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MILAN -- The far-right candidate who aspires to be Italy’s first female leader came under fire Monday from opponents for posting a pixelized video that purports to show a woman being raped by an asylum-seeker. Giorgia Meloni, the leader of the Brothers of Italy party that has neo-fascist roots, on Sunday evening reposted a video on Twitter from an Italian news site that was taken by a witness from a window overlooking the street. The woman, identified as Ukrainian, can be heard yelling in distress. A 27-year-old asylum-seeker from Guinea has been arrested in the sexual assault, according to Italian media reports. “One cannot remain silent front of this atrocious episode of sexual violence in broad daylight in Piacenza by an asylum-seeker,’’ Meloni wrote. “A hug for this woman. I will do ...

TORONTO -- German leader Olaf Scholz said Monday he's working as fast as he can to reduce Germany's dependence on Russia for energy, but Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said a business case would be needed to send gas from Canada to Europe. Scholz, who took over from Angela Merkel late last year, is in Canada this week and will sign a deal with Trudeau to supply clean hydrogen to Germany. “Canada plays a really, really central role for the development of green hydrogen,” Scholz said. “That’s why we are very glad to be able to expand our cooperation in this area on this occasion too.” He said Germany would like to be a partner of Canada in the future export of green hydrogen, but in the meantime natural gas will be needed. Trudeau, however, played down the likelihood of direct gas...

A tourist bus fell off a cliff in Peru on Sunday night, killing four people and injuring 16, authorities said. The bus was traveling in the Abra Málaga sector on the Cusco-Quillabamba road network when it plunged 328 feet around 7 p.m. local time, Peru's Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism said. Three Colombians and one Peruvian were among the dead, according to the ministry. No U.S. citizens were injured in the wreck. In this photo released by the National Police, a van lays in ruins after it fell off a cliff in an area known as Abra Malaga, as it transported tourists between Machu Picchu and Cuzco, Peru, Aug. 22, 2022. National Police/AP People injured in the crash are from Canada, Israel, France, Argentina, Greece, Peru, Spain and the Netherlands, the ministry s...

SEOUL, South Korea -- The United States and South Korea began their biggest combined military training in years Monday as they heighten their defense posture against the growing North Korean nuclear threat. The drills could draw an angry response from North Korea, which has dialed up its weapons testing activity to a record pace this year while repeatedly threatening conflicts with Seoul and Washington amid a prolonged stalemate in diplomacy. The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises will continue through Sept. 1 in South Korea and include field exercises involving aircraft, warships, tanks and potentially tens of thousands of troops. While Washington and Seoul describe their exercises as defensive, North Korea portrays them as invasion rehearsals and has used them to justify its nuclear weapo...

SEOUL, South Korea -- South Korean police say they believe a possible relative of two children whose bodies were found in suitcases in New Zealand last week is likely in South Korea. Immigration records show that the unidentified woman in her 40s arrived in South Korea in 2018, but there has been no record of her departure since, said Park Seung-hoon, an official at the National Police Agency in Seoul. Park said South Korean police have conveyed the information to New Zealand police after receiving a request for investigative help. But South Korean police currently have no authority to track down the woman’s whereabouts or detain her as she remains a New Zealand citizen possibly linked to a crime that had happened in New Zealand, Park said. It would be difficult for South Korean police ...

Shares in Cineworld have fallen more than 60% as concerns mount that the world's second largest cinema chain is about to file for bankruptcy. The company, which also owns the Picturehouse chain in the UK, is struggling under $5bn worth of debt. Like other cinema chains, Cineworld was hit hard by the pandemic. Cineworld recently said post-Covid customers levels were lower than expected and blamed "limited" film releases. The Wall Street Journal reported that Cineworld is preparing to file for bankruptcy, sending its share price tumbling. Cineworld has been contacted for comment. The firm had hoped blockbusters such as the latest Bond film, Naot Sandals Top Gun: Maverick and Thor: Love And Thunder would draw audiences ba...