INTERNATIONAL

The Girl Scouts of the United States of America have filed a lawsuit against the Boy Scouts of America for dropping “boy” from the scout group’s name. The Boy Scouts of America announced in May they would rename the Boy Scouts programme Scouts BSA as they prepare to allow girls as members. But the Girl Scouts say the change could ...

A Colorado man, Chris Watts, has pleaded guilty to killing his pregnant wife and daughters. The district attorney agreed to drop the death penalty in exchange for Mr Watts accepting all nine charges against him as part of a plea bargain. Shanann Watts, 34, who was 15 weeks pregnant, and their daughters, Celeste, three, and Bella, four, were reported missing ...

The US Democrats have taken control of the House of Representatives in the mid-term elections, dealing a serious blow to President Donald Trump. Taking control of the lower chamber of Congress for the first time in eight years will enable Democrats to thwart the president’s agenda. But Mr Trump’s Republicans have retained control of the US Senate. Tuesday’s vote was ...

Dozens of people, mostly school pupils, have been kidnapped from a school in the west of Cameroon. At least 78 students and three others, including the school principal, were abducted on Monday morning in Bamenda, the capital of the North-West region, a government official has told the BBC. Regional governor Adolphe Lele L’Afrique blamed separatist militias. Cameroon’s North-West and South-West ...

The US mid-term election campaign is entering a frenzied final day in a vote seen as a verdict on Donald Trump’s presidency. The opposition Democrats are hoping to retake control of the House of Representatives, while Republicans seek to tighten their grip on the Senate. Turnout is expected to be high, with more than 34 million Americans already having voted ...

The UK government has been warned to stick to its commitment to avoid a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic. Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said a time-limited arrangement – or one that could be unilaterally ended by the UK – would never get EU backing. The border issue is the main barrier to progress between the two ...

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani has vowed to “break” swingeing sanctions re-imposed by the US targeting core parts of the economy. The Trump administration is restoring all sanctions lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal in a bid to pressure Iran. They will hit oil exports, shipping and banks, and make it difficult to do business with the oil-rich nation. But Mr ...

The US unleashed its “toughest ever” sanctions against Iran on Monday following a wave of protests across the oil-rich country. The Trump administration reinstated all sanctions removed under the 2015 nuclear deal, targeting both Iran and states that trade with it. They will hit oil exports, shipping and banks – all core parts of the economy. Thousands of Iranians chanting ...

The lawyer representing a Christian woman acquitted of blasphemy after eight years on death row has fled Pakistan in fear for his life. Saif Mulook told news agency AFP he had to leave so he could continue to represent Asia Bibi, whose conviction was overturned by judges on Wednesday. Officials have since agreed to bar Ms Bibi from leaving Pakistan ...

South Africa’s state-owned airline should be shut down, the country’s new finance minister has said. “It’s loss-making, we are unlikely to sort out the situation, so my view would be close it down,” Tito Mboweni told an investor conference in the US. One of Africa’s biggest airlines, South Africa Airways (SAA) has lost money every year since 2011, and survives ...