World

Twitter confirmed Saturday it will hand control of the presidential @POTUS account to Joe Biden when he is sworn in on inauguration day, even if President Donald Trump has not conceded his election loss. “Twitter is actively preparing to support the transition of White House institutional Twitter accounts on January 20th, 2021,” the social network said in a statement to AFP. “As we did for the presidential transition in 2017, this process is being done in close consultation with the National Archives and Records Administration,” the statement said. The handover will see all existing tweets on @POTUS, as well as…

Police officers investigate the area at the Mayfair Mall in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, on November 20, 2020. Multiple people were injured in a shooting at the US mall on November 20, according to local media, with victims rushed to hospital but no fatalities immediately reported. The FBI and the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s office tweeted that their officers were on the scene at the Mayfair Mall in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, supporting the “active” response by local police. KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI / AFP Eight people were injured in a shooting at a US mall in Wisconsin on Friday according to police, who said they were…

Police in Lebanon on Saturday hunted for 44 fugitive prisoners who escaped from a detention centre on the outskirts of Beirut, calling on local residents to be on alert. Despite tight security, 69 people broke out of a detention facility near the presidential palace in Baabda, east of Beirut, a police statement said. Five were killed in a car accident, when they lost control of the stolen vehicle as they rushed away and crashed into a tree. One other person was taken to hospital. By early afternoon on Saturday, 15 had been recaptured, and another four had handed themselves back…

[FILES] US elected President Joe Biden. Win McNamee/Getty Images/AFPWashington has granted Iraq a shortened 45-day sanctions waiver to import Iranian gas that will expire days before US President Donald Trump’s term ends, an Iraqi official said Saturday. Baghdad buys gas and electricity from its neighbour Tehran to supply about a third of its power sector, worn down by years of conflict and poor maintenance. The US blacklisted Iran’s energy industry in late 2018 but granted Baghdad a series of temporary waivers, hoping Iraq would wean itself off Iranian energy by partnering with US firms. The lengths of the exemptions have…

At least thirty-seven people died in violent clashes between Ugandan security forces and supporters of opposition presidential candidate Bobi Wine this week, marking a particularly violent start to the country's election season. Two days of protests were sparked by Wine's arrest ahead of a political rally in the run-up to January 14's election, in which he is seen as the main challenger to President Yoweri Museveni, who is seeking to extend his 36-year rule. Dozens died and hundreds were arrested as tyres were burned and police responded to hurled rocks with teargas, rubber bullets and live rounds in the capital…

Burkina Faso President Roch Marc Christian Kabore is running for a second term in Sunday’s election OLYMPIA DE MAISMONT/ AFP Burkina Faso will vote in a general election Sunday in the shadow of a growing jihadist insurgency, with President Roch Marc Christian Kabore expected to win re-election. But no votes in the presidential and parliament polls will be cast in one-fifth of the country’s territory, where large swathes remain outside the state’s control and jihadist attacks strike almost daily. The violence has forced one million people — five percent of the 20 million population — from their homes in the…

(FILES) A file photo taken on July 1, 2010 shows the US multinational technology company Apple logo displayed on the facade of the Apple store, near the Opera Garnier in Paris, two days prior to its public opening.(Photo by BERTRAND LANGLOIS / AFP) Apple said Thursday it would press ahead with mobile software changes that limit tracking for targeted advertising — a move that has prompted complaints from Facebook and others. The iPhone maker said updates to its mobile operating system would give users more information and control on the tracking of their online activity by apps on Apple devices.…

People run away from teargas during the opposition Economic Freedom Fighters party’s protest against alleged racism outside Brackenfell High School in Cape Town, South Africa, November 20, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings South Africa police on Friday fired teargas at opposition activists protesting against alleged racism at a Cape Town school where a whites-only year-end dance party was allegedly organised last month. Anti-riot police aimed teargas and water cannon towards hundreds of members of the radical leftist Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party gathered near the school. The protesters dispersed and re-grouped a few blocks away. Police later told the protest organisers that…

(FILES) In this file photo taken on May 22, 2020, people arrive at Los Angeles International Airport at the start of the Memorial Day holiday weekend in Los Angeles, California. – The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cautioned Americans on November 19, 2020, against traveling for the Thanksgiving holiday next week, as the coronavirus spreads out of control. (Photo by Apu GOMES / AFP)US health authorities cautioned Americans on Thursday against traveling for the Thanksgiving holiday next week, as the coronavirus spreads out of control. The recommendation was issued by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,…

LAWRENCEVILLE, GA – NOVEMBER 16: Gwinnett County election workers handle ballots as part of the recount for the 2020 presidential election at the Beauty P. Baldwin Voter Registrations and Elections Building on November 16, 2020 in Lawrenceville, Georgia. Officials are hoping to finish the hand counting of ballots before the deadline on November 18. A winner has not been declared in Georgia, where President-elect Joe Biden leads President Donald Trump by 0.3 percentage points. Megan Varner/Getty Images/AFP Georgia was due Thursday to release results of a hand recount of presidential election votes — with President-elect Joe Biden expected to be…