wednesday. China, which views Taiwan as its own territory, has stepped up military and political pressure over the…
By Catarina Demony and Andrew Gray (Reuters) -Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva said on Wednesday he will send the European Union a counter-proposal on the long-delayed trade deal with the South American bloc Mercosur in the coming two or three weeks. Lula, who spoke after the two-day EU-CELAC (Community of Latin American and…
KABUL (Reuters) – The Swedish Committee for Afghanistan, a major humanitarian organisation, has paused some of its operations, it said on Wednesday, after a Taliban order halting Swedish activities in the country. The Taliban administration last week said all activities by Sweden in Afghanistan must stop in response to the burning of a Koran in…
By Jan Schwartz and Victoria Waldersee HAMBURG/BERLIN (Reuters) – As Volkswagen regears its strategy around boosting stock market value, investors warned its efforts would be wasted if it does not address the elephant in the room: the lack of a succession plan for its supervisory board. The market needs to know who will take over…
