TNT PRESS

Adidas reaches out-of-court settlement with rapper Ye

30Oct

By No Comments

World

Adidas reaches out-of-court settlement with rapper Ye

FILE - The Adidas logo is pictured during celebrations for German sports apparel maker Adidas' 70th anniversary at the company's headquarters in Herzogenaurach, Germany, August 9, 2019. London — Adidas has reached an out-of-court settlement with rapper Ye to end all legal proceedings between them, the sportswear brand said on Tuesday, adding that no money changed hands in the agreement. Adidas and Ye had been embroiled in multiple lawsuits for the past two years, since the German company ended a partnership with the rapper previously known as Kanye West over antisemitic comments he made. FILE - Kanye West arrives at the Vanity Fair Oscar party on Feb. 9, 2020, in Beverly Hills, Calif. "There isn\'t any more open...

Polls close in Uzbekistan's parliamentary election held without real opposition

30Oct

By No Comments

World

Polls close in Uzbekistan's parliamentary election held without real opposition

A campaign poster for Uzbekistan's legislative elections is seen at Tashkent's Chorsu Bazaar, Oct. 27, 2024. Polls closed in Uzbekistan\'s parliamentary election Sunday that featured no real opposition to the Central Asian country’s strongman president, despite a recent overhaul of the electoral system and years of reform that have included economic liberalization and easing censorship. Shavkat Mirziyoyev retains a tight grip on power in the country of 37 million. Since taking office in 2016, he has enjoyed broad support for a slew of political and economic reforms that relaxed the repressive policies of his predecessor, longtime dictatorial leader Ismail Karimov. Over 71% of voters had cast their ballots by 5 p.m. (1200 GMT)...

China conducts military exercises around Taiwan aimed at ‘deterring separatist forces’

30Oct

By No Comments

Asia-pacific

China conducts military exercises around Taiwan aimed at ‘deterring separatist forces’

In this screen grab from video released by the Taiwan Coast Guard, a member of the Taiwan Coast Guard monitors a China Coast Guard boat as it passes near the coast of Matsu islands, Taiwan, Oct. 14, 2024. (Taiwan Coast Guard via AP) China’s People’s Liberation Army launched a new round of military exercises in waters around Taiwan on Monday, as Beijing increases military pressure against the island democracy four days after its leader rejected the Chinese government’s claim over Taiwan. The Chinese military’s Eastern Theater Command said it’s conducting a joint military exercise titled “Joint Sword-2024B” in waters around northern, southern and eastern Taiwan, as well as the northern end of the Taiwan Strait. The command issued a statem...

Saudi 'Davos in the desert' opens with region on war footing

30Oct

By No Comments

World

Saudi 'Davos in the desert' opens with region on war footing

General view of the venue as Saudi Arabia's Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud attends the Future Investment Initiative (FII) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Oct. 29, 2024. Riyadh — Global business leaders gathered in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday for a glitzy investor forum as conflict shakes the region and skepticism mounts over the Gulf kingdom\'s most ambitious development projects. The Future Investment Initiative (FII) debuted in 2017 as a showcase for de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman\'s dream of diversifying the economy of the world\'s largest crude exporter away from oil. This year\'s three-day event is expected to draw more than 7,000 delegates including TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew and the chief executive...

Pakistan, Afghanistan launch polio vaccination drives as cases resurge

30Oct

By No Comments

World

Pakistan, Afghanistan launch polio vaccination drives as cases resurge

A health worker administers a polio vaccine to a child in a school in Karachi, Pakistan, Oct. 28, 2024. Islamabad — Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan simultaneously launched fresh vaccination campaigns against polio Monday amid a resurgence in cases in the only two countries globally where the virus continues to be endemic and paralyze children. The World Health Organization reported 64 polio infections this year: 41 from Pakistan and 23 from Afghanistan, up from six each in both countries in 2023. Pakistani officials said the weeklong house-to-house nationwide campaign that was rolled out Monday enlists 400,000 polio workers, who aim to vaccinate over 45 million children under five against the paralytic disease. “This is Pakistan’...

