TOKYO (AFP) -- A Japanese minister on Thursday visited the Yasukuni war shrine at the centre of long-running tensions with regional neighbours -- the first cabinet-level official visit in over two years.Seiichi Eto, the minister in charge of Okinawa and what Japan calls "the Northern Territories" disputed with Russia, visited the shrine at the start of its annual autumn festival, an official at Eto's office told AFP.Prime Minister Shinzo Abe meanwhile continued his recent practice of s

NEW YORK (AFP) -- Japan's SoftBank Group has prepared a financing plan that would give it control of WeWork as the office sharing startup seeks badly- needed financing, sources told AFP Monday.The plan would give SoftBank, which is controled by billionaire Masayoshi Son, more than 50 percent of WeWork and further limit the influence of former chief executive and co-founder Adam Neumann, said sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity.Neumann stepped down as chief executive in September amid

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- The US House of Representatives on Tuesday passed a bill sought by pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong that aims to defend civil rights in the semi-autonomous territory.The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, which will now move to a similar vote in the Senate before it can become law, has drawn rare bipartisan support in a polarized Congress.Its passage is likely to further aggravate China which has accused "external forces" of fuelling weeks of unrest in t

ISTANBUL (AFP) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan dismissed a US proposal to broker a ceasefire in northern Syria and said he was not worried over US sanctions, in comments published in Turkish media Wednesday.He also said the Syrian army's entry into the flashpoint northern Syrian city of Manbij was not a "very negative" development for his country as long as the region is cleared of Syrian Kurdish fighters."They tell us 'to declare a ceasefire'. We can never declare a cea

LOS ANGELES (AFP) -- US actress Zoe Kravitz will play Catwoman in the new "Batman" film starring Robert Pattinson, a Warner Bros. source told AFP on Monday.Kravitz, who recently starred in HBO's hit TV drama "Big Little Lies" and is the daughter of rock musician Lenny Kravitz, will portray the whip-wielding cat burglar who is both Batman's foe and love interest in the comics. She follows A-listers such as Halle Berry, Anne Hathaway and Michelle Pfeiffer in portraying Catwoman

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- A white policeman who shot dead a black Texas woman as she played video games at home with her young nephew has been charged with murder, police said Monday.Aaron Dean gunned down 28-year-old Atatiana Jefferson from outside her Fort Worth property in the early hours of Saturday as she approached a window to investigate noises outside.The incident, less than two weeks after a white policewoman was jailed for killing a black man in his apartment in nearby Dallas, has spark

STOCKHOLM (AFP) -- A trio of Americans on Monday won the Nobel Economics Prize for their work in the fight against poverty, including Esther Duflo, the youngest-ever economics laureate and only the second woman to win the prize.Duflo -- a 46-year-old French-American professor who has served as an advisor to ex-US president Barack Obama -- shared the Nobel with her husband, Indian-born Abhijit Banerjee and fellow American Michael Kremer "for their experimental approach to alleviating global

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- The United States slapped sanctions on Turkey Tuesday as it demanded an end to its deadly incursion against Syrian Kurdish fighters, accusing its NATO partner of putting civilians at risk and allowing the release of Islamic State extremists.The actions came hours after regime troops returned for the first time in years to parts of northeastern Syria, invited by Kurdish fighters desperate for protection as the United States pulls out.President Donald Trump took extraordinary m

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- The Pentagon said Sunday President Donald Trump had ordered the withdrawal of up to 1,000 troops from northern Syria -- almost the entire ground force in the war-torn country -- amid an intensifying Turkish assault on Kurdish forces.Defense Secretary Mark Esper said the move came after the US learned that Turkey was pressing further into Syria than had been expected.The Kurds -- with whom the US partnered to combat the Islamic State group -- later announced they had reached a

TOKYO (AFP) -- At least 26 people were killed by powerful Typhoon Hagibis, local media reported Sunday, a day after the ferocious storm slammed into Japan, unleashing unprecedented rain and catastrophic flooding.More than 100,000 rescuers, including 31,000 troops, were working into the night to reach people trapped after torrential rain caused landslides and filled rivers until they burst their banks.The destruction forced the Rugby World Cup to cancel a third tournament match, though a key

MOSCOW (AFP) -- Russia will work with Saudi Arabia against any "attempt to destabilise" the oil market, President Vladimir Putin said in an interview broadcast Sunday, on the eve of a visit to Riyadh.Tensions in the region are high following attacks on oil installations in Saudi Arabia, which sent prices surging, and the seizure of tankers in the Gulf. "If anyone believes that acts such as the seizing of tankers or strikes against oil infrastructure could in any way affect the coo

BUSAN (AFP) -- Acclaimed director David Michod's epic "The King" was one of four major Netflix productions screened at Asia's largest film festival this week, underlining how streaming services are increasingly challenging Hollywood and traditional media for the attention of artists -- and viewers.Asia is seen as an important part of the global streaming industry's growth plan. In conjunction with the main event, Busan International Film Festival also hosted its first Asia Contents Awa

North and South Korea face each other in a World Cup qualifier this week for their first ever competitive men's match in Pyongyang, while talks on the North's nuclear arsenal remain deadlocked.The teams -- with Tottenham's star striker Son Heung-min included in the South Korean squad -- are expected to step out onto Kim Il-sung Stadium turf on Tuesday.It comes in the wake of a series of North Korean missile tests and after talks with the US over its weapons programmes broke down, with Pyongyang

TOKYO (AFP) -- Powerful Typhoon Hagibis barrelled through Japan Saturday, killing at least two people and lashing large parts of the country with "unprecedented" rain that caused floods, landslides and emergency disaster warnings.Around 7.3 million people were given non-compulsory evacuation orders, 90 were injured -- four seriously -- and several others reported missing as flooding hit many towns and cities.Even before making landfall, Hagibis wrought havoc on two major sporting event

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- President Donald Trump on Saturday touted his partial, unsigned trade deal with China as a major achievement and the best deal US farmers have ever secured."WOW, the Farmers really hit pay dirt," Trump tweeted.Friday's initial agreement, which marks a halt in the 18-month trade war, calls for a huge increase in China's purchases of US farm products.It also covers intellectual property, financial services and currencies. Trump said Friday evening the deal calls