Trump claims Clinton does not have ‘stamina’ to be president

Donald Trump claimed in Monday’s US presidential debate that his rival Hillary Clinton does not have the “stamina” to be president, hitting at the Democrat after a recent bout of pneumonia.

Maduro, Kerry meet in Colombia after peace deal signing

Venezuela’s embattled President Nicolas Maduro met Monday with top US diplomat John Kerry on the sidelines of a landmark peace deal signing between the Colombian government and FARC rebels.
“President @NicolasMaduro held respectful, top level meeting with @JohnKerry,” Venezuela’s foreign minister tweeted.
Venezuela is in a highly tense political crisis, with the South American oil-exporting nation slammed by low crude prices, inflation, food shortages and violence.

In debate with Trump, Clinton vows US honors its word

Hillary Clinton touted her foreign policy experience during Monday’s presidential debate as proof she’s fit to be the next commander in chief, but rival Donald Trump argued that the ex-secretary of state left the Middle East in flames.
As the two White House hopefuls sparred on several foreign policy fronts including Russia, Iran and fighting Islamic State jihadists, Clinton sought to allay the worries some global leaders have about the populist businessman making a run for the White House.
“I want to reassure our allies in Japan and South Korea and elsewhere, that we have mutual defense treaties and we will honor them,” the Democrat said as she put Trump on the defensive over nuclear proliferation, Iraq and the role of NATO.
“I want to — on behalf of myself, and I think on behalf of a majority of the American people — say that our word is good.”
Clinton has long pointed to her extensive experience on the world stage to proclaim herself the

Markets cheer Clinton in US presidential debate

Financial markets Tuesday cheered Hillary Clinton’s performance in the first US presidential debate, with stocks and high-risk currencies staging a “relief rally” as investors saw her as victor over Republican rival Donald Trump.
Key Asian bourses got a bounce as a confident Clinton bested her rival in the 90-minute showdown, some reversing earlier declines.
Tokyo ended 0.8 percent up, a dramatic volte-face from its 0.9 percent drop at the open, while Sydney also trimmed early losses.
Hong Kong opened 0.5 percent higher but jumped in the afternoon to close more than one percent higher. Shanghai was up 0.6 percent by the close after being flat most of the day.
Seoul, Bangkok and Singapore also gained.
“US futures have moved ahead as the debate unravelled, and I think that is one of the factors” for Asian markets erasing losses, Michael McCarthy, a chief market strategist at CMC Markets, told

Over 90% of world breathing bad air – WHO

Nine out of 10 people globally are breathing poor quality air, the World Health Organization said Tuesday, calling for dramatic action against pollution that is blamed for more than six million deaths a year.
New data in a report from the UN’s global health body “is enough to make all of us extremely concerned,” Maria Neira, the head of the WHO’s department of public health and environment, told reporters.
The problem is most acute in cities, but air in rural areas is worse than many think, WHO experts said.
Poorer countries have much dirtier air than the developed world, according to the report, but pollution “affects practically all countries in the world and all parts of society”, Neira said in a statement.
“It is a public health emergency,” she said.

Philippines President Duterte seeks death penalty in war on crime

President Rodrigo Duterte has made a case for the restoration of the death penalty in the Philippines, saying the law had previously lost its effectiveness because it was not fully implemented.
Duterte told reporters on Monday that past presidents had succumbed to the pressure of the Catholic church and other “bleeding hearts” who argued against capital punishment “because only God can kill”.
“The problem with that is, I ask you, ‘What if there is no God?’” Duterte said at the presidential palace in the capital, Manila.
“When a one-year-old, an 18-month-old baby is taken from the mother’s arms, brought under a jeep and raped, and killed, where is God,” he asked.
“People in the Philippines no longer believe in the laws, because the fear is not there,” Duterte said in a mix of Filipino and English.
“That is why I said, give me back the death penalty.”

Bomb attacks hit mosque, congress centre in Germany

Traces of smoke can be seen after a bomb attack at the entrance to the Fatih Camii Mosque in Dresden, eastern Germany.(AFP)

Bomb attacks hit a mosque and a congress centre in the eastern German city of Dresden, police said Tuesday, adding that they suspected a xenophobic and nationalist motive.
No-one was injured in the blasts late Monday in a city which has become a hotspot for far-right protests amid Germany’s huge migrant influx.
“Although no-one has claimed the attack, we assume a xenophobic motive,” said Dresden police chief Horst Kretzschmar.
“We also suspect a connection with celebrations next weekend for the Day of German Unity” on Monday, October 3.
The home-made bombs went off around 2000 GMT and damaged the door of the mosque while the imam and his family were inside, forcing the partial evacuation of the hotel at the city’s international congress centre.

Clinton’s name misspelled on souvenir debate tickets

The first presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump may be one of the most hyped events in US politics, but the hosts managed overlook one small detail.
The name of the Democratic nominee, the first woman in American history to win a major party nomination for president, was misspelled on souvenir tickets handed out to students at Hofstra University.

Clinton, Trump clash in fiery first debate

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton (R) speaks as Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump (L) listens during the Presidential Debate at Hofstra University on September 26, 2016 in Hempstead, New York.(AFP)

Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump bickered and traded insults in a fiery US presidential debate Monday, as they aggressively pitched their case to tens of millions of American voters.
With the White House rivals in a dead heat six weeks before election day, Clinton from the get-go painted her Republican rival as out of touch and having a tenuous relationship with the truth, willing to say “crazy things” to get elected.
“You live in your own reality” said the 68-year old Democrat, who accused Trump of launching his political career on a “racist lie” — the birther conspiracy theory that questioned President Barack Obama’s citizenship.
Trump, who faces tough questions about his suitability for the Oval Office, started out with a more restrained tone — he even ditched his red power tie for a more statesmanlike blue.
But he quickly went on the offensive, repeatedly interrupting Clinton with verbal jabs.
The celebrity businessman branded Clinton a “typical politician. All talk, no action. Sounds good, doesn’t work.”