Twenty-eight Tunisian illegal migrants were rescued on Friday, 35 nautical miles from the south-east of Kerkennah Island, while en route to the Italian coast.

According to a statement of the Defense Ministry, one woman and a baby were also on board the makeshift boat that sailed in the night of Wednesday to Thursday from the Zarzis coast of the governorate of Medenine.

Transported to the port of Zarzis, the migrants were delivered to the National Guard units of the region to take the necessary measures against them.

The law on heritage declaration and fight against illicit enrichment and conflict of interests will come into effect as of October 1, 2018, the National Anti-Corruption Authority (INLUCC) said on Friday.

Prime Minister Youssef Chahed received Friday INLUCC President Chawki Tabib.

The meeting focused on the implementation of this law adopted last July, which aims to enhance transparency and protect public funds through accountability and fight against illicit enrichment.

The law is applicable to 36 functions within the State and its various institutions in addition to the heads of political parties and unions and journalists.

Prime Minister Youssef Chahed decided Friday to dismiss Minister of Energy, Mines and Renewable Energy Khaled Gaddour, Secretary of State in charge of Mines Hachem Hmidi, the Director-General and CEO of the Tunisian Oil Activities Enterprise (ETAP), a Prime Ministry press release announced without providing further details on the causes.

Chahed also decided to merge the Energy, Mines and Renewable Energy Ministry with that of Industry and Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises.

A commission of experts stemming from the Prime Ministry will be set up and tasked with restructuring the Energy Ministry and reviewing the sector’s governance, the same source specified.

The General Public Service Control Authority (ICGSP) and that of the General Financial Control (CGF) will be entrusted with initiating a thorough investigation into this ministry.

"There are no red lines in the war against corruption and no one is immune," the Prime Minister warned.

"We seek the rule of law and transparency," Youssef Chahed Friday said a few hours after dismissing Minister of Energy, Mines and Renewable Energies Khaled Gaddour, Secretary of State for Mines Hachem Hmidi and a number of senior officials over the exploitation without license by a Tunisian investor of an oil field in Monastir coasts.

"The government will take necessary steps to increase transparency in the energy sector," he said on the sidelines of his periodic meeting with the government members at Belvédère Officers' Mess.

Chahed said, in this vein, he tasked the General Public Service Control Authority (French: ICGSP) and the one of the General Control of Finances (French: CGF) with initiating an enquiry before bringing action in court.

"Boosting energy investments does not mean the plundering nor the non-transparent exploitation of national wealth," Chahed underscored.

"These affairs are important and dangerous and we cannot tolerate this," he added.

" I am resolutely committed to carrying on the war against corruption for I fear nothing but God and I am keen to safeguard the national wealth which the Tunisian people entrusted to me," Chahed highlighted.

The Prime Minister Friday sacked Minister of Energy, Mines and Renewable Energies Khaled Gaddour and Secretary of State for Mines Hachem Hmidi as well as the Director General and CEO of the Tunisian Company of Petroleum Activities(French: ETAP).

Chahed also decided to merge the Energy, Mines and Renewable Energy Ministry and that of Industry and Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises and set up a committee of experts under the Prime Ministry to restructure the Energy Ministry and reconsider the mode of governance of the energy and mining sector.

Outlining reasons behind the announced removals from office, Government Spokesperson Iyed Dahmani said a Tunisian investor was allowed to exploit an oil field in Monastir without going through a licensing round.

The deadline for the exploitation of the oil field expired in 2009, he told a news conference.

Speaker of the House of Advisors (upper house), Hakim Benchamach, held talks on Thursday in Santo Domingo with the Dominican Foreign Affairs Minister, Miguel Octavio Vargas Maldonado.

 The talks focused on the means to strengthen bilateral relations and topics of common interest.

On this occasion, Benchamach highlighted the quality of the relations of friendship between the two countries, noting that the visit paid by HM King Mohammed VI to the Dominican Republic in 2004 helped develop these relations.

He also shed light on the important reforms undertaken by Morocco in the areas of democracy and socio-economic development, saying that the Kingdom has become a model of development and political stability in the region, thanks to the enlightened vision of HM the King.

Morocco is eager to develop its relations with the Dominican Republic and the countries of Central America and the Caribbean in general, he pointed out.

The Kingdom of Morocco and the countries of Central America and the Caribbean have significant opportunities to establish a genuine win-win partnership and promote South-South cooperation, Benchamach added.

He also seized this opportunity to welcome the Dominican Republic's consistent position on Morocco’s territorial integrity and to congratulate Vargas Maldonado on the election of the Dominican Republic as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.

For his part, the Dominican FM expressed his country's gratitude for Morocco's support to its membership to the UN Security Council, reiterating the Dominican Republic's support for the efforts aimed at reaching a consensual solution to the regional conflict over the Moroccan Sahara.

Vargas Maldonado also expressed his country's determination to give new impetus to bilateral cooperation relations in various areas of common interest, underlining the importance of opening a direct air route between the two countries to facilitate exchanges.

This meeting took place on the sidelines of Benchamach's participation at the regional annual forum of the Central American Parliament (Parlacen) at the head of a parliamentary delegation.

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that preparations are underway for the tripartite meeting between Russia ,Iran and the Turkish regime scheduled to be held in Tehran on September 7.

Peskov told reporters on Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and the Head of Turkish regime Recep Tayyip Erdogan will participate in the meeting on Syria on Sep 7.

“Iran has informed us that they were back to the Tehran option so the trilateral meeting is going to be held in Tehran,” Peskov said.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov affirmed that the Syrian government has the sovereign right over its territory, pointing out that Russia supports all efforts to resolve the crisis in Syria in accordance with the UN Security Council resolution no.2254.

In a press conference with his Eritrean counterpart Osman Saleh, Lavrov said that terrorists are preparing to use chemical weapons in Idleb to accuse the Syrian government of doing so.

He pointed out that the Western countries prevented the arrival of representatives of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to Syria to investigate allegations of the use of chemical weapons.

The Russian top diplomat said that Moscow has informed the United Nations and the OPCW with information on the use of chemical weapons, as it warned them to bear the responsibility of this provocation which had been used in a smilar way over the past two years.

Lavrov said that terrorists are using civilians in Idleb as human shields, calling for the separation of “armed opposition” from terrorists of Jabhat al-Nusra and other terrorist organizations.

Deputy Foreign and Expatriates Minister Dr. Fayssal Mikdad stressed that the Syrian state is determined to end the presence of terrorist organizations in Idleb province with the aim of restoring security and stability to it and freeing the besieged civilians from the clutches of these organizations.

In an interview with the Syrian TV on Friday evening, Mikdad said that the media misleading regarding Idleb is a part of hypocrisy mechanism adopted by the US and by the Western states and their tools in the region.

He indicated that Syria can’t stand still towards the suffering of two million Syrian citizens who are controlled by the terrorist organizations in Idleb, and it will liberate them from their clutches whether through local reconciliations or through a military operation.

He reiterated that the terrorist organizations of Daesh (ISIS) and Jabhat al-Nusra are not less dangerous than the Nazism which was fought by the Europeans during the World War II, and consequently whoever had fought Nazism should fight the danger of terrorist organizations in Syria and should help it ensure the security of its citizens on every inch of its territories.

He wondered how some of those states continue to support terrorist organizations through circulating their lies on the use of chemical weapons with the aim of protecting them.

Mikdad asserted that terrorists are the ones who used the chemical weapons and that the Syrian Arab Army has never used it in its operations against terrorism.

He noted that the hostile statements by the US against Syria came after Washington and its allies failed to achieve their goal in undermining Syria or ending its national and pan-Arab role and imposing the Western hegemony on the region.

Mikdad said that if the Western forces take any reckless step, Syria will retaliate and will be not be subjugated and it will practice its self-defense right which is guaranteed by all the international laws.

He added that the Western states haven’t understood yet that over eight years they haven’t been able to implement the scheme which they made against Syria which constitutes a failure to them.

Mikdad indicated that the victory achieved by Syria and its allies against terrorism has foiled all the Western attempts to impose hegemony on the world, particularly in framework of the new policies adopted by the US administration.

He said that the credibility of the UN has become in danger due to the hegemony of the Western states on the mechanisms of decision-making at the international organization.

Regarding the return of the displaced, Mikdad stressed that the Syrian state called upon all the displaced to return to their homeland, adding that the Syrian government is responsible for providing all their requirements and the basic services.

Syria condemned in strongest terms the terrorist act which led to the assassination of President of Donetsk People’s Republic Alexander Zakharchenko, affirming that it is a coward act that poses threat to security and stability of that area.

“Foreign Ministry at the Syrian Arab Republic condemns in strongest terms the terrorist act which led to the assassination of President of Donetsk People’s Republic Alexander Zakharchenko in a clear attempt to undermine the process of peaceful political settlement in Donbass area and the implementation of Minsk agreements,” an official source at Foreign and Expatriates Ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

The source added that the assassination of President of Donetsk Republic, who is one of the signatories of Minsk document for measures on solving conflict in Donbass, is a coward act which threatens security and stability in that area.

The source went on to say that Foreign and Expatriates Ministry expresses deep condolences to the family of President Zakharchenko, and it also calls for conducting an urgent investigation into the crime and to punish those who perpetrated it and the parties which stand behind them.

It concluded by saying that adopting terrorist methods to achieve political goals is a condemned issue and it isn’t accepted on the ethical and legal levels according to the international law and the international resolutions on combating terrorism, and that these methods should be stopped immediately.

Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign and Expatriates Minister Walid al-Moallem expressed his satisfaction with the outcomes of his talks with the Russian officials, describing them as fruitful and constructive in both political and economic fields.

Speaking to SANA’s reporter in Moscow on Friday, al-Moallem said that the Russian friends are determined to support the efforts of Syrian armed forces in combating terrorism and putting an end to the crisis in Syria, while the West led by the US seeks to block these efforts and protect Jabhat al-Nusra as it has already provided protection for Daesh (ISIS) in order to prolong the crisis and to dominate the area of East Euphrates.

“All Washington acts are illegal and outside the framework of the UN Security Council. Therefore, as we did in its previous aggression, we will respond with full force to its potential aggression,” al-Moallem said, noting to the Russian warnings to the West not to play with fire.

On the talks with the Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yury Borisov, the Minister said that the Russian government has called large Russian companies to participate heavily in the 60th edition of Damascus International Fair.

He added that the joint talks focused on the strategic partnership in its economic dimension, noting that Russia wants to contribute to the reconstruction programs and the economic production in Syria.

Army units, in cooperation with the supporting forces, carried out concentrated strikes against the remnants of Daesh (ISIS) positions in al-Safa hills in the depth of Sweida eastern Badyia (desert).

SANA reporter in Sweida said that over the past few hours, the army air force and artillery carried out precise and intensive strikes against positions and fortifications of Daesh terrorists in the direction of al-Safa hills in the eastern countryside, inflicting heavy losses upon them in the personnel and equipment.

The reporter added that army units enhanced their positions in the areas where they achieved advancement in parallel with foiling any infiltration attempt by Daesh terrorists towards the gathering of the water of Hatil Dam, the most important source of water to the northwest of al-Safa hills.

The reporter indicated that during their operations, army units adopt military tactics that are suitable for the nature of the area of al-Safa hills, adding that depriving Daesh terrorist organization from one of its most important water resources and destroying its defense lines have contributed to establishing control over new areas amid a state of accelerating collapse among terrorists.

A German man who used a homemade bomb to attack a mosque in the eastern city of Dresden was Friday sentenced to nearly 10 years in jail for what prosecutors called a xenophobic crime.

The accused, Nino Koehler, had apologised during his trial to the imam and his family. No one was hurt in the attack.

The bomb damaged the door of the Fatih mosque while the family were inside on September 26, 2016.

That same evening, the accused planted another homemade pipe bomb that slightly damaged a convention centre in the city, which was days away from hosting festivities to mark 26 years since the reunification of east and west Germany.

The attacks in Dresden, the capital of Saxony state and the birthplace of the anti-Islam PEGIDA movement, shocked Germany.

The city's district court found Koehler guilty of attempted murder, setting off explosives and attempted aggravated arson. The judge sentenced him to nine years and eight months in jail.

Prosecutors him during the trial of harbouring racist and Islamophobic motives, and media reports said he had railed against "lazy Africans" and "criminal foreigners" at a past PEGIDA rally.

Koehler, who was arrested in December 2016, told the judge that he never meant to hurt anyone.

Saxony, in Germany's ex-communist east, has become a hotspot for far-right protests and hate crimes after more than a million asylum seekers arrived in Europe's biggest economy since 2015.

The Saxony town of Chemnitz has been rocked by racist violence this week, after far-right mobs took to the streets to protest the fatal stabbing of a German man, allegedly by an Iraqi and a Syrian.

The UN urged Syria Friday not to "revictimise" the children of fighters in Idlib amid a feared government offensive on the rebel-held province, insisting they were not responsible for their parents' actions.

The United Nations children's agency, UNICEF, voiced alarm at the likely impact of a major military operation in the province, which is home to some three million people -- a third of them children.

"The greatest concern is that among the very strong military rhetoric at the moment, we seem to forget that there are more than one million children living in that area," UNICEF's director for emergency operations Manuel Fontaine told AFP in an interview.

Fontaine was just back from a trip to Syria, where he travelled to Damascus, Homs and Aleppo but did not gain access to Idlib.

He voiced particular concern for the children of rebel fighters in that province, worrying that they might suffer the consequences of their parents' choices.

"I think there is a real risk to revictimise these children and again associate them to what their fathers might have done," said Fontaine.

"It is extremely important that common sense prevails... and that frankly, when you are a four-year-old, a five-year-old, a 10-year-old or 11-year-old, and your parents have made a particular decision, that is not your responsibility," he said.

"The protection of these children is extremely important to us, and we will certainly be watching over that very carefully."

- 'Particularly vulnerable' -

Fontaine's comments came amid fears of an imminent government offensive on Syria's only remaining rebel-held province.

Government forces looked poised to launch what could be one of the last major battles of the civil war that has torn Syria apart since 2011.

After retaking a succession of rebel bastions around the country this year, the government of President Bashar al-Assad has set its sights on Idlib.

The province, which borders Turkey, is home to nearly three million people, up to half of whom are rebels and civilians transferred en masse after pro-government forces retook formerly rebel-held areas.

"We know that in Idlib, there are children who have been displaced five, six, seven times already," Fontaine said, pointing out that many had already lived through massive military attacks in places like Aleppo, Homs and Eastern Ghouta.

"They are particularly vulnerable," he said.

A major military operation in the province is expected to pose a particular humanitarian nightmare because there is no nearby opposition territory left in Syria where people could be evacuated to.

UN envoy Staffan de Mistura called Thursday for the creation of a "humanitarian corridor" to allow civilians to evacuate to nearby areas under government control.

Fontaine stressed that anyone opting to leave "would have to be protected and provided immediate humanitarian assistance.

"We need to be given access to them very rapidly so that we can help."

He also stressed that "any movement needs to be voluntary," and that "those who decide to stay still need to be protected. They are civilians, and they shouldn't be put in harm's way."

He said UNICEF was laying contingency plans "to provide immediate assistance to up to 400,000 displaced people."

The UN humanitarian organisation has meanwhile estimated that as many as 800,000 people might flee in one of the Syrian war's largest displacements yet.

As French President Emmanuel Macron visited Finland this week ahead of European elections in 2019, Finland’s President Sauli Niinistö granted an interview to FRANCE 24. He discussed ties with Moscow, the Helsinki summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in July, and Finland’s stance on NATO.

As France's president visited Finland this week and called on EU members to "modernise" relations with Russia, Finland’s president told FRANCE 24 he remains committed to sanctions against Moscow.

In July, the Russian military carried out exercises in the Gulf of Finland that included a mock invasion and is set to launch its largest war games since the Cold War on September 11.

However, Finland's President Sauli Niinistö told FRANCE 24's Catherine Nicholson that Europe needs to reduce tensions with Russia to render such military exercises unnecessary.

President Niinistö also confirmed that Finland is joining Macron’s "European Intervention Initiative" but not currently seeking membership in NATO.

On July 16 the Finnish president hosted a closely watched summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki. Niinistö insists Trump did not repeat his earlier statement that the European Union was a "foe" of the United States. "He did not repeat anything like that to me … I tried to tell him how important it is to have the translatlantic relation in good care. He did not deny that."

A programme presented by Catherine Nicholson. Produced by Isabelle Romero and Roxane Runel.

Violent clashes resumed late Thursday afternoon between rival militias south of the Libyan capital, just hours after a truce was announced to end fighting that has killed almost 30 people since Monday.

The fighting broke out on Monday in suburbs south of Tripoli and continued into Wednesday evening after a truce collapsed, despite an appeal by the United Nations for calm.

The clashes had paused on Thursday after a ceasefire agreement announced by officials from western areas, but by late afternoon the hostilities had resumed.

Residents in the Khellat al-Ferjan area reported the use of heavy weapons and rifle fire.

Two teenagers were killed when a rocket hit a house in the Sebia district, according to a local official and AFP journalists on the scene.

The health ministry had earlier said at least 27 people were killed and 91 were wounded in this week’s fighting, most of them civilians.

Fayez al-Sarraj, the leader of the internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA), has tasked forces from western and central regions of Libya with ensuring the rivals adhere to the ceasefire.

These forces are meant to guarantee the withdrawal of the two rival camps from front lines and ensure normal life returns in the districts affected by the fighting.

To be ‘held accountable’

The proposed pacifying forces consist mainly of powerful armed groups from the cities of Misrata and Zintan in the west, which are technically under the GNA’s defence ministry.

Under the orders of Sarraj, who heads the Libyan army, these military units will be allowed to operate in the capital and its environs only until September 30, when they must leave.

The Misrata and Zintan militias controlled the Libyan capital from the fall of dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011 until 2014, when a coalition of militias mainly from Misrata seized the city.

This week’s fighting has pitted Tripoli militias loyal to the GNA against the so-called 7th Brigade.

This unit is from the town of Tarhuna southeast of the capital and is supposed to operate under the GNA’s defence ministry.

In a televised speech, Sarraj said on Thursday that the 7th Brigade had been “dissolved” since April, before calling on the rival camps to respect the ceasefire.

In a joint statement, the embassies of Britain, France, Italy and the United States on Thursday said they were “deeply concerned about the recent clashes in and around Tripoli that are destabilising the situation”.

“Pursuing political aims through violence will only further exacerbate the suffering of the population of Libya, and threaten broader stability”, the statement said.

“Those who undermine Libya’s peace, security and stability will be held accountable.”

Separately on Thursday, the UN’s refugee agency said it had helped earlier in the week to evacuate hundreds of migrants held in a detention centre close to where clashes were raging.

Some 300 migrants mainly from Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia were transferred Tuesday to the capital’s Abu Salim detention centre, “which is in a relatively safer location where international organisations can provide aid to them”, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said.

The Libyan capital has been at the centre of a battle for influence between armed groups since Kadhafi’s fall.

Successive transitional authorities, including the GNA, have been unable to form a functioning army or regular security forces and have been forced to rely on militias to keep the city safe.

In mid-2017, pro-GNA militias neutralised several rival groups in Tripoli. Since then, clashes have been rare.

Russia this week announced the upcoming launch of its largest military exercises since the end of the Cold War, involving some 300,000 troops. The message seems clear: Russia feels under threat and will do what it must to protect itself.

The Vostok-2018 (East-2018) operation will be launched in Russia’s central and eastern military districts from September 11 to 15 and is set to mobilise around 300,000 troops, more than 1,000 military aircraft and two naval fleets, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Tuesday. The exercise will also involve forces from China and Mongolia’s militaries.

Shoigu painted a picture of a vast military operation that will closely mirror combat conditions. "Just imagine that 36,000 pieces of military hardware are simultaneously in motion: These are tanks, armoured personnel carriers, infantry fighting vehicles and, all this is, naturally, in conditions close to a combat environment," hetold journalists.

Asked at a press briefing why the Vostok-2018 exercises will be so massive, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov expressed the Russian view that it remains under threat from international actors and thus has no choice but to prepare on a grand scale.

“The country’s ability to defend itself in the current international situation, which is frequently quite aggressive and unfriendly toward us, is absolutely justified and has no alternative.”

Russia’s ministry of defence announced Thursday that it would also be holding a week of naval exercises in the Mediterranean Sea starting September 1. Some 25 vessels and 30 aircraft are slated to take part, according to Russia’s TASS news agency, with exercises including anti-aircraft, anti-submarine and anti-mining operations.

The upcoming mobilisation comes a year after Russia’s Zapad-2017 (West-2017) exercise, conducted jointly with Belarus. According to NATO, up to 70,000 troops participated in those training missions. The 300,000 forces committed to Vostok-2018 thus mark a sharp increase in the numbers Russia is willing to mobilise for its annual strategic exercises, a practice it revived in 2008.

“This is a PR coup from Moscow to showcase large troop displacements and preparedness,” said Mathieu Boulègue, a research fellow in the Russia and Eurasia Programme at Chatham House who specialises in Russian military and defence matters. Chatham House is an independent policy institute based in London.

These exercises have two main goals, according to Boulègue. First, Vostok-2018 is aimed at highlighting Russia’s strategic mobility and its command of military logistics. Second, this year’s exercise is “clearly emphasising” size.

The inclusion of China is also designed to send the world a message.

“For Russia, the PR/communication strategy behind China’s participation is clearly to demonstrate that 1) Russia is not isolated militarily, and 2) Russia is seeking to form some sort of an anti-US military alliance with the help of China,” Boulègue said in an email.

While China is not looking to antagonise, Beijing believes Russia-China relations are currently "good enough to explore a deepened cooperation, and notably in the military sphere”.

“It’s also a strong signalling to the West and the US,” he said.

Persecution complex

Russia has been steadily increasing its military investment ever since its August 2008 conflict with Georgia. In 2013, Russian President Vladimir Putin committed the Kremlin to increasing military preparedness.

“The Russian Armed Forces learned some hard lessons in Georgia,” wrote Dave Johnson, astaff officer in NATO’s Defence Policy and Planning Division, of the Zapad-2017 exercise.

“Low manning and readiness levels forced the Russians to attack with a scratch force. Shortfalls in C4ISR (Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) were sorely felt, as was the limited ability of the land and air forces to operate together, and the lack of precision weapons.”

Russia remains ever vigilant of any NATO actions near its own borders, stridently opposing any manoeuvers in the Baltics. It has also roundly criticised plans for an October training exercise that nevertheless falls far short of the scale of Vostok-2018: TheNATO drill in Norway, the Baltic Sea and the North Atlantic will involve some 35,000 troops from 30 NATO members and partners backed by about 70 ships and 130 aircraft.

Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday that the exercise was “clearly anti-Russian”.

These NATO exercises are plans for “defensive and – what is crucially important – offensive operations at northern latitudes during a high-intensity conflict with an equal enemy”, Zakharova said.

“This show of force is to take place in direct proximity to the Russian borders and is clearly anti-Russian."

Moscow has a “preoccupation” with the idea that a major conflict with the West is on the horizon, said Keir Giles, a senior consulting fellow at the Russia and Eurasia Programme of Chatham House and a specialist in Russian security policy.

Among the reasons for this is a “paranoid delusion on the part of Moscow”. Russia believes Western governments want to see it weakened and depleted.

“Nothing could be farther from Western intentions,” Giles said. “A destabilised Russia is the last thing the West wants.”

But the Kremlin tends to view international relations as a zero-sum game. Even security – something the West believes is best served through multilateral cooperation – is seen in these terms. Russia holds fast to the idea that “a finite amount of security” exists, Giles said. So Russia feels less safe as other nations become more secure.

Moreover, Moscow continues to perceive security issues in “old-fashioned, brute force terms”.

And Western actions have helped fuel these fears. Western governments have an unfortunate recent history of “failed good intentions”, Giles observed. Interventions in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya, however well-meaning, have in many cases made the situation worse. In the process, the West has left behind "epicentres of chaos and instability" that Russia sees as inching ever closer to Moscow.

For decades, entrenched attitudes on both sides have created a seemingly permanent impasse. Speaking at a press conference in Helsinki with his Finnish counterpart on Thursday, French President Emmanuel Macron said the European Union needed to rethink its post-Cold War relationship with Russia.

“It is in our interest” for the EU to pursue a strategic relationship with Russia that “brings stability, that will, in the long term, bring more strength and [coherence]”, Macron said.

But in a concurrent pronouncement that seemed certain to ruffle Russian feathers, Macron noted that Europe had for too long relied on US protection. While the transatlantic NATO alliance remains important, he said, the EU needs to boost its own defence capabilities.

A Saudi-led coalition battling in Yemen on Wednesday dismissed as inaccurate a report by United Nations investigators that highlighted possible war crimes by all sides in the conflict-torn country including deadly air strikes by the alliance.

"We affirm the inaccuracies in the report and its non-neutrality," the coalition said in a statement released by the official Saudi Press Agency.

"The report did not mention Iran's role in the continuation of the war... and its continued support for the Huthi" militias.

The coalition added that it would later provide a "comprehensive and detailed legal response" to the report.

In their first report released on Tuesday, a team of UN-mandated investigators said all parties in Yemen's bloody conflict have committed a "substantial number of violations of international humanitarian law".

Many of these violations may amount to "war crimes", the report said, pointing to widespread arbitrary detention, rape, torture and the recruitment of children as young as eight to take part in hostilities.

The report said coalition air strikes had caused "most of the documented civilian casualties", pointing to a large number of strikes on residential areas, markets, funerals, weddings and medical facilities.

It said there were "serious concerns about the targeting process applied by the coalition," pointing out that in many cases there were no apparent military targets in the vicinity of the attacks.

The report covers the period from September 2014 through June 2018, and does not address the latest series of deadly strikes that have killed dozens of children in rebel-held areas and sparked international outrage.

The coalition has not confirmed or denied it carried out two air raids last Thursday that the UN said killed at least 26 children and four women south of the flashpoint rebel-held city of Hodeida.

Those deaths came after a coalition attack on a bus in the northern rebel stronghold of Saada early this month killed 40 children, prompting UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to call for an independent investigation of attacks targeting civilians in the three-year war.

US support for coalition 'not unconditional'

The United States on Wednesday said the report was “very concerning”.

“We’ve seen that report from the Human Rights Council,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told reporters, saying that possible violations of international law “as outlined in that report are very concerning to the US government.”

“We believe that if such crimes have taken place that there is simply no justification,” she said, calling on parties to the conflict to “take necessary measures to prevent such violations.”

US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on Tuesday strongly defended the US-backed Saudi-led coalition fighting Iran-backed Huthi rebels in Yemen.

But Mattis added that US support was “not unconditional,” the conditions being that the coalition does “everything humanly possible to avoid any innocent loss of life, and they support the UN-brokered peace process.”

Children ‘most vulnerable’

In addition to air strikes, children in Yemen are falling victim to other forms of violence.

"Children are the most vulnerable. Poverty, coupled with violence and insecurity render them defenceless and exposed to exploitation and abuse by parties to the conflict," Charles Garraway, a member of the expert group, told reporters.

The experts said they had received "substantial information" indicating that Yemen's government, the coalition-backed forces and the rebels had all conscripted children, mainly aged 11 and up, but some as young as eight.

The report also decried the devastating impact a blockade imposed by the Saudi coalition on Yemen's ports and the Sanaa airport had had on the civilian population.

Kamel Jendoubi, who heads the UN's so-called Group of Independent Eminent International and Regional Experts, urged an end to "disproportionate restrictions on the safe and expeditious entry into Yemen of humanitarian supplies and other goods indispensable to the civilian population."

Yemen's devastating conflict has left nearly 10,000 people dead since March 2015, when a Saudi-led coalition intervened to fight Huthi rebels closing in on the last bastion of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi's government.

The UN human rights office said Tuesday that some 6,660 civilians were among the dead, while more than 10,500 had been injured.

The UN has already described the situation in Yemen as the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

The report’s experts did not delve into the complex web of countries supporting different parties to Yemen’s conflict, including the US, Britain and Iran, but did call on all nations to stop selling arms that could be used in the war.

They also called on all sides to halt hostilities, and urged support for UN efforts to broker a peace deal.

UN-backed talks between Yemen's government and the Iran-aligned Huthi militias are to open in Geneva on September 6 -- a first step toward resuming peace negotiations that broke down two years ago.

"This crisis has reached its peak with no apparent sight of light at the end of the tunnel," Garraway said.

A dossier of charges against Interior Minister Matteo Salvini including kidnapping, illegal arrest and abuse of office in the Diciotti migrant case was sent from Agrigento to Palermo on Friday.
Salvini kept the 177 Eritreans aboard the coast guard ship for 10 days saying they could not land until the EU agreed to take them in.
In the end the Italian Catholic Church, Ireland and Albania agreed to take them.
Salvini, who has stopped migrant rescue ships from docking in Italy, is to be tried by a ministers' court in the Sicilian capital.
Also charged with the same alleged crimes is his cabinet chief Matteo Piantedosi.

German Finance Minster Olaf Scholz on Friday urged people not to dramatize tensions between Italy and the EU over migrants and the budget.
"Europe is still made up of 28 States," he said. "We mustn't get panicked every time there is a change of government".
"I urge calm. I can recall that the president of the Italian republic has clarified that he tasked a government that recognises the euro and the EU."

Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign and Expatriates Minister Walid al-Moallem discussed with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yury Borisov means to bolster cooperation relations between Syria and Russia at various fields and upgrade them to the level of high political ones ,aimed at achieving a strategic partnership between the two countries.

Governmental Committee for Economic, Commercial, Scientific and Technical Cooperation ,expressed Syria’s appreciation for Russia’s continuous support in the fight against terrorism.

He welcomed Russia’s contribution in reconstructing what has been destroyed by terrorism in Syria , which is an important opportunity for the Russian companies to invest in various sectors in the country.

For his part, Borisov, who chairs the Russian side in the committee, expressed the interest of the Russian government and companies to contribute in re-launching the production process  and achieving the economic recovery in Syria after the military victory overterrorism.

Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign and Expatriates Minister Walid al-Moallem said on Thursday that Syria’s decision is to combat Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist organization in Idleb, whatever the sacrifices were, but the priority is for of local reconciliations, warning against “the stupidity of committing a new Western aggression on Syria.”

“Moscow has recently been the center of regional contacts on Syria and we exchanged views on the outcome of these contacts and our views were identical, so I can say that these talks are constructive and positive.” Al-Moallem added at a joint press conference with Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.

“We and the Russian Federation have been partners in countering terrorism and have fulfilled great field achievements and we are now close to end this terrorism. Naturally, we should think about Syria’s reconstruction program and our friends in the Russian Federation have the priority in contributing to this program,” al-Moallem added.

