WORLD

Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Embattled Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared a “huge” victory Friday, after winning a leadership primary that ensures he will lead his right-wing Likud party into a March general election. Israel’s longest-serving premier, who faces a corruption indictment and a third general election in 12 …

Shanghai, China | AFP |  A company run by Bruce Lee’s daughter is suing a Chinese fast food chain for allegedly using an image of the late martial arts film star without permission. Shannon Lee’s Bruce Lee Enterprises accuses restaurant chain Kungfu Catering Management of having used her father’s image …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | A top Brussels official has written a “love letter” to Britain expressing his grief at its decision to leave the European Union — and stressing it was always welcome back. “I know you now. And I love you. For who you are and what you …

Rome, Italy | AFP |  Italian Education Minister Lorenzo Fioramonti of the anti-establishment Five Star Movement said Thursday he had resigned because his ministry is underfunded. Fioramonti wrote on Facebook that he informed Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte of his decision on Tuesday, saying he had taken up the portfolio to …

Gideon Saar, the man challenging Israel’s Netanyahu for Likud leader Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | He looks more like an accountant than a political predator, but on Thursday Gideon Saar will challenge his former mentor Benjamin Netanyahu for the leadership of Israel’s ruling party. Saar, 53, has been a senior …

Paris, France | AFP |  Angry citizens have swelled the streets of cities across the globe this year, pushing back against a disparate range of policies but often expressing a common grievance — the establishment’s failure to heed their demands for a more equitable future. While street protests are nothing …

  Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis ushered in Christmas on Wednesday for the world’s 1.3 billion Catholics with a message of unconditional love, saying “God continues to love us all, even the worst of us”. “You may have mistaken ideas, you may have made a complete …

Rome, Italy | AFP |  Frayed teddy bears and broken toy cars resurrect under the magic touch of Guido Pacelli, a modern-day Geppetto who works overtime so that Rome’s poor and sick children wake up to a gift on Christmas morning. Armed with a screwdriver, a microscope and a small welder, …

London, United Kingdom | AFP |  It was a year of trials and tribulations for Britain’s royals that Queen Elizabeth II called “quite bumpy” in her Christmas Day message. Here are some of the scandals and misfortunes to have troubled Britain’s 93-year-old monarch. – The ailing prince – The year …

Beijing, China | AFP | Beijing will lower import tariffs on more than 850 products including frozen pork from next month, the finance ministry said Monday, as authorities battle a severe shortage of the meat staple. China’s pig industry has been hammered by African swine fever, which has led to the …