World

WASHINGTON, United States — The United States said Tuesday it was revoking visas of Saudis involved in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as President Donald Trump ridiculed the kingdom's response as "one of the worst cover-ups" in history. The move came as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Khashoggi's killing inside the Saudis' Istanbul consulate had been meticulously planned, in a speech that overshadowed a long-planned investment forum in Riyadh. Saudi leaders have denied involvement in the killing, pushing responsibility down the chain of command. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman "strongly said that he had nothing to do with this, this was at a lower level," US President Donald Trump said, adding he had spoken Monday to the prince and his father King Salman. Trump said the Saudis had a "very bad original concept" in killing the 59-year-old Saudi insider-turned-critic. "It was carried out poorly and the cover-up was one of the worst in the history of … [Read more...] about US revokes Saudi visas in first action over Khashoggi

DUBAI: Saudi Arabia has detained 18 people and dismissed five senior government officials as part of an investigation into the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and critic of Saudi policies, disappeared after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct 2 to obtain documents for his marriage.Saudi Arabia initially denied knowledge of his fate. Then, on Saturday, its public prosecutor said he had been killed in a fight in the consulate, an explanation that has drawn international scepticism.Turkish security sources say that when Khashoggi entered the consulate, he was seized by 15 Saudi intelligence operatives who had flown in on two jets just hours before.A senior Saudi official confirmed to Reuters they were among the 18 Saudis detained, along with three local suspects.Most of the 15 worked in the Saudi military or security and intelligence services, including at the royal court, according to Saudi and Turkish officials and several … [Read more...] about Who are the 15 Saudis who came to Turkey ahead of Khashoggi’s killing?

World Brazil's far-right presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro saw his sizeable lead narrow slightly over leftist rival Fernando Haddad in a new Ibope election poll published on Tuesday, looking at voter intentions for Sunday's run-off vote. 24 Oct 2018 08:10AM Bookmark BRASILIA: Brazil's far-right presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro saw his sizeable lead narrow slightly over leftist rival Fernando Haddad in a new Ibope election poll published on Tuesday, looking at voter intentions for Sunday's run-off vote.The poll showed Bolsonaro winning 57 percent of valid votes to Haddad's 43 percent, compared to 59 percent for Bolsonaro and 41 percent for Haddad in Ibope's previous survey last week.The new numbers are in line with other polls that show Bolsonaro taking between 57 percent (CNT/MDA) and 60 percent (BTG/FSB) of the votes.(Reporting by Anthony Boadle and Jake Spring; Editing by Sandra Maler) … [Read more...] about Brazil election poll shows Bolsonaro with 57 percent vs Haddad’s 43 percent

STRASBOURG, France: The European Commission on Tuesday (Oct 23) rejected Italy's draft 2019 budget, the first time the EU executive has ever sent a member state back to the drawing board over spending plans.Charging Rome with "openly and consciously" flouting pledges made, the Commission gave Italy's populist government three weeks to present a new plan to curb spending in line with the rules."Today for the first time the commission is required to ask a euro area country to revise its draft budgetary plan," Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis told reporters.Despite its "regret", he said, the executive arm of the 28-nation European Union saw "no alternative" than to ask Rome for a new draft, as clarifications sent Monday had failed to dissipate concerns raised by member countries in July."The Italian government is openly and consciously going against commitments made," Dombrovskis said."Europe is built on cooperation," he said. "If trust is eroded all member states take damage. … [Read more...] about EU rejects Italy’s budget in eurozone first

LONDON: Companies will suffer and criminals could benefit from the inevitable border disruption that will ensue if Britain leaves the European Union without a deal, the country's public spending watchdog said on Wednesday (Oct 24).With just five months to go to Brexit, Prime Minister Theresa May has yet to reach a deal with Brussels and both sides have stepped up preparations for the possibility there will not be one.In its report, "The UK border: preparedness for EU exit", the National Audit Office (NAO) said there was not enough time to put fully effective border operations in place for a no-deal Brexit by Mar 29 and businesses would pay the price."Government has openly accepted the border will be sub-optimal if there is no deal," said NAO head Amyas Morse."It is not clear what sub-optimal means in practice, or how long this will last. But what is clear is that businesses and individuals who are reliant on the border running smoothly will pay the price."The NAO said businesses … [Read more...] about ‘No deal’ Brexit would mean costly border disruption: UK spending watchdog