A battle cry for inclusion: The Shape of Water triumphs in Oscars of seismic change
Guillermo del Toro’s outcast fantasy wins best picture in a ceremony that called for more representation and female empowerment in Hollywood- Helen Mirren’s jet ski to BB8 backstage: Oscars 2018 – in pictures
- Oscars 2018: Full list of winners
The Shape of Water, a romantic fable about a janitor who falls in love with a sea creature, has swept top honours at the Oscars in a ceremony that turned into a battle cry for inclusion and female empowerment.
Guillermo del Toro’s cold war-era fantasy about the triumph of outcasts fended off the satirical horror Get Out and the drama Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, to take best picture and director, continuing a winning streak for Mexican film-makers in Hollywood.
The 90th Academy Awards turned Sunday night’s ceremony in Los Angeles into a celebration and exhortation of representation and inclusion, after a year marked by seismic cultural change in Hollywood that rippled across the world.
'Firm resolution': South Korea heads for historic nuclear talks with North
Delegation travels to Pyongyang with aim to denuclearise peninsula and foster US talks
A high-ranking South Korean delegation is setting off for the North Korea capital for historic talks in an effort to reduce nuclear tensions and pave the way for US talks.
Before leaving Seoul, Chung Eui-yong, the head of the presidential national security office who is leading the 10-strong delegation, said the key aim was denuclearisation.
He told a press briefing: “Most of all, I will deliver President Moon Jae-in’s sincere and firm resolution to maintain the dialogue and improvement in relations between the South and the North, which were fostered on the occasion of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, to denuclearise the Korean Peninsula.”
Quebec village residents celebrate victory over oil and gas giant in legal battle against drilling
Tiny settlement with population of 157 claims victory in David-and-Goliath battle after being sued for £840,000
Residents of a Quebec village have defeated an oil-and-gas giant in a fight to protect their water, in a David-and-Goliath-style battle.
After a four-year legal wrangle over a $1m lawsuit, a judge has finally ruled in favour of the town of Ristigouche-Sud-Est and its population of just 157.
Half of the residents' legal fees could be reimbursed by the Montreal-based exploration giant.
Mayor François Boulay said: "I can't hide this is a sweet moment."
Italy exit polls point to hung parliament amid populist surge
A surge for populist and far-right parties in Sunday's Italian election could result in a hung parliament with a right-wing alliance likely to win the most votes, but no majority.
With over half the ballots from Sunday's vote counted, the right-wing coalition was at 37 percent, including the far-right, eurosceptic League party with 18 percent and media mogul Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia (Go Italy) party with 14 percent.
That raises the prospect of League leader Matteo Salvini, who has promised to shut down Roma camps, deport hundreds of thousands of migrants and tackle the "danger" of Islam, becoming Italy's next prime minister.
China boosts military spending 8% amidst ambitious modernization drive
Updated 0259 GMT (1059 HKT) March 5, 2018
China plans to boost its military spending by 8.1% in 2018 as it looks to further advance an ambitious modernization drive for its armed forces.
A budget document made available to the media before the opening of China's 13th National People's Congress (NPC) in Beijing on Monday, reveals China will spend the equivalent of US$175 billion across all branches of the People's Liberation Army.
The 8.1% increase is higher than last year's announcement, when it upped military spending by 7% over the previous year. In straight dollar terms, US military spending far outweighs China's. The Pentagon has requested a budget of $686 billion in 2019, up $80 billion from 2017.
EXCESSIVE FORCE
ICE Shackled 92 Somalis for 40 Hours On a Failed Deportation Flight. That Was Just the Start of the Abuse.
Maryam Saleh
FOR A BRIEF moment in December 2017, the international spotlight shined on the case of 92 deportees who were on an Immigration and Customs Enforcement-chartered flight to Somalia. Most such flights unload their human cargo once they land, but this flight, for logistical reasons, returned home — and brought witnesses back with it.
The Somalis told of abuse on the flight, saying they were shackled with chains on their wrists, waists, and legs for more than 40 hours; forced to urinate in bottles or on themselves; and that ICE officers beat and threatened some passengers. (ICE has denied that it mistreated detainees on the flight.)
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