Month: December 2024

Madrid (AFP) – La Liga’s relegation-threatened Valencia have appointed Carlos Corberan as their new manager after prising him from English second-tier side West Bromwich Albion, the clubs announced on Wednesday.

Paramaribo (Suriname) (AFP) – Desi Bouterse, the former dictator of Suriname who was a fugitive from justice for the murder of political opponents four decades ago, has died at 79, the government said Wednesday.

Damascus (AFP) – A key Syrian rescue group and an activist told AFP on Wednesday a burial site outside Damascus was likely a mass grave for detainees held under former president Bashar al-Assad and fighters killed in the civil war.

Damascus (AFP) – Angry protests broke out Wednesday in Syria over a video showing an attack on an Alawite shrine, with a war monitor saying one demonstrator was killed in Homs city.

Vatican City (AFP) – Pope Francis called Wednesday for “arms to be silenced” around the world in his Christmas address, appealing for peace in the Middle East, Ukraine and Sudan as he denounced the “extremely grave” humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Astana (Kazakhstan) (AFP) – An Azerbaijan Airlines passenger jet crashed on Wednesday in western Kazakhstan after travelling far off course, killing 38 of the 67 people on board, officials said.

Taipei (AFP) –

Kabul (AFP) – Pakistan air strikes in an eastern border region of Afghanistan killed 46 civilians, the Taliban government said Wednesday, whilst a Pakistan security official said the bombardment had targeted “terrorist hideouts”.

London (AFP) – Christmas Premier League chart-toppers Liverpool are overwhelming favourites to see off struggling Leicester on Boxing Day (Thursday).

Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday denounced an “inhumane” attack from Russia, which launched dozens of missiles and drones on his war-torn country’s energy grid on Christmas Day.