Police in Botswana block opposition protest alleging election rigging

30Oct

By No Comments

World

Police in Botswana block opposition protest alleging election rigging

Umbrella for Democratic Change activists gather for a rally after their failed protest in Gaborone, Botswana, Oct. 26 2024. (Mqondisi Dube/VOA) Gaborone, Botswana — Botswanan opposition activists took to the streets of capital Gaborone over the weekend ahead of general elections set for this Wednesday. They wanted to march to Zimbabwe’s embassy with a petition that voiced concerns the neighboring country is conspiring to help Botswana’s ruling party extend its 58-year hold on power. But the marchers did not reach their destination. The weekend march was organized by a coalition of opposition parties under the Umbrella for Democratic Change, or UDC. But police, wielding guns, batons and shields pushed back the marchers and barricaded roa...

Germany recalls ambassador to Iran over execution of German-Iranian national

30Oct

By No Comments

World

Germany recalls ambassador to Iran over execution of German-Iranian national

FILE - Jamshid Sharmahd attends the first hearing of his trial in Tehran on Feb. 6, 2022. (Photo by Koosha Mahshid Falahi / Mizan News Agency / AFP) Berlin — Germany has recalled its ambassador to Iran over the reported execution of German-Iranian national Jamshid Sharmahd and summoned the Iranian charge d\'affaires to voice Berlin\'s protest against the killing, the German foreign office said on Tuesday. "We have sent our strongest protest against the actions of the Iranian regime & reserve the right to take further action," the foreign ministry said in a post on X. Germany\'s ambassador in Tehran demarched to the Iranian foreign minister and protested in the strongest possible terms the murder of Jamshid Sharmahd, the po...

Taiwan details record surge in Chinese warplanes involved in war games

30Oct

By No Comments

Asia-pacific

Taiwan details record surge in Chinese warplanes involved in war games

FILE - A man watches a news program about Chinese military drills surrounding Taiwan, on a giant screen outside a shopping mall in Beijing on October 14, 2024. Taipai, Taiwan — Taiwan\'s defense ministry on Tuesday detailed the surge in Chinese warplane activity around the island during war games the previous day, saying it had detected a record 153 Chinese military aircraft. China held a single day of what it called "Joint Sword-2024B" drills on Monday as a warning to "separatist acts," following last week\'s national day speech by Taiwan President Lai Ching-te that Beijing denounced. In its daily update on Chinese military activity around the island in the previous 24 hours, Taiwan\'s defense ministry said it spott...

Bogus bomb threats torment Indian aviation industry

30Oct

By No Comments

World

Bogus bomb threats torment Indian aviation industry

FILE - A man is silhouetted against an airport window with Air India planes parked in the background in New Delhi, Oct. 31, 2023. Ahead of the busiest annual travel season in India, more than 400 hoax bomb threats have triggered domestic and international travel chaos during the past two weeks, with Indian airlines grounding and diverting planes and incurring huge financial losses. Some flights were escorted to safety by fighter jets as the unprecedented wave of bogus threats caused disruption to scores of flights and India’s air travel industry. The threats created panic among air passengers, authorities said. Heightened security measures were enforced at most airports shortly after the first spate of threats surfaced in the second wee...

France, Morocco announce major investments as Macron visits Rabat

30Oct

By No Comments

World

France, Morocco announce major investments as Macron visits Rabat

Morocco's King Mohammed VI, right, and French President Emmanuel Macron wave to crowds during the latter's official visit to Morocco, in Rabat, Oct. 28, 2024. RABAT, Morocco — Morocco\'s King Mohammed VI welcomed French President Emmanuel Macron to Morocco on Monday, kicking off a state visit with a series of bilateral agreements, including major investments in renewable energy and transportation. Macron\'s trip to Morocco — his first in six years — comes as immigrants, including North Africans, face continued scrutiny in France and while France reassesses its role in its former colonies throughout Africa. Morocco has historically been a key economic and security partner, but relations between the two countries have often been...