“We are on the way to achieve security and stability for our people in Syria. We cannot forget the practices of the countries that have been plotting against us from seven years and till now in obstructing us from eliminating terrorism,” al-Maollem said.

He pointed out that when the Syrian Arab Army liberated the city of Douma and the Eastern Ghouta from terrorism, Washington and its allies invoked the use of chemicals and launched aggression against Syria last April. Now they are repeating the same scenario to prepare for a new aggression with the aim of saving al-Nusra and prolonging the crisis.

Al-Moallem affirmed that Syria will perform its legitimate right to defend itself, warning against the stupidity of committing a new Western aggression on the Syrian people because its repercussions will affect the political process inevitably.

“The decision of the Syrian leadership is to combat Jabhat al-Nusra in Idleb, whatever the sacrifices were. We say that the priority is for the local reconciliations which we have carried out in several areas across Syria. We are ready to make every effort to avoid civilian casualties. We opened Abu al-Dahour corridor for a week and interacted with the local reconciliation committees. Unfortunately al-Nusra arrested most of the members of these committees and prevented civilians from exiting via that corridor,” al-Moallem noted.

“We discussed the issue of our joint efforts to bring the displaced Syrians back to their country. We say to the West, who is crying for human rights in Syria, if you really want to help the return of the displaced, you should make efforts to secure the reconstruction of their homes and infrastructure and lift the unilateral sanctions imposed on Syria,” al-Moallem added.

“We welcome and call on the Syrian citizens to return home and contribute to programs of reconstruction and be part of building future… and we will try to provide all economic and social conditions for that purpose,” al-Moallem said.

Lavrov: Moscow, Damascus have views on separating between terrorists and armed groups

Lavrov said that both sides exchanged views about separating between the armed groups and the terrorists in Idleb in addition to the attempts to carry out local reconciliations there guaranteeing security for the civilians.

He called on the international community and the UN to help secure the return of the displaced Syrians to their home, providing them with the humanitarian aid, re-building the infrastructure and creating new job opportunities for them.

Lavrov said that White Helmets are trying to prepare fabricated plays on the use of the chemical weapons in order to find a pretext to the western countries to carry out attacks on Syria.
He called on the international community to intensify their efforts in order to restore stability to Syria, paving the way for restoring the safety and stability to the whole region.

As for the presence of US forces in Syria, Lavrov affirmed that the US and western existence in Syria is illegitimate, adding that the Americans have repeatedly promised to leave the country, but they always create different pretexts for staying there.

“The Americans have repeatedly promised to withdraw from al-Tanf area and allow UN representatives to enter al-Rukban camp, but they didn’t meet their pledge,” Lavrov said.

Al-Moallem: Syria is in the last step to resolve the crisis

Earlier, al-Moallem affirmed that Syria is in the last step to resolve the crisis and liberate all its territories from terrorism and that’s why the US, Britain and France want to attack it with the aim of obstructing the political settlement process and helping Jabhat al-Nusra.

Al-Moallem remarks came at the beginning of a meeting with the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow.

Al-Moallem affirmed that this visit came at a convenient time to discuss the latest political developments on Syria and also to discuss the economic, cultural and social cooperation between Syria and Russia.

“As we were partners in the fight against terrorism, we want to be partners in the reconstruction process,” al-Moallem said.

“Our people highly appreciate the role of the Russian Federation and President Vladimir Putin in combating terrorism in Syria,” he said.

The minister affirmed Damascus’s appreciation for the role of the Russian Federation, both in the Astana and Sochi meetings and that Syria is committed to the progress of the political process, especially in view of the field situation in Syria.

“We are in the last step to put an end the crisis in our country and liberate our entire territory from terrorism,” he noted.

“The US, UK and France are not happy with the failure of their plot in Syria, so they want to attack it from outside the UN Security Council in order to foil the political process, offer assistance to Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist organization and prolong the crisis. Therefore, we have the legitimate right to defend ourselves and the aggressor States will bear the disastrous consequences due to their aggression,” said al-Moallem.

“I confirm that we do not have chemical weapons. It is not possible for us to use them because we are victorious in the battles against terrorism and there is no need to use them. Therefore, all the pretexts of the aggressors are exposed,” al-Moallem said.

For his part, Lavrov said that the tasks related to eradicating terrorism from the Syrian territory are coming to an end and it’s time for working to rebuild the Syrian economy and restore stability to all its areas. He pointed out that the projects discussed in the framework of the Syrian-Russian Joint Governmental Committee for Economic, Commercial, Scientific and Technical Cooperation will undoubtedly help to achieve this goal.

He added that the two sides will also discuss the external aspects of the situation in Syria with emphasis on the need to attract international assistance.

Lavrov said that it is necessary to implement the outcomes of the Syrian National Dialogue Congress in Sochi to resolve the crisis in Syria.

Lavrov asserted that the Russian and Syrian positions are clear and based on international resolutions, especially the UNSC resolution no.2254, which states that the Syrians decide their own future.

Earlier, al-Moallem, who chairs the Syrian side at the Syrian-Russian Joint Governmental Committee for Economic, Commercial, Scientific and Technical Cooperation, arrived in an official visit to Moscow upon an invitation by Lavrov.

Syria’s Permanent Representative to the UN Dr. Bashar al-Jaafari said that the United States, France and Britain, which are permanent members of the UN Security Council, are misusing the international organization and threatening international peace and security instead of maintaining them under the UN Charter.

Speaking during a press conference at UN Headquarters in New York, al-Jaafari said the governments of these countries and their media outlets, which broadcast hatred and false information misused the statement made by the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Idleb.

Al-Jaafari stressed that the Syrian government and its allies are the only party to implement Security Council resolutions on combating international terrorism, pointing out that the Syrian Arab Army, in cooperation with the allies, is the only party which is fighting against terrorism, adding that US, France and Britain do not play any role in this regard. On the contrary, the United States has repeatedly rescued the terrorist organizations in Raqqa and transported them to an area on the Syrian-Iraqi border to prevent any military cooperation Between the Syrian and Iraqi armies to fight the terrorists in this region.

Al-Jaafari pointed out to several procedures taken by the Syrian government to facilitate the return of the Syrians displaced due to terrorism, especially setting up a committee for the return of displaced Syrians abroad.

He clarified that unilateral coercive economic measures imposed by some states against the Syrian people are impeding the return of the displaced and preventing the completion of the reconstruction process by the Syrian government, pointing out that some are investing the issue of the displaced Syrians for political ends and some dissuade them from returning their home.

Al-Jaafari said that the Syrian army had made a decisive decision to liberate every inch of the Syrian soil from terrorism, stressing that Idleb, which has tens of thousands of foreign terrorists, must return to the Syrian people.

Algeria and South Africa are backing each other's efforts at the continental level, mainly within the African Union, Foreign Minister Abdelkader Messahel said Wednesday in Cape Town.

Algeria and South Africa have reaffirmed their support to the causes of the Sahrawi and the Palestinian peoples.

President of the Republic Béji Caïd Essebsi Thursday received in Carthage a delegation from the House Democracy Partnership (HDP), a commission of the US House of Representatives.

Members of the delegation, led by Bill Flores, hailed the strong ties of friendship binding Tunisia and the USA and underlined the need to increase and diversify cooperation.

They said the visit is designed to lay emphasis on their country's determination to keep on underpinning the democratic experience in Tunisia to help it fully establish democratic institutions and address economic and security challenges. Tunisia's key role in maintaining regional stability was also praised.

President Caïd Essebsi called for reinforcing strategic partnership and urged the USA to continue with the exceptional political and economic support lent to Tunisia.

 Receiving, Thursday in Bardo, a delegation of  the House Democracy Partnership (HDP), a commission of the US House of Representatives, Speaker of the House of People’s Representatives (HPR) Mohamed Ennaceur, stressed that Tunisia relies on the support of its friends in the US Congress to further strengthen cooperation between the two countries.

"Maintaining political and social stability and the fight against violence and radicalism depend on the strengthening of the development process and the multiplication of employment opportunities for young people through investment and support for the national economy, He added, according to a HPR statement.

In turn, the congressmen reaffirmed the commitment of the US Congress to continue to stand with Tunisia, in order to enable it succeed in its economic and social transition.

Four soldiers were wounded on Thursday, following the explosion of a second mine during a sweeping operation on the heights of Mghilla of Kasserine governorate.

According to Spokesman of the Ministry of National Defense Major Mohamed Zekri, three soldiers suffered slight injuries, while the fourth was hit in the foot.

This fourth soldier was transported to the regional hospital of Kasserine where he undergoes surgery. His health is not critical, reassured Zekri.

"The military operation on the heights of Kasserine continues," he said, noting that its results will be announced after the end of the intervention.

A soldier was wounded on Wednesday following the explosion of a mine during a raking operation on the heights of Kasserine.

Hit on the right ankle, the soldier was transported to the Kasserine Regional Hospital where he underwent surgery. His health is stable, said the Ministry of Defense spokesman Mohamed Zekri.

According to the same source, he will be transferred to the military hospital of Tunis to receive the necessary care.

"The situation on maritime and land borders is stable," Defense Minister Abdelkarim Zbidi said Thursday.

"Despite the difficult security situation in Libya, the situation on the maritime and land borders is stable," he reassured during an inspection visit to the military units deployed in Zarzis and Ben Guerdane of the governorate of Medenine.

"Thanks to the perfect coordination with the Algerian authorities, the situation on the Tunisian-Algerian borders is also under control," commended Zbidi, referring in this connection to close coordination with Algeria, especially on the western heights of the country.

In the same context, the defense minister expressed satisfaction with the results of the electronic border surveillance system six months after its entry into service, noting that the system has helped to anticipate terrorist threats and repel the danger.

According to Zbidi, another mobile surveillance system is being installed on the border line linking Ben Guerdane to Dehiba. This system will be operational by the end of November.

He also announced the start, as of 2019, of another fixed electronic monitoring system, noting that this system will be ready by 2020.

UNSMIL has condemned the escalation of violence in Great Tripoli region, calling for ceasefire at all fronts. On its official website, UNSMIL said UN Special Representative, Ghassan Salama contacted all Libyan relevant parties for the immediate cease of all hostile acts and resuming ceasefire talks to find long term solutions for the safety and security of the capital, its institutions and populations. Salama also got in touch with members of the UN Security Council as well as effective regional and international parties with influence on Libyan parties to push towards truce and setting on the negotiation table, UNSMIL posted on its website. On Salaam's meeting with Fayez Al Sarraj, UNSMIL said Salama underscored to Al sarraj the need that GNA shoulder full responsibility in facing the serious security and economic challenges. It explained that UNSMIL is following up the humanitarian situation in the affected area and offer support whenever possible. It also reminded all parties of their duties to protect civilians in line with the International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights International Law, and condemns violence as it is unjustified.

Morocco and the United States are committed to fighting terrorism, Ambassador Nathan Sales, US Coordinator for Counterterrorism, said Thursday in Rabat.

A veteran British MP quit the main opposition Labour Party group in parliament on Thursday over mounting anti-Semitism allegations that have dogged Jeremy Corbyn's leadership.

Frank Field, who has sat in the House of Commons for almost 40 years, said in a letter to the party that Corbyn's leadership was overseeing an "erosion of our core values".

"I am resigning the whip for two principal reasons," he explained.

"The first centres on the latest example of Labour's leadership becoming a force for anti-Semitism in British politics.

"Britain fought the Second World War to banish these views from our politics, but that superhuman effort and success is now under huge and sustained internal attack.

"The leadership is doing nothing substantive to address this erosion of our core values," he added.

He also accused some members of his local Labour Party branch of "thuggish conduct", which had gone unpunished.

Field vowed to retain his party membership, but in resigning the whip will no longer sit as a Labour MP bound by the instructions of the parliamentary party or receive its benefits.

He plans to remain in parliament as an independent MP, and said he plans to stand at the next general election.

Labour won 262 seats in the 2017 general election but are currently down to 257 after the suspension of two MPs pending sexual harassment allegations, while John Woodcock, Jared O'Mara and now Field have quit the party whip in recent months.

Field came under fire after defying the party's leadership and voting with the government on key Brexit legislation.

Corbyn has conceded that his party has a "real problem" with anti-Semitism in a recent newspaper article.

But Britain's former chief rabbi Jonathan Sacks this week directly called Corbyn an anti-Semite who "supported racists, terrorists, and dealers of hate".

His intervention came after the rediscovery of a 2013 speech, in which the veteran leftist Corbyn said British "Zionists... don't want to study history" and "don't understand English irony" despite having lived there "for a very long time, probably all of their lives".

French President Emmanuel Macron suggested that Europe adopts a form of collective defence on Thursday as he strengthens calls for EU integration in the face of concerns over the United States' security commitments.

Macron, who has called on the bloc to stop its reliance on Washington as a military backstop, said Europe should seek "strategic autonomy" in defence, during a press conference with his Finnish counterpart in Helsinki.

In order to achieve this he proposed "cooperation reinforced almost automatically, which will mean that, for member states who agreed with the reform, we could have a real solidarity of intervention if one state was attacked".

His comments come after US President Donald Trump repeatedly distanced himself from the NATO military alliance, which groups the United States with most of Europe and has underpinned European security since World War II based on the idea of mutual defence.

Macron said his suggested cooperation pact would resemble "a kind of reinforced article 5", referring to the NATO defence clause that determines that an attack on one member state is an attack on all.

The French leader insisted that this was not a move to undermine the NATO agreement, which "remains an important and strategic alliance".

France, which has the EU's largest military force after Britain, has backed the idea of a small joint European response force over.

EU powerhouse Germany has also called for enhanced defence integration, with Foreign Minister Heiko Maas urging in a newspaper article last week for boosted military cooperation and for the bloc to "form a counterweight" to Washington as Europe-US relations cool.

Nine EU countries in June signed up to a French plan for a European defence intervention group, including Britain which backs the measure as a way to maintain strong security ties with the bloc after Brexit.

The idea is for the so-called European Intervention Initiative to be able to lead humanitarian crisis efforts and evacuation operations as well as take on conventional military duties.

The EU in May announced plans to spend nearly 20 billion euros on defence in its budget for 2021-2027, most of which will go on research and developing new military technologies for the bloc.

Syria's foreign minister said Thursday Western aggression would not prevent Damascus from retaking all Syrian territory, amid fears of an imminent government offensive against the rebel-held province of Idlib.

"A tripartite aggression or not, it will not influence our determination to liberate the entire Syrian territory," Walid Muallem said in Moscow after talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, referring to Washington, Paris and London.

Government forces have been massing around Idlib -- Syria's only remaining rebel-held province -- for days and looked poised to launch what could be the last major battle of the civil war that has torn the country apart since 2011.

Last week, the United States, France and Britain threatened to respond if Syrian President Bashar al-Assad uses chemical weapons in its offensive to retake Idlib province.

Muallem said that the government's main target was fighters belonging to Al Nusra Front jihadists.

"The Syrian command has taken a decision to defeat Al-Nusra Front in Idlib no matter the sacrifices that it would entail," Muallem said in Arabic, referring to the former Syrian affiliate of Al-Qaeda.

He insisted however that the authorities wanted to win back territory through reconciliation agreements.

"We are ready to make every effort to avoid victims among the civilians," he added.

On Thursday, key brokers held last-ditch talks on the fate of Idlib, hoping to stave off a government offensive the UN has warned could spark catastrophe.

The UN Security Council extended for a year Thursday a general sanctions regime against Mali, but stopped short of imposing individual sanctions against leaders of armed groups accused of violating a 2015 peace accord.

The extension was approved unanimously by the council's 15 members.

"The progress made remains insufficient," France's deputy UN ambassador Anne Gueguen said. Her British counterpart, Jonathan Allen, stressed, "We need to see progress from all parties."

Gueguen said France is proposing that mid-level leaders of armed groups who undermine the peace accord through criminal or terrorist activities also be sanctioned.

It was unclear whether Russia and China support such individual sanctions, however. Both had expressed reservations a year ago when the general sanctions regime was created at France's initiative.

In an August 8 report, UN experts singled out Alkassoum Ag Abdoulaye, chief of staff of the Coalition for the People of Azawad, accusing him of taking part in two attacks against Malian security forces, in 2017 and 2018.

The report also names another CPA leader, Mohamed Ousmane Ag Mohamedoune, as suspected of also violating the peace accord.

In their report, the experts recommended that the UN sanctions committee handling Mali "proceed without delay to consider the designation for targeted measures of individuals and entities engaging in or providing support for actions or policies that threaten the peace, security or stability of Mali."

The experts also pointed to "a worrying pattern of human rights violations" against civilians by Malian security forces during operations against extremists. Bamako has acknowledged faults.

In Mali, large areas are outside the control of Malian, French or UN forces, which have been targeted repeatedly in deadly attacks despite a peace agreement with predominantly Tuareg rebels, aimed at isolating jihadist militants.

In recent years, the attacks have extended to central and southern Mali as well as neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger.

Benabdellah has reiterated PPS’ disapproval of PJD’s proposal to remove the water secretariat and is considering withdrawing from the ruling coalition.

Head of Government Saad Eddine El Othmani of the Justice and Development party (PJD) is under fire again for his propose that the Secretariat of State in Charge of Water be dissolved, a decision the King made on August 20.

This time, the secretary-general of the Progress and Socialism Party (PPS) publicly expressed his disapproval of El Othmani’s proposal. The head of the water secretariat was PPS member Charafat Afilal.

Nabil Benabdellah stated that the Minister of Equipment, Transportation, Logistics, and Water, Abdelkader Amara is also to blame for the proposal.

“The Progress and Socialism Party is unable to comprehend the gist of this proposal, coming from the head of government, and which the Minister of Equipment, Transportation, Logistics, and Water bears a direct responsibility for.”

Benabdellah maintained that the proposal failed to represent moral and political ethics as well as the “special relationship” between PPS and the PJD, chaired by El Othmani.

PPS called on the political bureau of PPS to hold a meeting on Saturday, September 22, to discuss a potential withdrawal from the government’s ruling coalition.

The socialist PPS and the moderate Islamist PJD have been in a ruling coalition since 2011, following Morocco’s constitutional reforms when PJD won the majority of votes in the parliament.

The two parties have been good allies despite their different approaches since Abdelilah Benkirane’s government.

PPS’s meeting with PJD

On Monday, in the presence of the human rights minister, Mustapha Ramid, the two ruling parties met to discuss the move and find a mutual solution to the rising conflict.

Benabdellah told Moroccan news outlet Le 360 in a statement: “The meeting with El Othmani lasted for more than an hour. [PJD] was direct and we also expressed our stand in the recent shifts affecting the partnership.”

The decision, first recommended to King Mohammed VI by El Othmani, was allegedly taken to improve the management of water-related projects in the kingdom, according to a communique from the Royal Palace released on August 20.

Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia received Thursday, in Algiers, Japan's  State Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Yoji Muto, who is on a three-day working visit to Algeria (August 29-31), the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement.

Three terrorist bunkers and four homemade bombs have been discovered and destroyed by Army detachments Wednesday, in combing and search operations, in Medea and Skikda, the ministry of National Defense said Thursday in a statement.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdelkader Messahel was received Thursday at Cape Town by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa to whom he handed over a message from President of the Republic Abdelaziz Bouteflika in which he reaffirmed Algeria’s commitment to strengthening its relations with South Africa.

The decision of the African Union (AU) to limit its own efforts in the Sahara issue in order to support the process led by the United Nations is a 'big win' for Morocco, the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) said in an analysis published on its website.

While Cuba still supports Polisario, Moroccan analysts believe that the reestablishment of ties between Rabat and Havana could be a major step towards a more neutral stance from Cuba on the conflict.

The monarch’s private visit to Cuba changed the situation, causing confusion among both Algeria and Polisario officials.

It is still unknown what happened during the King’s visit, but many things have changed since then.

In June, Morocco’s Ambassador to Cuba Boughaleb El Attar presented his credentials to Cuba’s president, Miguel Diaz-Canel.

During his meeting with the Moroccan ambassador, Diaz-Canel conveyed “warm greetings” for the King, welcoming the “historic visit” of the monarch to Cuba, which marked the resumption of diplomatic relations.

Diaz-Canel said that after the diplomatic restoration, both countries aim to begin “a new phase of cooperation in various fields for the benefit of both countries and two peoples,” according to the Moroccan ambassador.

After nearly 37 years of frozen diplomatic ties, Morocco and Cuba have officially restored their bilateral bonds.

King Mohammed VI’s 2017 visit to Cuba and Morocco’s diplomacy seem to be working well.

On August 28, Morocco’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Bourita received Cuba’s Ambassador to Morocco Elio Eduardo Rodríguez Perdomo in Rabat .

The ambassador presented his credentials as Cuba’s extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassador to Rabat, residing in Paris, France.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation released a statement yesterday, expressing satisfaction with the development.

The statement said that the meeting between Bourita and Perdomo reflects “a new dynamic” in the diplomatic ties between the two countries.

“The meeting also reflects the common will to develop bilateral cooperation and strengthen relations of friendship and mutual respect,” according to the statement.

Re-establishment of diplomatic relations

After the monarch’s visit to Cuba in April 2017, which the ministry described as “historic,” both countries signed a joint statement on the re-establishment of diplomatic ties.

The statement was signed in New York and announced the decision to restore diplomatic ties at the level of ambassadors.

Morocco cut ties with Cuba in 1980 as a result of Cuba’s recognition of the Polisario Front and the island’s support of Polisario’s claims for independence in Western Sahara.

Cuba also offered trainings for Polisario youth in different fields, including military training, angering Morocco, which believes that the only solution to end the Western Sahara conflict is through Morocco’s Autonomy Plan introduced to the UN in 2007.

Seventeen-year-old Khadija says she was kidnapped from her aunt’s house in Morocco and raped and tortured for two months.The Moroccan teenager appeared on a Youtube TV channel called Chouf last week where she talked about her ordeal, saying that for two months she was gang raped, forcibly tattooed with swastikas and other symbols, and burnt with cigarettes.

Police have arrested 12 men, aged between 18 and 27, since her imprisonment.

"I will never forgive them - they have destroyed me," she said. "I tried to escape several times, but I was caught and beaten."

"They tortured me, they did not give me food or drink, and they did not even allow me to take a shower," she recalled.

“How many women who for fear to be shamed continue to keep quiet?” she asked.

Khadija says she was drugged during captivity and forced into prostitution in the house where she was being held.

Khadija’s father said: “She returned in mid-August, after a family friend convinced one of the abductors to bring her back and promised him that the police won’t be informed”.

He added that “the boy is among the arrested gang members”.

The main suspect, who is 20 years old, faces charges of human trafficking, rape, torture, kidnapping, making death threats and forming a gang. The others could face similar charges.

The trial begins on September 6. No official statement has been issued by the police or interior ministry.

A call for capital punishment

Moroccans have taken to social media platforms to express anger, launching the ‘Justice for Khadija’ and ‘We are all Khadija’ hashtags and calling for the execution of the rapists.

Capital punishment remains legal in Morocco, but an unofficial moratorium has been in place since the last execution in 1993. The last person who was executed was a public official, known to media as Commissioner Tabit, who was convicted of raping a more than 500 women and taking videos of the acts.

Morocco’s rate of reported rapes increased from 800 cases in 2016 to 1,600 cases in 2017, according to an annual report issued by the King’s attorney general, Mohammad Abdel Nabawi.

In March this year, a Moroccan man was arrested after a horrific video emerged showing him wrestling a young girl to the ground and stripping her.

Last August, mass protests were held when another video emerged showing the aggressive sexual assault of a young woman with learning difficulties by a group of teenagers on a bus. 

A petition was issued by human rights activists urging King Mohammad VI to provide Khadija with medical and psychological care and support until she can reintegrate into society.

A Tunisian women rights group also raised money to take Khadija to Tunisia and provide her with treatment to remove the tattoos and burn scars.

China on Thursday derided the "irresponsible and absurd logic" of the United States after President Donald Trump accused Beijing of making Washington's relationship with North Korea more difficult.

Trump doubled down on his suggestion that China was not helping to rein in its Cold War-era ally -- a charge he first levelled when he cancelled a trip to North Korea by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that was due to take place this week.

"A lot of people, like me, feel that the US is first in the world when it comes to twisting the truth, and irresponsible and absurd logic," Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a regular press briefing.

"This logic is not easily understood by all," Hua said.

Trump's refusal to direct criticism at North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and instead blame other parties for a lack of progress comes despite reports the US received a belligerent letter from Pyongyang, which prompted Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to cancel a planned trip to North Korea last weekend.

"We hope the US can play a positive and constructive role in settling the issue just like the Chinese. To solve the problem, it should look at itself instead of shifting blame," Hua added.

- Trade war -

Speaking at the White House on Wednesday, Trump said: "China makes it much more difficult in terms of our relationship with North Korea".

"Part of the North Korea problem is caused by the trade disputes with China," Trump said.

But he insisted his ties with Chinese President Xi Jinping were "great" and that he had a "fantastic relationship" with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, whom he met in Singapore in June.

The US president said he was not considering resuming joint military exercises on the Korean Peninsula that Pyongyang considers "provocative."

Beijing is Pyongyang's sole major ally, and the main transit country for any goods entering the North. Trump said that China -- angered by US moves on trade -- is no longer being as tough as it could be on North Korea.

"We know that China is providing North Korea with considerable aid, including money, fuel, fertilizer and various other commodities. This is not helpful!" he tweeted on Wednesday evening.

On the subject of military exercises, which the US suspended as a "good faith" measure following Trump's summit with Kim, the president said "there is no reason at this time to be spending large amounts of money on joint US-South Korea war games" though added these could resume if the need arose.

It came a day after Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said the Pentagon was not planning to suspend any more military drills, before appearing to backtrack on Wednesday by insisting "no decisions" had been made on the matter.

Trump also reiterated his wish to fundamentally alter the trade status quo between the United States and China, the world's top two economies.

He said he needed to take a tough stance with Beijing on trade "because it was really not fair to our country," criticising his predecessors who "closed their eyes" to the issue.

- Belligerent letter -

In June, Trump and Kim pledged to work toward the "complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula" although their joint statement was short on details for how that might be achieved.

Efforts stalled several weeks ago, and last week, Trump ordered Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to cancel a planned trip to Pyongyang. At the time, Trump said that he did not believe China was helping in the denuclearisation process due to Washington's tougher stance on trade.

Pompeo said Tuesday that Washington remains ready to engage "when it is clear that Chairman Kim stands ready to deliver on the commitments that he made at the Singapore summit to President Trump to completely denuclearise North Korea".

According to the Washington Post, Pyongyang sent Pompeo a belligerent letter that prompted him to cancel the visit, though its precise contents were not known.

US news site Vox meanwhile reported that Trump at June's summit pledged to sign a declaration ending the Korean War, and now the two countries remain deadlocked over who will follow through on their commitment first.

On Wednesday, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told reporters that Washington believes "denuclearisation has to take place before we get to other parts," confirming that included such a declaration.

 French renowned singer and supermodel, Carla Bruni, is expected to arrive this evening at Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut, accompanied by her husband, former French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

Bruni will be performing Monday night at the Beiteddine International Festivals.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday proposed a series of measures to soften a deeply unpopular pension reform, in an apparent attempt to stem a major fall in his approval ratings.

In a rare televised address, Putin suggested raising the state pension age by five years to 60 years for women, instead of the earlier proposed eight-year hike to 63, among other measures.

"The treatment of women in our country is special, gentle," Putin said in the 30-minute speech.

The proposed retirement age hike for men -- by five years to 65 -- will remain unchanged.

The Russian leader, who is 65, also suggested early retirement for mothers with large families.

And he said companies that fire or refuse to hire employees because they are nearing pension age should face administrative or criminal liability.

The proposed reform -- already approved by parliament's lower house in a first reading last month -- has led to a rare of outburst of public anger, with tens of thousands rallying across Russia in recent weeks.

Putin had sought to distance himself from the controversial measures and had been widely expected to soften the proposals to buttress his falling approval ratings.

Approval ratings low

At the same time Putin reiterated Wednesday that tough measures were needed, citing "serious demographic problems" stemming from the country's huge losses during World War II and the fallout from the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

"We will have to make a hard, difficult but necessary decision," Putin said, adding his proposals would soon be sent to the Russian parliament's lower house, the State Duma.

"I ask you to treat this with understanding," he said.

The state pension age in Russia is among the lowest in the world and the proposed reform will be the first such hike in nearly 90 years.

But given Russians' low life expectancy, many will not live long enough under the proposed system to receive a state pension.

However, the government says the burden is simply too great for its stretched finances as the economy struggles under Western sanctions.

Putin, who had previously vowed not to raise the pension age, has seen public trust in his presidency fall to 64 percent last month, down from 80 percent in May, according to VTsIOM state pollster.

The last time his approval ratings were so low was in January 2014, just months before his popularity skyrocketed following the annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

Ahead of the televised address, a Moscow court jailed Putin's top critic Alexei Navalny for 30 days on Monday, just days before he planned to stage a rally against the reform.

President of employers' association (CGEM) Salaheddine Mezouar called on Tuesday for a better training to support the integration of youth and boost economic development at the territorial level.

HM King Mohammed VI appointed, Friday at the Rabat Royal Palace, new walis and governors at the level of territorial administration and central administration, as well as governor, director of community equipment fund (FEC) and governor, director of Casablanca Urban Agency (AUC).

Morocco and Cuba start "an unprecedented and historic era" in their bilateral relations, guided by a common desire to establish a genuine political dialogue and fruitful trade links, said, Wednesday in Rabat, Cuban ambassador to Morocco, Elio Eduardo Rodríguez Perdomo.

Speaker of the House of Advisors, Hakim Benchamach discussed, Tuesday in Santo Domingo, with speaker of the Senate of the Dominican Republic, Reinaldo Pared, ways to strengthen relations between the two countries and South-South cooperation between Africa and Latin America.

Morocco is determined to foster its cooperation ties with South Korea in different areas, said, Tuesday in Rabat, head of government Saad Eddine El Othmani.

HM King Mohammed VI appointed, Friday at the Rabat Royal Palace, new walis and governors at the level of territorial administration and central administration, as well as governor, director of community equipment fund (FEC) and governor, director of Casablanca Urban Agency (AUC).

They are:

Walis at the territorial administration:

Karim Kassi-Lahlou, Wali of the Marrakech-Safi region, governor of the prefecture of Marrakech.

Abdessalam Bekrate, Wali of the Beni Mellal-Khenifra region, governor of the Beni Mellal province.

Walis at the central administration:

Mohammed Dardouri, Wali, National Coordinator of the National Initiative for Human Development.

