- Palestinian officials say Israeli forces kill two in West Bank
- Football leagues, unions file EU complaint against FIFA in calendar dispute
- Nigeria boycott AFCON qualifier in Libya after 'inhumane treatment'
- India to recall top envoy to Canada: foreign ministry
- Hezbollah, Israeli troops in 'violent clashes' after drone strike
- China insists won't renounce 'use of force' to take Taiwan as drills end
- Painkiller sale plan to US gives France major headache
- Italy begins landmark migrant transfers to Albania
- Russia jails French researcher for three years
- 'Unsustainable' housing crisis bedevils Spain's socialist govt
- Stocks shrug off China disappointment but oil slides
- New Zealand 4-0 up in America's Cup but British show signs of life
- Russian prosecutor demands 3 years prison for French researcher
- 'Innocent' British nerve agent victim caught in global murder plot: inquiry
- Afghan Taliban vow to implement media ban on images of living things
- Russian prosecutor demands 3 years, 3 months jail for French researcher
- England ready for Pakistan's spin assault in second Test
- New Zealand's Ravindra excited for India Tests with father in crowd
- India's capital bans fireworks to curb air pollution
- Stocks diverge, oil retreats as China disappoints markets
- FIFA to open 'global dialogue' on transfer system after Diarra ruling
- Trio wins economics Nobel for work on wealth inequality
- Starmer vows to cut red tape as he urges foreign investors to 'back' UK
- Ex-Stasi officer jailed over 1974 Berlin border killing
- 'Not viable': Barcelona turns against surging tourism
- Hezbollah says targeted Israeli naval base after deadly drone strike
- Rice praises 'unbelievable' England interim boss Carsley despite uncertainty
- Nepali teenager hailed as hero after climbing world's 8,000m peaks
- England captain Stokes back from injury for second Pakistan Test
- Shanghai stocks gain after stimulus briefing as markets rally
- Shanghai stocks gain after stimulus briefing as Asian markets rally
- South Korea military says 'fully ready' as drone flights anger North
- Pakistan 'vigilantes' behind rise in online blasphemy cases
- Nearly 90, but opera legend Kabaivanska is still calling tune
- Smith experiment as Test opener over, Green out of India series
- With inflation down, ECB eyes faster tempo of rate cuts
- Is life possible on a Jupiter moon? NASA goes to investigate
- Dodgers crush Mets 9-0 in MLB playoff series opener
- South Korea military says 'fully ready' as drone tensions soar
- Cummins back, Marsh and Head out of Pakistan ODI series
- Shanghai stocks swing after stimulus briefing as most of Asia rises
- New Zealand's Latham promises 'no fear' as he takes charge for India Tests
- Kyrgios vows to 'shut up' doubters with December comeback
- Public hearings start into death of Brit by Russian nerve agent
- Ex-Stasi officer faces verdict over 1974 Berlin border killing
- Role of government, poverty research tipped for economics Nobel
- 'Stolen satire' feeds US election misinformation
- Rookie McCarty captures first PGA Tour title in Black Desert Championship
- Australia all-rounder Green ruled out of India Test series
- Seeing double in Nigeria's 'twins capital of the world'
Francia Marquez, first Black Colombian elected vice president
As Gustavo Petro became the first leftist elected president of Colombia on Sunday, his running mate Francia Marquez likewise made history: she will be the first Black Colombian and second woman to ascend to the vice presidency.
It was a momentous occasion not just for a woman who has had to deal with racism, classism and even an assassination attempt, but also for an entire community that has been politically marginalized in Colombia.
"We've taken a very important step, after 214 years we've achieved a government of the people ... of those with calloused hands, of those on foot, of the nobodies," said Marquez, 40, during Sunday night's victory speech alongside Petro.
Racism is rife in Colombia and during the campaign, both celebrities and social media users attacked Marquez over her racial background and lower-class roots.
Since April, she has received more than 1,000 racist comments and messages in the media and social media, according to the Racial Discrimination Observatory at Los Andes University.
Surrounded by her family and dressed in a brightly colored dress with an African design, Marquez said on Sunday: "Together we will defeat structural racism in Colombia."
Despite making up 10 percent of Colombia's 50 million people, the Afro-descendant population is hugely under-represented in politics.
But Marquez is giving the community renewed hope.
And she is not waiting until assuming office on August 7. On Monday she announced the new government would create an equality ministry.
"I come from a region that has been historically abandoned," Marquez wrote on Twitter.
"My task is to guarantee the rights of these excluded and marginalized territories, to guarantee rights for Afro-descendant and Indigenous populations."
She also vowed to bring equality for women.
"Today, most Colombians still do not have dignified conditions," she added.
- Under fire -
Marquez was born into a poor family in the southwestern department of Cauca -- a region ravaged by violence linked to armed groups battling over drug trafficking and illegal mining resources.
A single mother at just 16, she fled her native region following threats and went to work as a maid while studying law.
But she returned home to take part in local politics and can often be seen frequenting public squares in her African print clothing, promoting the rights of the marginalized.
But she has also made enemies.
In 2019, she survived an attack by gunmen who tried to kill her over her work defending the region's water resources against mining companies.
The year before that, she was awarded the prestigious Goldman environmental prize.
"Us nobodies, those whose humanity is not recognized, those whose rights are not recognized in this country, we're standing up to change history, to occupy politics," Marquez told AFP in March.
In the left-wing primaries earlier this year, Marquez finished second behind Petro, who duly named her his running mate.
Marquez made headlines on the campaign trail with her feminist, environmentalist and leftist speeches and for her "tasty living" proposal, an idea that is popular amongst the black community struggling for peace and a life in harmony with nature.
"We women are going to eradicate the patriarchy in our country, let's be for the rights of the diverse LGBTIQ+ community, let's be for the rights of our Mother Earth," she said on Sunday.
She also vowed to work for reconciliation with the armed groups responsible for a spike in violence this year, reversing a decline that followed the 2016 peace deal between the state and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).
"Let's reconcile this nation, let's make peace decisively, without fear, with love and happiness. Let's be for dignity, for social justice," she said.
P.Mathewson--AMWN