News brief: Big stories of the day

Beijing on Friday accused Washington of 'fabricating facts' after the US Justice Department indicted two hackers tied to Chinese security services who allegedly targeted companies and agencies in a dozen countries.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis resigned on Thursday, a day after President Donald Trump stunned the US establishment by ordering a troop withdrawal from Syria.

President Donald Trump has decided to pull a significant number of troops from Afghanistan, a US official told AFP on Thursday, a day after he announced a withdrawal from Syria.

Sri Lanka's President Maithripala Sirisena named a 30-member cabinet Thursday to end a crippling seven-week power struggle with his prime minister, but only after a final tussle over who should control the police.

China denounced the United States on Thursday for passing a new law on restive Tibet, saying it was "resolutely opposed" to the US legislation on what China considers an internal affair, and it risked causing "serious harm" to their relations.