LONDON (AFP) -- Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan will give up their royal titles and public funding as part of a settlement with the Queen to start a new life away from the British monarchy. The historic announcement from Buckingham Palace on Saturday follows more than a week of intense private talks aimed at managing the fallout of the globetrotting couple's shock resignation from fro...

MIAMI (AFP) -- Olympic champion Park In-bee of South Korea fired a four-under-par 67 to seize a two-stroke lead after Saturday's third round of the season-opening LPGA Tournament of Champions. Park had a 10-foot birdie putt at the par-3 18th hole to grab a four-shot lead but rolled the ball four feet past the cup and missed her comeback putt for her first bogey of the week to finish on 13-under ...

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- President Donald Trump's legal team presented Saturday its line of defense for his upcoming impeachment trial, a process they dismissed as unconstitutional and "dangerous." It was the first time the team presented its arguments, modeled on those put forward since December by Trump and his fellow Republicans. White House counsel Pat Cipollone will be lead lawyer, backed by Tr...

NAYPYIDAW (AFP) -- Facebook apologised Saturday for a distasteful mistranslation of Chinese President Xi Jinping's name from Burmese language posts during his much-touted visit to Myanmar. His two-day visit to Myanmar's capital Naypyidaw was the first made by a Chinese leader in almost two decades. But the historic moment was dimmed by the automatic translation feature on Myanmar's Facebook pag...

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- After nearly two years of conflict between the world's top two economic powers, the United States and China signed a trade truce on Wednesday, letting businesses around the globe breathe a sigh of relief. The deal is a boon to US President Donald Trump, who faces an impeachment trial and a tough reelection fight later this year. Trump called the agreement "momentous." But t...

LOS ANGELES (AFP) -- Dark comic book tale "Joker" topped the Oscar nominations Monday, picking up 11 nods including best picture and best director, as women and ethnic minorities were largely shut out once again. The pre-dawn Academy Award announcement capped months of ceaseless campaigning by A-listers and studios, revealing which stars and movies have a shot at Hollywood's ultimate prize next ...

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- The United States on Monday removed the currency manipulator label it imposed on China last summer, in a sign of easing tensions between the two economic powers after nearly two years of conflict. Just two days before President Donald Trump is set to sign a "phase one" trade agreement with China, the US Treasury said in its semi-annual report to Congress that the yuan has str...

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- US President Donald Trump warned Iran Sunday against killing protesters who have risen up over the regime's downing of a civilian airliner as his defense secretary left the door open to talks with Tehran without preconditions. Trump's salvo came as Iran's Islamic regime faced a challenge from angry street protests, having come to the brink of war with the US after a series of...

TEHRAN (AFP) -- Iran signalled Sunday it favours a de-escalation after 10 days of heightened tensions with the United States during which both sides fired missiles and Tehran accidentally shot down a passenger aircraft. Security was stepped up in Iran's capital after a vigil the previous night for those killed in the air disaster turned into an angry protest and police temporarily arrested the B...

MANILA (AFP) -- The Philippines was on alert Monday for the "explosive eruption" of a volcano south of Manila, which officials said could be imminent after a massive column of ash forced a halt to flights at the capital's main airport. Taal volcano, a popular tourist attraction set in the centre of a picturesque lake, spewed ash, rumbled with earthquakes and exploded with lightning above its cre...

BEIJING (AFP) - China on Sunday slammed officials from the US and other countries for congratulating Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen after she was re-elected with a landslide victory in a stunning rebuke of Beijing's campaign to isolate the self-ruled island. Tsai, who had pitched herself as a defender of liberal democratic values against an increasingly authoritarian China, secured a record-break...

TEHRAN (AFP) -- Iran said Saturday it "unintentionally" shot down a Ukrainian passenger jet, killing all 176 people aboard, in an abrupt about-turn after initially denying Western claims it was struck by a missile. President Hassan Rouhani said a military probe into the tragedy had found "missiles fired due to human error" brought down the Boeing 737, calling it an "unforgivable mistake". At a ...

TAIPEI (AFP) -- Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen won a landslide victory on Saturday as voters delivered a stunning rebuke of Beijing's campaign to isolate the self-ruled island and handed its first female leader a second term. Tsai, 63, was greeted by thousands of jubilant flag-waving supporters outside her party headquarters, hailing a result which looks set to infuriate China. "Today we have ...

TEHRAN, Jan 9, 2020 (AFP) - Iran, alluding to "doubtful scenarios", on Thursday challenged international suggestions that the Ukrainian airliner that crashed outside Tehran this week was mistakenly downed by an Iranian missile. The Iranian government, in a statement, urged Canada to share its information after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said "multiple" intelligence sources indicate that Iran ...

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- US lawmakers concerned about rushing to war with Iran adopted a measure Thursday aimed at reining in President Donald Trump's ability to take military action against the Islamic republic. The resolution was introduced by Democrats after Trump's order to kill an Iranian commander and retaliatory missile strikes by Tehran dramatically escalated tensions and raised fears of a de...