Jelloul Samsseme, Wali attaché to the central administration of the Interior Ministry.

Governors at the territorial Administration:

Abderzak El Manssouri, governor of the province of Ouarzazate.

Mustapha El Maaza, governor of the province of Taza.

Samir Lyazidi, governor of the province of Benslimane.

Abdelhamid Chnouri, Governor of the Khouribga Province.

Hassan Khalil, governor of the province of Tiznit.

Ismail Aboulhokouk, Governor of Inzegane Ait Melloul Prefecture.

El Hassan Boukouta, governor of the province of Sidi Bennour.

Hicham Smahi, Governor of the El Kelaa of Sraghna province.

Saleh Daha, governor of the Taounate province.

El Hassan Sidki, governor of the province of Sidi Ifni.

Rachid Afirat, governor of the prefecture of Casablanca-Anfa districts.

Jamal Mokhtatar, governor of the prefecture of Moulay Rachid disctricts.

Fouad Hajji, governor of Zagora province.

Mehdi Chalabi, governor of the province of Ouezzane.

Zine El Abidine El Azhar, governor of the province of El Hajeb.

Yassine Jari, governor of the prefecture of M'Diq Fnideq.

Youssef Draiss, Governor of Skhirate-Temara Prefecture.

Adil El Maliki, governor of the province of Essaouira.

Mohamed Hamim, governor of the province of Tarfaya.

Bouabid El Guerrab, Governor of the Chichaoua Province.

Youssef Khayer, Governor of Assa Zag Province.

Mohammed Alami Ouaddane, Governor of the Chefchaouen Province.

Salah-Eddine Amal, governor of the province of Tata.

Omar Filal, Governor, chargé d'affaires générales at Casablanca Prefecture.

Governors at the central administration:

Younes El Kasmi, Governor attaché to the Central Administration of the Interior Ministry.

 Mohamed Samir El-Khamlichi, Governor attaché to the Central Administration of the Interior Ministry.

 Abdelmajid El Kamili, Governor attaché to the Central Administration of the Interior Ministry.

 Laaroussi Baloua, Governor, Director of General Affairs at the Interior Ministry.

 Abdallah Nassif, Governor attaché to the Central Administration of the Interior Ministry.

 Jamal Chaarani, Governor attaché to the Central Administration of the Interior Ministry.

In addition to Omar Lahlou, Governor, Director General of the FEC and Toufiq Benali, Governor, Director of the Casablanca Urban Agency.

During this audience, the newly-appointed governors took an oath of allegiance before HM the King.

This audience was attended by Interior Minister Abdelouafi Laftit, minister delegate for the interior Noureddine Boutayeb and HM the King's Chamberlain Sidi Mohammed El Alaoui.

Canada announced Tuesday it will sign on the Trans Pacific Partnership, moving to diversify its trade relationships as Canadian, US and Mexican negotiators kicked off a sixth round of talks on a 1994 free trade pact that Washington has threatened to dump.

Canada had initially balked at joining the proposed TPP last year, acting as the main holdout in negotiations after US President Donald Trump decided in early 2017 to go it alone under his "America First" policy.

But with Trump also threatening to pull the United States out of the North American Free Trade Agreement and time running out to reach a deal on NAFTA, Canada found itself on the hot seat.

"We're seeing a lot of trade skepticism around the world in general right now," Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

"People are worried or become increasingly convinced that trade deals benefit the few, not the many, benefit a country's bottom line, benefit multinationals, but don't benefit ordinary workers," he said.

The prime minister described how governments must now "demonstrate convincingly" to workers the merits of free trade.

"That is what we're working very hard on in NAFTA and I know that the work we were able to do with our fellow CPTPP partners at this point is going to be good not just for Canadians but citizens of the entire group of 11 countries in Asia that are part of this," he said.

Canada's decision to join the TPP, which has been rebranded the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership or CPTPP, came after two days of talks in Tokyo.

The parties will aim to sign the deal to create one of the world's largest trading blocs by early March, said officials.

The agreement will incorporate all commitments from the original TPP, except for a limited number of provisions suspended temporarily, and some remaining issues to be finalized.

China is not included in the TPP, as the pact was initially driven by the former US administration as a counterweight to surging Chinese power in Asia.

- NAFTA negotiations -

In Montreal, Canada and Mexico, which is also a CPTPP member, signalled their readiness to offer concessions and to propose "creative solutions" to break a deadlock in negotiations and to ultimately convince the United States not to follow through on its threat to withdraw from NAFTA.

The pact, which Trump last week derided as "a bad joke," binds nearly 500 million consumers, and provides Canada and Mexico with privileged access to the US market.

This sixth round of NAFTA negotiations "will be critical," because the most contentious issues are on the agenda, according to a Mexican government statement.

"Everything will be on the table," commented Canadian Trade Minister François-Philippe Champagne, noting that 28 of the 30 NAFTA chapters had yet to be revised.

In a sign of its hardening protectionist stance, the US administration on Monday imposed duties on washing machines manufactured in Mexico and South Korea, as well as on solar panels imported from China.

Trump, however, said Tuesday he believed the NAFTA talks were "moving along pretty well."

"I happen to be of the opinion that if it does not work out, we will terminate it... so we'll see how it all works out," Trump said in the Oval Office.

The more contentious issues under consideration include adding a "sunset clause" that would automatically repeal NAFTA after five years unless it is renewed by the member countries.

Negotiators also will discuss the elimination of bi-national panels to resolve trade disputes, and Washington's demand for stricter "rules of origin" for the automotive industry.

The current agreement specifies at least 62.5 percent of vehicle components must be manufactured in one of the three member countries in order to be exempted from customs duties.

The Trump administration proposed raising the bar to a minimum North American content of 85 percent and requiring 50 percent US origin. The US-made requirement irritates Mexico and Canada, but a compromise is still possible on the volume of regional content, according to sources.

The Trump administration also has called on Canada to abolish its supply-managed dairy and poultry sectors.

At the same time, Washington would like to drastically limit foreign access to US government procurement.

The Montreal talks are expected to last until January 29, making this the longest bargaining session since the start of the talks six months ago.

Source: AFP

The US-led coalition has killed as many as 150 Islamic State fighters in an operation in the middle Euphrates River Valley in Syria, officials said Tuesday.

According to a coalition statement, the air strikes took place Saturday near Al-Shafah, in Deir Ezzor province, on an IS headquarters where the jihadists appeared to have been "massing for movement."

"The precision strikes were a culmination of extensive intelligence preparation to confirm an ISIS headquarters and command and control center in an exclusively ISIS-occupied location in the contested middle Euphrates River Valley," the statement read.

While IS has lost most of the terrain they once controlled in Syria, they still remain entrenched in pockets along the middle Euphrates River Valley.

"There's still have a heavy fight going on," said US Central Command spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Earl Brown.

"We are continuing to go after those guys that are trying to reestablish themselves. It's a hard fight right now."

The coalition said that the Syrian Democratic Forces, a US-backed Arab-Kurdish alliance fighting IS, had assisted in target observation prior to the strike.

"The combination of intelligence and continuous eyes on the target ensured no accidental engagement of non-military personnel," the statement read.

The coalition's highlighting of the SDF's role comes as Kurdish fighters in northern Syria are under assault by Turkey.

Washington is treading a fraught line in Syria, on the one hand trying to maintain its relationship with NATO ally Turkey -- which views Kurdish fighters as terrorists -- while on the other continuing to support Kurdish ground forces that have been critical to the defeat of IS.

"Our SDF partners are still making daily progress and sacrifices, and together we are still finding, targeting and killing ISIS terrorists intent on keeping their extremist hold on the region," Major General James Jarrard said.

Source: AFP

A strong earthquake rattled Indonesia Tuesday, sparking panic, damaging scores of homes and leaving at least half a dozen students seriously injured.

Office workers in the capital Jakarta rushed outside as highrises began swaying, while some riders were thrown off their motorbikes by the force of the 6.0 magnitude rumble.

There were no reports of fatalities, but the government said six students were seriously hurt after the roof collapsed at their high school at Cianjur on Java island near the epicentre of the quake. Two other students sustained minor injuries.

"I was sitting when the building suddenly started shaking," said Jakarta department store worker Suji, 35, who like many Indonesians goes by one name.

"I ran outside the building. It was quite strong and I was afraid."

The United States Geological Survey said the 6.0 magnitude quake struck at a depth of 43 kilometres (27 miles).

"So far we have counted at least 115 homes" that have been damaged, Abu Salim, a spokesman for volunteer disaster relief group Tagana, told AFP.

"The damage ranges from minor...to serious" cases, including partially collapsed walls.

The epicentre was off the coast, about 130 kilometres southwest of Jakarta, a huge city of more than 10 million people.

"The epicentre is in an area prone to quakes. More aftershocks are very likely," Indonesia's Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics agency chief Dwikorita Karnawati told Metro TV.

"I'm calling on people to be prepared, especially if you are in buildings with a weak structure," he added.

The tremor came as US Defense Secretary James Mattis was in Jakarta for an official visit.

Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire" where tectonic plates meet, causing frequent seismic and volcanic activity.

At least three people were killed following a 6.5-magnitude earthquake just outside the coastal town of Cipatujah on Java island in mid-December.

The tremor was felt across the densely populated island, causing damage to hundreds of houses and other buildings.

An earthquake struck Indonesia's western province of Aceh in December 2016, killing more than 100 people, injuring many more and leaving tens of thousands homeless.

Aceh was one of the areas worst hit by the devastating 2004 tsunami triggered by a magnitude 9.3 undersea earthquake off the coast of Sumatra.

The wall of waves killed 220,000 people in countries around the Indian Ocean, including 168,000 in Indonesia.

Source: AFP

Turkey launched air strikes in northern Iraq on Kurdish militants planning an attack, the army said on Tuesday, just days after Ankara began an offensive against a Kurdish militia in Syria.

The strikes took place on Monday in the Zap region of northern Iraq, not far from Turkey's southeastern border, the Turkish military said in a statement.

The army said it was targeting members of the "separatist terrorist organisation" -- Turkey's official term for the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

The militants were planning an attack on border security posts and bases, the military said, adding that the strikes destroyed weapons emplacements and shelters.

The PKK has been waging an insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984, and is blacklisted as a terror group by Ankara and its Western allies.

After a two-year ceasefire collapsed in 2015, the Turkish army intensified its military operations against the PKK in the Turkish southeast.

The Turkish air force has regularly carried out raids on PKK rear bases around the Qandil mountains in northern Iraq since then.

Turkish troops also sometimes stage ground incursions into the area.

The strikes in Iraq come four days after Turkey started a military operation, supporting Syrian rebels, against the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia in a bid to remove it from its western enclave of Afrin in northern Syria.

Ankara views the YPG as an offshoot of the PKK and repeatedly calls them "terrorists".

Source: AFP

Qatar has thrown its weight behind Turkey's military offensive against Kurdish militia in Syria, coming to the defence of the "national security" of one of its closest allies.

"The state of Qatar reaffirmed its support for the efforts of the republic of Turkey to maintain its national security in the wake of the breaches and terrorist attacks carried out inside Turkish territories," foreign ministry spokeswoman Lolwa Al-Khater said.

Speaking to Qatari media on Monday, Khater said Turkey's launch of Operation Olive Branch was "driven by legitimate concerns related to its national security and securing its borders, as well as protecting the territorial integrity of Syria from the danger of secession".

Qatar's announcement came as Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to step up an offensive against Kurdish targets in neighbouring Syria and Iraq.

The operation, which includes an air and ground campaign involving Ankara-backed Syrian rebels, aims to oust the People's Protection Units (YPG) from Afrin in northern Syria.

Turkey views the YPG as a terror group and an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has long fought for autonomy.

The YPG denies aiming for separatism.

Turkey's offensive is complicated by the United States' relationship with the YPG, which it relied on to help oust Islamic State jihadists from their Syrian strongholds.

Qatar has grown closer to Turkey since June when Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt cut all relations with Doha, which they accused of ties to Islamist extremists and Shiite Iran.

Ankara has since stepped in, providing food imports and political backing to Qatar amid the boycott.

The offensive on Afrin has also surfaced as a point of contention among the Gulf states.

UAE state minister for foreign affairs Anwar Gargash on Sunday warned that the operation risks further rupturing the unity of Arab states.

"The developments around Afrin reaffirm the need to rebuild and restore the concept of Arab national security," Gargash tweeted.

"Without that, the Arabs will be marginalised."

Turkey has a military base in Qatar and both countries have been unstinting in their opposition to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani was the first foreign leader to phone Erdogan during Turkey's failed coup in July 2016.

Source: AFP

Neil Diamond, one of the best-selling singers of all time, announced Monday he was immediately retiring from touring after being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

Following his doctor's advice, the Brooklyn native who turns 77 on Wednesday scrapped Australia and New Zealand stops scheduled for March as part of a global tour to celebrate his 50th anniversary as a recording artist.

However, Diamond said in a statement that he plans to "remain active in writing, recording and other projects for a long time to come."

"It is with great reluctance and disappointment that I announce my retirement from concert touring. I have been so honored to bring my shows to the public for the past 50 years," the singer said, apologizing to his fans who had been anticipating the upcoming shows.

In a nod to his signature song "Sweet Caroline," Diamond thanked his loyal fans, saying: "This ride has been 'so good, so good, so good' thanks to you."

Diamond, who dropped out of New York University to start a career writing songs for stars such as The Monkees, found fame on his own by the late 1960s after emerging from the folk scene.

As tastes shifted to louder and more provocative rock, Diamond won a fan base by going into softer fare that harked back to classic pop.

The old-style crooner packed concerts with hits including "Sweet Caroline," "Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon" and "Cracklin' Rosie."

An inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Diamond will be honored again on Sunday with a lifetime achievement award at the Grammys.

Diamond recently appeared to be healthy, albeit frigid, as he appeared in a stocking cap on New Year's Eve in New York's Times Square to lead the packed crowd in a singalong of "Sweet Caroline."

In a 2014 interview with AFP, Diamond said he tried not to be influenced by whatever was popular on the radio -- and that he could not imagine ever retiring.

"I think it would be horrid for me, stopping would be very difficult," Diamond said. "It's part of who I am."

Diamond had already performed 55 shows on his 50th anniversary tour, filling arenas across North America and Europe.

Parkinson's disease is a chronic, degenerative neurological disorder that affects the body's motor system, often causing shaking and other difficulties in movement.

The disease, which mostly commonly affects older people, is not fatal in itself but can become debilitating.

Source: AFP

Two dozen countries agreed Tuesday to push for sanctions against perpetrators of chemical attacks in Syria, with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson saying Russia "ultimately bears responsibility" for such strikes.

Twenty-four nations approved a new "partnership against impunity" for the use of chemical weapons, just a day after reports they were used in an attack that sickened 21 people in rebel-held Eastern Ghouta, which Tillerson said was suspected to involve chlorine.

"Whoever conducted the attacks, Russia ultimately bears responsibility for the victims in East Ghouta and countless other Syrians targeted with chemical weapons since Russia became involved in Syria," Tillerson said after the international meeting in Paris, and ahead of further talks with ministers from several countries on ending the conflict.

"There is simply no denying that Russia, by shielding its Syrian ally, has breached its commitments to the US as a framework guarantor" overseeing the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons stockpiles, as agreed in September 2013, he added.

Despite its pledge to destroy such weapons, the Syrian regime has been repeatedly accused of staging chemical attacks, with the United Nations among those blaming it for an April 2017 sarin gas attack on the opposition-held village of Khan Sheikhun which left scores dead.

There have been at least 130 separate chemical weapons attacks in Syria since 2012, according to French estimates, with the Islamic State group also accused of using mustard gas in Syria and Iraq.

- 'Bare minimum' -

Russia twice used its UN veto in November to block an extension of an international expert inquiry into chemical attacks in Syria, to the consternation of Western powers.

Moscow, backed by Iran and Turkey, has organised talks in the Russian city of Sochi next week aimed at finding a resolution to the brutal and multifaceted civil war.

Those efforts are running parallel to talks overseen by the UN, with the latest round due in Vienna on Thursday and Friday.

The talks have so far failed to make progress in ending a war that has left more than 340,000 people dead.

Tillerson said that "Russia's failure to resolve the chemical weapons issue in Syria calls into question its relevance to the resolution of the overall crisis".

"At a bare minimum, Russia must stop vetoing, or at the very least abstain, from future Security Council votes on this issue," he said.

At Tuesday's meeting, 24 out of 29 countries attending committed to sharing information and compiling a list of individuals implicated in the use of chemical weapons in Syria and beyond.

These could then be hit with sanctions such as asset freezes and entry bans as well as criminal proceedings at the national level.

Ahead of the meeting France announced asset freezes against 25 Syrian companies and executives, as well as French, Lebanese and Chinese businesses accused of aiding regime use of chemical weapons.

"The criminals who take the responsibility for using and developing these barbaric weapons must know that they will not go unpunished," said French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, who chaired Tuesday's meeting.

"The current situation cannot continue."

- 'Worst humanitarian crises' -

Tillerson, Le Drian and Britain's Boris Johnson afterwards held a closed-door meeting on Syria with the Saudi and Jordanian foreign ministers.

They discussed how best to "provide backing and some concrete reinforcement for UN efforts to advance the political process in Geneva, constitutional reform and the preparation for the holding of elections", ahead of a series of meetings on Syria, a senior US State Department official said, warning that "it's going to take time".

Johnson later hosted his US, Saudi Arabian and UAE counterparts at the British Embassy to discuss the Yemen conflict in a whirlwind of Middle Eastern diplomacy.

"The conflicts in Syria and Yemen have created two of the worst humanitarian crises of our time," Johnson said said ahead of the meeting.

"There can be no military solution to either conflict, only peaceful and carefully negotiated political solutions will truly end the suffering."

The Syrian war has grown even more complex in recent days with Turkey launching a new ground operation against Kurdish militia who it considers an offshoot of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

Tillerson met with Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in Paris on Tuesday, though he did not hold a press conference to discuss their talks.

Last week Tillerson had warned that the US would remain in Syria until the situation was stable enough to remove President Bashar al-Assad from office.

Source: AFP

 Myanmar blamed Bangladesh on Tuesday for delays to a huge repatriation programme for Rohingya refugees, as the deadline passed for starting the return of the Muslim minority to strife-torn Rakhine state.

Nearly 690,000 Rohingya escaped to Bangladesh after a brutal Myanmar army crackdown began last August, while a further 100,000 fled an earlier bout of violence in October 2016.

Myanmar agreed that from January 23 it would start taking them back from the squalid camps in the Cox's Bazar district of Bangladesh where they have sought shelter.

But a Bangladeshi official said Monday the programme would not begin as planned.

Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner Mohammad Abul Kalam said there was much more work to be done.

The complex process of registering huge numbers of the dispossessed has been further cast into doubt by the refugees themselves, who are too afraid to return to the scene of what the UN has called "ethnic cleansing".

Mainly Buddhist Myanmar sees the Rohingya in Rakhine as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh and denies them citizenship

It has been accused of drawing out the repatriation process by agreeing to take back just 1,500 people a week.

It has prepared two reception camps on its side of the border.

Myanmar officials said that by Tuesday afternoon no Rohingya had crossed back into Rakhine, the scene of alleged widespread atrocities by Myanmar's army and ethnic Rakhine mobs.

"We are right now ready to receive... we are completely ready to welcome them according to the agreement," Kyaw Tin, Minister of International Cooperation told reporters in Naypyidaw, Myanmar's capital.

"We have seen the news that the Bangladesh side is not ready, but we have not received any official" explanation, he added.

National Security Adviser Thaung Tun said "it is our hope that this will commence today as agreed."

With hundreds of Rohingya villages torched and communal tensions still at boiling point in Rakhine, rights groups say Rohingya returnees will at best be herded into long-term camps.

Those who return must sign a form verifying they did so voluntarily and pledging to abide by Myanmar laws.

- Not going back -

Myanmar has sent a list of more than 1,000 "wanted" alleged Rohingya militants to Bangladesh, while headshot photos of the suspects have been widely circulated inside the country.

In a sign of the tensions surrounding the issue, a second Rohingya leader was killed in Bangladesh camps on Monday -- allegedly after endorsing the returns programme.

Many in the camps are fearful of going back.

"We won't go there if they try to send us back... kill us here, because we won't go. If we go back, the Burmese (Myanmar) will kill us," 12-year-old Mohammad Ayas told AFP on Tuesday at a camp at Cox's Bazar.

Others said repatriation was a pipe dream while people were still trickling into the camps.

Mohammad Amin, who arrived just last week, described villages being set ablaze and women assaulted.

"Things are not better there (in Myanmar). We managed to stay longer than others but eventually we had to leave," he said.

Bangladesh, one of Asia's poorest countries, has been besieged by an influx of Rohingya since communal violence flared in 2016.

It has tried to use the global outcry over the crisis to press Myanmar into taking back the refugees before they settle -- joining an estimated 200,000 Rohingya stuck in Cox's Bazar camps since a previous bout of violence in the 1990s.

Source: AFP

The Turkish army on Tuesday clashed with Kurdish militia in Syria in an operation that has already left three of its soldiers dead, as the United States voiced alarm that the offensive could endanger attempts to end the Syrian civil war.

Amid growing international concern over the four-day-old cross-border campaign into Turkey's neighbour, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed that Ankara would emerge victorious.

Turkey on Saturday launched operation "Olive Branch" aimed at rooting out the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia, which Ankara sees as a terror group, from its Afrin enclave in northern Syria.

The campaign has caused ripples of concern among Turkey's NATO allies, especially the United States which is still working closely with the YPG to defeat Islamic State (IS) jihadists in Syria.

In his strongest comments yet on the offensive, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis urged Turkey to show "restraint" and warned it could harm the fight against the jihadists.

Mattis, on a visit to Indonesia, warned the offensive "disrupts what was a relatively stable area in Syria and distracts from the international effort to defeat" IS.

US President Donald Trump is expected to express America's unease in a call telephone with Erdogan on Wednesday.

French President Emmanuel Macron joined in the chorus of concern when he spoke by phone to the Turkish leader on Tuesday.

"While recognising Turkey's security needs, Macron "told his Turkish counterpart of his concern over the military intervention," the French presidency said.

- 'Until the last terrorist' -

Turkish artillery on Tuesday pounded targets of the YPG inside Syria, the state-run Anadolu news agency said.

Turkish drones were also carrying out attacks, state television said.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said fighting was "very violent" to the northeast, northwest and southwest of Afrin.

As well as the artillery and air strikes, Turkish ground troops and Ankara-backed Syrian rebels have punched over the border several kilometres (miles) into Syrian territory, taking several villages, according to state media.

After intense exchanges, Turkey's forces took control of the hill of Barsaya, a key strategic point in the Afrin region.

The Observatory said 43 Ankara-backed rebels and 38 Kurdish fighters had been killed in the fighting so far. It has also said 28 civilians have been killed on the Syrian side but this is vehemently rejected by Turkey which says it is targeting militants only.

Sergeant Musa Ozalkan, 30, the first Turkish military fatality of the operation, was laid to rest with full honours in a ceremony in Ankara attended by the Turkish leadership.

"We will win and reach victory in this operation together with our people, together with Free Syrian Army," Erdogan assured mourners, referring to the Ankara-backed rebels.

Two more Turkish soldiers -- a first lieutenant and a sergeant -- were killed inside Syria on Tuesday in clashes with the YPG, the military said.

The campaign -- which Erdogan has made clear has no fixed timetable -- is fraught with risks for Turkey.

Two civilians have been killed inside Turkey in border towns in the last two days by rocket fire from Syria blamed on the YPG.

"This operation will continue until the last terrorist is eliminated," Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said.

Cavusoglu said in a television interview Turkey could extend the operation further to target other YPG-held areas in northern Syria including the town of Manbij and even areas east of the Euphrates River.

- 'Erdogan, Trump to talk' -

Ankara has expressed impatience with Western concern over the operation, arguing that the YPG is the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) which has waged a bloody three-decade insurgency against the Turkish state.

The foreign ministry of Qatar -- Turkey's closest Gulf ally -- gave its unequivocal backing to the operation.

Critical is the opinion of Russia, which has a military presence in the area and a cordial relationship with the YPG but is also working with Turkey to bring an end to the seven-year-old Syrian civil war.

Erdogan said Monday that the offensive had been agreed with Russia but this has not been confirmed by Moscow. Cavusoglu denied there had been any "bargain or deal".

Two dozen countries agreed Tuesday to push for sanctions against perpetrators of chemical attacks in Syria, with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson saying Russia "ultimately bears responsibility" for such strikes.

Twenty-four nations approved a new "partnership against impunity" for the use of chemical weapons, just a day after reports they were used in an attack that sickened 21 people in rebel-held Eastern Ghouta, which Tillerson said was suspected to involve chlorine.

"Whoever conducted the attacks, Russia ultimately bears responsibility for the victims in East Ghouta and countless other Syrians targeted with chemical weapons since Russia became involved in Syria," Tillerson said after the international meeting in Paris, and ahead of further talks with ministers from several countries on ending the conflict.

"There is simply no denying that Russia, by shielding its Syrian ally, has breached its commitments to the US as a framework guarantor" overseeing the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons stockpiles, as agreed in September 2013, he added.

Despite its pledge to destroy such weapons, the Syrian regime has been repeatedly accused of staging chemical attacks, with the United Nations among those blaming it for an April 2017 sarin gas attack on the opposition-held village of Khan Sheikhun which left scores dead.

There have been at least 130 separate chemical weapons attacks in Syria since 2012, according to French estimates, with the Islamic State group also accused of using mustard gas in Syria and Iraq.

- 'Bare minimum' -

Russia twice used its UN veto in November to block an extension of an international expert inquiry into chemical attacks in Syria, to the consternation of Western powers.

Russia's UN ambassador Vassily Nebenzia Tuesday rejected Tillerson's accusations and instead called for a "truly impartial" international investigation of the chemical attacks.

Moscow, backed by Iran and Turkey, has organised talks in the Russian city of Sochi next week aimed at finding a resolution to the brutal and multifaceted civil war.

Those efforts are running parallel to talks overseen by the UN, with the latest round due in Vienna on Thursday and Friday.

The talks have so far failed to make progress in ending a war that has left more than 340,000 people dead.

Tillerson said that "Russia's failure to resolve the chemical weapons issue in Syria calls into question its relevance to the resolution of the overall crisis".

"At a bare minimum, Russia must stop vetoing, or at the very least abstain, from future Security Council votes on this issue," he said.

At Tuesday's meeting, 24 out of 29 countries attending committed to sharing information and compiling a list of individuals implicated in the use of chemical weapons in Syria and beyond.

These could then be hit with sanctions such as asset freezes and entry bans as well as criminal proceedings at the national level.

Ahead of the meeting France announced asset freezes against 25 Syrian companies and executives, as well as French, Lebanese and Chinese businesses accused of aiding regime use of chemical weapons.

"The criminals who take the responsibility for using and developing these barbaric weapons must know that they will not go unpunished," said French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, who chaired Tuesday's meeting.

"The current situation cannot continue."

- 'Worst humanitarian crises' -

Tillerson, Le Drian and Britain's Boris Johnson afterwards held a closed-door meeting on Syria with the Saudi and Jordanian foreign ministers.

They discussed how best to "provide backing and some concrete reinforcement for UN efforts to advance the political process in Geneva, constitutional reform and the preparation for the holding of elections", ahead of a series of meetings on Syria, a senior US State Department official said, warning that "it's going to take time".

Johnson later hosted his US, Saudi Arabian and UAE counterparts at the British Embassy to discuss the Yemen conflict in a whirlwind of Middle Eastern diplomacy.

"The conflicts in Syria and Yemen have created two of the worst humanitarian crises of our time," Johnson said said ahead of the meeting.

"There can be no military solution to either conflict, only peaceful and carefully negotiated political solutions will truly end the suffering."

US Vice President Mike Pence visited Jerusalem's Western Wall on Tuesday while Palestinians held a general strike after denouncing his fervently pro-Israel speech the previous day as "messianic".

The devout Christian's speech to the Israeli parliament on Monday laden with biblical references was praised by Israelis as perhaps the best they could ever hope for from a US administration, but Palestinians saw it as confirming some of their worst fears.

Pence proudly reaffirmed US President Donald Trump's December 6 declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and pledged to move the embassy to the disputed city by the end of 2019.

"The friendship between our peoples has never been deeper," he said.

On Tuesday, as he wrapped up his trip, Pence, who was boycotted by the Palestinians, visited one of the holiest sites in Judaism, the Western Wall.

The site lies in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, the sector the Palestinians want as the capital of their future state, and many Israelis were likely to interpret it as Pence further backing their claim over the entire city.

"Very inspiring," Pence said after the visit during which he was not accompanied by Israeli government officials.

Pence followed in the footsteps of Trump, who in May became the first sitting US president to visit the Western Wall.

In December, a US senior administration official said: "We cannot envision any situation under which the Western Wall would not part of Israel."

Pence also toured Jerusalem's Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial accompanied by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday and met President Reuven Rivlin.

He said the White House believes the Jerusalem declaration "will set the table for the opportunity to move forward in meaningful negotiations to achieve a lasting peace and end the decades-long conflict".

He departed in the late afternoon to return to the United States.

- 'Gift to extremists' -

The Palestinians face a dilemma over how to deal with what they see as a blatantly biased US administration as they seek to salvage hope of a two-state solution.

A top Palestinian official called Pence's parliament speech "messianic" and a "gift to extremists", reiterating the view that the Trump White House is incapable of being an even-handed mediator in peace talks.

Pence issued no criticism of Israel's half-century occupation of the West Bank during his visit.

Around a dozen Arab Israeli lawmakers were expelled from the chamber after shouting as Pence began his speech in parliament.

On Tuesday, a general strike was observed in the Palestinian territories, but there were expressions of resignation among some.

"It's useless, the strike. Nothing will happen," said Adel Humran, a Palestinian in the West Bank town of Ramallah.

"Only the shops will be closed. The people won't benefit from it at all."

But a spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said the strike was a "message of rejection of the visit and the American position".

"Jerusalem is a red line we cannot compromise on," said Nabil Abu Rudeina.

A few hundred Palestinians also protested near an Israeli checkpoint in the West Bank, throwing stones at soldiers who occasionally fired back with tear gas, sound grenades and rubber bullets.

The Palestinian leadership has sought to look elsewhere for backing, and Abbas met European Union foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday.

The 82-year-old urged them to recognise a Palestinian state, but such a move was not forthcoming from the bloc as a whole.

Abbas said he was committed to negotiations, but he has sought an internationally-led process.

Netanyahu says there is no substitute for US leadership.

