🇺🇸🇨🇴US revokes Colombian president's visa during UN visit
The US State Department said on Friday it would revoke the visa of Colombia's President Gustavo Petro.
The decision was based on the leftist leader's "incendiary actions" during a pro-Palestinian street protest in New York, the State Department added.
Petro was already en route to Bogota from New York on Friday night, according to Colombian media cited by Agence France-Presse.
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Secret Service disrupts telecom threat near UN General Assembly
The US Secret Service disrupted a network of telecommunications devices that could have shut down cellular networks as leaders gather for the United Nations General Assembly in New York City.
The agency said on Tuesday that last month it found more than 300 SIM servers and 100,000 SIM cards that could have been used for telecom attacks within the area encompassing parts of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.
"This network had the power to disable cell phone towers and essentially shut down the cellular network in New York City," said special agent in charge Matt McCool.
The devices were discovered within 35 miles (56km) of the UN, where leaders are meeting this week.
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🇧🇫🇲🇱🇳🇪Three West African countries to quit International Criminal Court
Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger have announced they will immediately withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC), labelling it an "instrument of neo-colonialist repression".
The three military-led countries issued a joint statement, saying they would not recognise the authority of the UN-backed court, based in The Hague.
"The ICC has proven itself incapable of handling and prosecuting proven war crimes, crimes against humanity, crimes of genocide, and crimes of aggression," the three leaders said.
The court has not yet responded to the decision by the three countries, all of which with close ties to Russia whose leader Vladimir Putin has been subject to an ICC arrest warrant.
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🇨🇦🇵🇸Canada first G7 nation to recognise Palestinian state
Canada became the first G7 nation to recognise a Palestinian state, with Prime Minister Mark Carney saying on Sunday the country "offers our partnership in building the promise of a peaceful future".
Australia and the UK quickly followed with their own announcements. All three nations had previously signaled they would make the historic recognitions.
International pressure is ramping up on Israel over an unfolding humanitarian crisis in Gaza and settlement building in the West Bank. The issues will be a major focus at a United Nations meeting this week.
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🇬🇧🇵🇱RAF jets join Nato air defence mission over Poland
British fighter jets have conducted a Nato air defence mission over Poland as part of an allied response to Russian drone incursions into Polish airspace, the Ministry of Defence said.
The RAF Typhoon jets were deployed over Poland on Friday night as part of the military alliance's mission to bolster its eastern flank.
Tensions have escalated following repeated Russian violations of Nato members' airspace this month - with a drone detected over Romania and then warplanes in Estonia's airspace following the incursions into Poland. Russia has denied or downplayed the violations.
Defence Secretary John Healey said the RAF flights sent "a clear signal: Nato airspace will be defended".
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🇺🇸US blocks UN call for Gaza ceasefire for sixth time
The US has for the sixth time vetoed a draft resolution at the United Nations Security Council that would have demanded an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages.
US deputy Middle East envoy Morgan Ortagus said the text did not go far enough in condemning Hamas or recognise Israel's right to defend itself.
All 14 other members of the Security Council voted in favour of the draft resolution - which described the humanitarian situation in Gaza as "catastrophic" and called on Israel to lift all aid restrictions.
It comes as the UN's humanitarian office warns that the last lifelines for civilians are collapsing in Gaza City as Israel expands its military offensive.
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🇦🇫Taliban ban books written by women from Afghan universities
The Taliban government has removed books written by women from the university teaching system in Afghanistan as part of a new ban which has also outlawed the teaching of human rights and sexual harassment.
Some 140 books by women - including titles like "Safety in the Chemical Laboratory" - were among 680 books found to be of "concern" due to "anti-Sharia and Taliban policies".
The universities were further told they were no longer allowed to teach 18 subjects, with a Taliban official saying they were "in conflict with the principles of Sharia and the system's policy".
The decree is the latest in a series of restrictions which the Taliban have brought in since returning to power four years ago.
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🇨🇦Canada's Chrystia Freeland quits cabinet to become Ukraine envoy
Canadian minister and member of parliament Chrystia Freeland has announced she will step down from Prime Minister Mark Carney's cabinet and will not run for re-election.
