As anti-government protests sweep his country, Iraq's embattled premier has found his decision-making powers clipped by rivals and his entourage subject to increasing pressure from Iran, Iraqi officials told AFP. Adel Abdel Mahdi, 77, came to power last year as the product of a tenuous...

China and France signed contracts totaling $15 billion during a visit by President Emmanuel Macron, a Chinese government official said at a news briefing on Wednesday. Deals were struck in the fields of aeronautics, energy and agriculture, including approval for 20 French companies to...

Gunmen killed nine women and children in the bloodiest attack on Americans in Mexico for years, prompting U.S. President Donald Trump to offer to help the neighboring country wipe out drug cartels believed to be behind the ambush. The nine people killed in Monday’s daytime attack at the...

Beijing supports more bold measures to tackle the roots of unrest that has rocked Hong Kong for months, a senior Chinese official said on Wednesday, just hours after a knife-wielding man attacked a pro-Beijing lawmaker in the financial hub. Han Zheng, China’s vice premier, said at an...

The U.S embassy in Baghdad condemned on Wednesday the killing and kidnapping of unarmed demonstrators by security forces, and urged Iraq’s leaders to engage urgently with the thousands who have been protesting against the government. “We deplore the killing and kidnapping (of) unarmed...

Saleha Nour sits selling nuts in the market in El Fasher, Darfur and dismisses her new prime minister's promise of a brighter new future with a wave of her hand. She is talking on the eve of a visit by the premier - Abdalla Hamdok - who is coming to set out his plans to settle the near...

Jorginho scored two penalties as Chelsea came roaring back from 4-1 down to draw 4-4 with nine-man Ajax in a Champions League classic on Tuesday, while holders Liverpool claimed a narrow victory and a stuttering Barcelona were held to a goalless draw. There was also a rousing comeback win...

Nigerian police have freed 259 people from an Islamic rehabilitation center in the southwestern city of Ibadan, police said Tuesday, taking the number rescued from abusive institutions since September to nearly 1,500. Images from local TV station TVC taken after the captives were released...

The ongoing trade war between the United States and China is harming both economies, the U.N. said Tuesday, with a sharp drop in exports and higher prices for consumers. In a fresh report, the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) examined the repercussions of bruising tariff...

Iraqi security forces shot dead at least 13 protesters in the past 24 hours, dispensing with weeks of relative restraint in favour of trying to stamp out demonstrations against political parties that control the government. After eight people were killed during the day Monday, security...

President Hassan Rouhani said Tuesday that Iran would resume uranium enrichment at an underground plant south of Tehran in its latest step back from a troubled 2015 agreement with major powers. The suspension of all enrichment at the Fordow plant in the mountains near the Shiite holy city...

 U.S. voters head to polls Tuesday in several states with governorships or legislatures at stake, in early tests of enthusiasm for and against President Donald Trump ahead of the 2020 elections. With Washington swept up in an impeachment saga, results in Kentucky, Mississippi and...

Yemen's internationally recognised government signed a Saudi-brokered power-sharing deal with southern separatists Tuesday aimed at ending a conflict simmering within the country's civil war.  Unrest in the south, which saw secessionist forces seize control of Yemen's interim capital...

Spectators will be hoping for a mini repeat of this year's epic Wimbledon final between Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer after the two tennis legends were drawn in the same group for next week's climax to the season, the ATP Finals. Djokovic, who could finish the week as world number one,...

Liverpool will play two games in two days nearly 5,000 miles apart after their League Cup quarter-final against Aston Villa was scheduled for the day before their Club World Cup semi-final in Qatar. The European champions will travel to Villa on December 17, League Cup organisers the...

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday called for the creation of a more "reliable" national version of the online encyclopaedia Wikipedia. The president told a Kremlin meeting of a committee on the future of the Russian language: "As for Wikipedia... it's better to replace it with the...

Lebanese traders are struggling to pay for imports of everything from pasta to nappies as banks impose restrictions on lines of credit in response to concerns about tighter liquidity after weeks of street demonstrations. Huge anti-government protests have led to the resignation of Prime...

Iran's intelligence ministry on Tuesday said any cooperation with the British Council was banned and would result in prosecution, the ministry's website reported. "Britain ... was planning to implement a project for cultural networking purposes in cooperation with the British Council in...

Chile's President Sebastian Pinera said Tuesday he will not resign in the face of deadly protests over inequality and poor social conditions that have entered their third week. Asked by the BBC in an interview whether he will step down, the billionaire conservative leader said: "No."...

For 32-year-old Uhood from Beirut's Tariq al-Jdideh district, corruption in Lebanon's leadership is the reason she has to shower at a friend's house when water pipes run dry at home. It's also why she has to pay what she calls a "mafia" of private electricity providers to cover for poor...