AFP, SEOUL: Seoul said Wednesday an advanced US missile defence system will be deployed in a remote southern county and will have the capacity to protect two thirds of the country against feared attacks from the North. The plan to deploy the powerful system, which fires projectiles to smash into enemy…

AFP, ISLAMABAD: Posters begging Pakistan’s powerful army chief to launch a coup appeared in major cities including the capital Islamabad overnight, raising eyebrows in a country that has been ruled by the military for more than half its history. The posters, which also appeared in Lahore, Karachi…

AFP, ANKARA: France on Wednesday said it had closed its embassy in the Turkish capital Ankara and its consulate in Istanbul until further notice for security reasons, after cancelling events to mark the July 14 Bastille Day holiday. “The Embassy of France in Ankara, as well as the Consulate General…

AFP, YANGON: The body representing Myanmar’s top monks has distanced itself from a vocal Buddhist nationalist group, in an unprecedented blow to…

AFP, WASHINGTON: The United States will welcome 10,000 Syrian refugees this fiscal year as promised by President Barack Obama, Secretary of State John Kerry announced Tuesday. Washington has been criticized by some activists for moving too slowly to settle those fleeing the conflict, while Obama’s…

AFP, SAN SALVADOR: More than 3,000 people were violently killed in El Salvador in the first half of this year, according to official figures released Tuesday. The Central American government’s Forensic Medicine Institute said there were 3,058 homicides between January and June, a seven percent…

AFP, JUBA: A ceasefire in South Sudan’s capital appeared to hold for a second straight day Wednesday after intense fighting that killed hundreds of people and forced tens of thousands to flee their homes. No gunfire or artillery was heard in Juba and planes were seen leaving the international…

AFP, MOGADISHU: The leader of Somalia’s Shabaab jihadist group Ahmed Diriye described Turkey as “the enemy of the nation” and accused foreign peacekeeping forces of plundering the country, in an audio message published Tuesday. In his first such message since taking control of the…

AFP, PARIS: Short on the sides and thinning on top, French President Francois Hollande’s hair is kept perfectly groomed at a cost of 9,895 euros ($10,900) a month, the Canard Enchaine weekly reported Wednesday. The unpopular French president’s hair has never been the topic of scrutiny, unlike…