AFP, Manila
An American Catholic priest wanted for allegedly sexually abusing Filipino altar boys as young as seven has been arrested in the Philippines and now faces deportation, officials said Thursday.
Kenneth Bernard Hendricks, 77, was taken into custody Wednesday on the central island of Biliran after serving as a priest for 37 years in the predominantly Catholic Philippines.
Afghan peace push backed by surge in air strikes, operations
Reuters, Kabul
The death last week of the Taliban’s senior leader in southern Afghanistan in a U.S. air strike highlights a surge in operations amid pressure to coax the increasingly confident insurgents to accept talks to end the 17-year war.
As U.S. special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad makes a fresh round of visits to Afghanistan and neighboring countries this week and resumes meetings with Taliban representatives, military operations have spiked sharply across the country.
Top Huawei Executive detained in Canada
AFP, Ottawa
A top executive and daughter of the founder of Chinese telecom giant Huawei has been arrested in Canada and faces extradition to the United States, officials said Thursday, angering Beijing days into a trade war truce with the US.
The detention of Meng Wanzhou, Huawei’s chief financial officer, comes after American authorities reportedly launched an investigation into suspected Iran sanctions by Huawei, which was already under scrutiny by US intelligence officials who deemed the company a national security threat.
French govt urges unity in face of mass protests
AFP, Paris:
The French government, under pressure from weeks of “yellow vest” protests over rising living costs, on Wednesday scrapped all planned fuel tax hikes for 2019 and appealed for calm. An increase scheduled for January 1, was “scrapped for the year 2019” in its entirety, Environment Minister Francois de Rugy announced on BFM TV, in an about-turn for the government.
N Korean sends top diplomat to key ally China
AP, Beijing
North Korea’s foreign minister was due to arrive in key ally China Thursday for talks that come amid stalled efforts to persuade Pyongyang to dismantle its nuclear weapons programs. Ri Yong Ho was scheduled to meet Friday with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, according to China’s Foreign Ministry.
China is the North’s most important economic and political partner, but has signed on to United Nations economic sanctions aimed at pressuring leader Kim Jong Un to abandon his drive to develop nuclear weapons and the ballistic missiles to deliver them.