A senior White House official said on Tuesday that Trump's point men on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict had not spoken to Palestinian leaders since before the December 6 declaration but were open to any approach.

"We are here, dedicated and ready to engage whenever they are," he said.

The official said there was no timeline for the White House to present its peace plan.

"We remain hard at work at it," he said but dismissed the idea of a European alternative.

"I don't think anybody believes the US can be replaced in this process," the official said. "Frankly I don't believe the Palestinians believe the US can be replaced in this process."

Turkey's army launched a major air and ground operation in northern Syria on the weekend in a bid to oust a US-allied Kurdish militia that it considers a terror group.

The offensive follows an announcement by a US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group that it is working to create a 30,000-strong border security force in northern Syria.

Around half of that force would be retrained fighters from the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, which is mainly made up of fighters from Kurdish militia the People's Protection Units (YPG).

Here is a timeline:

- Major incursion -

On Saturday Turkey launches operation "Olive Branch" into Syria intending to oust the YPG militia from its enclave of Afrin.

War planes and artillery back a major ground incursion undertaken with Ankara-backed Syrian rebels.

Turkey considers the YPG to be a "terrorist" group as well as the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) which has waged a bloody three-decade insurgency against the Turkish state.

Ankara says it informed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in writing of its offensive; this is denied by Damascus which says its air force will shoot down any Turkish warplanes entering its airspace.

Assad ally Russia urges restraint and withdraws troops from the zone in question "to prevent potential provocation".

The Kurdish militia say they will hold Russia as well as Turkey responsible for the attacks.

- 'Legitimate' concerns -

On Sunday Turkish tanks and soldiers enter the region of Afrin. Official media say that Ankara's forces have penetrated five kilometres (three miles) into Syria.

The US State Department calls on Turkey to "exercise restraint". But Defense Secretary Jim Mattis says Ankara has "legitimate" security concerns and had given Washington advance warning of the operation.

France calls for a UN Security Council meeting and calls on Turkey to end its offensive. Iran expresses concern and Syria's Assad condemns the operation.

Turkish police prevent protests against the operation in Istanbul and Diyarbakir, a Kurdish stronghold in Turkey's southeast.

- 'No step back' -

On Monday Turkish soldiers and their Syrian allies launch a new attack on the Kurdish militia from Azaz, about 20 kilometres to the east of Afrin.

"We will take no step back. We spoke about this with our Russian friends. We have an agreement," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says.

Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek says the operation will be short. Ankara says it aims to create a security zone within 30 kilometres of the border.

The Kremlin says it is watching developments attentively and is in contact with Damascus and Ankara.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson urges restraint on all sides. But he also says Turkey has a "legitimate right to protect its own citizens from terrorist elements that may be launching attacks against Turkish citizens on Turkish soil from Syria".

The Kurdish forces say Turkey's operation amounts to supporting IS and urge their Western allies to act.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says 21 civilians -- including six children -- have been killed in the operation. Ankara says it has only hit "terrorists".

Source: AFP

Ousted Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont on Monday vowed to form a new government despite "threats" from the central government in Madrid, as a Spanish judge refused to re-issue a European warrant for his arrest.

"We will not surrender to authoritarianism despite Madrid's threats," he said during a debate on Catalonia at the University of Copenhagen.

"Soon we will form a new government... it's time to end their oppression and find a political solution for Catalonia," the 55-year-old politician added.

Puigdemont's comments came hours after the speaker of the Catalan parliament proposed him as president of Catalonia following a snap election in December in which separatist parties once again won an absolute majority, in a major blow to the central government in Madrid.

Roger Torrent said Puigdemont's candidacy to once again head Catalonia's regional government is "absolutely legitimate", even though the secessionist leader faces criminal proceedings in Spain.

The parliamentary vote to choose a new Catalan leader is now due to take place by the end of January.

- No arrest warrant -

Puigdemont wants to be sworn in from Belgium, where he went late October to avoid arrest after the Catalan parliament declared unilateral independence, sending shockwaves across an EU already shaken by Britain's vote to leave.

Madrid sacked Puigdemont and his entire government, and it dissolved the parliament following the declaration.

Charged with rebellion, sedition and misuse of public funds, Puigdemont now faces arrest if he returns to Spain over his role in the independence drive.

The government in Madrid has ruled out his being allowed to rule from outside the country and even his separatist allies -- the leftwing ERC party of Puigdemont's former deputy Oriol Junqueras -- are cool in private to his bid to rule from abroad.

Spanish prosecutors on Monday sought to have a European arrest warrant for Puigdemont re-issued as he arrived in Copenhagen, in his first trip outside of Belgium.

But Supreme Court Judge Pablo Llarena turned down the request, arguing Puigdemont had gone to Denmark "to provoke this arrest abroad" as part of a strategy to boost his arguments in favour of being allowed to be sworn in as president of Catalonia again.

Llarena had dropped a European arrest warrant for Puigdemont and four of his deputies who fled to Belgium in early December, saying it would complicate the overall probe into the region's leaders -- but warned they would be arrested if they return.

Puigdemont's visit to Denmark could help him avoid problems in Belgium, where European citizens can live without a residency permit for three months, after which they theoretically have to leave. If they return they can stay another three months.

- 'Fugitive of justice' -

Three other separatist lawmakers are already in custody in Spain over their role in Catalonia's separatist push, including Junqueras, his former deputy.

The Catalan parliament's legal experts have said that any presidential contender has to be physically present, but Puigdemont insists he has the legitimate mandate of the people to rule.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy reiterated Saturday that governing Catalonia from abroad would be "illegal" and has warned Madrid would maintain its direct control over the region and will take the matter to court if Puigdemont sought remote rule.

He has said he would contest in the courts any move to elect Puigdemont remotely.

Foreign Minister Alfonso Dastis said Monday in Brussels that "proposing a fugitive of justice" to head the Catalan government was not the "best start" for the new parliamentary term in Catalonia.

Madrid's imposition of direct rule of Catalonia has proven very unpopular in a region that had enjoyed considerable autonomy before its leaders attempted to break away from Spain.

Catalonia's separatist push has sparked Spain's biggest constitutional crisis since the country returned to democracy following the death of longtime dictator Francisco Franco in 1975.

Source: AFP

Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont has boarded a flight to Denmark despite a threat by Madrid to issue a warrant for his arrest if he leaves Belgium, where he has been in exile since a failed independence bid, Spanish newspaper El Pais said.

The paper published a photo of the secessionist leader, sacked by Madrid after the Catalan parliament declared independence on October 27, at Brussels airport.

It said his plane left at 8 am (0700GMT) but did not indicate what time he was scheduled to arrive in Copenhagen.

Puigdemont was to take part in a debate on Catalonia at the University of Copenhagen later Monday.

The reported trip came a day after Spain's prosecution service said it would "immediately" have a supreme court judge issue a warrant for his arrest if he travels to Denmark, and urge Copenhagen to hand him over.

Spanish Supreme Court Judge Pablo Llarena had dropped a European arrest warrant for Puigdemont and four of his deputies who fled to Belgium in early December, saying it would complicate the overall probe into the region's leaders -- but warned they would be arrested if they return.

In a major blow to the central government in Madrid, pro-independence parties won an absolute majority in regional elections on December 21.

On Monday, the speaker of the Catalan parliament is due to announce his candidate to become the president of the region.

Puidgment is the favourite, but wants to govern the region from exile in order to avoid arrest if he returns to Spain.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy reiterated Saturday that governing Catalonia from abroad would be "illegal".

Source: AFP

Colin Munro ensured New Zealand continued a stellar home summer on Monday when they thrashed Pakistan by seven wickets with 25 balls to spare in the opening Twenty20 match in Wellington.

Munro was left unbeaten on 49 when a wide by Hasan Ali in the 16th over gave New Zealand victory as they chased down Pakistan's 105 in the clash of the world's top two ranked Twenty20 sides.

It extended New Zealand's winning streak to 13 across all three formats in the past two months including five one-dayers against Pakistan and a series of Tests, ODIs and Twenty20s against the West Indies.

For Tim Southee, the stand-in captain after a late decision to rest Kane Williamson who has a minor injury, everything went according to plan.

"Obviously winning the toss on that wicket and then coming out and taking early wickets was the plan and we were able to do that. We bowled exceptionally well," said Southee who also paid tribute to Munro's role with the bat.

"It was a great knock from Colin. He likes to get on with it and I think he played a mature innings and was able to hammer it home towards the end."

Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed again had to defend a woeful performance by his top order batsmen, which also plagued them in the ODI series, and believed they were well short of a competitive total.

"We're not batting well enough up the order. The new ball was swinging and bouncing, we didn't keep wickets in hand. They bowled very well with the new ball," he said.

"If we had a score of 140-150 it could have been a good match."

After a wobbly start in which Martin Guptill went for two and Glenn Phillips was bowled for three, Munro and Tom Bruce (26) set up the New Zealand victory with a 49-run stand for the third wicket.

After cautiously lifting the score to 34 for two after eight overs, they took 23 off the next 12 balls to reduce the target to under six an over and they coasted from there.

Following Bruce's dismissal, Ross Taylor partnered Munro through to the end with a rapid 22 off 13 deliveries.

Munro's 43-ball innings included three fours and two sixes and he was left a frustrating one-run short of being only the third player behind Brendon McCullum and Chris Gayle to score four consecutive half centuries in Twenty20 cricket.

Pakistan were in immediate trouble after being sent into bat and were four for 22 in the sixth over as Southee led a dismantling of the Pakistan top order.

By the 15th over, Pakistan were seven for 53 and in danger of falling short of their current lowest score of 74 against Australia six years ago, when Babar Khan (41) and Hasan Ali (23) boosted the total with a 30-run partnership.

Southee finished with the best New Zealand figures of three for 13 while Seth Rance took three for 26.

Source: AFP

The UN Yemen envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed will step down as top negotiator for the war-stricken country next month, the international body announced on Monday.

A statement released by the United Nations did not name a successor for Cheikh Ahmed, who was appointed special envoy for Yemen in April 2015.

Cheikh Ahmed "does not intend to continue in his position beyond the end of his current contract ending in February 2018", the statement said.

"The special envoy remains committed to pursue through diplomacy an end to the violence and a political solution that meets the legitimate aspirations of the Yemeni people, until a successor is named."

In nearly three years as Yemen envoy, Cheikh Ahmed oversaw multiple rounds of UN-brokered negotiations between warring parties in Yemen -- all of which failed to yield a detente in the violence that has claimed more than 9,200 lives since 2015.

In May 2017, his convoy came under fire in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, which is controlled by the country's Iran-backed Huthi rebels.

The Huthis never claimed the attack and have accused Cheikh Ahmed, and the UN, of bias towards Yemen's Saudi-backed government.

In March 2015, shortly before Cheikh Ahmed's appointment, Saudi Arabia and its military allies intervened in the Yemeni government's fight against the rebels, who control the capital, much of northern Yemen and a string of Red Sea ports.

While both parties in the war stand accused of human rights violations, the Saudi-led military camp in particular has drawn criticism from the UN for civilian deaths as well as a crippling blockade on rebel-held ports and the country's international airport.

The UN has described Yemen as the world's largest humanitarian disaster, calling for $2.96 billion to combat imminent famine as well as cholera and diphtheria outbreaks in 2018.

Source: AFP

Eurozone finance ministers approved a fresh cash injection for Greece on Monday to put the country on the road to finally leaving its long and painful bailout programme later this year.

They also said they would start work on possible debt relief for Athens, despite reservations on the part of powerful Germany which has pushed a more austere line.

The new 6.7-billion-euro tranche agreed by ministers in Brussels is the latest from Greece's third financial rescue package since 2010, when its debt crisis brought the euro close to collapse.

The current programme agreed in 2015 runs until August this year, after which the southern European nation hopes to fully return to market financing and get back on its own two feet.

EU Economic Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said 2018 "will be a decisive year for Greece".

"This will be the year when Greece finally leaves this long period of financial assistance, marked by very hard tests for the Greek people, but which allow Greece to emerge stronger and more resilient," France's Moscovici told a news conference.

Portugal's Mario Centeno -- chairing his first meeting of the Eurogroup of 19 finance ministers from the single currency -- said they would also start "technical work" on "debt relief measures" for Athens.

Greece's huge debt pile is equivalent to an unsustainable 180 percent of its annual economic output.

- 'Things have turned around' -

Greek finance minister Euclid Tsakalotos -- a key figure in the 2015 bailout negotiations that nearly saw Greece crash out of the euro -- said it was a "very good meeting" for his country.

"People are now convinced that things have turned around, and people are beginning to talk about the future and Greece's exit from the programme," he told reporters.

The mention of debt relief was "particularly significant"," he added.

The latest tranche will be split into 5.7 billion euros paid in February and the remaining one billion paid later in the spring once eurozone officials have checked that Greece has carried out all the reforms, the Eurogroup said in a statement.

Centeno, chairing his first Eurogroup for the first time after replacing Jeroen Dijssebloem of the Netherlands, said the cash would cover debt servicing, arrears and boosting Greece's cash reserves ahead of the end of the bailout, said Centeno.

"This is critical to ensure Greece's full market access," he added.

Thousands of people demonstrated in Athens one week ago against the set of around 100 austerity measures imposed by Greece's creditors, which include a politically-charged curb on industrial action.

The reforms also allow for the foreclosure and auction of properties owned by bankrupted borrowers. Both measures were fiercely opposed by leftists and trade unions.

The Greek government insists that the changes are limited, and Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras rejected criticism "as a shameless lie" that his left-wing administration was out to make strikes illegal.

Debt-laden Greece has received three multi-billion-euro bailouts since 2010.

The current rescue programme -- a package worth 86 billion euros agreed after months of talks that almost saw Greece crash out of the euro -- is financially supported by eurozone states but not the International Monetary Fund.

Source: AFP

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan on Monday urged the economic elite to break down barriers of discrimination against women as they gathered for the Davos forum.

The 52-year-old star of Indian blockbuster movies such as "Chennai Express" and "My Name is Khan" appeared at a celebrity gala ahead of the official start on Tuesday of the World Economic Forum's annual meeting.

He received an award for his charitable work for victims of acid attacks.

"From them I have learned how courage can catalyse victimhood into heroism," he told the audience of international business leaders and officials.

Australian actress Cate Blanchett also received an award for her work with refugees and British singer Sir Elton John for his campaigning on HIV/AIDS.

The Davos meeting brings some 3,000 delegates from business, politics and civil society, to discuss ways to "make the world a better place", in the words of the WEF.

Among the issues on the agenda this year are gender equality and harassment, after allegations of sexual misconduct by powerful men in Hollywood spawned the #MeToo movement.

Khan brings heavy star power to the agenda, as one of the biggest celebrities in India, where high-profile cases of sexual violence have caused shockwaves in recent years.

"We, the powerful, need to get out of the way, to pick the barriers apart, the ones that give us names and races and colours and hierarchies," he said.

"That is what I have learned from my beautifully scarred women," he added, referring to the acid victims.

Source: AFP

 Catalonia's sacked president Carles Puigdemont on Monday repeated accusations that the European Union is failing to defend fundamental rights in the wealthy Spanish region.

During his first foreign visit since leaving Spain to live in voluntary exile in Brussels on 30 October, Puigdemont told students at the University of Copenhagen the EU showed "failures" in the face of crises both inside and outside its borders.

"The EU has been a success in promoting freedom, democracy, prosperity and welfare on our continent," he said. "However, we're all aware of each failure every time there is a crisis.

"We saw it in Greece, we saw it in Ukraine, we saw it with the refugees and now we see it with the failure to defend the fundamental rights in Catalonia," he added.

Charged with rebellion, sedition and misuse of public funds, Puigdemont faces arrest if he returns to Spain over his role in the independence drive.

Catalonia's parliament on Monday proposed Puigdemont as president of the region following a snap election in December in which separatist parties once again won an absolute majority.

According to the former leader "Catalan citizens see great concerns on some developments happening around EU institutions".

"We are of course pro-Europeans but we cannot close our eyes for each failure, we want more integration but only if it leads to more democracy and a uniformed application of the EU law in all member states."

Source: AFP

To the cheers of a crowd fired by his promise to bring them jobs and prosperity, former football star George Weah was sworn in as president of Liberia on Monday, completing the country's first transition between democratically-elected leaders in three generations.

Weah, 51, takes over from Nobel laureate Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who over 12 years steered the country away from the trauma of a civil war but failed to ease dire poverty.

Dutch BMX cyclist Jelle van Gorkom has awoken from a coma and his life is no longer in danger, officials said Monday, cautioning however that he faced a long recovery.

The 27-year-old is "making good progress, and is out of acute danger," the Royal Dutch Cycling Union (KNWU) said on its website.

Van Gorkom, who won a silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics, was hurt in an accident on January 9 during training on a BMX track at the national sports centre in eastern Papendal near Arnhem.

He was placed in an induced coma for several days, suffering from broken ribs, a fracture to the face, a fractured skull and damage to his liver, spleen and kidneys.

The KNWU said Van Gorkom was now conscious, reacting to stimuli, making contact and recognising people.

But he remains "fragile" and "it is obvious that he will need a long rehabilitation with no guarantees that he will make a full recovery," the association said.

Source: AFP

 A Vietnamese former state oil executive who was allegedly kidnapped from Germany was jailed for life on Monday for embezzlement, in the highest-profile corruption trial to target the communist country's business and political elite.

The case -- also involving 21 other officials, including a former party politburo member -- has captivated a country where the affairs of the powerful are normally kept secret and the downfall of senior politicians rarely happens in public.

Vietnam has mirrored China in its massive corruption purge, but critics say the campaign is as much about targeting political foes as it is about tackling graft in one of Southeast Asia's most corrupt nations.

The life sentence for Trinh Xuan Thanh, the former head of PetroVietnam Construction (PVC), capped a dramatic two-week trial -- closed to international media -- that included a tearful apology from the 51-year-old.

Thanh was sentenced to "14 years for mismanagement and life in prison for embezzlement", according to state-run VNExpress news site.

The jury said "no one at PVC dared use money for wrong purposes" without Thanh's direction, the report said.

The embezzlement charges carry a maximum sentence of death but prosecutors recommended life instead.

He faces a separate trial for embezzlement Wednesday that could see him put to death.

Former politburo member Dinh La Thang, who once chaired the board of PetroVietnam, was sentenced to 13 years in prison, while the remaining defendants got punishments ranging between 22 years in jail and a 30-month suspended sentence.

They are accused of causing $5.2 million in losses for the state during an investment by PetroVietnam into a thermal power plant.

Public opinion on the prison terms remained divided on social media Monday, though some were swift to decry the punishments as too light.

"These were sentences for street thieves," wrote Facebook user Huan Pham after the verdict was announced.

- China echoes -

Thanh's case has gripped the Vietnamese public since 2016 when he was spotted driving a flashy Lexus with government licence plates -- prompting corruption rumours about the official, who swiftly fled to Germany.

He was next heard of in August 2017 when German officials said he was plucked from a central Berlin park by Vietnamese security agents, in a Cold-War style episode that Germany described as a "scandalous violation" of its sovereignty.

Hanoi has denied he was kidnapped, insisting he returned voluntarily to Vietnam, where he appeared on state television and confessed to his crimes in a broadcast that some suspect he may have been pressured into.

Germany said after Monday's verdict it was "too early to evaluate the trial" pending further proceedings this week and possible appeals, but "took note" of the fact that he was spared the death penalty, said foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Adebahr.

Thanh will return to court for a fresh trial on Wednesday on embezzlement charges after he was accused of pocketing $620,000 of state funds.

The charges carry the death penalty.

Thanh's German lawyer, Petra Schlagenhauf -- who was denied entry to Vietnam before the start of the trial -- called on Berlin to keep pushing for his release and return to Germany, and said the trial did not conform with the rule of law.

It was the highest-profile corruption case in the one-party state, which has long vowed to tackle graft but rarely targets senior officials.

According to Transparency International, Vietnam ranks 113th out of 176 on its corruption perception index, worse than its Southeast Asian neighbours Thailand and the Philippines.

Scores of bankers, former officials and businessmen have been jailed as part of Vietnam's purge, including a senior banker sentenced to death for fraud last year.

Critics say the corruption purge is fuelled by political infighting and is led by Communist Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong, characterised as a conservative hardliner.

Observers say the campaign is similar to the anti-corruption purge in China, led by President Xi Jinping.

"It's a good way to keep political opponents on their toes," Vietnam expert Jonathan London told AFP, adding it echoes Xi's corruption purge of "real, perceived and potential opponents".

London said Thanh's conviction may be the "most spectacular" but he expects the anti-graft drive to continue.

Source: AFP

A Lebanese man fatally shot his wife in Beirut Monday, the latest in a string of murders a rights group said showed much work remained to eradicate violence against women.

A law on domestic violence was passed by Lebanon's parliament in 2014 but watchdogs said many changes were still needed.

A man shot his wife in the central Ras al-Nabaa neighbourhood of Beirut on Monday, the national news agency reported, adding that the killer was on the run.

Also on Monday, another Lebanese man was arrested after stabbing his wife in a village in the south, the same source reported. The woman survived the attack.

The latest violence brought to eight the number of deadly cases of violence against women since the start of December, according to Kafa, a watchdog advocating for gender equality in Lebanon.

A total of 17 cases were recorded last year in Lebanon, a country of around four million inhabitants, including those of women killed by their husbands but also that of a 15-year-old girl who committed suicide after a forced marriage.

In a high-profile case last month, Briton Rebecca Dykes, who worked for the UK Department for International Development at the embassy in Beirut, was killed by a taxi driver who tried to rape her.

Kafa's spokesperson Diala Haidar said recent improvements to the legal framework were failing to challenge "a society dominated by a machismo and that justifies violence against women."

"Working against this mentality and preventing the justification of violence against women is the hardest thing," she said.

Source: AFP

 Syria's main opposition group said Monday it needed "full and clear information" from Russia before it would agree to take part in peace talks to be held in Sochi next week.

The comments came during a visit by the Syrian Negotiations Commission (SNC) to Moscow as Russia gets set to host talks in the Black Sea resort on January 30 along with Syrian regime-backer Iran and rebel-supporter Turkey.

"The SNC will not make any final decision regarding the Russian initiatives until it receives full and clear information from Russia," SNC representative Nasr al-Hariri said at the start of a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

"We want to have complete information about the participants, the agenda and the objectives" of the Sochi meetings, he said in comments translated into Russian.

"Unfortunately, for the time being, we do not have a clear picture of all that."

The SNC has said it will attend fresh UN-hosted negotiations before the Sochi talks, which dozens of rebel factions have already rejected.

Lavrov said he was looking forward to a "constructive conversation" with Hariri.

"We consider counterproductive the attempts of some foreign players to question the sincerity of the efforts we are undertaking," Lavrov said.

Numerous rounds of UN-brokered peace talks have been held in Geneva, with the last one concluding in mid-December with no notable progress towards ending the country's war.

The UN-backed talks are to resume on January 25-26, this time in Vienna.

Key players Russia, Iran and Turkey have been sponsoring parallel peace talks since the start of last year.

The Sochi meeting is part of a broader push by Moscow to start hammering out a path to a political solution to end the war and has sparked concerns that the Kremlin is looking to sideline the UN.

The Damascus government has said it would attend the Sochi talks, which are aimed at setting up a new constitution for post-war Syria.

Syria's nearly seven-year war, which began as the regime brutally crushed anti-government protests, has claimed more than 340,000 lives, forced millions to flee their homes and left the country in ruins.

Source: AFP

The United States has ordered more stringent inspections of air cargo from five Middle East countries, citing a June 2017 attempt in Australia to bring down a plane as evidence that extremist groups continue to target civilian aviation.

The Transportation Security Administration said Monday it had ordered seven airports in Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to provide advance data on US-bound air cargo to US Customs and Border Protection for vetting before the cargo is loaded.

The agency did not cite any new specific threat for the move.

"The persistent threat to aviation calls for the world to raise the baseline on global aviation security across the spectrum," it said.

"These countries were chosen because of a demonstrated intent by terrorist groups to attack aviation from them."

TSA also pointed to Australian security officials' foiling of an advanced plot by three men with ties to the Islamic State group last June to bring down an aircraft with an improvised explosive device.

"The incident in Australia that occurred this past summer was an ominous reminder for TSA and all of our aviation partners, to include cargo carriers, that we need to continue our efforts to keep our skies secure," TSA said.

Last year US counterterrorism chief Nick Rasmussen said the Australia plot "shows that terrorists are aware of security procedures. They watch what we do and they try to learn from it."

Source: AFP

 The United States sternly criticized Russia's failure to rein in its Syrian ally Bashar al-Assad on Monday after reports of a new regime chemical weapons strike.

Rights monitors say 21 people, including children, suffered breathing difficulties Monday after an alleged chemical attack on a besieged rebel enclave outside Damascus.

Washington is not yet in a position to confirm the latest report, but officials noted that Russia has hamstrung UN efforts to probe previous allegations of regime atrocities.

"Civilians are being killed and it is not acceptable," Steve Goldstein, US under secretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs, told reporters in Washington.

Asked whether the United States would raise the issue at the UN Security Council, Goldstein said: "We'll see tomorrow."

"Russia had failed to rid Syria of chemical weapons, and they've been blocking chemical weapons organizations. Enough is enough," he warned.

The United States has urged Russia to compel Assad to take a United Nations-brokered peace process in Geneva and Vienna seriously and come to the table.

But Moscow -- along with Iran and Turkey -- has been running a parallel peace initiative under its own auspices out of Astana and Sochi, and the eight-year-old civil war continues.

In 2013 the previous US administration, under president Barack Obama, balked at striking Syria over its alleged chemical arms use, choosing to work with Moscow on a disarmament plan.

Obama's successor in the White House, President Donald Trump, launched a cruise missile strike against a Syrian airbase in April 2017 in response to an alleged chemical attack.

But US military action in Syria has otherwise been focused on defeating the Islamic State jihadist groups -- and thus-far ineffective diplomatic efforts to end the civil war.

Source: AFP

The Philippines said Monday it would deport an elderly Iraqi man described as a scientist for Hamas and accused of helping the Palestinian militant group lob missiles at Israel.

Iraq tipped off the Philippines about the presence of Taja Mohammad Al Jabori, who was arrested on Sunday, national police chief Ronald Dela Rosa told reporters.

However, the arrest was due to visa problems rather than any evidence of militant activity, the police chief emphasised.

"He's an illegal alien, his visa is expired so he has to be deported right away," Dela Rosa said.

"He admitted being a member of Hamas. He's a chemist and he has been responsible for improving the rocket technology of Hamas in firing their missiles from their area towards the other side, for Israel."

The suspect will be deported to Iraq.

The police chief said it was the first time Philippine authorities had dealt with an alleged member of Hamas, a group labelled a terrorist organisation by the United States, the European Union and Israel.

The Islamist movement does not recognise Israel, with which it has fought three wars, and has vied with the rival Fatah movement for control of Palestinian territory.

The handcuffed detainee did not speak while being made to stand beside the Philippine police chief at a press conference.

Dela Rosa said it was unclear at present why the alleged Hamas chemist had travelled to the Philippines.

Police said he arrived last year as Philippine troops battled militants loyal to the Islamic State group for control of the southern city of Marawi.

Al Jabori had however mostly stayed in Manila and nearby provinces and told police he had no intention of committing any terror act in the Philippines, the police chief said.

Source: AFP

Turkey gave Washington advance warning before launching an operation against US-allied Syrian Kurdish forces, and Ankara has "legitimate" security concerns in the area, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Sunday.

"Turkey was candid. They warned us before they launched the aircraft they were going to do it in consultation with us, and we are working now on the way ahead through the ministry of foreign affairs," Mattis told reporters aboard his aircraft at the start of a trip to Asia.

Turkey "is the only NATO country with an active insurgency inside its borders, and Turkey has legitimate security concerns," Mattis said, referring to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has been engaged in a separatist struggle against Ankara since 1984.

Turkey launched "Operation Olive Branch," an offensive by Ankara's troops and allied Syrian rebels against the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in the town of Afrin.

The YPG has been a key US ally in the war against the Islamic State group, helping to drive the group's jihadist fighters from swaths of Syrian territory, including its stronghold Raqa.

But Ankara considers YPG fighters to be "terrorists" linked to the PKK.

- Call for 'restraint' -

Turkey on Sunday ruled out the risk of an inadvertent clash with American forces in its operation in Syria, saying there were no US troops in the area where the campaign was taking place.

"US officials declared that there has been no American military or American soldiers in the region," Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag told reporters in Istanbul.

The US State Department, while also referring to the "legitimate security concerns of Turkey," issued a call for Ankara to proceed carefully.

"We urge Turkey to exercise restraint and ensure that its military operations remain limited in scope and duration and scrupulous to avoid civilian casualties," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement.

"We call on all parties to remain focused on the central goal of defeating" IS, Nauert said.

A Britain-based monitoring group and a YPG spokesman both said that Turkish air raids on Sunday killed eight civilians in northern Syria.

A day earlier, the YPG's Birusk Hasakeh told AFP that a Turkish bombardment had killed 10 people, including seven civilians.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Sunday that claims of civilian casualties from the offensive were untrue.

Source: AFP

Russia said Monday it has invited Kurds to take part in an upcoming Syrian peace congress in Sochi despite a Turkish offensive against Kurdish militia in northern Syria.

"Kurdish representatives have been included on the list of Syrians invited to participate in the Syrian National Dialogue Congress which will take place in Sochi next week," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.

Together with regime backer Iran and rebel supporter Turkey, Russia -- a key backer of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad -- wants to convene a peace conference with the aim of agreeing a new constitution for post-war Syria.

The peace talks have been planned for January 29 and 30.

Moscow initially hoped to convene peace talks in Sochi last November but those efforts collapsed following a lack of agreement among co-sponsors.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the time to fumed at the prospect of inviting to the conference the Syrian Kurdish group the PYD and its armed wing, the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG).

Without referring to Kurdish militia by name, Erdogan said in November: "We cannot consider a terrorist gang with blood on their hands a legitimate actor."

Turkey considers the YPG to be a terror group and the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) which has waged a bloody three-decade insurgency against the Turkish state.

The Turkish military on Saturday launched a cross-border operation aiming to oust the YPG from its enclave of Afrin in northern Syria.

But Lavrov on Monday said that Syrian Kurds should play a role in the "future political process."

"This role should certainly be ensured," he told reporters, but added that all of Syria's ethnic groups should respect the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

- US 'provocation' -

Lavrov meanwhile accused Washington of stoking separatist sentiment among Syria's Kurds.

