LONDON (AFP) ― Colin Davies, the president of the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO), died on Sunday aged 85, the prestigious organization announced.“Sir Colin first conducted the LSO in 1959 and became principal conductor in 1995,” said the statement.“He was the longest-serving principal conductor in the LSO’s history and has been at the head of the LSO family for many years.“His musicianship and his humanity have been cherished by musicians and audiences alike.”The LSO paid tribute to Davies’ “im

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― Conflicting accounts from U.S. intelligence about the status of North Korea’s nuclear weapons program underscore just how difficult it is for American spy agencies to penetrate the inscrutable regime in Pyongyang, officials and experts said Friday.The world’s most powerful intelligence apparatus is often left to guesswork when it comes to tracking a regime that has cut off its population from the outside world.“I also have to say that North Korea, of course, is now and always

TOKYO (AP) ― A strong earthquake shook Japan on Saturday near the southwestern city of Kobe, leaving 23 people injured, seven of them seriously ― mostly elderly tripping while trying to flee, police said. No one was killed. The magnitude-6.3 quake left some homes with rooftop tiles broken and cracked walls, while goods fell off store shelves, according to the Meteorological Agency and Japanese TV news footage. The earthquake was centered on Awaji Island, just south of Kobe, at a depth of 15 kilo

VATICAN CITY (AP) ― Pope Francis named eight cardinals from around the globe Saturday to advise him on running the Catholic Church and reforming the Vatican bureaucracy, marking his first month as pope with a major initiative to reflect the universal nature of the church in key governing decisions.The advisory panel includes only one current Vatican official. The rest are cardinals from North, Central and South America, Africa, Asia, Europe and Australia. Many have been outspoken in calling for

NEW YORK (AFP) ― One of America’s finest ballerinas and the muse and wife of legendary choreographer George Balanchine has died, aged 88.Maria Tallchief died Thursday in Chicago, where she had founded the short-lived Chicago City Ballet, the family announced. She had previously been the dazzling prima ballerina with the New York City Ballet from 1948 to 1965, working with Balanchine, who was also briefly her husband.“My mother was a ballet legend, who was proud of her Osage heritage,” said daugh