SEOUL: A South Korean lawmaker provoked outrage yesterday when he berated a female economics professor nominated as the country’s antitrust chief for not “fulfilling her duty to the nation” by having a child. Despite its economic advances, South Korean society remains highly patriarchal and is facing a demographic crisis with
NEW YORK: Top-ranked defending champion Novak Djokovic retired from his US Open match Sunday after dropping the first two sets to Stan Wawrinka, sending the Swiss three-time Grand Slam champion into the quarter-finals. Djokovic, who won four of the past five Slam crowns and 16 overall, was in pain from
LONDON: Britain’s manufacturing activity slumped last month, in part owing to heightened economic and political turmoil triggered by Brexit, data showed yesterday. The sector was plagued also by the US-China trade war impacting the global economy, according to the IHS Markit UK Manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI). The index dived
HONG KONG: Thousands of Hong Kong pro-democracy activists blocked some routes to the city’s airport yesterday as the financial hub cleaned up after another night of violent protests marked by fires, tear gas and police beatings. Operators of the Airport Express train said it suspended services yesterday afternoon, while blackclad
WASHINGTON: A gunman hijacked a US postal truck and opened fire at random in the US state of Texas Saturday, shooting dead at least five people and wounding many others before dying in a shoot-out with officers. Police identified the suspect as a white man in his mid-30s, but could
KABUL: Afghan security forces have cleared Kunduz of Taliban fighters, an official said yesterday, one day after insurgents assaulted the northern Afghanistan city. The multi-fronted attack Saturday saw Taliban fighters try to overwhelm Kunduz from several directions in a bid to capture the strategically important city near the Tajik border.
LYON: A man wielding a skewer and knife went on the rampage in the French city of Lyon on Saturday, leaving a 19-year-old man dead and eight others injured, including three critically. A police source said the alleged perpetrator was an Afghan asylum-seeker, unknown previously to both the police and
DOHA: US and Taliban negotiators are “at the threshold of an agreement” to end 18 years of conflict between them, Washington’s top negotiator said yesterday as he concluded their latest talks. The foes have been meeting in Doha to finalise a deal under which the Taliban would give security guarantees
BOSTON: US police fired pepper spray Saturday after counter-demonstrators accused them of protecting “Straight Pride” advocates who support President Donald Trump, and refused to let officers re-open a road. The unrest came after the counter-protesters and “Straight Pride” group — considered homophobic extremists by their opponents — staged duelling rallies
BERLIN: Germany’s far-right AfD party is hoping for strong gains yesterday in elections in two ex-communist states, potentially shaking Chancellor Angela Merkel’s fragile coalition government. The anti-immigration Alternative for Germany party has polled strongly in both Brandenburg and Saxony states, part of its eastern electoral heartland. Aside from railing against