Freeland will instead take on a new role as Canada's special envoy to Ukraine, Carney said.
She has been a fixture of Canadian politics since 2015, serving as former finance and foreign affairs minister, as well as deputy prime minister. Freeland is also credited with forcing former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's exit after abruptly resigning from his cabinet last year.
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🇺🇸📱Deal is done to keep TikTok in the US, says Trump
A deal has been made between the US and China to keep TikTok running in the US, according to President Donald Trump.
"We have a deal on TikTok, I've reached a deal with China, I'm going to speak to President Xi on Friday to confirm everything up," Trump told reporters as he left the White House for a state visit to the UK.
The social media platform, which is run by Chinese company ByteDance, was told it had to sell its US operations or risk being shut down.
However, Trump has repeatedly delayed the ban since it was first announced in January. Later on Tuesday, he ordered the deadline extended again, until 16 December.
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🇺🇸🇮🇱Rubio in Israel as IDF destroys more Gaza City buildings
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said US-Israeli relations have "never been stronger", as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio visits to discuss the war in Gaza following Israel's attack on Hamas members in Qatar.
He told reporters the relationship was as strong and "durable as the stones in the Western Wall", while at the holy site in Jerusalem on Sunday.
Earlier, Rubio said US President Donald Trump was unhappy with the Israeli strike on the key US ally, but stressed that the US-Israeli relationship was "very strong".
His visit comes as Israeli forces continue to destroy residential buildings in Gaza City, forcing thousands to flee ahead of an expected ground offensive to seize the city.
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🇧🇫Burkina Faso scraps visa fees for African travellers
Burkina Faso has introduced visa-free entry for all African travellers, in an effort to facilitate the movement of people and goods into the country.
"From now on, any citizen from an African country wishing to go to Burkina Faso will not pay any amount to cover visa fees," said Mahamadou Sana, the country's security minister, following a cabinet meeting chaired by military leader Capt Ibrahim Traoré on Thursday.
African visitors will however be required to submit an online visa application, which will be reviewed for approval, the minister clarified.
The West African nation joins countries such as Ghana, Rwanda and Kenya, which have eased travel requirements for African visitors.
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🇧🇾🇺🇸Belarus frees political prisoners in exchange for easing of US sanctions
Dozens of political prisoners have been freed from Belarusian prisons as part of a deal between authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko and US President Donald Trump.
Fifty-two prisoners have been released, including trade union leaders, journalists and activists, but more than 1,000 political prisoners remain in jail.
In exchange, the US has said it will relieve some sanctions on Belarusian airline Belavia, allowing it to buy parts for its airplanes.
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🇮🇱🇾🇪Israeli strikes in Yemen kill 35 people, Houthis say
At least 35 people were killed in Israeli air strikes on Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen on Wednesday, according to the Iran-backed group's health ministry.
The Israeli military said it struck military targets in the capital Sanaa and al-Jawf province, including what it called "the Houthis' military public relations headquarters", in response to recent missile and drone attacks on Israel.
However, the Houthis' military spokesman said the targets were civilian, adding that journalists and passersby were killed when the offices of two newspapers were hit.
In the early hours of Thursday, the Israeli military said it had intercepted a missile launched from Yemen.
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🇺🇸Manhunt intensifies for suspect who killed Charlie Kirk
Heavily armed policed are continuing to search for a suspect in the fatal shooting of influential conservative activist Charlie Kirk during a busy event at Utah Valley University.
Authorities say the suspect fired a single shot from a nearby rooftop, hitting Kirk in the neck as he was speaking at the outdoor student event.
The 31-year-old founded Turning Point USA, a group that seeks to spread conservative ideas on American campuses, when he was still a teenager.
President Donald Trump called Kirk a patriot and said his death was a "dark moment for America."
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🇳🇵Nepal parliament set on fire after PM resigns over anti-corruption protests
Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has resigned amid Nepal's worst unrest in decades, as public anger mounts over the deaths of 19 anti-corruption protesters in clashes with police on Monday.
