New Caledonia: French Pacific Territory Votes On Independence

Voters in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia are taking part in a referendum on whether to remain part of France or become independent. The vote was promised as part of a deal two decades ago after a violent campaign by separatists from the indigenous Kanak people; also, the husband of a Pakistani Christian woman acquitted of blasphemy after eight years on death row has pleaded for asylum from the UK, US or Canada; and will a 'blue wave' of victories in Tuesday’s US mid-term elections help the Democrats ease the pain of losing the White House to Donald Trump?

(Image: New Caledonians gathered in Toulouse before the independence referendum on November 4th 2018. Credit: Alain Pitton/NurPhoto via Getty Images)