Posts by Amelia Frost
Nicaraguan ‘Dictatorship’ Is Doomed, Says Exiled Author
Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega’s “dictatorship” is doomed, exiled novelist Sergio Ramirez has told AFP, predicting the population will eventually rebel against the elderly ex-guerrilla. Ortega, the 79-year-old who toppled a US-backed dictatorship in 1979 and then led the country for a decade, has shown increasingly authoritarian tendencies since returning to power in 2007. He has…
Read MoreFrance Detains 55 Men In Paedophile Ring Crackdown
Fifty-five men were arrested in France this week as part of an operation to dismantle a suspected paedophile ring operating via the Telegram messaging app, authorities said Thursday. The arrests took place in 42 departments over possession, distribution and regular viewing of pornography involving children “under the age of 10”, France’s OFMIN, which is tasked…
Read MoreVatican’s Diplomatic Arm Eyes Return To Fore With Ukraine Talks
Whether or not Russia and Ukraine peace talks actually take place at the Vatican, the mere suggestion it could play host reflects a fresh diplomatic impetus under new pope Leo XIV. Fresh from his election as the first US pope in history, Leo offered last week to mediate between leaders of countries at war. Italian…
Read MoreUK Net Migration In 2024 Fell By Half To 431,000
Net migration to the UK dropped by half in 2024, the latest official figures showed on Thursday, in what will be a welcome boost for under-fire Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimated the figure for last year stood at 431,000, a dramatic drop from the 860,000 recorded in the year…
Read MoreLetters to the Editor, May 22, 2025: ‘Some still need Canada Post’
Breadcrumb Trail Links News Alberta Canada Opinion Letters I do love my mail. Greeting cards, paper bills (so I know what I am paying), and I donate to several institutions, by cheque and mailed. I also send parcels to my brother in long-time care. Published May 22, 2025 • Last updated 19 minutes ago • 2…
Read MoreIrish Rappers Kneecap Deny Hezbollah Support After Terror Charge
Irish rappers Kneecap on Thursday denied supporting a proscribed group and vowed to defend themselves after a singer was charged with a “terror” offence for allegedly displaying a Hezbollah flag at a London concert. The Iran-backed Lebanese force Hezbollah and the Palestinian militant group Hamas are banned in the UK and it is an offence…
Read More‘Serious’ Accident At North Korea Warship Launch: State Media
A major accident occurred at the launch ceremony for a new North Korean naval destroyer, state media reported Thursday, with leader Kim Jong Un calling the mishap a “criminal act”. At a ceremony to launch a new 5,000-ton vessel in the eastern port city of Chongjin on Wednesday “a serious accident occurred”, the official Korean…
Read MoreDeminers Comb Belgian Countryside For Remnants Of Great War
Working with the utmost care, a Belgian deminer wiggled a century-old artillery shell from the soil and deposited it safely in a sandbox in the back of his truck. “This one’s an 18-pounder — there might be a bit of explosive left inside,” said Franjo, one of a team of army specialists whose job is…
Read MoreTwo Israeli Staff Shot Dead Outside Jewish Museum In Washington
Two Israeli embassy staffers were shot dead late Wednesday outside a Jewish museum in Washington by a gunman who shouted “free Palestine,” authorities said, with US officials and Israeli diplomats expressing shock and outrage over the killings. President Donald Trump quickly condemned the attack, saying “These horrible D.C. killings, based obviously on antisemitism, must end,…
Read MoreEU Ready To Tax Russian Fertilisers As Early As July
EU lawmakers are set to greenlight tariffs on fertiliser imports from Russia on Thursday, despite European farmers’ fears the move risks sending global prices soaring. Over a quarter of the 27-nation bloc’s imports of nitrogen-based fertilisers come from Russia, with more entering from Moscow ally Belarus — which the European Commission now seeks to bring…
Read MoreYoung Mongolians Demand PM Resign Over Corruption Claims
Hundreds of young Mongolians turned out this week in the country’s capital calling for the prime minister’s resignation on allegations of corruption, a longstanding source of deep public anger in the landlocked democracy. Mongolia has for decades struggled with endemic graft and the widespread view that the proceeds of a coal mining boom are being…
Read MoreOne Dead, 50,000 Stranded In Eastern Australia Floods
Torrential rain continued to lash eastern Australia on Thursday, swelling already engorged rivers, engulfing roads and leaving almost 50,000 people stranded. Police found the body of a 63-year-old man inside a flooded home in the rural hamlet of Moto, about 400 kilometres (250 miles) northeast of Sydney. Others clambered on to their roofs to escape…
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