"Washington has actively encouraged and continues to encourage separatist sentiments among Kurds" while ignoring the "delicate" nature of the issue, Lavrov said.

"This is either a lack of understanding of the situation or an absolutely conscious provocation."

The US-led coalition battling the Islamic State group has announced it has begun forming a 30,000-strong security force to patrol territory captured from IS.

Separately, Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov -- asked whether the Turkish offensive would complicate the Sochi congress -- declined to comment, but said that the preparations for the conference were under way.

Source: AFP

Indian state governments made a last-ditch attempt Monday to ban a Bollywood film about a mythical Hindu queen which has sparked violent protests by radical groups.

The Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh governments asked India's top court to retract a ruling ordering states to show the film "Padmaavat", which is due to hit screens on Thursday.

The urgent petitions, which the Supreme Court will hear on Tuesday, were lodged a day after Hindu extremists set fire to buses and blocked roads in Gujarat state.

In Rajasthan state, women carrying swords marched in Chittorgarh against the movie. In Noida, near the capital New Delhi, activists burned toll booths on a major highway after a rally.

Protesters claim the film falsely depicts a romance between 14th century Hindu queen Padmavati and Muslim ruler Alauddin Khilji. The producers deny this and insist the movie portrays her respectfully.

The Supreme Court on Thursday overturned a ban on the release of the film which had been imposed by several states, including Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, saying it violated creative freedoms.

The states have asked the court instead to rule that individual state governments should be allowed to block the release on law and order grounds.

A caste-based group called the Rajput Karni Sena, which has been leading the violent protests, has threatened to attack cinemas showing the film, including with swords.

Its leaders claim that hundreds of women are ready to perform a mass self-immolation if the movie showing goes ahead.

In January last year members attacked the film's director Sanjay Leela Bhansali and vandalised the set during filming in Rajasthan.

The leader of the group also offered 50 million rupees ($769,000) to anyone who "beheaded" lead actress Deepika Padukone or Bhansali.

Protesters attacked another set near Mumbai in March, burning costumes and other props.

The movie stars Shahid Kapoor as Maharawal Ratan Singh, the husband of Padmavati, and Ranveer Singh as Khilji who leads an invasion to try to capture the queen.

Protesters maintain it distorts history, even though experts say the queen is a mythical character.

Earlier this month the film censor board cleared "Padmaavat" for release subject to five changes.

Source: AFP

US federal workers prepared to return to work Tuesday after Congress ended a three-day government shutdown, with President Donald Trump claiming victory in his standoff with Democrats.

The House voted 266 to 150 to extend federal funding for another three weeks, hours after Senate Democrats dropped their opposition to the plan after winning Republican assurances of a vote on immigration in the coming weeks.

Trump signed the measure into law Monday night and government operations were essentially to return to normal on Tuesday.

"I know there's great relief that this episode is coming to an end," House Speaker Paul Ryan told colleagues. "But this is not a moment to pat ourselves on the back. Not even close."

The stalemate consumed Washington for the better part of a week, as lawmakers and the White House feuded over immigration policy and the nation's two main political parties exchanged bitter barbs before finally reaching a deal.

The shutdown began at midnight Friday and thus affected only one regular workday -- Monday -- but it made both parties look bad. If it had continued, hundreds of thousands of federal employees would have been furloughed.

Democrats decided to end the shutdown after making progress with ruling Republicans toward securing the fate of hundreds of thousands of so-called "Dreamers" brought to America as children, many of them illegally. They had been protected from deportation under an Obama-era program known as DACA, which Trumps wants to end.

With Democratic support, a bill keeping the government funded until February 8 easily passed the Senate, where different versions of the funding had languished for days.

Word of the compromise deal struck in Washington sent US stocks surging to new highs.

Earlier, the White House appeared in no mood for bipartisanship or magnanimity after a shutdown that overshadowed Trump's first anniversary in office.

Trump moved to undercut Democrats, saying he would only accept a comprehensive immigration reform -- one that notably addresses his demands for a border wall with Mexico as well as the fate of the "Dreamers."

"We will make a long-term deal on immigration if, and only if, it is good for our country," he said in a statement.

And in a tweet late Monday, he again cried victory over the Democrats.

"Big win for Republicans as Democrats cave on Shutdown," he wrote on Twitter.

Trump added: "Now I want a big win for everyone, including Republicans, Democrats and DACA, but especially for our Great Military and Border Security. Should be able to get there. See you at the negotiating table!"

In a sign of the poisoned politics of Washington, when top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer announced his party would vote with Republicans to end the shutdown he also pilloried Trump.

"The White House refused to engage in negotiations over the weekend. The great deal-making president sat on the sidelines," Schumer said.

Trump spent the weekend stewing at the White House when he had planned to be among friends and family at his home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida for his anniversary bash.

And with the fundamental row on immigration and funding of Trump's border wall unresolved, Republicans and Democrats may very well find themselves back in a similar stalemate come February 9.

- High-profile holdouts -

Schumer told Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that he expected Republicans to make good on a pledge to address Democrats' concerns over the Deferred Action on Child Arrivals (DACA) program. This shields immigrants brought to the country as children from deportation but expires on March 5.

There are an estimated 700,000 "Dreamers" whose fates are up in the air.

"If he does not, of course, and I expect he will, he will have breached the trust of not only the Democratic senators but members of his own party as well," Schumer said.

Trump has staked his political fortunes on taking a hard line on immigrants, painting them as criminals and scroungers.

Senator Tim Kaine summed up the view of the more optimistic Democrats: "We got a commitment that I feel very, very good about."

But if no progress is made on an immigration bill, Molly Reynolds of the Brookings Institution warned, "Democrats still have the ability to potentially force another shutdown over the issue."

Turkey on Monday intensified its offensive against Kurdish militia targets in Syria as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed there would be no stepping back in a campaign that has stoked concern among Ankara's allies and neighbours.

The Turkish military announced the death of its first soldier since the launch of operation "Olive Branch" on Saturday, its second major intervention in Syria's devastating seven-year civil war.

The operation, with Turkish war planes and artillery backing a major ground incursion involving Ankara-backed Syrian rebels and Turkish tanks, aims to oust the People's Protection Units (YPG) militia from its Afrin enclave.

Civilians in the town of Afrin, 18 kilometres (11 miles) from the front line, stocked up on food and medicine as they readied for a potential onslaught. Shelters were prepared and the internet was only functioning sporadically.

Turkey sees the YPG as a terror group and the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) which has waged a bloody three-decade insurgency against the Turkish state.

"We are determined. Afrin will be sorted out. We will take no step back," Erdogan said in a televised speech in Ankara.

But the operation is hugely sensitive as Washington relied on the YPG to oust Islamic State (IS) jihadists from their Syrian strongholds and the Kurdish militia now holds much of Syria's north.

- 'A short operation' -

Turkish state news agency Anadolu said ground forces had already seized 15 villages and other locations during their advance into Syria.

Meanwhile, Turkish artillery fired shells on YPG targets inside Syria and ground troops opened a new front against Afrin from Azaz, further east, state media said.

In Afrin, residents queued at bakeries and cars were on the streets as residents braced themselves for any violence.

"God willing, the war will not last long. We pray for strength and courage for the YPG," Zuheir Hussein, 32, told AFP.

Convenience store owner Ali Sourani said his shop was running low on food and the region was "surrounded".

"We have had our shelters prepared for 10 days to hide during the fighting," he said.

"We have difficulties with the internet which has been down for three days. We cannot communicate with our relatives."

Turkey's military announced its first fatality of the campaign as a soldier was killed in clashes with the YPG southeast of the border town of Gulbaba.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has said a total of 22 Syrian civilians have been killed by Turkish strikes and two more by Kurdish fire during the operation.

It said 54 Syrian combatants had been killed, including 19 Ankara-backed rebels, 26 Kurdish fighters and nine unidentified figures.

But Ankara has denied inflicting civilian casualties, with Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu accusing the YPG of sending out "nonsense propaganda and baseless lies".

Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahim told AFP in Beirut that Monday's clashes were the fiercest since the start of the offensive.

He said Kurdish forces had recaptured a key hill in the region, briefly seized by pro-Turkish Syrian rebels on Monday.

An AFP correspondent in the Turkish border village of Hassa saw more Turkish tanks heading towards Syria, enthusiastically cheered by locals.

In a sign of the risks to Turkey, rockets fired from Syria on the border town of Reyhanli on Sunday killed a Syrian refugee. One more person was killed in a similar attack Monday on the village of Kirikhan.

The Syrian Democratic Forces, an umbrella group dominated by the YPG, said in a statement that the operation amounted to "clear support" for IS.

Turkey's previous incursion into Syria was the Euphrates Shield campaign in August 2016-March 2017, targeting both the YPG and IS in an area east of Afrin.

Erdogan has warned that those protesting against the operation will pay a "heavy price". Turkish police detained 24 people on suspicion of disseminating "terror propaganda" on social media.

- 'Russian backing' -

As well as a complex military mission, Turkey faces a sensitive diplomatic landscape as it seeks to avoid alienating allies and provoking foes.

Western capitals fear the campaign against the YPG will shift the focus from eliminating IS after a string of successes in recent months.

The repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims who fled violence in Myanmar will not begin as planned, Bangladesh said Monday, with authorities admitting "a lot of preparation" was still needed.

Bangladesh had been due to start the huge process on January 23, after agreeing a two-year timeframe with Myanmar.

But Bangladesh's Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner Mohammad Abul Kalam announced Monday there was much more work to be done.

"We have not made the preparations required to send back people from tomorrow. A lot of preparation is still needed," Kalam told AFP.

Since August last year around 688,000 Muslim Rohingya have escaped over the border into Bangladesh in the wake of a military-led campaign in Rakhine state that the UN says amounted to "ethnic cleansing".

They poured into ill-equipped and overcrowded camps, bringing with them harrowing tales of rape, murder and torture at the hands of Myanmar's feared army or Buddhist mobs.

After a global outcry, which included loud criticism of Myanmar's civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the two countries agreed earlier this month that the refugees would be returned to Myanmar in a process they said would take around two years.

Rights groups and the UN have said any repatriation must be voluntary. There are reports that many Rohingya settlements have been burned to the ground.

Bangladesh has sought to assure the international community that only those wishing to go back to their homelands in Rakhine would be sent back and that the process would involve the UN's refugee agency.

But on Monday refugee chief Kalam said transit centres still needed to be built, and work remained to be done on the "rigorous process" of approving lists of those entitled -- and willing -- to return to Myanmar.

"Without completing this, we cannot send these people back all of a sudden. This work is ongoing," he said.

He gave no revised start date but said two sites near the border had been identified for possible transit sites.

Bangladesh was "very keen" for the process to begin as soon as possible, he said, but added much work was outstanding on Myanmar's side including housing reconstruction and safety arrangements.

"Neither side is ready for the real movement to begin now," Kalam said.

- Angry protests -

The repatriation deal covers more than 750,000 refugees who have fled since October 2016, but does not include the estimated 200,000 Rohingya who were living in Bangladesh prior to that, driven out by previous rounds of communal violence and military operations.

Refugees have protested at the prospect of return, with many saying they fear the campaign of atrocities is not over in Rakhine.

Local authorities in Cox's Bazar in southeast Bangladesh on Monday stopped hundreds of protesters from marching on one large camp, with an organiser detained by the Bangladesh army, Rohingya leaders told AFP.

In recent days refugees have gathered by the hundreds chanting slogans and holding banners, demanding citizenship and guarantees of security before they return to Rakhine.

"It doesn't matter if it starts tomorrow, in three months or a year later," said 35-year-old Rohingya refugee Nurulla Amin upon learning that repatriation had been delayed.

"What matters is our rights, our demands and if they are actually met."

Five senior Rohingya leaders met UN special rapporteur Yanghee Lee in the Cox's Bazar district late Sunday and handed her a list of demands before repatriation would be considered.

"We do not want to go back home because we have not got our rights," community leader Abdur Rahim, who met Lee during her tour of the camps, told AFP.

Tensions have been rising in the overcrowded camps as the deadline for repatriation loomed.

Two Rohingya representatives have been murdered in the past three days, police said Monday, including one described by local media and community leaders as pro-repatriation.

Rohingya militants at the weekend said the repatriation plan would trap the Muslim minority in long-term camps while their ancestral lands are seized.

Most refugees live in squalid camps in Cox's Bazar but an estimated 6,500 are stranded in a so-called no man's land between Bangladesh and Myanmar.

Kalam said Myanmar could take back these refugees "as a token of their seriousness" about the agreement, as they were not on Bangladeshi soil and therefore not part of the official repatriation.

Source: AFP

 For three years, jihadists made life in Iraq's Mosul impossible. Now, six months after their defeat, even their corpses are polluting everyone's existence as no one wants to move them.

The rare few who dare to venture into Mosul's historic centre do so with their nose and mouth firmly covered with masks or scarves to keep out the stench.

Amid the rubble-strewn alleys overlooking the River Tigris, unburied human remains are rotting.

They are the bodies of Islamic State group jihadists, residents and the civil defence say, pointing to their Afghan robes, long beards, and sometimes even suicide belts.

Here and there, on a wall or on a road sign, are scribbled the words "Cemetery for the people of Daesh," using an Arabic acronym for IS.

The jihadists seized second city Mosul in July 2014, imposing their rigid interpretation of Islam on inhabitants and dispensing brutal punishments for those who did not obey.

Iraqi forces declared victory against IS in the city in July 2017, after months of fighting that killed hundreds of civilians and caused tens of thousands to flee.

But six months on, the putrefying bodies of jihadists killed in the battle are preventing some residents from returning home.

Othman Ahmad, an unemployed 35-year-old, said he would not go back to living in the Old City with his wife and two children as long as the corpses remained.

- 'Awful smell' -

"We're scared with all these bodies and this awful smell," he told AFP, in an alley not far from his former home, now barely recognisable after the destruction.

Not far off, Abu Shaker, 60, said he was terrified the bodies might lead to "germs and epidemics".

But civil defence teams say it is not their job to remove the corpses of IS fighters.

Their mission, which ended on January 10, was to extract the bodies of civilians from the rubble so their families could bury them.

For months on end, during and after the battle, they retrieved the remains of men, women and children and carried them away in black body bags.

There is no official death toll for civilians killed in the battle for Mosul, but the United Nations and a monitoring group have said hundreds were killed.

Extracting the bodies was gruelling work, as rescue teams could not enter the Old City's narrow alleyways with their vehicles or heavy equipment.

"To dig, we'd use light tools and our bare hands, so getting bodies out took a lot of effort and time," the civil defence's Lieutenant-Colonel Rabie Ibrahim said.

Whenever they were alerted, his colleagues said, civil defence members dashed out to search the ruins, tackling the mounds of broken concrete that now covers the Old City.

To avoid having to bury unidentified bodies, they only searched in the company of relatives able to identify those they had lost.

- 'Before it rains' -

As for the bodies of Iraqi and foreign jihadists, it is the city council's responsibility.

"We have already brought 450 out of the rubble, but there are hundreds more," city council head of services Abdel Sattar al-Habbu said.

Those bodies have been thrown into mass graves, without any rites.

Removing them is slow, he said, because the jihadists stole and destroyed most of their equipment.

And some bodies still carry undetonated explosives that the security forces did not defuse.

But time is pressing, said Hossam Eddine al-Abar, of the Mosul region's provincial council.

"The bodies have to be moved before it rains and the Tigris rises, taking with it the bodies rotting on its banks," he said.

If the river became contaminated, it would be impossible to treat its water as filtering and purifying stations around the city have been destroyed, either by the jihadists or in the battle to retake the city.

A doctor, who asked to remain anonymous, said no case of contaminated water had been reported so far.

But the rotting bodies "pollute the air and water and could soon cause diseases", he said.

Ahmad Ibrahim, a gastroenterologist, said the river's entire ecosystem could soon be contaminated if nothing was done.

"These diseases can develop now, or they can appear in coming years," he said.

Source: AFP

Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas on Monday urged the EU to "swiftly" grant official recognition to the state of Palestine as he sought support in Brussels amid a bitter row with Washington over the US plan to move its embassy to Jerusalem.

Abbas told EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini that the Palestinians were still committed to the stalled Middle East peace process and urged the bloc to take a more "political" role.

His mission to meet Mogherini and the 28 EU foreign ministers came as US Vice President Mike Pence told the Israeli parliament that Washington would move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem "by the end" of 2019, a step fiercely opposed by Palestinians.

In an interview with AFP on Sunday in Brussels, Palestinian foreign minister Riad al-Malki said the EU recognising the state of Palestine would be "a way to respond" to US President Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

"We truly consider the European Union as a true partner and friend, and therefore we call its member states to swiftly recognise the state of Palestine and we confirm that there is no contradiction between recognition and the resumption of negotiations," Abbas told reporters on Monday.

The 82-year-old Abbas met Mogherini for one-on-one talks before joining the bloc's foreign ministers for lunch on the sidelines of their monthly meeting, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a similar trip last month.

Abbas said the Palestinians were still "keen on continuing on the way of negotiations" and committed to "fighting terrorism, violence and extremism locally, regionally and internationally".

- Recognition unlikely -

But as expected, recognition for Palestine was not forthcoming and there was also no discussion of an "association agreement" with the bloc -- mooted beforehand as a way of giving Abbas something to take away.

Mogherini said the focus had been on how the EU could help relaunch direct talks between the Israelis and Palestinians.

She added that debate about a possible association agreement would go on within the bloc in the coming weeks.

The Italian said the two sides needed "to show more than ever before their engagement with the international community" to work for peace.

After Washington froze funding to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Mogherini told Abbas he could count on the EU to continue its financial backing, but warned it was "not possible to imagine" the bloc could cover the shortfall resulting from Washington's decision.

The EU and its member states are collectively the Palestinians' largest donors, Mogherini said, with nearly 359 million euros ($439 million) in support given in 2017.

The Palestinian leadership has said it will not accept the Trump administration as a mediator in peace talks with Israel and wants an internationally led process.

"The Palestinians are looking to move away from a US-led process to a more a multilateral process and there does appear to be a greater willingness on the EU side to look at such a process," said Hugh Lovatt, Israel Palestine Project Coordinator at the European Council on Foreign Relations.

Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner has been working for months with a small team to develop a new US proposal to revive peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, but no details or even news of progress have emerged.

A senior EU official said Friday the bloc "believes a plan is in the making" but is still in the dark about "the content of this plan or the parameters".

Source: AFP

Near the olive grove where Christians believe Jesus agonised before his crucifixion, an American visitor spoke of a decision by US President Donald Trump some believe also holds spiritual importance.

Phillip Dunn, the 37-year-old pastor of an evangelical Christian church in the US state of South Carolina, said he saw Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital last month as part of biblical prophecy.

"Certainly this holds a lot of significance for people in that way. We believe Christ is going to return," Dunn, part of a group of around 50 American Southern Baptists visiting Jerusalem holy sites over the weekend, said before climbing back aboard a tour bus.

Trump's controversial declaration on December 6 will be back in the spotlight over the coming days with Vice President Mike Pence arriving Sunday night for talks with Israeli officials in Jerusalem.

Dunn and his fellow believers are key backers of Trump's move in the United States and part of the Christian evangelical community there that has become an important pillar of support for his Republican party.

Pence, who stood behind Trump as he made his Jerusalem announcement, is himself an evangelical Christian.

Dunn and others on the Jerusalem tour, planned before Trump's announcement, said they were pleased with his declaration because they consider it important to support Israel and affirm its claim that the entire city is its capital.

But there were also otherworldly considerations among the group.

Some evangelicals believe, based on interpretations of scripture, that firmly establishing Jerusalem as Israel's capital and establishing a new temple there could help lead to the second coming of Jesus.

Dunn and others on the trip said interpretations of Jerusalem's place in biblical prophecy vary too widely to provide a simple answer such as that one.

- 'A lot of mystery' -

Brett Burleson, a pastor at a church in Alabama, said "there's a lot of mystery to that, so I don't claim to know how it's all going to play out".

"We do recognise that this is a place where we believe the Lord Jesus himself will return and bring a peaceful end to human history," the 47-year-old said.

Jerusalem's status is perhaps the most sensitive issue in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Israel occupied and later annexed its eastern sector in the Six-Day War of 1967 in a move never recognised by the international community.

It sees the entire city as its capital, while the Palestinians view east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

Trump's declaration deeply angered the Palestinians, with president Mahmud Abbas cancelling plans to meet Pence during his visit, which had been set for late December before being postponed.

The declaration was partly the result of a long political debate in the United States, with a law passed calling for the embassy to be moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in 1995.

It however allowed presidents to sign a waiver every six months to prevent the embassy move for national security reasons.

Trump again signed the waiver when declaring Jerusalem Israel's capital last month, but stressed he intended to move the embassy.

He also said Jerusalem's final borders and status would have to be negotiated, but Palestinians were unconvinced.

- 'Probably not' -

David Parsons, vice president of the International Christian Embassy based in Jerusalem, said he helped draft an earlier version of the embassy legislation while working for a pro-Israel lobbying firm in the United States.

"We have a large, broad movement worldwide that supports Israel on various motivations," Parsons said of the primarily evangelical Christian embassy.

"Some are motivated by biblical prophecy, but there's a broad array of views on biblical prophecy."

Zalman Shoval, a former Israeli ambassador to the United States, said Sunday that Israel has long reached out to US Christian groups for support.

Specifically mentioning evangelicals, Shoval said "we may not agree with everything anybody says about the future of Israel or the future of the country."

Some evangelicals believe Jews would eventually have to convert to Christianity.

"But we must look at the present situation," he told journalists.

"The present situation is that there is a very important body of people in America who believe -- honestly and genuinely believe -- in the future of the Jewish people and its place in the Jewish country in Israel."

Lewis Richerson, 37, a pastor from Louisiana on the Jerusalem tour, may be among those he had in mind.

His support for Trump's declaration was "primarily political" since backing Israel in part helps "promote democracy and freedom around the world."

Richerson said of the declaration: "Is that some type of biblical prophecy? Probably not."

Source: AFP

Bahraini police said Sunday they had arrested 47 people on charges linked to terrorism, including plots to assassinate "public figures", as well as filing charges against another 290.

Authorities have cracked down hard on dissent since mass street protests in 2011 which demanded an elected prime minister and constitutional monarchy in the Sunni-ruled, Shiite majority kingdom.

The government accuses Shiite Tehran of training "terrorist cells" in the tiny island state, located between rival regional heavyweights Iran and Saudi Arabia.

Iran denies involvement.

In a statement released by Bahrain's police force on Sunday, the interior minister said law enforcement had arrested 47 "terrorist agents" and foiled attacks across the country, including planned killings of "officials and public figures".

Police had also transferred the cases of 290 wanted persons and suspects to the public prosecutor's office, it said.

The statement did not specify the dates of the arrests but said they were part of "one of the most important preventive operations", triggered by "attacks on police" and a fire at a Saudi Aramco oil pipeline in Bahrain last year.

A key US ally and home to the US Fifth Fleet, Bahrain has drawn harsh criticism from international rights groups over its crackdown on dissent.

Dozens of Bahrainis have been jailed and stripped of citizenship since Arab Spring-inspired protests broke out in 2011.

Bahrain's parliament and king last year granted military courts jurisdiction to try civilians charged with "terrorism" -- a vaguely defined legal term.

The kingdom has also deported citizens whose nationalities had been revoked.

Source: AFP

Holders Saracens are through to the European Champions Cup quarter-finals after Wasps thrashed Ulster 26-7 on Sunday.

Munster and French pair La Rochelle and Racing 92 also progressed with wins against Castres, Harlequins and Leicester respectively.

Ulster came into the weekend as one of three Irish sides topping their groups but their crushing defeat at free-scoring Wasps meant they dropped to third in pool 1 and out of contention.

La Rochelle beat Harlequins 16-7 to top that stanza and despite moving up to second, Wasps missed out on the quarters.

Saracens had been in desperate waters following back-to-back pool 2 defeats to Clermont and a draw at Ospreys but they hammered Northampton 62-14 on Saturday and that was enough to see them squeak into the knock-out stages, where they will face a trip to dominant Leinster.

The Irish outfit completed a perfect pool stage campaign with a 23-14 victory at Montpellier on Saturday, but despite finishing with the best record they won't be relishing the prospect of a last-eight clash with the champions.

"See you in Dublin," said Saracens captain Brad Barritt on Twitter.

"Come on Wasps you good thing," added South African flanker Schalk Brits.

Ulster looked set to make it a perfect pool stage for the Irish but ran into an inspired Wasps, who claimed a bonus point thanks to tries from Guy Thompson, Tom Cruise, South African full-back Willie Le Roux and Jake Cooper-Woolley, Danny Cipriani going three from four with the conversions.

Ulster's reply from Sean Reidy was scant consolation.

Had Ulster won, no English side would have made it into the quarter-finals -- and that just two years after five Premiership sides made it into the last eight.

- Munster romp -

Twice winners Munster needed to beat Castres to ensure they would top pool 4 and they never looked in any danger, racking up six tries in a 48-3 thumping to qualify as third seeds, meaning they will face three-time winners Toulon in the last eight.

Keith Earls, Rhys Marshall, Simon Zebo, Alex Wootton and James Cronin crossed the whitewash while Munster also scored a penalty try as they recorded a 60th win in 64 European games at Thomond Park and a record 17th qualification for the quarter-finals.

La Rochelle scored tries through Pierre Aguillon and Kini Murimurivalu in the first half to take control against Quins, who ruined Wasps' hopes with a last-gasp winning try last week.

"For the first (participation) it's pretty exceptional," said La Rochelle fly-half Jeremy Sinzelle.

Playing in the Champions Cup for the first time, La Rochelle now face a trip to pool 5 winners Scarlets -- the first Welsh side in six years to reach the knock-out stage.

Finalists two years ago, Racing earned their berth by hanging on to beat Leicester 23-20 in the snowy English midlands.

The Parisians scored two tries in the first 12 minutes against a team who were already eliminated.

Yet Leicester responded to the early scores by Henry Chavancy and Maxime Machenaud with a display of pride. George Ford kicked three penalties before Brendon O'Connor scored a try early in the second half.

Twice in the last 15 minutes, Ford converted penalties to level the scores, but Machenaud restored the French lead both times.

In the dying seconds, Leicester won a penalty five metres from the line. The Tigers decided they would rather gamble on scoring a try to win rather than kicking a penalty for a draw, but Racing's defence held firm.

"We knew it was on the line," Racing's Irish lock forward Donnacha Ryan said. "We showed great determination in the end."

Racing will play away to French champions and last season's finalists Clermont in the quarters.

Source: AFP

Memphis Depay struck a dramatic late winner as Lyon beat 10-man Paris Saint-Germain 2-1 on Sunday to move within eight points of the Ligue 1 leaders.

Nabil Fekir gave the hosts a shock second-minute lead at Groupama Stadium with a brilliant free-kick, but PSG snatched an equaliser on the stroke of half-time as left-back Layvin Kurzawa hammered home a stunning volley.

PSG full-back Dani Alves was given a straight red card for dissent, and Lyon made their man advantage count deep into injury-time as substitute Depay picked out the top corner.

"At the start, I wanted to cross, but I saw that the keeper was on the side of the goal," Fekir told Canal+.

"It's going to be difficult (to catch PSG), and the goal of the club is to take a Champions League place."

PSG centre-back Marquinhos added: "Football is like that, they manage to shoot and score two goals."

Lyon retook second place from Marseille after inflicting only a second league defeat of the season on PSG, but Bruno Genesio's men would still need an unlikely collapse from the capital club to launch a title challenge.

"We're happy with the result, especially with beating the leaders when we're aiming for second or third place," said coach Genesio.

With Neymar missing due to a thigh problem, Kylian Mbappe returned to the away team's starting XI after scoring as a substitute in the midweek 8-0 thrashing of Dijon, when Neymar netted four times.

Lyon caught the runaway league leaders cold with less than two minutes on the clock, as French international Fekir produced a moment of magic.

Alphonse Areola was anticipating a cross when Fekir shaped to take a free-kick from the right-hand side, but the attacking midfielder whipped in a shot that flicked the inside of the post on its way past the stranded PSG goalkeeper.

The 24-year-old has now scored 16 league goals this season from 19 appearances, while it was also the earliest PSG had conceded in a Ligue 1 game since May 2007.

- Cavani left waiting for record -

PSG were rocked by Lyon's intense early pressing, but Edinson Cavani, looking for the goal he needed to break Zlatan Ibrahimovic's all-time club goalscoring record after levelling the Swede's total of 156 on Wednesday, saw a long-range lob spin narrowly wide after home keeper Anthony Lopes's poor clearance.

Mbappe, already bleeding from his head from an earlier challenge, had to be stretchered off and replaced by Julian Draxler after being flattened by some strong goalkeeping from Portuguese Lopes.

PSG levelled in first-half stoppage-time, though, as Kurzawa blasted home a magnificent left-footed volley off the crossbar from his fellow full-back Alves's dinked cross.

Unai Emery's side were reduced to 10 men before the hour mark when Brazilian Alves was sent off for dissent after becoming incensed by a free-kick decision, with Marco Verratti perhaps lucky not to follow him after knocking the red card out of referee Clement Turpin's hand.

Lyon almost retook the lead with 13 minutes to play as Rafael headed over from close range, before Cavani was also booked for dissent as PSG continued to lose their heads.

Maxwel Cornet saw a low effort turned behind by Areola, but it was 69th-minute substitute Depay who provided the winning moment in style.

The former Manchester United winger collected the ball just outside the area in the fourth minute of added time and planted a magnificent, curling finish into the top corner to score his ninth league goal of an up-and-down season.

Earlier on Sunday, fourth-placed Monaco eased to a 3-1 victory over Metz in the principality.

Brazilian left-back Jorge opened the scoring for the reigning champions on the stroke of half-time and Rachid Ghezzal added a second after visiting goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima was sent off.

Ibrahima Niane pulled one back for bottom club Metz, but Rony Lopes put any thoughts of a comeback to bed with a late tap-in.

Source: AFP

Pope Francis took a tough stand against political corruption on Sunday, hours before wrapping up his Latin American trip with a mass at an air base before a million faithful.

"There are exceptions. But by and large, Latin America's political culture is sicker than it is healthy," the pontiff told bishops from across Peru, a country that has seen its political parties and presidents plagued by dishonesty and graft.

"What is wrong with Peru, that when one finishes being president one ends up behind bars?" Francis wondered aloud.

"(Ollanta) Humala, is in jail, (Alejandro) Toledo is in jail (living in US awaiting extradition);(Alberto) Fujimori was detained until just now; Alan Garcia, isn't sure if he's in or out: What is wrong morally?" he asked.

