
Barack Obama hails ‘new Africa emerging’
US President Barack Obama has hailed a new emerging Africa, on the last day of a summit in Washington DC with 40 African leaders. Wednesday’s talks covered security concerns and corruption – two areas the US administration says are holding back growth and investment in Africa. US firms... read more »

Boris Johnson says he will stand in next UK election
Conservative heavyweight Boris Johnson has finally ended years of speculation, evasion and denials by declaring that he will stand for the House of Commons in next year’s general election. However, Mr Johnson insists he will also see out his term as mayor of London, which ends in 2016 –... read more »

Arabs see Gaza war stoppage as Hamas victory despite destruction
Arab reactions to what seems to be the end of the Gaza war, for now, has been schizophrenic in that there has been widespread condemnation of Israel’s attacks and the resulting destruction in response to Hamas rocket fire, but pride and claims of victory for the Islamist movement. Key Hamas... read more »

China quake toll nears 600 as volunteers told to stay away
The death toll from an earthquake that devastated a remote region of China jumped to nearly 600 people Wednesday, authorities said, as volunteer rescuers were warned away. Rescue efforts in the southwestern province of Yunnan, where the 6.1-magnitude quake struck Sunday, were heavily hampered by... read more »