BEIRUT (AFP) -- Syrian regime forces bolstered by Russian air strikes recaptured territory overnight in the southwest suburbs of the battleground city of Aleppo, rolling back the short-lived gains of a rebel offensive. Rebels and their jihadists allies launched an assault Sunday in a bid to ease a more than two-week government siege of opposition-held districts of the city. But regime fighters have put up a fierce fightback, retaking several positions from beleaguered rebel forces, a monitor sai

World News Aug. 3, 2016

BEIJING (AFP) -- China's troubled but beloved Jade Rabbit lunar rover has whirred its last, state media said Wednesday, after it bid humanity farewell on social media.The device, designed for a lifespan of a mere three months, surveyed the moon's surface for 31 months, the official Xinhua new service said, overcoming numerous technical problems and design flaws to become a national icon.But the machine has stopped operations, Xinhua cited the State Administration for Science, Technology and Indu

Aug. 3, 2016

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Donald Trump is openly taunting the leaders of his own party by refusing to endorse House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin and Sen. John McCain of Arizona in their GOP primaries. Yet thus far, McCain, Ryan and other Republicans who've reluctantly declared that they plan to back Trump for president appear to be sticking with him.  Trump's stunning slap at two of the nation's most prominent Republicans dramatically escalated GOP turmoil barely a week after a convention intended to

World News Aug. 3, 2016

NEW YORK (AP) -- Not even "Hamilton" can keep up with these numbers.The script to the London stage production "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts One and Two" sold more than 2 million print copies in North America in its first two days of publication, Scholastic announced Wednesday. That's well below the 8.3 million copies sold in 2007 for the first day of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," J.K. Rowling's then-presumed finale for her fantasy series. But it's still among the fastest-sel

World News Aug. 3, 2016

DUBAI (AP) -- An Emirates flight from India with 300 people on board crash landed at Dubai's main airport on Wednesday, sending black smoke billowing into the air and halting all traffic at the Middle East's busiest airport. Authorities said all passengers were evacuated safely. Dubai-based Emirates said the accident happened around 12:45 p.m. local time as Flight EK521 was arriving from the southern Indian city of Thiruvananthapuram. It confirmed there were no fatalities and said "all passenger

World News Aug. 3, 2016

PAJU (Yonhap) -- South Korea's Army spotlighted a tactical drill conducted by one of its reconnaissance teams near the Demilitarized Zone on Wednesday amid a steady rise in cross-border provocations that were punctuated by North Korea firing off two missiles earlier in the day.The exercise was carried out by the Army unit located just a few kilometers south of the DMZ and took place one day before the first anniversary of the North Korea-planted land mine blasts that maimed two South Korean sold

Defense Aug. 3, 2016

A Chinese visa agency that handled South Korean business travelers was stripped of its business license, a move that could be seen as a retaliatory measure undertaken by Beijing after South Korea's decision to deploy an advanced United States missile defense system on its soil, a local source here said Wednesday. The source said the closed agency handled Chinese letters of invitation for South Koreans, which is a key piece of paperwork needed to get multiple entry visas for business trips and cu

Foreign Affairs Aug. 3, 2016

President Park Geun-hye's planned visit to Russia aims to address tensions between Seoul and Moscow over the decision to deploy an advanced U.S. antimissile system to South Korea and further bolster economic ties, analysts here said Wednesday.Park will fly to Vladivostok on Sept. 2 for a two-day visit during which she will attend an annual economic forum on the development of the Russian Far East and hold a summit with her Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, her office Cheong Wa Dae said.Her tri

Foreign Affairs Aug. 3, 2016

A family of North Korean defectors has filed a suit against the South Korean government, saying they were illegally investigated by the state intelligence agency, a liberal civic group said Wednesday.The husband, identified only by his surname Ji, his ex-wife and two sons filed the suit with the Seoul Central District Court, seeking a total of 218 million won ($195,000) in compensation.Ji and his ex-wife, identified only by her surname Pae, said they were unlawfully investigated by the National

Social Affairs Aug. 3, 2016

BRUSSELS (AFP) -- NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Monday he was sure Britain's new government would remain committed to the alliance despite the Brexit vote and the resignation of Prime Minister David Cameron.Britain's ruling Conservative party is seeking a new leader to lead negotiations on an exit from the European Union, which has sparked fears for the Western security establishment of which both the EU and NATO are key parts."Brexit will change the relationship between the UK and the EU but

World News July 4, 2016

WASHINGTON (AP) -- They've been bitter rivals, allies and colleagues.When they take the stage at their first joint campaign appearance on Tuesday, President Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton will show off a new phase in their storied relationship: co-dependents.Clinton's chances of winning the White House hinge on rallying Obama's coalition to her cause. Obama's legacy depends on her success. Eight years after they spent millions tearing each other down in pursuit of the White House, they will no

World News July 4, 2016

BEIJING (AFP) -- China has passed a new wild animal protection law banning the sale of food from endangered species, but allowing other products to be made from them, state media said, amid controversy over its wildlife policies.The measure, approved by China's Communist Party-controlled parliament on Saturday, "strengthens regulation of the use of wild animals and products derived from them," the official Xinhua news agency said.Environmental campaigners previously slammed a draft of the law fo

July 4, 2016

ENTEBBE, Uganda (AFP) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Uganda on Monday for a rare tour of sub-Saharan Africa, seeking new trade partners and marking the 40th anniversary of a hostage rescue in which his brother died.Speaking in Entebbe, close to the site of the 1976 airport raid in which over 100 hostages were released, Netanyahu said the visit was "deeply moving" and symbolised the changing relationship between Israel and Africa."Exactly 40 years ago Israeli soldiers car

World News July 4, 2016

BAGHDAD (AFP) -- Iraqis on Monday mourned more than 200 people killed in a Baghdad suicide bombing claimed by the Islamic State group and accused the government of not doing enough to protect them.The search continued for bodies at the site of the attack, which ripped through the Karrada district early on Sunday as the area was packed with shoppers ahead of this week's holiday marking the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced efforts to address longs

World News July 4, 2016