Leaders of other Latin American nations have also been accused of graft.

"If we let ourselves be led by people who only speak the language of corruption, we are done for," the Argentinian pontiff warned, using a popular Peruvian slang term and earning some laughter.

Earlier Sunday, the 81-year-old pope delivered a homily to 500 nuns, and met with bishops.

The pontiff on Saturday had urged Latin America's faithful to fight rampant violent crime against women, comments which came during a mass in Peru's largest northern city of Trujillo.

"I wish to invite you to combat a plague across our Latin American region: the numerous cases of violent crimes against women, from beatings to rape to murder," Francis told the crowd.

Half of the 25 countries with the greatest number of murders of women are in Latin America, according to the UN Women agency.

While in Peru, the pope railed against "great business interests" for endangering the Amazon and its indigenous people and lashed out again at corruption in politics.

"There is so much damage done by this... thing that infects everything," Francis said. "And it's always the poorest and the environment that get the short end of the stick."

On Friday, he sounded a stark warning about the future of the rainforest and indigenous tribe members, saying they had "never been so threatened."

Thousands of indigenous people had traveled to meet the pontiff from throughout the Amazon basin region of Peru, Brazil and Bolivia to meet the pope in the Peruvian city of Puerto Maldonado.

Francis began his Latin American visit in Chile last Monday.

There, he highlighted the plight of vulnerable immigrants, apologized to victims of sexual abuse by Catholic priests, prayed with survivors of Augusto Pinochet's brutal dictatorship, and called for protection of Chile's persecuted indigenous people.

Source: AFP

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Sunday said the West's "Russiaphobia" was worse than during the Cold War and warned that Moscow has "red lines" that should be respected.

"This Russiaphobia is unprecedented. We never saw this during the Cold War," Lavrov, fresh from a visit to New York on Thursday and Friday, said in an interview with the Russian daily Kommersant's online edition.

"Back then there were some rules, some decorum... Now, all decorum has been cast aside," he said.

Lavrov warned: "Russia has its 'red lines'.... Serious politicians in the West understand that these 'red lines' should be respected as they were during the Cold War."

Lavrov denounced what he called "efforts to punish Russia by any means possible," calling sanctions imposed by the United States and the European Union "absurd and baseless".

Russia was slapped with sanctions in 2014 because of its annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine, with Kiev and the West accusing Moscow of backing rebels -- allegations the Russian authorities deny.

Russia is also mired in a doping scandal which led to the exclusion of its athletes from the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro and the World Athletics Championships in London last year.

The International Olympics Committee has also suspended Russia from next month's Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. "Clean" Russian athletes will be allowed to take part under the Olympic banner.

"There are a number of indications that apart from real cases of doping among our athletes... there is a totally orchestrated campaign" targeting Russia, Lavrov said.

Source: AFP

 South Korea went into swoon mode Sunday -- at the feet of a party apparatchik from the North.

Hyon Song-Wol is, however, no dourly-dressed, suit-wearing bureaucrat from the nuclear-armed nation, but the leader of Pyongyang's most popular girl band.

Cameras followed her every move as the glamorous songstress swept through Seoul at the head of a North Korean delegation sent to inspect performance venues for the Pyeongchang Olympic Games.

Wearing a fur muffler and exuding an air of confident calm, Hyun was unphased by the throng of cameras that followed her everywhere.

Believed to be in her late 30s or early 40s, Hyon is as close to a megastar as North Korea probably has.

Her "Excellent Horse-like Lady" -- a term describing a smart and energetic woman -- was a big hit in the 2000s.

She is also a politically powerful figure as an alternate member of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party's central committee.

Hyon was once rumoured to be a former girlfriend of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un and became the subject of lurid and -- as it turned out -- incorrect 2013 reports in the South that she and a dozen other musicians had been executed for appearing in porn movies.

North Korea watchers dismiss speculation over her ties with Kim, saying in the deeply patriarchal North, romantic partners of leaders past and present are forced to keep a low profile.

Hyon heads the 10-member Moranbong Band -- the public face of North Korean soft power.

The all-female outfit perform a mixture of Western-style pop and patriotic North Korean numbers, and are frequently seen sporting miniskirts and shoulder-baring dresses.

Their style -- highly unusual in the conservative North -- is seen as quaintly provincial in the South, with its slick, image-obsessed pop scene, and it has also earned them a cult following among North Korean watchers.

The band is not expected to make the trip south for the Games next month, but other musical groups -- as well as hundreds of "cheerleaders" will be there.

Hyon's presence in the run-up to the international event -- which until recently was marked by global tensions over North Korea's missile and nuclear programme -- is seen by some as the latest attempt to capitalise on the appeal of its performers.

South Korea's voracious media followed her every move Sunday, with tiny details about her facial expressions and fashion style making headlines.

Hyon's attire -- from her shoes to an expensive-looking fur -- drew intense debate, with one fashion analyst likening her style to the US first lady.

"I think she was trying to emulate the style of Melania Trump... and trying to showcase the image of being rich by wearing the fur," Heo Euna, head of Korea Image Strategy Institute, told Yonhap news agency.

Pyongyang has often deployed young women to soften its international image, from hundreds of "cheerleaders" sent to previous sporting events in the South, to waitresses at the North's network of overseas restaurants, who put on a nightly musical and dance show for clients.

Source: AFP

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said Sunday he would seek a new truce with the ELN group in a bid to salvage peace talks that had been set back after a recent offensive by the rebel group.

The ELN indicated a willingness to resume negotiations.

Santos wrote on Twitter that the government's chief negotiator, Gustavo Bell, "will travel to Quito to explore the possibility of a new ceasefire that will allow peace talks with the ELN to continue."

The president said his decision followed a call from United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who urged him to renew dialogue with the leftist guerrillas. Guterres had met with Santos in Bogota earlier this month to discuss the peace process.

The government suspended talks on Wednesday following an offensive by the ELN -- the National Liberation Army, the last active guerrilla group in Colombia -- that ended a 101-day ceasefire.

In recent days, the guerrillas have attacked government forces and targeted petroleum infrastructure. At least four soldiers have been killed, and some 22 presumed rebels were captured in a government counteroffensive, officials said.

The ELN has meanwhile released a statement expressing a willingness to resume the peace talks, which began in February 2017, and to discuss "all pending issues."

It said it was prepared "to agree to another ceasefire."

Santos, who is set to step down in August, hopes to reach an agreement similar to the one signed with the much larger FARC guerrilla group in November 2016. That accord led to the Communist rebels' disarmament and transformation into a political party.

Colombia's long internal conflict has had a devastating impact, leaving eight million people dead, unaccounted-for or displaced.

Source: AFP

Gunmen stormed a luxury hotel in Kabul and killed at least 18 people, most of them foreigners, sparking a 12-hour battle with Afghan forces backed by Norwegian troops that left terrified guests scrambling to escape.

Six Ukrainians were among those killed in the Taliban-claimed assault on the six-storey Intercontinental Hotel in the Afghan capital, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said on Twitter.

Afghan interior ministry spokesman Najib Danish said 14 foreigners were among the dead, but did not specify their nationalities, in comments to Afghanistan's Tolo News hours after the overnight attack that ended Sunday.

Terrified hotel guests climbed down bedsheets tied to balconies to escape the gunmen rampaging through the hilltop hotel overlooking the Afghan capital.

One lost his grip and fell in Tolo News television footage, which also showed black smoke and flames billowing from the hotel.

Special forces were lowered by helicopters during the night onto the roof of the landmark 1960s building. Afghan security forces killed all six attackers, the interior ministry said.

They were aided by Norwegian troops, Norwegian military officials told public broadcaster NRK. Norway has helped train Afghan elite forces since 2007.

"I want to say this explicitly and frankly and precisely... in total 14 foreigners and four Afghans were martyred in the attack on the hotel," Danish said on Tolo, adding that more than 160 people had been rescued during the attack.

Afghan officials have been known to understate death tolls in high-profile attacks.

Danish also said preliminary information showed the attackers may have already been inside the hotel before launching the assault, but gave no further details and warned an investigation had to be carried out.

But he did say that among the dead were 11 people from Afghan airline Kam Air. The company's CEO, Captain Samad Usman Samadi, earlier said 42 of its personnel had been at the hotel during the attack -- at least 16 of whom were still missing.

"We fear for their lives," he told AFP.

A foreign ministry official told AFP that senior Afghan diplomat Abdullah Poyan was among the fatalities.

Mufti Ahmad Farzan, a member of the High Peace Council, responsible for reconciliation efforts with militants, was also killed in the attack, Danish said.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the assault via email. The attack followed security warnings in recent days to avoid hotels and other locations frequented by foreigners in war-torn Kabul.

"We are hiding in our rooms. I beg the security forces to rescue us as soon as possible before they reach and kill us," one guest, who did not want to be named, told AFP by telephone during the siege.

His phone has been switched off since then.

- 'Fleeing like crazy' -

Officials said four gunmen burst into the hotel, which is not part of the global InterContinental chain, on Saturday night, opening fire and taking dozens of people hostage.

Afghan Telecom regional director Aziz Tayeb, who was one of dozens of people at the hotel attending an IT conference, said he saw the attackers enter.

"Everything became chaotic in a moment. I hid behind a pillar and I saw people who were enjoying themselves a second ago screaming and fleeing like crazy, and some of them falling down, hit by bullets," Tayeb told AFP.

Local resident Abdul Sattar said he had spoken by phone to friends who are hotel staff and had been trapped inside.

"Suddenly (militants) attacked the dinner gathering... (then) they broke into the rooms, took some people hostage and they opened fire on some of them," he told AFP.

Interior ministry deputy spokesman Nasrat Rahimi said the attackers were armed with light weapons and rocket-propelled grenades when they stormed the hotel.

Security in Kabul has been ramped up since May 31 when a massive truck bomb killed some 150 people and wounded around 400 -- mostly civilians.

- Devastating attacks -

But the resurgent Taliban and Islamic State are both scaling up their assaults on the city.

The attack on the Intercontinental was just one of several bloody assaults Sunday.

In a village in the northern province of Balkh, Taliban militants went from house to house in the middle of the night, pulling police from their homes and shooting them dead.

Syria's army today announced it had captured the vital Abu Duhur military airport in the country's northwest, more than two years after losing it to rebels and jihadists.

"After a string of special operations, units from our armed forces in coordination with allied fighters succeeded in their military operation and took control of the Abu Duhur military airport in Idlib province," the army said in a statement.

"Engineering units are now dismantling and clearing mines, explosives, and bombs planted by terrorists in the area," he said.

An alliance of jihadists and rebels overran the vast majority of Idlib province in 2015, seizing Abu Duhur in September of that year.

Syrian troops had been advancing on the northwest province of Idlib, and Abu Duhur in particular, as part of a fierce offensive launched in late December with Russian backing.

Regime loyalists have seized dozens of towns and villages as part of the assault, but the air base's capture marks the first military installation Syrian troops have managed to retake in Idlib.

Moscow today confirmed that allied troops were now in control of Abu Duhur.

With its capture, the Syrian army said, troops could now secure a key route leading from the neighbouring province of Aleppo south to the capital Damascus.

Syria's uprising erupted in 2011 with protests against the rule of President Bashar al-Assad, but a government crackdown paved the way for a full-blown civil war.

The government lost swathes of Syrian territory in the first few years of the conflict but, since Russia militarily intervened in 2015, it has steadily regained the upper hand.

Source: AFP

The contract covered all the details -- a clean dorm for the workers, hot showers three times a week, and time twice a week to "study the policies and worship" the leader Kim Jong-un.

"They look at their leader like he's a god," Lin said, noting the salaries were to be paid directly to the North Korean manager.

As he spoke to AFP on his office sofa sipping tea, he rattled off the UN resolution numbers that have crippled his once thriving garment business.

UN Resolution 2371 turned Lin's plans upside down -- his workers arrived two days after China announced its implementation: no new contracts with North Korea.

For the past 10 years, Lin hauled material and cloth to factories across the river in Sinuiju and Pyongyang, where North Korean workers turned it into exportable jackets, coats, and other clothing.

As new sanctions came down, he saw the writing on the wall and began planning.

"We thought if we can't trade with North Korea, well we can get North Koreans to work for us in China."

Today, Lin's three-floor garment factory is mostly empty. There are no able and cheap Chinese workers in the city, he said. Garment imports from the North have also been sanctioned.

There were 30,000 North Koreans working in Dandong before the August sanctions but nearly 6,000 have gone home, he said.

- Dandong New District -

Many of the apartments, shopfronts and restaurant spaces in Dandong's New District are empty.

"There's nothing over here," said Yue Yue, a real estate agent at the New District's Singapore City development, where only one-third of the apartments have been sold.

"We've dropped the prices a bit for the apartments further from the river," she admitted, noting they had been lowered more than 30 percent.

"I'm hoping for the bridge to open."

Lu of the Border Institute says that is not likely with the current sanctions regime in place.

North Korean-run businesses in the city have begun to close, with several restaurants forced to shut their doors.

Truck and train traffic on the older, narrow one-lane Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge that carries most of the trade is said to be down.

Roughly 90 percent of the North's past exports have been sanctioned and new measures now target goods travelling in the other direction.

Wang Xueliang, who runs the Dandong Balance Trade Company, said he is no longer allowed to send tractors, trucks and cars to the North.

Before he could sell one or two vehicles a month to North Korean clients who paid in yuan or dollars.

China cut off all vehicle sales to the North in early January, he said.

"For the moment we will keep operating," Wang said. "But it's having an effect."

Source: AFP

Turkish anti-riot police on Sunday blocked protests in Istanbul and the Kurdish-majority southeast against Ankara's military operation inside Syria.

At least seven people were detained in Kadikoy on the Asian side of Istanbul, an AFP photographer at the scene reported.

One protester was seen with his hands tied behind by the police officers with others were carried roughly away.

The rally had been called by the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), whose members are facing a series of legal challenges for alleged ties with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

The police action followed President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's warning of a "heavy price" for anyone joining protests against the Turkish army's operation to oust Syrian Kurdish militia from northern Syria.

It came a day after Turkey launched its operation with Ankara-backed Syrian rebels to root out the Syrian Kurdish Peoples' Protection Units (YPG) militia from Afrin.

Turkey views the YPG militia as "terrorists" linked to the PKK, which has fought against the Turkish state since 1984 and is designated as a terror group by Ankara and its Western allies.

In the Kurdish-majority southeastern city of Diyarbakir, police also blocked a protest, surrounding the HDP headquarters and preventing party officials from making a press declaration, an AFP journalist in the city reported.

"People in Afrin will defend themselves. Turks ... will not gain anything, it is impossible. I call on the international community ... to stop Turkey," protester Hakki Karagoz said.

Source: AFP

Iranian officials on Sunday voiced support for efforts to end a dispute in neighbouring Iraq sparked by a Kurdish referendum on independence last year and underscored the need for Iraqi unity.

President Hassan Rouhani and the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani, made the comments during talks in Tehran with the prime minister of Iraq's Kurdish autonomous region.

Rouhani told Nechirvan Barzani that Tehran backs "a united Iraq" in which "the legal and legitimate rights" of the Kurdish people are recognised in line with the constitution, the presidency said.

Shamkhani said Tehran "will do everything in its power to support efforts to ease the differences" between Baghdad and the Kurdish regional capital Arbil, official IRNA news agency reported.

Iraq's Kurds voted overwhelmingly in September to establish their own country but the non-binding vote was deemed illegal by the federal government in Baghdad which took retaliatory measures.

The referendum was also condemned in neighbouring Iran and Turkey.

On Saturday, Barzani met Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi in Baghdad for the first time since the failed push by the Kurds to secede.

A statement from Abadi's office said they discussed the "political and security situation and ways of settling disputes".

After September's vote, Baghdad imposed an air blockade on international flights to the Kurdish autonomous region's two main airports and retook disputed areas, including oil fields from which the Kurds derived the bulk of their revenue.

Shamkhani said Tehran hoped to "contribute to the success" of the dialogue that has opened between Baghdad and Arbil.

Source: AFP

 Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of northern Greece's biggest city Thessaloniki on Sunday, police said, in a long-running row between Athens and Skopje over the use of the name Macedonia.

Athens argues that the name Macedonia suggests that Skopje has territorial claims to the northern Greek region of the same name, of which Thessaloniki is the capital.

The region was the centre of Alexander the Great's ancient kingdom, a source of Greek pride.

Police said more than 90,000 demonstrators had joined the protest in Thessaloniki, organised by hardline clerics, far-right leaders and Greek diaspora groups.

Protest leaders said at least 400,000 people had turned up.

"We estimate there were at least 400,000 people. It is impressive," rally organiser Anastasios Porgialidis told AFP.

Some minor scuffles erupted between the protesters and anarchists who had organised a counter-demonstration, prompting police to intervene with tear gas.

The rally drew members of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party who had gathered around the statue of Alexander the Great along with local clergy.

Representatives from the main opposition party, New Democracy, were also present despite a tacit order from its liberal-minded leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis to boycott the protests.

On Sunday after the rally, however, Mitsotakis hailed the "impressive turnout that proves the particularly great sensitivity of society to the issue".

Cretans in traditional costumes who travelled from the southern island with their horses, as well as people from northern Greece wearing costumes from the Macedonian wars era a century ago, crowded at the White Tower on the Thessaloniki waterfront from early in the morning.

Police said 284 buses had transported people from around Greece to the port city.

- 'Not negotiable' -

Greece and Macedonia returned to the United Nations last week hoping to reach a compromise that could end the 27-year dispute over the former Yugoslav republic's name.

Greece's objections to the use of the name Macedonia since the Balkan country's independence in 1991 have hampered the tiny nation's bid to join the European Union and NATO.

"We want to warn our politicians not to dare to betray us. Macedonia is Greek and this is not negotiable", said protester Dimitris Triantafillidis, 50, a shop owner from the northern regional district of Pieria.

The UN negotiator Matthew Nimetz -- a 24-year veteran on the issue -- said last week that he was "very hopeful" that a solution was within reach.

Despite the nationalist fervour that is also being fed by Golden Dawn, Greeks appear to be less militant on the issue than in the past.

In 1992, more than one million people -- 10 percent of the population -- joined a rally in Thessaloniki to proclaim that "Macedonia is Greek".

According to a survey conducted for Greek radio station 24/7 by the Alco polling group, 63 percent of respondents said they thought it was in Greece's best interests to seek a mutually acceptable solution at the UN talks.

And the Greek Orthodox Church, which is traditionally opposed to the use of the term Macedonia by Skopje and led the 1992 rally, appears to have distanced itself from Sunday's events.

Its leader Archbishop Ieronymos on Thursday reportedly told Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras that "national unity is needed... (not) protests and shouts".

- 'National stupidity' -

Tsipras, who is expected to meet with his Macedonian counterpart Zoran Zaev at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, next week, said in an interview published Sunday: "If there is an opportunity for a solution, it would be a national stupidity not to make good use of it."

However, he told Ethnos newspaper that he could understand "the concerns and sensitivities" of the Greeks of the north.

Macedonia is known as the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) at the United Nations, although the Security Council acknowledged this was a provisional name when it agreed to membership.

If a deal is reached at the UN talks, it will be put before Greek parliament for approval, with the government expecting the compromise name to be approved despite opposition within some parties.

According to Macedonian media, Nimetz has proposed five alternatives all containing the name.

Source: AFP

The Turkish military has started an air and ground operation against Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia whom Ankara views as "terrorists" linked to outlawed militants.

Turkey's last such cross-border operation -- against the Islamic State extremist group and the Kurdish militia -- was between August 2016 and March 2017.

Launched together with Syrian rebels, Turkish officials hailed its completion as a great success.

Ankara views the YPG and its Democratic Union Party (PYD) political wing as branches of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) which has waged an insurgency inside Turkey since 1984.

It is blacklisted as a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and the European Union.

But why has Ankara launched this offensive and what are the risks for Turkey?

The reasons

A Turkish official who did not wish to be named said the offensive "aims to liberate the area by eliminating the PKK-YPG-linked administration" in the region of Afrin, accusing the YPG of "repressing the local population through anti-democratic and authoritarian means".

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said one objective was to give Afrin back to "its rightful owners" while Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said the offensive aimed to replace terror with peace in the region.

According to Max Hoffman, associate director and a Turkey expert at Center for American Progress, Turkey is "deeply unhappy" with the existing balance of power in northern Syria –- where the regime and the Kurds are ascendant.

"Ankara fears that, effectively, a leftist Kurdish statelet deeply hostile to Turkey will be formalised on their southern border," he said.

The militia has been a key ally of the US in its fight against IS, with Washington providing air cover as well as weaponry during the YPG's fight to recapture IS strongholds in Syria last year.

Military analyst Abdullah Agar said US support had "really deepened", causing "a lot of concern" for Turkey.

The risks

The Turkish official said Turkey would learn from its 2016-17 operation in Syria dubbed Euphrates Shield.

"In our efforts to restore peace and stability in Afrin, we will draw from our experiences in Jarabulus, Azaz and Al-Bab," the official said, referring to regions in Syria recaptured from IS during the operation.

The YPG is a disciplined and well-trained force, Aron Lund, a fellow with The Century Foundation, told AFP.

The Kurds "will surely put up hard resistance, but I don't know how heavily armed they are and a determined Turkish attack is probably difficult to fend off," he said.

"If Turkey decides to throw major resources at this battle, and Russia and (Syrian President Bashar al-) Assad stand aside, the balance of power does not look favourable to the Kurds," Lund said.

He added the YPG was likely to do its best to create "diplomatic pressure" to bring Turkey's attacks to an end.

"I cannot foresee that this operation will be easy," Agar said, pointing to the thousands of YPG fighters in the region and around 250,000 civilians living there.

The Turkish army said it was taking every precaution to prevent harm to civilians.

The consequences

Analysts say a critical factor will be whether the offensive has any effect on the peace process for Syria that has been backed by Turkey and Russia in recent weeks.

"Everybody has been watching to see if this connects to the preparations for the Russian-sponsored talks in Sochi or not," Lund said, referring to peace talks to be held on January 30 in the Russian Black Sea resort.

While Moscow has a military presence in the area and a cordial relationship with the YPG, Hoffman suggested the offensive could strain those ties.

Referring to a statement from the PYD saying Russia was as much to blame for this attack as Turkey, Hoffman said the offensive could "drive a wedge" between Moscow and the YPG.

Hoffman added that if the offensive "goes well from Erdogan's perspective and he pushes on into Manbij or Kobane (towns in northern Syria), it could prompt an outright break with the US."

But Lund said the operation may have domestic political ramifications if Ankara is trapped in a military or diplomatic quagmire over Afrin.

"Erdogan is working hard to muster solid majorities in time for the very important Turkish elections of 2019," he said.

The presidential elections in November 2019 follow last year's referendum in which Turks approved creating an executive presidency.

"He'd be well served by a quick, neat military victory, but a fiasco would of course play into the hands of the opposition," Lund said.

Source: AFP

Saskia Quirke has been appointed acting fashion director at Women's Health. Saskia will be covering Charlie Lambros' maternity leave and will commence her role 22 January. As well as receiving information on activewear and SS18 collections, Saskia will also be working on brand partnerships.

In addition to her role on the magazine Saskia is available for freelance shoots, commissions and projects. Her website can be found at saskiaquirke.com 

Source:diarydirectory.

 US Vice President Mike Pence will meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and address Israel's parliament Monday on a visit that will see him snubbed by the Palestinians, deeply angered by the White House's Jerusalem policy.

The visit, initially scheduled for December before being postponed, is the final leg of a trip that has included talks in Egypt and Jordan as well as a stop at a US military facility near the Syrian border.

Controversy back home over a budget dispute that has led to a US government shutdown has trailed Pence, and he sought to blame Democrats for the impasse during a speech to troops at the military facility on Sunday.

Arab outrage over US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital on December 6 had prompted the cancellation of several planned meetings ahead of Pence's tour.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas is refusing to meet Pence because of the declaration, making his visit a rare one by a high-ranking US official not to include talks with the Palestinians.

Abbas was to meet European Union foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday and was expected to ask them to officially recognise the state of Palestine "as a way to respond" to Trump's declaration, Palestinian foreign minister Riad al-Malki told AFP.

Israel will however enthusiastically welcome Pence, whose administration has pledged staunch support for the country.

He will meet Netanyahu on Monday before addressing the country's parliament later in the day -- a speech that Israeli Arab lawmakers will boycott, calling Pence "dangerous and messianic".

On Tuesday, the devout Christian will visit Jerusalem's Western Wall, one of the holiest sites in Judaism. Trump became the first sitting US president to visit the site when he travelled to Jerusalem in May 2017.

- 'Soon re-engage'? -

The site is located in east Jerusalem, occupied by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed in a move never recognised by the international community.

The city's status is perhaps the most sensitive in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the Palestinians' reaction to Trump's recognition was an illustration of the importance placed upon it.

Beyond refusing to meet Pence, Abbas has said the United States can no longer serve as mediator in Middle East peace talks and the Palestinians were planning a general strike on Tuesday to protest Trump's declaration.

Netanyahu said Sunday night, using Abbas' Arabic nickname: "Regarding peace, I have a message to Abu Mazen. There's no substitute to the American leadership in leading the diplomatic process."

"Whoever won't discuss peace with the Americans, doesn't want peace," he said.

Unrest since the announcement has left at least 17 Palestinians dead, most of them killed in clashes with Israeli forces. One Israeli has been killed in that time.

Pence, speaking at the military facility, said he hopes "the Palestinian Authority will soon re-engage".

Netanyahu appeared more interested in talking with Pence on other issues, including Iran, Israel's main enemy.

Pence said on Sunday the United States "will no longer tolerate Iran's attempts to spread its malign influence or strengthen terrorists across this region".

"And as President Trump has made clear, the United States of America will never allow Iran to acquire a usable nuclear weapon. That is our promise to our allies and to the world."

- 'Historic decision' -

In Amman on Sunday, Jordan's King Abdullah II, a key US ally, voiced concern over Trump's Jerusalem recognition as Pence visited.

"Jerusalem is key to Muslims and Christians as it is to Jews," he said. "It is key to peace in the region. And key to enabling Muslims to effectively fight some of the root causes of radicalisation."

Pence called Trump's Jerusalem move a "historic decision" but said the United States respected Jordan's role as custodian of the city's holy sites.

"The United States of America remains committed, if the parties agree, to a two-state solution. We are committed to restarting the peace process, and Jordan does now and has always played a central role in facilitating peace in the region," Pence said.

The US move to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital broke with decades of international consensus that the city's status should be settled as part of a two-state peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians.

Turkish troops and tanks entered Syria on Sunday to push an offensive against Kurdish militia as rockets hit border towns in apparent retaliation and the United States urged Ankara to show restraint.

Turkey on Saturday launched operation "Olive Branch" seeking to oust from the Afrin region of northern Syria the Peoples' Protection Units (YPG) which Ankara considers a terror group.

But the campaign risks further increasing tensions with Turkey's NATO ally Washington, which has supported the YPG in the fight against Islamic State (IS) jihadists and warned Ankara about distracting the focus from that fight.

In its first reaction to the offensive, the US State Department urged Turkey Sunday "to exercise restraint and ensure that its military operations remain limited in scope and duration and scrupulous to avoid civilian casualties".

"We call on all parties to remain focused on the central goal of defeating" IS, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement.

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said troops crossed into YPG-controlled region in Syria at 0805 GMT, the Dogan news agency reported.

Thirty-two Turkish planes destroyed a total of 45 targets including ammunition dumps and refuges used by the YPG on the second day of the operation, the Turkish army said.

Turkish troops were advancing alongside forces from the Ankara-backed rebel Free Syrian Army (FSA) and were already five kilometres (three miles) inside Syria, state media said.

An AFP photographer saw more Turkish tanks lined up at the border waiting to cross into Syrian territory.

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said in televised comments several villages had already been taken in the advance.

But a YPG spokesman claimed Turkish forces seeking to enter Afrin had been "blocked" and that it had hit two Turkish tanks.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said a total of 18 civilians had been killed so far in the two-day operation. Ankara denied any civilian casualties, with Cavusoglu accusing the YPG of sending out "nonsense propaganda and baseless lies".

- 'A very short time' -

In his first comments on the offensive since it began, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed hope the "operation will be finished in a very short time" and vowed "we will not take a step back".

Following calls from some Turkish pro-Kurdish politicians for people to take to the streets, he warned that anyone protesting in Turkey against the operation would pay "a heavy price".

Police stopped demonstrations against the campaign taking place in the mainly Kurdish southeastern city of Diyarbakir and in Istanbul, making arrests, AFP correspondents said.

In a sign of the risks to Turkey, six rockets fired from Syria hit the Turkish border town of Reyhanli Sunday, killing one Syrian refugee and wounding 32 people, its mayor said.

Earlier, several rockets hit the Turkish border town of Kilis without causing fatalities.

The operation is Turkey's second major incursion into Syria during the seven-year civil war after the August 2016-March 2017 Euphrates Shield campaign in an area to the east of Afrin, against both the YPG and IS.

Turkey accuses the YPG of being the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) which has waged a rebellion in Turkey for more than three decades and is regarded as a terror group by Ankara and the EU and US.

Afrin is an enclave of YPG control, cut off from the longer strip of northern Syria that the group controls to the east, extending to the Iraqi border which has a US military presence.

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag ruled out the risk of a clash with American forces, saying they were not present in the Afrin region.

Yildirim was quoted as saying that the Turkish forces aimed to create a security zone some 30 kilometres (18 miles) deep inside Syria.

- 'Brutal degradation' -

French Defence Minister Florence Parly said the fighting "must stop" as it could deter YPG fighters helping the international coalition against IS.

Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said France was calling the UN Security Council meeting as it was deeply worried by the "brutal degradation of the situation" in flashpoints like Afrin.

Crucial is the attitude of Russia, which has a military presence in the area and is also working with Turkey on a drive to end the civil war.