On Tuesday, crowds set fire to parliament in the capital Kathmandu, sending thick black smoke billowing into the sky. Government buildings and the houses of political leaders were attacked around the country.
Three more deaths were reported on Tuesday. Amid the chaos, jail officials said 900 inmates managed to escape from two prisons in Nepal's western districts.
The demonstrations were triggered by a ban on social media platforms. It was lifted on Monday - but by then protests had swelled into a mass movement.
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🇸🇰Slovakia passes law to recognise only two sexes and restrict adoption
Slovakia has changed its constitution, enshrining into law recognition of only two sexes – male and female.
The legal change, which passed in a knife-edge vote in the central European nation's parliament, also restricts adoption to married heterosexual couples and prohibits surrogate pregnancies.
The constitutional amendment was defined as enshrining "sovereignty in cultural and ethical matters".
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🇷🇺🇩🇰Russia's involvement in drone sightings cannot be ruled out, Danish PM says
The drone incursion that stopped flights at Copenhagen airport on Monday night was "the most severe attack on Danish infrastructure so far", Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said.
Kastrup airport in Copenhagen was forced to shut for several hours from around 20:30 (18:30 GMT) on Monday following the sighting of a number of drones.
"It says something about the times we live in and what we as a society must be prepared to deal with," Frederiksen told reporters.
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🇰🇷South Korea would accept a Trump-Kim deal to freeze nuclear programme, president tells BBC
South Korea's president has said he would agree to a deal between Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un in which North Korea agreed to freeze production of its nuclear weapons, rather than get rid of them.
Lee Jae Myung told the BBC North Korea was producing an additional 15-20 nuclear weapons a year and that a freeze - as "an interim emergency measure" - would be "a feasible, realistic alternative" to denuclearisation for now.
North Korea declared itself a nuclear power in 2022 and vowed to never relinquish its weapons.
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🇳🇱Dutch police clash with anti-immigration protesters
Dutch police used tear gas and water cannon to disperse violent anti-immigration protesters in The Hague on Saturday.
Thirty people were arrested and two officers injured as large groups of people clashed with police, with some throwing rocks and bottles.
Around 1,500 people blocked a highway crossing the city, while a police car was set on fire, the Netherlands news agency ANP reported, citing police figures.
Prime Minister Dick Schoof condemned the "shocking and bizarre images of shameless violence", saying it was "completely unacceptable".
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🇵🇹🇵🇸Portugal confirms it will recognise Palestinian state
Portugal says it will recognise a Palestinian state on Sunday, making it the latest Western nation preparing to shift policy as the war in the Gaza Strip shows no sign of stopping.
The foreign ministry made the announcement ahead of next week's United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.
France, the UK, Canada and Australia are preparing similar announcements.
Israel has denounced the move, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying it "rewards terror" following Hamas's 7 October 2023 attack on Israel.
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🇨🇦🇲🇽Canada and Mexico agree to deepen ties amid Trump trade war
Canada and Mexico have agreed to deepen ties, vowing closer co-operation on trade and security, as both countries grapple with rising economic pressure from the US.
Following a meeting in Mexico City, Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum also expressed their commitment to a shared partnership with the US.
"We complement the United States, we make them stronger, and we are all stronger together," Carney told reporters.
Both Canada and Mexico have been hit by US tariffs - 50% on Canadian steel, and 25% on some Mexican pharmaceuticals. President Trump has also levied a 25% "fentanyl tariff" on Mexico, citing border security.
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🇮🇱🇱🇧Israeli air strikes hit southern Lebanon
Israel has carried out a large wave of air strikes in southern Lebanon, saying it was targeting positions of the Iranian-backed armed group Hezbollah.
The attacks came after evacuation warnings were issued for several locations. There has been no immediate report of casualties.
Israel has carried out air strikes on people and places it says are linked to Hezbollah almost every day despite a deal that ended the war with the group in November.
The Lebanese prime minister called on the international community to urge Israel to stop what he described as intimidation and attacks, and to fulfil its ceasefire obligations.
