U.S. House impeaches Trump for a second time

Donald Trump on Wednesday became the first president in U.S. history to be impeached twice, as 10 of his fellow Republicans joined Democrats in the House of Representatives to charge him with inciting an insurrection in last week’s violent rampage in the Capitol.

S.Korea court upholds jail for ex-president Park

South Korea’s top court upheld on Thursday a 20-year jail sentence for former President Park Geun-hye on graft charges that led to her downfall, bringing an end to the legal process and so for the first time raising the possibility of a pardon.

First identified victim of Indonesian jet crash buried

The remains of a flight attendant who was the first victim to be identified after last week’s crash of an Indonesian passenger jet were laid to rest on Thursday.

House convenes to impeach Trump for his role in Capitol assault

A week after President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol, the House of Representatives began debate on Wednesday as lawmakers considered impeaching him for his role in an assault on American democracy that stunned the nation and left five dead.

Japan issues coronavirus state of emergency in seven more prefectures

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga decided on Wednesday to expand a state of emergency over the Covid-19 pandemic to some other parts of the country as Japan suffered a resurgence of virus infections. Suga issued a state of emergency in an additional seven prefectures, including Kyoto, Osaka and Fukuoka, which brings the number of prefectures under the measure to 11.

Indonesia suspends dive search for crashed jet’s cockpit recorder

-Indonesia on Wednesday temporarily suspended a search by divers for the cockpit voice recorder of a Sriwijaya Air that crashed with 62 people on board shortly after takeoff.

Drive to impeach Trump after Capitol siege speeds ahead

Democrats will give President Donald Trump one last chance on Tuesday to leave office days before his term expires or face an unprecedented second impeachment over his supporters’ deadly Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol.

Another Chinese city goes into lockdown amid new COVID-19 threat

China imposed new coronavirus curbs in areas near Beijing on Tuesday, putting 4.9 million people in Langfang city under lockdown as new infections raised worries about a second wave in a country that has mostly contained the disease.

FBI warns of plans for nationwide armed protests

Threatened with more violence from outgoing President Donald Trump’s supporters following last Wednesday’s storming of the U.S. Capitol, the FBI issued warnings for next weekend that run at least until Inauguration Day, the source said.

Democrats in Congress to begin drive to force Trump from office

Congressional Democrats begin their drive to force President Donald Trump from office this week, with a House vote on articles of impeachment expected as early as Wednesday that could make him the only president in U.S. history to be impeached twice.

Indonesian police identify first victim of jet crash

Indonesian police on Monday identified the first victim of the weekend’s crash of a passenger jet as search teams retrieved more body parts from the Java Sea. The Sriwijaya Air Boeing 737-500 jet plunged into the sea minutes after taking off from Jakarta airport on Saturday with 62 people on board.

Indonesia locates black boxes of crashed jet as body parts recovered

Indonesian authorities on Sunday located the black boxes of the Sriwijaya Air jet that crashed into the sea soon after taking off from the capital Jakarta, as human body parts and pieces of the plane were retrieved.

Japan detects a new strain of the coronavirus

Japan’s Health Ministry on Sunday said that four people who had arrived in Tokyo from Brazil were found to be infected with a new variant of the coronavirus.

China calls on India to return missing soldier

China has called for the swift return of a soldier it says is being held by Indian authorities after disappearing along the border.

US reports over 4,000 daily coronavirus deaths for first time

The United States reported more than 4,000 coronavirus deaths in one day for the first time on Thursday, as health systems struggle to cope with the number of sick and dying patients.

State of emergency over pandemic takes effect for Tokyo

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga asked for public cooperation on Friday as a state of emergency over the Covid-19 pandemic came into effect for Tokyo and its surrounding region.

Democrats inch toward second Trump impeachment after Capitol siege

Congressional Democrats on Friday weighed impeaching President Donald Trump for a second time, two days after his false claims of election fraud helped encourage a mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol.

Trump vows ‘orderly’ transition after Congress affirms Biden’s win

Outgoing US President Donald Trump has promised an “orderly” transfer of power after a tumultuous 24 hours in Washington that saw rioters storm Congress and lawmakers finally confirm incoming president Joe Biden’s election victory. “Even though I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out, nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20th,” Trump said in a statement early Thursday as he continued t

‘State of war’ as China sees largest coronavirus outbreak in months

China is experiencing its largest outbreak of the novel coronavirus in months, with case numbers in Hebei province outside Beijing rising to 230 in just five days. On Thursday alone, the health commission reported that 90 coronavirus patients were being treated in hospital and 144 were experiencing asymptomatic infections.

Japan issues state of emergency over pandemic, virus surges in Tokyo

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga declared a state of emergency over the Covid-19 pandemic on Thursday for Tokyo and its surrounding region amid a surge in infections.

Democrats closer to controlling Congress after tight Georgia runoffs

One Democratic candidate in Georgia’s twin Senate runoff elections was projected the winner over his Republican opponent, while the other Democratic hopeful held a narrow lead, as the final votes in the southern state were being tallied early Wednesday.

EU agency green-lights Moderna Covid-19 vaccine as pressure mounts

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has recommended the conditional market authorization of the Covid-19 vaccine produced by US firm Moderna, as frustration grows over the pace of vaccination campaigns in EU countries.

Julian Assange denied bail

A British judge on Wednesday denied WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange bail as he challenges a US extradition request in the courts.

England goes into new lockdown as COVID-19 variant rampages

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday ordered England into a new national lockdown to contain a surge in COVID-19 cases that threatens to overwhelm parts of the health system before a vaccine programme reaches a critical mass.

Breakthrough reached in Gulf dispute with Qatar

A breakthrough has been reached in Qatar’s three-year-old dispute with Saudi Arabia and three other Arab countries and an agreement aimed at ending their rift is to be signed in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, a senior Trump administration official said.

Members of Congress call on FBI to open criminal probe into Trump

Two Democratic members of the US House of Representatives on Monday requested that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) open a criminal probe into Donald Trump for pressuring officials to overturn the presidential election results.

Trump’s attempts to overturn Georgia ‘bold abuse of power’: Harris

US Vice President-elect Kamala Harris described outgoing president Donald Trump’s efforts to have election results in the state of Georgia overturned, a “bald-faced, bold abuse of power”.

UK judge rejects extraditing Assange to US

A British judge ruled on Monday that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange should not be extradited to the United States to face criminal charges including breaking a spying law, saying his mental health problems meant he would be at risk of suicide.

Iran begins enriching uranium up to 20 per cent

Iran has begun enriching uranium up to 20 per cent, says government spokesperson Ali Rabiei, far outside the 3.67-per-cent limit set in the 2015 nuclear deal.

Germany poised to extend coronavirus lockdown

Germany is likely to extend a national lockdown beyond Jan. 10 to curb coronavirus infection rates that are still running high and putting huge strains on hospitals and health workers, politicians said at the weekend.