Tensions mounted on Sunday at refugee camps in Bangladesh holding hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims over an operation to send them back to Myanmar, from where they have fled following a military crackdown.
Dozens of refugees stood holding cloth banners opposing their transfer as UN Special Rapporteur Yanghee Lee visited camps along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border over the weekend. Some refugee leaders said Bangladesh military officials had threatened to seize their food ration cards if they did not return.
Under an agreement signed last week, Myanmar is set to receive Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh at two reception centers and a temporary camp near their common border starting on Tuesday and continuing over the next two years.
The refugees refuse to go back unless their safety can be guaranteed and Myanmars grant their demands to be given citizenship and inclusion in a list of recognized ethnic minorities. They are also asking that their homes, mosques and schools that were burned down or damaged in the military operation be rebuilt.
Over 655,500 Muslim Rohingya fled to Bangladesh after the Myanmar military cracked down in the northern part of Rakhine state in response to militant attacks on security forces on Aug. 25. The UN described the operation as ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya, which Myanmar denies.
Rohingya elders told Reuters that Bangladeshi army officials have called or met them over the last two days, asking them to prepare lists of families from their camps for repatriation. Four of them said they were among more than 70 camp leaders – representing thousands of refugees – who met army officers at the Gungdum camp on Saturday.
“When we said we cannot provide the lists because people are not ready to return, they asked us to bring their WP cards,” said Musa, a leader at the Gungdum camp, referring to relief cards provided by the UN’s World Food Programme.
Rashedul Hasan, a spokesman for the Bangladesh army, said he was not aware of army men threatening to take away food cards.
Hundreds of refugees queue up at relief centers across the camps each morning to collect food using the cards. These centers are managed by the Bangladesh army.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has repeatedly said Rohingya returns need to be voluntary.
“UNHCR has not been part of discussions (on repatriation) to date, but has offered support to engage in the process to ensure that the voices of refugees are heard,” Caroline Gluck, a senior protection officer for the agency, said by email on Saturday.
“The pace of returns should be determined by the refugees themselves.”

Source: arabnews

French President Emmanuel Macron says he shares the outrage over President Donald Trump’s disparaging comment about Africa, arguing that such language hurts efforts to bring peace and development to the continent.
Macron told the BBC’s Andrew Marr program in an interview broadcast Sunday that the words attributed to Trump — “shithole countries” — were inappropriate. His expression of solidarity came after Marr asked the French president whether he shared the outrage of African nations that were offended by the comment.
“For sure,” Macron said. “It’s not a word you can use. And if we want, precisely, to build peace, development in these countries and a respectful relationship,” you can’t use those words “by definition.”
“And I think a lot of our issues in both the Middle East and Africa are due to a lot of frustrations, due to a lot of past humiliations and we have to understand that.” Macron continued. “And I do believe we have to respect all the countries. That’s what we owe them, and that’s much more efficient.”
Trump referred to African nations as “shithole countries” during a White House meeting on immigration this month, according to several participants. The president denied saying those words, though he acknowledged using tough language.
In the BBC interview, Macron went on to say that he has a “very strong” relationship with Trump, noting that the billionaire US leader is not a “classical politician.” He said he disagrees with Trump on some issues, but wants to work with Washington.
For example, the two countries must work together to force North Korea to return to the negotiating table over its nuclear arms program, Macron said. He was less conciliatory on the Paris climate change treaty, saying the more than 180 countries that agreed to the deal will not renegotiate it to satisfy the US.
“I call him very regularly,” Macron said of Trump. “I’m always extremely direct and frank, as he is. Sometimes I manage to convince him, sometimes I fail.”

Source: arabnews

An Iraqi court on Sunday sentenced to death a German woman of Moroccan origin for joining Daesh, a spokesman said.
The German national was captured by Iraqi forces during the battle for Mosul last year, the spokesman said, declining to identify her.
She can appeal the sentence, said Abdul-Sattar Al-Birqdar, spokesman for Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council in Baghdad.
“She confessed that she traveled with her two daughters from Germany to Syria and then joined Daesh in Iraq,” Birqdar said. The woman was convicted of participating in attacks on Iraqi security forces and offering the militant group logistical support, said Birqdar.
Thousands of foreigners have been fighting for Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
Iraq declared victory last month over Daesh, which had seized control of nearly a third of the country in 2014. However, the group continues to carry out bombings and other attacks in the country.
Separately, Iraq’s Supreme Federal Court on Sunday ruled against calls by Sunni and Kurdish lawmakers to delay a parliamentary election, expected to be called for May, to allow hundreds of thousands of people displaced by war to return home.
Shiite politicians, including Prime Minister Haider Abadi, argued delaying the election would be unconstitutional.
The election must be held “within the timeframe provided by the constitution,” the court said in a statement.
Parliament is expected to meet on Monday to validate May 12 as the date for the ballot, as suggested by the government, or agree another date in May.
Abadi is seeking re-election, building on a surge in his popularity among Iraq’s majority Shiite Arab community after leading the three-year fight against Daesh militants, supported by a US-led coalition.
“Postponing the elections would set a dangerous precedent, undermining the constitution and damaging Iraq’s long-term democratic development,” the US Embassy in Baghdad said in a statement on Thursday.
The US had shown understanding for Abadi’s move in October to dislodge Kurdish fighters from the oil rich northern region of Kirkuk, even though the Kurds are traditional allies of Washington and played a key part in the war against Daesh.
Tens of thousands of Kurds were displaced as a result of the takeover of the ethnically mixed areas of Kirkuk and its surroundings by Iraqi forces supported by Iranian-backed paramilitary groups.
Rouhani aims for better ties with Iraqi Kurds
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday called for boosting relations with the Iraqi Kurdish region as part of a united Iraq, Iranian media reported, after ties were strained over an independence referendum in the area last year.
The call came during a visit by the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region’s Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani, the first such high-level trip to Iran since last year’s Kurdish independence referendum which Iran strongly opposed.
The Kurdish referendum on Sept. 25, which produced an overwhelming “yes” for independence, angered Iraq’s central government and neighbors Iran and Turkey, which have their own restive Kurdish minorities.
“President Rouhani stressed the historical and deep-rooted ties between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Kurds of Iraq, and said all efforts should be made to strengthen the close relations between the two nations of Iran and Iraq,” the state news agency IRNA reported.

Source: arabnews

Turkish ground troops entered Syria on Sunday to push an offensive against Kurdish militia as rocket fire hit a border town in apparent retaliation.
Turkey on Saturday launched operation “Olive Branch” seeking to oust from the Afrin region of northern Syria the Peoples’ Protection Units (YPG) which Ankara considers a terror group.
But the campaign risks further increasing tensions with Turkey’s NATO ally the United States — which has supported the YPG in the fight against Daesh terrorists — and also needs at least the tacit support of Russia to succeed.
Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said troops crossed into the YPG-controlled region in Syria at 0805 GMT, the Dogan news agency reported.
Turkish artillery and war planes pounded YPG sites around Afrin and total of 153 targets, including YPG refuges and weapons stores have now been hit, according to the army.
The state-run Anadolu news agency said the Turkish troops, whose number was not specified, were advancing alongside forces from the pro-Ankara rebel Free Syrian Army (FSA) and were already five kilometers (three miles) inside Syria.
An AFP correspondent on the southwestern edge of the Afrin region saw a warplane bombing the western outskirts of the area early on Sunday.
A small unit from a Turkish-backed rebel group was manning a monitoring point on a hilltop overlooking several Kurdish-controlled villages below.


The operation is Turkey’s second major incursion into Syria during the seven-year civil war after the August 2016-March 2017 Euphrates Shield campaign in an area to the east of Afrin against both the YPG and IS.
The army said IS was also being targeted in this operation although it no longer has any major presence in the Afrin area.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had repeatedly vowed that Turkey would root out the “nests of terror” in Syria of the YPG, which Ankara accuses of being the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
The PKK, which has waged a rebellion in the Turkish southeast for more than three decades, is regarded as a terror group not just by Ankara and but also its Western allies.
Afrin is an enclave of YPG control, cut off from the longer strip of northern Syria that the group controls to the east extending to the Iraqi border. Turkey wants the YPG to retreat east of the Euphrates River.
Yildirim was quoted as saying that the Turkish forces aimed to create a security zone some 30 kilometers (18 miles) deep inside Syria.
The YPG said that after the first strikes on Saturday 10 people were killed, including seven civilians. The Turkish army said there were casualties but insisted they were all members either of the YPG or the PKK.
A YPG spokesman claimed that the Turkish forces had sought to enter Afrin “but we blocked the attack.”
In a sign of the risks to Turkey, four rockets fired by the YPG hit the border town of Kilis early Sunday, damaging one building and lightly wounding a woman.
“No one lost their life,” Kilis governor Mehmet Tekinarslan said, quoted by Dogan. “They can fire one rocket at us and we will fire 100 back. There is no need to worry.”


Turkey risks entering a diplomatic minefield with its action in Syria and the foreign ministry lost no time in inviting the ambassadors of all major powers to be briefed on the offensive.
The ministry said it had even informed Damascus through its Istanbul consulate. But the Syrian regime, which is at odds with Turkey, strongly denied this, denouncing the operation as a “brutal Turkish aggression.”
There was no immediate comment from the United States on the offensive but ahead of its launch a senior State Department official had raised concerns it risked being harmful for security in the region.
But even more crucial is the attitude of Russia, which has a military presence in the area and is also working with Turkey on a drive to end the civil war.
The Russian foreign ministry voiced concern and urged Turkey to show restraint. And the defense ministry said its troops were withdrawing from the Afrin area to ensure their security and prevent any “provocation.”
Timur Akhmetov, Ankara-based researcher at the Russian International Affairs Council, told AFP that Russia appeared to have given the “green light” to the operation but made clear it should not lead to destabilization elsewhere.
“I don’t think Russia will agree to let Turkey occupy the whole Afrin region and insists on keeping the Syrian government in charge,” he added.

Source: arabnews

Yemen Prime Minister Ahmed Obaid bin Daghr thanked the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for saving the Yemeni economy from collapsing.
It followed a directive issued by King Salman to deposit $2 billion with the Central Bank of Yemen.
Ahmed Obaid bin Daghr said in his announcement of the government’s budget for the fiscal year 2018, that the Kingdom’s deposit saved the Yemeni economy from a complete collapse and restored the balance of the currency, Saudi state-run news agency SPA reported.
He added that the budget approved the salaries for military employees and civil servants of 12 provinces for the whole year. 
The Yemeni government announced its budget for 2018 after a three-year hiatus following the Houthi terrorist coup and the takeover of the capital Sanaa in September 2014.
Ahmed Obaid bin Daghr told a news conference in the interim capital of Aden on Sunday that the new budget was worth 987.2 billion riyals, and expenses were estimated at 1.465 trillion riyals and a financial deficit of 33 percent.
“The budget, by all standards, remains an austerity budget governed by the conditions of the coup against legitimacy,” Bin Daghr said.
He added that the Yemeni House of Representatives, would hold a meeting next month to approve the budget.

Source: arabnews

Russian-led peace talks on Syria will be held on January 30 in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia's chief negotiator Aleksandr Lavrentyev said Saturday, quoted by Interfax news agency.

Russia, a steadfast supporter of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, is set to co-host the summit with regime ally Iran and rebel backer Turkey with the aim of setting up a new constitution for post-war Syria.

Organisers had said earlier that the peace talks were planned for January 29 and 30, but Lavrentyev said that the participants would arrive on January 29 and "the forum itself will take place on January 30".

Diplomats from Russia, Turkey and Iran have been holding discussions on how to organise the talks behind closed-doors in a Sochi hotel, Russian news agencies reported.

"I consider the meeting went well. We managed to agree on lists of participants of the forum," Lavrentyev said.

He said invitations would be sent within a few days, quoted by RIA Novosti news agency.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at a press conference in New York on Friday that Moscow had invited around 1,500 representatives of the Syrian people "including sheikhs, tribal leaders and representatives of civil society".

The talks will come after the latest round of UN-sponsored negotiations in Geneva ended in failure in December.

"We want to launch the process of political settlement in order to breath life into the Geneva process," Lavrentyev said.

The United Nations itself will host a new round of peace talks on Syria next week in Vienna.

The war has displaced millions of people and is estimated to have claimed the lives of at least 340,000 people since 2011.

Moscow said it hopes the UN will send its special envoy on Syria, Staffan de Mistura, to the Sochi forum.

He said that the United States was also expected to attend as an observer.

The January talks were announced during negotiations in Kazakhstan in December sponsored by powerbrokers Russia, Turkey and Iran. A joint statement said the congress would include "all segments of Syrian society".

Moscow had earlier said talks would be held in Sochi in November last year. Turkey said Russia had postponed the event because it met with a cool reception from Ankara and its Western allies, but Russia said the date had not been officially announced.

Source: AFP

Eleven people were killed on Saturday and 46 injured when a Turkish intercity bus taking families bound for a half-term skiing trip crashed into trees while travelling on a motorway, local officials said.

The bus, which was making an overnight journey from the capital Ankara to the western city of Bursa, crashed in the region of Eskisehir amid good road conditions, Eskisehir governor Ozdemir Cakacak was quoted as saying by the Dogan news agency.

The road was empty and neither wet nor frozen, Cakacak said, vowing that the causes would be made clear.

Dogan reported that the passengers on the bus were mainly families with their children who were going to Bursa to spend the upcoming half-term at the popular Uludag ski resort.

It said the passengers were on a special all-inclusive promotion offered by the bus company to spend the week at the ski resort before returning to Ankara.

The news agency did not say if any children were among those killed. Identification of the bodies was in progress.

The two drivers, who were both lightly injured, have been detained and prosecutors launched an investigation, Dogan said.

The driver who was at the wheel at the time of the crash, has denied any wrongdoing.

"I saw a dark shape which I thought was a dog," Dogan quoted him as saying.

"I went to the right but the bus went out of control and hit a tree... I was not going fast, I was not sleeping, it was a matter of an instant," the man added.

Turkey has a dire road safety record with over a million accidents in 2016 and 7,300 people losing their lives, according to official statistics.

Source: AFP

Activists blocked roads and clashed with police in Honduras on Saturday as part of nationwide protests against the contested re-election of President Juan Orlando Hernandez.

Dozens of people have been killed and hundreds jailed since Hernandez was declared the winner of the November 26 run-off election -- after a three week stretch of often-interrupted ballot counting that stoked tensions and sparked accusations of fraud in the Central American country.

The left-wing Alliance in Opposition against the Dictatorship is heading a protest campaign insisting that the election was stolen from its candidate, former TV anchor Salvador Nasrallah.

The opposition called for a "national strike" on Saturday to block the country's main roads ahead of the start of the president's new term in office on January 27.

The government deployed police and soldiers to confront protesters.

One demonstrator was shot dead Saturday, opposition leader and former president Manuel Zelaya told AFP, identifying the victim as Anselmo Villareal, 60.

Seven other demonstrators were detained and two police were hurt, police spokesman Jair Meza said.

A military spokesman, Lieutenant Jose Coello, told AFP that some highways had been blocked "but they are being cleared in a peaceful manner."

Coello said police confiscated tires, presumably to be set ablaze, that  protesters were carrying in their vehicles.

Protesters blocked the country's main highway between Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula at a point about 100 kilometers (65 miles) north of the capital, local media reported.

In Tegucigalpa, police fired tear gas at protesters trying to block a road and burn tires. The demonstrators responded by hurling rocks.

Hernandez has implicit backing from the United States, which is pouring millions of dollars into Honduras and neighboring Guatemala and El Salvador to improve security conditions there.

Those three countries, collectively known as Central America's "Northern Triangle," are the biggest source of undocumented migrants heading to the United States.

Source: AFP

Thai police have arrested an alleged kingpin in Asia's illegal trade in endangered species, dealing a blow to a family-run syndicate that smuggles elephant ivory, rhino horn and tiger parts to Chinese and Vietnamese dealers.

Boonchai Bach, 40, a Vietnamese national with Thai citizenship, was arrested on Friday evening over the smuggling of 14 rhino horns worth around $1 million from Africa to Thailand.

His downfall follows the December 12 arrest of Nikorn Wongprachan, a Thai National Parks and Wildlife Conservation official, at Bangkok's main airport as he attempted to smuggle the rhino horn from the quarantine section to a nearby apartment.

The horn was smuggled into Bangkok by a Chinese man who was arrested a day before on arrival from Johannesburg, South Africa.

The police sting led to Boonchai, who financed the network.

"This is a major smuggling syndicate and Boonchai is a ringleader," General Chalermkiat Srivorakan, deputy national police chief, told reporters Saturday after the suspect arrived at Suvarnabhumi airport ahead of his remand.

"Boonchai admitted he was involved," Chalermkiat said, adding he faces up to four years in jail for smuggling parts of protected animals.

For years Boonchai and the Bach family are believed to operated with impunity from Nakhon Phanom in northeast Thailand, bordering Laos -- linchpin players in a multi-million-dollar trade in illegal wildlife.

The town is a pivot point in Asia's wildlife trafficking chain, in part because it is the narrowest neck of land for smuggled goods to transit through Thailand, into Laos and onto Vietnam, a major market for animal parts used in traditional medicine.

Freeland, a counter-trafficking organisation which works closely with Thai police, said the Bach family are part of a sprawling Southeast Asian crime organisation dubbed "Hydra".

The Bachs have "long run the international supply chain of illicit wildlife from Asia and Africa to major dealers in Laos, Vietnam and China," Freeland said in statement following the announcement of Boonchai's arrest.

They are believed to work alongside Vixay Keosavang, a Laotian dubbed "the Pablo Escobar of animal trafficking", who orchestrates a major wildlife trafficking ring from the Communist state, bribing officials to allow him to operate.

Laos has long been a top transit hub for smuggling wildlife products, with widespread corruption and weak law enforcement allowing the criminal activity to flourish.

China and Vietnam are among the world's biggest markets for parts from endangered or protected species including tigers, elephants, rhino and pangolins.

The traditional medicine market flourishes despite the total lack of scientific evidence as to their efficacy and government campaigns to end the trade.

Source: AFP

Hundreds of right-wing demonstrators crowded a main square at Rotterdam's central station Saturday to protest what they describe as the "discrimination against ordinary Dutch citizens" in favour of immigrants and Muslims.

The protest by around 700 right-wing supporters comes as Dutch political parties gear up for local government elections in March, with issues such as immigration and integration again expected to feature prominently among its 13 million illegible voters.

"The Netherlands is our country, it's not (Prime Minister) Mark Rutte's country," populist Dutch politician Geert Wilders, who led the demonstration, told the protesters.

"We live here, not in Morocco, we don't live in Turkey or in Saudi Arabia, but in Rotterdam, in the Netherlands," said Wilders.

"Here it's our rules that count. I want to tell you that the Netherlands is not an Islamic country, do you agree?" Wilders said to loud applause, speaking through a megaphone and sporting his trademark peroxide hairdo.

He left the demonstration a short while later after safety concerns when his vehicle became boxed in by a throng of supporters and journalists.

Wilders, 54, is often called the "best protected" man in the country and lives under 24-hour security.

His anti-Islam views have seen him receive death threats including from terror groups such as the Islamic State group and Al-Qaeda.

He is currently appealing a 2016 conviction for discrimination against Moroccans in a speech at a 2014 election rally.

Many protesters on Saturday waved Dutch flags and carried placards saying "Stop the Islamisation of Europe" and "Keep the Dutch culture, traditions, norms and values!"

Police -- who were out in force -- formed a line between right-wing demonstrators and a handful of anti-demonstrators led by two MPs of the leftist Denk Party, which draws its support mainly from Turkish and Moroccan communities.

"This (Wilders' message) is a message of hatred and division and we're against it. We have a message of unity and solidary," Denk leader Tunahan Kuzu told AFP.

Wilders's PVV will compete in around 30 of the 335 local governments in the March 21 vote, with the party battling to find candidates to represent it in other local constituencies.

The PVV, however, will compete in Rotterdam, where it will face-off against Kuzu's Denk party, among others.

Source: AFP

Pope Francis on Saturday urged Latin America's faithful to fight rampant violent crime against women including murder, while holding mass in Trujillo, Peru's largest northern city.

"I wish to invite you to combat a plague across our Latin American region: the numerous cases of violent crimes against women, from beatings to rape to murder," the visiting pontiff told thousands in Trujillo's main colonial-era square.

Half of the 25 countries with the greatest number of murders of women are in Latin America, according to UN Women.

In Argentina, the pope's homeland, there were at least 254 murders of women in 2016 that authorities think were gender-related, which helped spark the online campaign #NotOneMore murder.

"There are so many cases of violence that stay silenced behind so many walls," Francis said, arousing cheers from the crowd. "I'm calling on you to fight against this source of suffering including legislation and a culture that rejects every type of violence."

The northwestern city Trujillo is still struggling to rebuild after deadly devastating floods one year ago.

More than 130 people were killed across Peru between January and April 2017 in heavy rains, floods and landslides fueled by the El Nino weather phenomenon, which also left at least 300,000 homeless. Hardest-hit was Peru's northern coastal region.

Francis acknowledged that many families still could not rebuild their homes after the floods -- then warned of the "storms" of organized crime.

The high crime rate means fewer educational and work opportunities, preventing young people "from building a future with dignity," Francis said.

The mass took place on a stretch of beach in Huanchaco, a town in Trujillo some 560 kilometers (350 miles) north of Lima. Huanchaco is popular with surfers and known for its distinctive reed watercraft known as "caballitos de totora."

The pope then boarded his Popemobile to visit Trujillo's impoverished "Buenos Aires" neighborhood, which was especially hard hit by last April's flooding.

"We will see if the pope brings along some blessings. And if we can recover completely from everything lost in the floods. We need him to bring some mercy," said local resident Lidia Garcia.

As on Friday, Francis was accompanied by Peru's president, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski.

On Sunday he is slated to hold another beachside mass in Lima.

- 'Threatened' Amazon natives -

The visit is a change of pace after a politically charged first day in the South American country where the pope railed against "great business interests" for endangering the Amazon and its indigenous people.

And he lashed out at corruption in politics.

"There is so much damage done by this... thing that infects everything," Francis said. "And it's always the poorest and the environment that get the short end of the stick."

On Friday, he sounded a stark warning about the future of the rainforest and tribe members, saying they had "never been so threatened."

Bare-chested tribesmen, their bodies painted and their heads crowned with colorful feathers, danced and sang for the pope when he arrived in the Peruvian city of Puerto Maldonado.

Thousands of indigenous people had traveled to meet the pontiff from throughout the Amazon basin region of Peru, Brazil and Bolivia.

Pope Francis, 81, arrived Thursday afternoon in Peru, the second and last leg of a week-long South American visit.

During the first part of his visit, in Chile, Francis highlighted the plight of vulnerable immigrants, offered an apology to victims of sexual abuse by Catholic priests, prayed with survivors of Augusto Pinochet's brutal dictatorship, and called for protection of Chile's persecuted indigenous people.

Source: AFP

A coalition of Arab parties in the Israeli parliament said Saturday it will boycott a speech by visiting US Vice President Mike Pence, calling him "dangerous and messianic".

Pence, who arrived in Cairo on Saturday to start his first Middle East tour, travels Sunday on to Jordan and to Israel later the same day.

He is scheduled to address the Knesset, Israel's parliament, on Monday.

The visit by Pence, a devout Christian, comes amid widespread anger in the Arab world over a December 6 decision by US President Donald Trump to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

His trip had originally been scheduled for December but was postponed because of the furore over the Jerusalem decision, which broke with decades of international diplomacy.

The Palestinians have frozen contacts with the Trump administration and have said Pence would not meet any Palestinian leaders.

"He is a dangerous man with a messianic vision that includes the destruction of the entire region," Israeli Arab parliamentarian Ayman Odeh said of Pence.

Odeh heads the United List of Arab parties, the third largest political group in parliament with 13 seats.

"He comes here as the emissary of an even more dangerous man, a political pyromaniac, racist and misogynist who must be prevented from taking control of our region," Odeh said, referring to Trump.

"The entire Arab List will boycott his speech."

Arab Israelis are descendants of Palestinians who stayed on when Israel was created in 1948. They are Israeli citizens and represent 17.5 percent of the population.

Source: AFP

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi met Kurdish regional government counterpart Nechirvan Barzani for the first time on Saturday since the autonomous northern region's failed attempt to secede.

Since Kurdish voters returned a resounding "yes" in a referendum on independence last September 25, the federal government in Baghdad has taken retaliatory measures.

These include an air blockade of international flights to the Kurdish region's two main airports, to remain in effect until the end of February.

Abadi has also sent Iraqi troops to retake areas disputed between Baghdad and Kurdish regional capital Arbil, including oilfields from which the Kurds derived the bulk of their revenue.

After a months-long frosty standoff, the two sides are now talking again and Kurdish officials including a minister have visited Baghdad.

On Saturday Barzani, accompanied by his deputy premier and the chief of staff of the Kurds' former president Massud Barzani, "discussed the political and security situation and ways of settling disputes" with Abadi, the Iraqi premier's office said.

Abadi had strongly opposed the Kurdish referendum, insisting on Iraqi unity and government control of airports and border posts in Kurdistan.

Baghdad wants to regain control of the area's three border posts between Iraq and Iran, as well as Fishkhabur on the borders of Iraq, Syria and Turkey, through which Iraqi oil flows to the Turkish port of Ceyhan.

Later on Saturday, Barzani will visit Iran, which also opposed the independence referendum given its own Kurdish minority.

Source: AFP

Film-maker Claude Lanzmann has sold 112 passionate love letters sent to him by the legendary French feminist Simone de Beauvoir, Christie's auction house said Friday.

The director of the acclaimed Holocaust documentary "Shoah" said he has been forced to part with the correspondence because of a "scandalous" French inheritance law which means that they must go to her family on his death.

The letters, which are filled with the "mad passion" the couple shared during their seven-year affair in the 1950s, have never been published.

They were bought by Yale University, which already holds de Beauvoir's manuscripts and personal archives.

"I never planned for these letters to come out or be published," said 93-year-old Lanzmann, who was the secretary of de Beauvoir's long-term lover, the philosopher and playwright Jean-Paul Sartre.

The golden couple of French mid-20th century intellectual life had a famously open relationship, and enjoyed -- and endured -- a number of similar love triangles.

Lanzmann, who was 18 years de Beauvoir's junior, fell in love with her while he was editing "Les Temps Modernes", the ground-breaking review she and Sartre founded after World War II, which the film-maker still heads.

Agnes Poirier, author of "Left Bank", a new book about how "the ideas that shaped the modern world" were formed in the French capital during the intellectual tumult of the 1940s, said Lanzmann was the only man that de Beauvoir lived with.

"She and Sartre always kept separate apartments, but she let Lanzmann move in with her. He was about 26 she was 44 when the affair started, and he always said was she a 'grande amoureuse', a very passionate lover," she said.

- Angered by affair -

"After the age of 40 de Beauvoir thought she was not desirable anymore but she had a second youth with him," Poirier said -- and the author of the "The Second Sex" lived it "like a rebirth".

Poirier said that it had been always rumoured that Lanzmann "seduced her for a bet, or at least boasted that he could steal a kiss," but said that there was no doubting the intensity of their love.

"They had two little desks and they would work together in the mornings, then in the afternoons she would go and write with Sartre."

Just as with Sartre, it was an open relationship "but de Beauvoir took it badly when she discovered that Lanzmann had had an affair he didn't tell her about."

"She wasn't judgemental, it was just the fact that he didn't tell her that annoyed her," the writer added.

According to Yale's library, which for now is only making the letters available in its reading room, most were written while de Beauvoir was travelling with Sartre on their headline-making visits to Russia, China, Japan and Cuba.

Lanzmann railed against the French law which he said had forced him to sell the letters to Yale, saying it was crazy that it "states that the contents of the letters did not belong to the person they were addressed to."

However, he said he had the right "to pass them on in the hope that the purchaser can, if not publish them, then at least conserve them and make them available to historians and researchers."

The top American university can "now be proud of having all of her letters to me", which Lanzmann called "an exceptional, passionate correspondence".

Christie's auction house which arranged the private sale did not reveal how much the letters had been sold for.

Source: AFP

South Africa's ruling ANC party said Saturday that it "must act decisively" to rebuild its reputation, as local media reported that President Jacob Zuma could soon be forced to leave office.

Zuma has been under growing pressure to resign since he was replaced as head of the African National Congress (ANC) in December by his deputy Cyril Ramaphosa.

Zuma's presidency has been engulfed by corruption scandals and a weakening economy, with the party losing public support ahead of next year's general election.

Ramaphosa's supporters are keen for him to take over as president and try to revive the economy before the election, when the ANC could lose its grip on power for the first time since the end of apartheid.

"The ANC must act decisively and with determination to rebuild the bond of trust between our people and the movement," the party said in a statement after a two-day meeting of its senior members.

The statement addressed criticism that South Africa currently has two centres of power -- Zuma still in office as president, while Ramaphosa heads the ruling ANC party.

"(Party) officials, led by President Ramaphosa, will continue their engagement with President Jacob Zuma to ensure effective coordination between the ANC and government," it said.

- Zuma to leave, but when? -

The News 24 website said the party's executive meeting had decided that Zuma must leave office, but that no exact timeline had been agreed.

"We will have a new president in the coming weeks," it quoted one unnamed party member at the meeting as predicting.

Zuma's closest allies still hold senior positions in the party, and he could in theory remain president until the 2019 election that marks the end of his second and final term in office.

His control over the ANC was shaken when his chosen successor -- his former wife Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma -- lost out to Ramaphosa in the closely-fought race to be party leader.

Zuma, 75, could leave office either by resigning, through losing a motion of no-confidence in parliament or impeachment proceedings.

He could also be recalled by the ANC, forcing him to step down.

Whoever is president on February 8 will deliver the annual state of the nation address in parliament -- providing one deadline for political manoeuvering.

Ramaphosa, 65, is a former trade unionist who led talks to end white-minority rule in the early 1990s and then became a multi-millionaire businessman before returning to politics.

The ANC, which has ruled since 1994 when Nelson Mandela won the first multi-racial election, recorded its worst-ever results in 2016 local polls.

Source: AFP

Undefeated Mikey Garcia's bid for a fourth world crown in a super lightweight showdown with International Boxing Federation champion Sergey Lipinets of Russia has been postponed to March 10, promoters announced Friday.

Unbeaten Lipinets suffered a hand injury in training for a fight card that had been scheduled for February 10 in San Antonio, Texas. The bouts will remain in San Antonio, but the venue will be moved from the Alamodome to Freeman Coliseum.

Garcia, 37-0 with 30 knockouts, captured the World Boxing Council lightweight crown a year ago and has owned World Boxing Organization featherweight and super featherweight titles.

Lipinets, 13-0 with 10 knockouts, took a unanimous decision from Japan's Akihiro Kondo in November at New York to capture the vacant IBF crown and will be making his first title defense.

Also moved back a month was the undercard feature, for the vacant WBA super lightweight title and a possible unification bout with the Garcia-Lipinets winner, between Cuban Rances Barthelemy, 26-0 with 13 knockouts, and Belarus' Kiryl Relikh, 21-2 with 19 knockouts, in a rematch of last May's unanimous decision victory by Barthelemy.

Source: AFP

Mary Lou McDonald is set to become the president of Sinn Fein, replacing Gerry Adams who is stepping down after 34 years as the dominant figurehead of Irish republicanism.