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🇷🇴Coup plot charges for former Romanian presidential candidate
Romanian far-right former presidential candidate Calin Georgescu has been charged with attempting to stage a coup after the first round of the presidential election was annulled last December.
Horatiu Potra, a former French legionnaire and militia chief in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and 20 other people were also charged.
The case rests on a planned raid on the Romanian capital Bucharest on 8 December, which police foiled.
Romanian prosecutors describe a plot targeting Romania's constitutional order, involving Georgescu, Potra, their group, and alleged foreign intelligence links.
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🇶🇦🇮🇱Qatar hosts Arab-Islamic emergency summit over Israeli strike on Doha
An emergency meeting of Arab and Islamic states is taking place in Qatar in response to Israel's air strike on Hamas leaders in Doha last week.
A draft resolution seen by the Reuters news agency condemns what it calls Israel's "hostile acts including genocide, ethnic cleansing, [and] starvation", which it says threatens "prospects of peace and coexistence". Israel has strongly denied such allegations.
It is not clear what practical decisions could be taken, as analysts say any kind of military response is out of the question.
Earlier, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani urged the international community to stop applying "double standards" and to punish Israel.
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🇳🇵Nepal's interim PM to hand over power within six months
Nepal's newly-appointed interim prime minister says she will be in the post for no longer than six months.
"I did not wish for this job. It was after voices from the streets that I was compelled to accept," Sushila Karki said, speaking for the first time since being sworn into office on Friday. She said she would hand over to the new government which will emerge after elections on 5 March next year.
Her appointment comes after more than 70 people were killed during anti-corruption protests which ousted the Nepal's government.
Karki took the oath of office after an agreement with protest leaders from the so-called "Gen Z" movement.
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🇧🇷Bolsonaro sentenced to 27 years in prison for plotting Brazil coup
The former president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, has been sentenced to 27 years and three months in prison after being found guilty of plotting a military coup.
A panel of five Supreme Court justices handed down the sentence just hours after they had convicted the former leader.
They ruled he was guilty of leading a conspiracy aimed at keeping him in power after he lost the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
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🇸🇸South Sudan vice-president charged with murder and treason
South Sudan's First Vice-President Riek Machar has been charged with murder, treason and crimes against humanity in a move that some fear could reignite the country's civil war.
Justice Minister Joseph Geng Akech said the charges against Machar relate to an attack in March by a militia allegedly linked to the vice-president.
The roads leading to his house in the capital, Juba, have been blocked by tanks and soldiers.
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🇬🇭🇺🇸Ghana agrees to accept West Africans deported from US
Ghana has become the latest country to accept people deported from the US as part of President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration.
President John Mahama said nationals from various West African countries would now be taken in following a bilateral agreement with the US. He said 14 had already arrived.
He cited the regional bloc Ecowas's free movement protocol that allows citizens of member states to enter and reside in other West African countries without a visa for up to 90 days.
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🇵🇱🇷🇺Poland says it shot down Russian drones after airspace violation
Poland shot down Russian drones over its airspace early on Wednesday, the Polish armed forces said, marking the first time Poland directly engaged Russian assets since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Polish airspace was "violated by a huge number of drones" during Russian strikes on Ukraine, which the Polish military called "unprecedented" and an "act of aggression".
The drones flew deep enough into Poland to close four airports - including Warsaw's main hub Chopin. Nato also deployed fighter jets in response.
Russia has yet to comment. Ukraine's foreign minister said the incident showed "Putin continues to escalate, expands the war".
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🇮🇳India elects new vice-president in midterm vote
India has elected CP Radhakrishnan, a nominee of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led alliance, as the country's next vice-president, weeks after the previous person to hold the post resigned abruptly.
Radhakrishnan won 452 valid votes in the 781-member electoral college - made up of members of the upper and lower houses of parliament - to defeat opposition-backed Sudershan Reddy, a former Supreme Court judge.
A veteran BJP politician, Radhakrishnan is the current governor of Maharashtra state. He has also served on various parliamentary committees.
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