McDonald, 48, the left-wing party's deputy leader, was confirmed as the sole candidate to take over from Adams, 69, at a party meeting on Saturday.

The change represents a major shift for Sinn Fein, so closely associated with Adams' leadership, which started in November 1983.

Sinn Fein's president-elect will be confirmed in the position at a special party gathering on February 10.

"I know I have big shoes to fill taking on the role from Gerry Adams, and I know that is impossible," McDonald said.

"But I have brought my own shoes and together, with all of the party membership, we will walk on a journey that will lead to Irish unity.

"We are entering a new era and we can look forward with confidence."

McDonald became a member of the European Parliament in 2004. She was appointed Sinn Fein's deputy leader in 2009 and has represented central Dublin in the Irish parliament since 2011.

She is also the party's public expenditure and reform spokeswoman in the Republic of Ireland.

McDonald presents a fresh face for the party and has no historic links to the Irish Republican Army (IRA), the now-defunct paramilitary wing of Sinn Fein responsible for more than 1,700 deaths during the conflict known as the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

Adams played a major role in convincing the IRA to disarm as part of the Northern Ireland peace process and masterminded Sinn Fein's rise to become the second-biggest political force north of the border and the third in the south.

But many consider his past a millstone.

Sinn Fein, which wants Northern Ireland to leave the United Kingdom and become part of the Republic of Ireland, is the second-biggest party in the Belfast assembly and the third-biggest in the Dublin parliament.

"I want to see Sinn Fein in government north and south," McDonald said.

"But it will be government based on equality, government that respects the rights of citizens, that delivers prosperity and opportunity for all and reflects our republican ideals."

Source: AFP

Pope Francis denounced femicides and other gender-based crimes that have turned Latin America into the most violent place on Earth for women, calling Saturday for legislation to protect them and a new cultural mindset as he visited one of Peru's most dangerous parts.

At a Marian prayer in the northern seaside city of Trujillo, Francis called women, mothers and grandmothers the guiding force for families. And yet, he said, in the Americas they are too often victims of murder and "many situations of violence that are kept quiet behind so many walls."

The first Latin American pope called for lawmakers to protect women and for a new culture "that repudiates every form of violence." His remarks came the same day large crowds marched throughout the United States and other countries in support of female empowerment.

Francis' use of the term femicide — the killing of women where the motive is directly related to gender— marked the second time in as many days that he has spoken out against "machismo" culture in Latin America. The region has the dubious honor of having the world's highest rates of violence against women occurring outside romantic partnerships, and the second-highest within.

Even though more and more countries in the region are adopting protective policies for women, female homicides are rising in Latin America with two in every five resulting from domestic violence, according to a November 2017 report from U.N. Women and the U.N. Development Program that called the phenomenon a "global pandemic."

In recent years women have taken to the streets across Latin America, including in Peru, to protest gender violence as part of the international "Ni Una Menos" or "Not One Less" campaign.

In the Peruvian Amazon this week, Francis denounced forced prostitution and the trafficking of women in the area, saying it pained him how they are "devalued, denigrated and exposed to endless violence.

"Violence against women cannot be treated as 'normal,' maintaining a culture of machismo blind to the leading role that women play in our communities," he said Friday. "It is not right for us to look the other way and let the dignity of so many women, especially young women, be trampled upon."

Francis' decision to directly address the issue followed a reticence to speak out last year when he visited Ciudad Juarez, the Mexican border city notorious for hundreds of killings of women that brought international attention to the problem. More than 100 women died in eerily similar killings in the city across from El Paso, Texas, starting in 1993, although the serial or copycat nature of them tapered off a decade later.

At a 2016 open-air mass in Juarez, Francis made an emotional plea to recognize the "human tragedy" of the treatment of migrants but made only a passing mention of the women's killings. At the time he did not use the word "femicide," saying only, "And what can we say about so many women who have unjustly had their lives taken?"

Mothers of some of the Juarez victims had sought unsuccessfully to meet with Francis, and Saturday marked the first time he is known to have used the term "femicide" in public.

Central American countries have the highest rates of gender-based violence, but the issue is also a serious problem in Peru. More than 1,000 women died from gender violence in the South American country from 2009 through last October — the vast majority murdered by a partner or relative — according to a report by the Public Ministry.

Francis' comments came in his final event in Trujillo, where devastating floods last year killed more than 150 people and destroyed hundreds of thousands of homes.

At a seaside Mass for some 200,000 faithful, Francis said he came to pray with those who lost everything and who must also contend with the "other storms that can hit these coasts, with devastating effects on the lives of the children of these lands."

He cited organized violence and contract killings, a major problem in Peru and in the north in particular. Extortion is also common in the area, especially around Trujillo and parts hit hardest by the floods, and bus drivers who refuse to pay often see their minibuses torched.

Francis said Peruvians have shown life's greatest problems can be confronted when communities come together "to help one another like true brothers and sisters."

 The number of Syrians who have died trying to flee their war-torn country into neighbouring Lebanon during a snowstorm has risen to at least 13, the United Nations said Saturday.

A group of Syrians, including children, had tried to enter neighbouring Lebanon late on Thursday through a smuggling route but were caught in a fierce storm.

The Lebanese army and civil defence said on Friday they had retrieved the bodies of 10 Syrians, including two children and six women.

But the toll has since increased.

Lisa Abou Khaled, a spokeswoman for the UN's refugee agency, said at least 13 Syrians were confirmed to have died in the incident.

"The victims were trying to cross an arduous and rugged passage in freezing temperatures," the UNHCR said in a statement.

"Others in the group, including a pregnant woman, were discovered in time and assisted by nearby residents and the Lebanese Armed Forces and Civil Defence to reach hospitals before they froze to death."

A Lebanese army source told AFP on Saturday that the toll had reached 14.

"The army retrieved a total of 12 bodies on Friday, and one person died at the hospital. Another body was found on Saturday, bringing the total to 14," the source said.

Lebanon, a country of four million, hosts just under a million Syrians who have sought refuge from the war raging in their neighbouring homeland since 2011.

Many live in informal tented settlements in the country's east and struggle to stay warm in the winter.

The UN's children's agency UNICEF said on Saturday it was distributing blankets, warm clothes and heating fuel.

"More children could be among the dead as residents in the area and the Lebanese authorities continue to look for people who are reportedly trapped in the mountainous in freezing temperatures and snow," a UNICEF statement said.

"The brutal wars have to stop and we all need to step up our generosity and assistance for the most affected children. We have no excuse. We cannot continue failing children!"

In 2015, Lebanese authorities introduced new restrictions to curb the number of Syrians entering the country.

Lebanon and Syria share a rocky 330-kilometre (205 mile) border with no official demarcation at several points.

Source: AFP

The US government officially shut down on Saturday, the first anniversary of President Donald Trump's inauguration, after lawmakers failed to agree a stop-gap spending deal.

Senators were still negotiating on the Senate floor as the clock turned midnight, but Trump's office issued a statement blaming opposition Democrats for the crisis.

Spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said the Democrats' insistence that the interim measure include protection for undocumented immigrants who arrived as children killed the deal.

"Senate Democrats own the Schumer Shutdown," she declared, referring to the minority leader, New York Senator Chuck Schumer, who met with Trump earlier Friday.

"Tonight, they put politics above our national security, military families, vulnerable children, and our country's ability to serve all Americans.

"We will not negotiate the status of unlawful immigrants while Democrats hold our lawful citizens hostage over their reckless demands," she warned.

US federal services and military operations deemed essential will continue, but thousands of government workers will be sent home without pay until the crisis is resolved.

Source: AFP

 Two American and two Canadians who were kidnapped in an ambush by gunmen in northern Nigeria this week were freed on Saturday, police said.

Nigerian security forces had launched a manhunt after the four were seized on Tuesday evening in the state of Kaduna by kidnappers who shot dead two of their police escorts.

"They have been rescued thanks to the efforts of the police," Kaduna state police spokesman Muktar Aliyu said, adding that they comprised three men and one woman.

"All of them are in a good condition of health" and are now in the care of their embassies, he said.

Aliyu said they were rescued at about 5 am (0400 GMT) in the same area where they were kidnapped, but declined to give further information, saying it was "classified information".

"I cannot confirm if there have been negotiations or a ransom paid," Aliyu added.

One person suspected of links to the kidnapping -- the latest abduction targeting foreigners in Nigeria -- has been arrested, he said.

The four North Americans -- whose identities have not been disclosed -- were on private business in Kaduna when they were snatched on the road from the town of Kafanchan to the capital Abuja.

"We are aware of reports of two US citizens kidnapped and released in Nigeria. The safety and security of US citizens overseas are among our top priorities. Due to privacy considerations we have no further comment," a US State Department official told AFP.

Kidnapping has long been a problem in Nigeria's southern states, where high-profile individuals, including the families of prominent politicians, are regularly seized.

- Violent crime common -

But as the economy stalled in recent years, the crime began creeping north.

A State Department travel advisory urges US citizens to "reconsider" travelling to Nigeria, warning that "violent crime such as armed robbery, assault, carjacking, kidnapping and rape is common throughout the country".

A crackdown on cattle rustling has been blamed for rising numbers of abductions in the north, with criminals turning to kidnapping.

The Kaduna-Abuja road is notoriously unsafe. It is a journey of about two-and-a-half hours by car through villages and past tracts of fields and forests.

Security on the route came under intense scrutiny last year when the federal government announced the closure of the capital's only airport for essential runway repairs.

Many foreign missions and companies advised staff to limit their travel during the closure period, as all domestic and some international flights were switched to Kaduna.

In July 2016, Sierra Leone's defence attache to Nigeria was kidnapped by men in military fatigues armed with AK-47 rifles at a fake checkpoint on the Abuja-Kaduna road.

And in another abduction against foreigners, in October, four Britons including a man and his wife working for a Christian charity were kidnapped in the southeastern Delta State.

The British government announced the following month that one of the hostages was killed, but the three others were freed.

Source: AFP

Beijing on Saturday said it had dispatched a warship to drive away a US missile destroyer which had "violated" its sovereignty by sailing close to a shoal in the disputed South China Sea.

The USS Hopper sailed within 12 nautical miles of Huangyan Island on the night of January 17 without alerting Beijing, the foreign ministry said, referring to the shoal by its Chinese name.

Also known as Scarborough Shoal, the ring of reefs lies about 230 kilometres (140 miles) from the Philippines in the South China Sea, where Beijing's claims are hotly contested by other nations.

The US vessel "violated China's sovereignty and security interests", and put the safety of nearby Chinese vessels "under grave threat", foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said.

China's defence ministry said in a separate statement that a Chinese frigate "immediately took actions to identify and verify the US ship and drove it away by warning" it.

The USS Hopper recently entered the US Navy's 7th Fleet area of operations, where the ship is on an "independent deployment", according to a statement released earlier this month on the Navy's website.

Its mission in Asia involves "security cooperation, building partner capacity, and performing routine operations within the area".

News of the encounter follows Friday's release of a new US national defence strategy that says America is facing "growing threats" from China and Russia.

China is a "strategic competitor using predatory economics to intimidate its neighbors while militarizing features in the South China Sea", the document says.

China's defence ministry dismissed those claims on Saturday, saying "the situation in the South China Sea has steadily stabilised," in comments attributed to spokesman Wu Qian.

But it added, "the United States has repeatedly sent warships illegally into the adjacent waters of the South China Sea islands and reefs."

Beijing asserts sovereignty over almost all of the resource-rich South China Sea despite rival claims from Southeast Asian neighbours and has rapidly built reefs into artificial islands capable of hosting military planes.

China seized Scarborough Shoal in 2012 after a brief stand-off with the Philippine navy. The shoal is also claimed by Taiwan.

Source: AFP

A former Egyptian armed forces chief of staff said on Saturday that he will challenge fellow military man Abdel Fattah al-Sisi for the presidency in March.

General Sami Anan's announcement came just hours after Sisi publicly confirmed he would seek a second term in the March 26-28 election, the third since the 2011 overthrow of longtime strongman Hosni Mubarak.

In a video posted on Facebook, Anan said he would seek to correct the "wrong policies" that had been adopted since Sisi ousted elected Islamist president Mohamed Morsi when commander in chief in 2013.

He said Egypt faced multiple challenges after the long years of turmoil, including deteriorating living conditions and a jihadist insurgency in the Sinai Peninsula.

"This is all the result of wrong policies which have put all the responsibilities on the armed forces without rational policies that would enable the civilian sector of the state to carry out its role in full, alongside the role of the armed forces," he said.

Anan said he had already put in place a team of civilians to support his bid, including Hisham Geneina, a former head of Egypt's anti-corruption watchdog who was sacked by Sisi in 2016 after publishing a damning report that put the losses from graft at more than $100 billion.

Anan served as armed forces chief of staff from 2005 until he was retired by Morsi in 2012 and analysts said his candidacy might attract Egyptians nostalgic for the relative stability of the Mubarak era.

When the longtime strongman was forced to step down by the Arab spring protests of 2011, he ceded power to the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF), an interim executive made up of 20 generals in which Anan served as number two.

The top post was held by Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, the army commander in chief who was replaced by Sisi at the same time that Anan was retired.

Would-be candidates for the presidency must register with the National Elections Authority by January 29.

Several prominent figures who had been seen as potential challengers to Sisi had already ruled themselves out even before registrations opened on Saturday.

Former prime minister Ahmed Shafiq said on January 7 that he would not stand, reversing a pledge he made from the United Arab Emirates in November.

Shafiq had disappeared for 24 hours after being deported to Egypt last month following years in exile in the UAE.

On Monday, Mohamed Anwar Sadat, a dissident and nephew of the late president of the same name, said he would not stand because the climate was not right for free elections.

Source: AFP

Hollywood heavyweight Will Smith says he's now hooked on tennis after being courtside at the Australian Open to see Nick Kyrgios topple Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in a Grand Slam classic.

The "Men in Black" star was on the edge of his seat as Australian hope Kyrgios beat the former finalist 7-6 (7/5), 4-6, 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (7/5) in a spectacular night match on Friday.

"This match last night was CRAZY!! @klnkyrg1os vs @tsongaofficiel ... WOW! I haven’t been to many Tennis matches. But, Now... I’m pretty sure I’m hooked!" he said on Instagram Saturday.

Smith has 5.4 million Instagram followers and his post had got 227,000 likes in barely two hours.

Kyrgios is huge fan of the actor, producer and comedian and admitted after the match he was a bit star-struck when he realised he was watching.

"No joke, he's like my favourite actor. I get asked if one person were acting your life, I'd always pick him," said the 22-year-old, seeded 17 at Melbourne Park.

"It was surreal seeing him. You know, I was talking to him in the third set. I kept looking at him. I was like, 'I got to break the ice, I got to say something'."

Asked what he said, he replied: "I said, I watched a load of your movies a bunch of times. It was pretty cringe, but it broke the ice."

The pair met afterwards and had their picture taken, and Kyrgios was impressed.

"He was really nice. I met him after the match. He was really genuine," he said.

Source: AFP

Emmanuel Macron has said Britain can secure the bespoke Brexit trade deal Theresa May wants, but warned there would be a trade off.

The French President said giving the UK’s financial services full access to the single market without accepting its rules was “not feasible”.

He also said that while he respected the result of the June 23 referendum, he would “love” to welcome the UK back.

In an interview with BBC One’s Andrew Marr show to be broadcast tomorrow, but conducted during his visit to the UK earlier this week, he was asked whether a bespoke special solution for Britain was possible.

He said: “Sure, but... this special way should be consistent with the preservation of the single market and our collective interests.

“And you should understand that you cannot, by definition, have the full access to the single market if you don’t tick the box.”

The “preconditions” Britain would have to accept for full access would include freedom of movement, budget contributions and the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice – all thing ruled out by Ms May in the long term.

He added: “So it’s something perhaps between this full access and a trade agreement.”

Mr Macron said specifically that allowing the UK’s financial services sector access was “not feasible” if the UK did not accept the obligations.

But he also insisted he did not want to “unplug” the City from the EU, adding: “It doesn’t make sense, because it’s part of the whole financing of our European Union.”

Asked if it was inevitable that Britain would leave, he replied: “I mean, it’s on your own. It depends on you.

“I mean, I do respect this vote, I do regret this vote, and I would love to welcome you again.”

Source: AFP

 The airport serving the Libyan capital resumed flights on Saturday following a five-day suspension after deadly clashes around the facility that also damaged planes on the tarmac.

Lotfi Khalil, the director general of Mitiga airport on the eastern outskirts of Tripoli, said services resumed with Buraq Air flying to the eastern city of Tobruk and Libyan Airlines leaving for Tunis.

One local carrier, state-owned Afriqiyah Airways, however, has yet to resume operations because its planes were damaged in Monday's fighting in which at least 20 people were killed, he told AFP.

Since the closure, flights had been diverted to Misrata, a city 200 kilometres (120 miles) east of the capital.

Mitiga airport, a former military air base, was evacuated on Monday after militiamen attacked it in an attempt to free detainees at a jail there.

The health ministry of Libya's UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) said 20 people were killed and 63 wounded in the violence.

The GNA condemned what it called a "premeditated" attack by gunmen trying to free "terrorists" belonging to the Islamic State jihadist group and Al-Qaeda.

Mitiga has been a civilian airport since Tripoli's main international airport was badly damaged in fighting between rival militias in mid-2014.

Libya has been wracked by chaos since the 2011 uprising that toppled and killed long-time dictator Moamer Kadhafi, with rival authorities and militias battling for control of its oil riches.

Source: AFP

Around 500 Syrian fighters graduated on Saturday from a US-led training course aimed at establishing a controversial "border security force" in the country's north.

Last week, the US-led coalition battling the Islamic State group announced it had begun forming a 30,000-strong security force to patrol territory captured from IS.

About half its fighters would hail from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the alliance of Kurdish and Arab fighters that has emerged as Washington's best ally against jihadists, and the rest would be new recruits.

On Saturday, a batch of around 500 fighters marked their completion of the nearly three-week training programme at a ceremony near Syria's northeastern city of Hasakeh.

Dressed in military fatigues, the graduates stood in neat rows and took an oath to protect the country's borders "against all attacks and threats".

Trainers from the SDF and US-led coalition looked on, with pistols strapped to their waists or thighs.

"This is the second (graduating) class of the Border Security Force. They're made up of every demographic in the area," said Kani Ahmad, who headed the training.

The first class graduated on Friday.

The BSF would be deployed from northeast Syria, throughout the Kurdish-controlled north across to the northwestern province of Idlib, he said.

"Their mission is to protect the border, especially threats by Turkey and its mercenaries because we're being threatened," Ahmad added.

Turkey vehemently opposes the creation of the border force because it considers the SDF's Kurdish component -- the People's Protection Units (YPG) -- a "terrorist" group.

The BSF's unveiling prompted an outcry from Ankara, whose escalating threats to attack YPG-held territory on Saturday culminated in Turkish air strikes inside Syria.

The force has also been denounced by Damascus and Tehran, as well as Syria's mainstream opposition.

After completing the 20-day course, graduates would go on to receive more specialised training, officials at the graduation said.

"I'm happy I finished this training," said 21-year-old border guard Jamal Issa, who hails from the town of Kobane near the Turkish border.

"We learned how to use light and heavy weapons, deal with mines and bombs, and first aid," Issa told AFP in Kurdish.

Amer al-Ali, an Arab fighter from the town of Tal Abyad, also along the frontier, said he began fighting alongside the SDF three months ago and was glad to be switching to border monitoring.

"The trainers were from the coalition and had a lot of experience. We learned a lot of tactics on fighting, defence, and attack," he said.

He and his fellow graduates broke out into the Middle Eastern line dance known as the dabkeh and cheered, "Long live the Syrian Democratic Forces!"

Since announcing the plan, the Pentagon has insisted that the BSF is not meant to be an "army" or conventional border force but would primarily seek to prevent an IS resurgence in the area.

Source: AFP

Turkey on Saturday launched a new air and ground operation to oust a Kurdish militia from their northern Syrian enclave, defying US warnings that the action risked further destabilising the area after almost seven years of civil war.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had repeatedly vowed that Turkey would root out the "nests of terror" in Syria of the People's Protection Units (YPG) militia which Turkey deems a terror organisation.

The launch came despite warnings that the operation could be militarily tough against an already battle-hardened foe and complicate relations with both Washington and Moscow.

Turkey's army said operation "Olive Branch" began at 1400 GMT and was aimed at the YPG and Islamic State (IS) jihadists.

Among the targets hit was the YPG-held Minnigh military airport north of Aleppo, the army said.

It said 108 targets were struck and that all casualties were Kurdish militants.

A total of 72 aircraft took part in the initial onslaught, it added, saying all returned safely to base. IS targets were also destroyed, it said.

Saturday's attacks killed 10 people, a YPG spokesman in the northern Syrian region of Afrin, an area the militia controls, said.

"Seven civilians were killed, including a child, as well as two female fighters and one male fighter," said Birusk Hasakeh, adding that the child was an eight-year-old boy.

- Huge plumes of smoke -

An AFP correspondent on the Turkish side of the border saw two war planes launch air strikes inside Syrian territory, sending huge white plumes of smoke into the sky.

Units of pro-Ankara rebels known by Turkey as the Free Syrian Army (FSA) also began moving into the YPG-controlled Afrin area, Anadolu said.

There were no reports of Turkish ground troops crossing the border but Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said "ground elements" could be deployed on Sunday.

Erdogan said Turkish forces would next seek to oust the YPG from Manbij, a town further east.

In a delicate diplomatic situation, the top envoys of Russia, Iran and the United States in Ankara were invited to the foreign ministry to receive a briefing on the operation, the ministry said.

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu held telephone talks with US counterpart Rex Tillerson while Turkey's top general Hulusi Akar informed his American and Russian counterparts.

Turkey accuses the YPG of being the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) which has waged a rebellion in the Turkish southeast for more than three decades and is regarded as a terror group by Ankara and its Western allies.

But the YPG has been the key ally of Turkey's fellow NATO member the United States in the fight against IS jihadists, playing a key role in pushing the extremists out of their Syrian strongholds.

A senior US State Department official said on Friday that Washington did not believe "a military operation... serves the cause of regional stability".

Erdogan had reacted furiously this week to an announcement of plans to create a US-backed 30,000-strong border security force in northern Syria composed partly of YPG fighters, describing it as an "army of terror".

Tillerson later said the "entire situation has been mis-portrayed, mis-described", admitting "we owe them (Turkey) an explanation."

"We don't care what they say," Erdogan spat back. "They will learn how wrong it is to trust a terror organisation."

- 'Russian green light?' -

Syria warned last week that its air force could destroy any Turkish warplanes used in the new offensive.

But Cavusoglu told the 24 TV broadcaster that Turkey was informing Damascus in writing about the operation through its Istanbul consulate, a rare contact between two governments who have been at odds since the civil war began.

The Syrian foreign ministry however strongly denied this, denouncing the operation as a "brutal Turkish aggression".

Turkey from August 2016 to March 2017 pushed into Syria in its more than half-year Euphrates Shield operation in an area to the east of Afrin against both YPG and IS.

Analysts say that crucial for any major new ground operation will be approval from Moscow which has a military presence in the area and a cordial relationship with the YPG.

Russia is an ally of the Assad regime which Turkey has opposed since the onset of the war. But both Ankara and Moscow, as well as Tehran, have worked closely on a peace process in the last year.

The Russian defence ministry said its troops were withdrawing from the Afrin area to prevent any "provocation" and ensure the security of its troops.

Timur Akhmetov, Ankara-based researcher at the Russian International Affairs Council, told AFP that Russia appeared to have given the "green light" to the operation but made clear it should not lead to destabilisation elsewhere.

"I don't think Russia will agree to let Turkey occupy the whole Afrin region and insists on keeping the Syrian government in charge," he added.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an umbrella grouping composed mainly of YPG, said in a statement the Turkish operation threatened to "breathe new life" into IS and said it has "no choice but to defend ourselves and our people".

Source: AFP

US Vice President Mike Pence held talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi Saturday at the start of a delayed Middle East tour overshadowed by Arab anger over Washington's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Controversy over President Donald Trump's decision to move the American embassy in Israel to Jerusalem had led to the cancellation of a number of planned meetings ahead of the trip originally scheduled for December.

The Palestinian leadership, already furious over the Jerusalem decision, has denounced the US administration and had already refused to meet Pence in December.

A coalition of Arab parties in the Israeli parliament said Saturday it would boycott a speech by Pence on Monday, calling him "dangerous and messianic".

Pence held talks with former army chief Sisi in Cairo that were expected to focus on US aid and security, including a jihadist insurgency in the Sinai Peninsula.

Sisi's office said the talks also covered Jerusalem, with the president stressing Egypt's support for a two-state peace settlement and "the right of the Palestinian people to establish an independent state with east Jerusalem as capital".

Pence, for his part, said relations between Cairo and Washington had "never been stronger" thanks to the leadership of Trump and Sisi.

Expressing sympathy for deadly jihadist attacks that have targeted both Muslim and Christian places of worship, he said: "We stand shoulder-to-shoulder with you in Egypt in the fight against terrorism."

The vice president later travelled on to Amman ahead of a one-on-one meeting with King Abdullah II on Sunday before heading to Israel for the final leg of the tour.

Pence went ahead with the trip -- which had been pushed back in December as a crunch tax vote loomed on Capitol Hill -- despite the federal government shutdown looming over Washington.

- Key security partners -

The leaders of both Egypt and Jordan, the only Arab states that have peace treaties with Israel, would be key players if US mediators ever manage to get a revived Israeli-Palestinian peace process off the ground, as Trump says he wants.

They are also key intelligence-sharing and security partners in America's various covert and overt battles against Islamist extremism in the region, and Egypt is a major recipient of aid to help it buy advanced US military hardware.

Sisi, one of Trump's closest allies in the region, had urged the US president before his Jerusalem declaration "not to complicate the situation in the region by taking measures that jeopardise the chances of peace in the Middle East".

Egypt's top Muslim cleric and the head of its Coptic Church had both cancelled meetings with Pence in December in protest at the Jerusalem decision.

After Jordan -- the custodian of Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem -- Pence will head to Israel for talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday.

He will also deliver a speech to parliament and meet President Reuven Rivlin during the two-day visit.

Pence can expect a warm welcome after Trump's decision on Jerusalem, which Israelis and Palestinians alike interpreted as Washington taking Israel's side in the dispute over the city.

Israel occupied the West Bank in 1967 and later annexed east Jerusalem in a move never recognised by the international community.

Israel claims all of Jerusalem as its united capital, while the Palestinians see the eastern sector as the capital of their future state.

The international community considers east Jerusalem illegally occupied by Israel and currently all countries have their embassies in the commercial capital Tel Aviv.

- 'Matter of years' -

The State Department has begun to plan the sensitive move of the American embassy to Jerusalem, a process that US diplomats say may take years to complete.

This week reports surfaced that Washington may temporarily designate the US consulate general in Jerusalem as the embassy while the search for a secure and practical site for a long-term mission continues.

A senior State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has yet to make a decision on either a permanent or interim location for the mission.

"That is a process that takes, anywhere in the world, time. Time for appropriate design, time for execution. It is a matter of years and not weeks or months," he said.

Pence -- himself a devout Christian -- will visit the Western Wall, one of the holiest sites of Judaism in Jerusalem's Old City, and pay his respects at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial.

Source: AFP

 The number of civilians killed by the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria tripled in 2017, as battles raged in jihadist-held urban areas, a monitor said Friday.

Between 3,923 and 6,102 non-combatants were killed in the two countries, said Airwars, a London-based journalist collective that compiles data from public sources.

That is sharply up from its estimate of the previous year's toll of between 1,243 and 1,904.

The coalition backed Iraqi forces in a gruelling battle last year to oust IS from second city Mosul, as well as supporting a Kurdish-dominated force that seized Syria's Raqa city from the jihadists after months of fighting.

Airwars said the surge in deaths was likely partly caused by intense fighting in urban areas.

But it also said the administration of US President Donald Trump may be partly to blame.

"This toll coincided with the start of the Trump presidency, which has declared the conflict against ISIS to be a 'war of annihilation'," it said, using an alternative name for IS.

"The scaling back by the new administration of some measures aimed at protecting civilians" may have contributed to the "steep increase" in casualties, it said.

Airwars said the coalition had carried out some 11,573 artillery and air strikes, some 50 percent up on the previous year. More than 70 percent were in Syria.

It said 766 attacks last year wounded some 2,443 civilians in both countries.

The monitor, which also tracks casualties of Russian operations in Syria, said coalition-linked civilian deaths in 2017 had "far" outnumbered those attributed to Russia.

It said the toll for civilians killed in coalition strikes in Syria had quadrupled compared to 2016, with the battle for Raqa killing at least 1,450 civilians, while in Iraq deaths were up by 87 percent.

Between the start of the battle for Mosul in October 2016 and the announcement of its "liberation" in July, between 1,066 and 1,579 civilians were killed by coalition raids there, Airwars said.

Source: AFP

Intensified hostilities in Yemen have forced more than 32,000 people to flee their homes in the past two months, the United Nations refugee agency has said.

They join some two million Yemenis already displaced by the war, the UNHCR said in a statement on Thursday.

"The arrival of winter in Yemen, when temperatures can dip below zero degrees Celsius across a number of governorates, has worsened the hardship for many, particularly those displaced and living in informal settlements exposed to the elements with little protection against the cold," it said.

UNHCR spokeswoman Shabia Mantoo said flare-ups in fighting in the rebel-held capital Sanaa, as well as the provinces of Hodeida on the Red Sea and oil-rich Shabwa in the south, had driven the displacements.

"We continue to see correlations between intensified hostilities and civilian casualties + displacement," Mantoo said on Twitter Friday.

More than 9,000 people have been killed in Yemen since a Saudi-led military coalition intervened in 2015 against the Huthi rebels with the aim of restoring the country's internationally recognised government to power.

The coalition intensified its air campaign against the Huthis around Sanaa and on the country's west coast in December, after Saudi Arabia intercepted a ballistic missile the rebels had fired at its capital Riyadh.

On the ground, Emirati-trained government troops and coalition forces have been advancing along the Red Sea coast in a drive to retake the rebel-held port city of Hodeida, which is a key entry point for humanitarian supplies.

But the coalition has met strong resistance from the Iran-backed rebels, who continue to hold Sanaa and most of northern Yemen.

In mid-December, government forces retook Beihan district in Shabwa province from the Huthis, their last stronghold in the province.

"The latest violence has further exacerbated the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with more than 22 million people -- around three quarters of the total population -- in need of humanitarian assistance," the UNHCR said.

Source: AFP

Lebanon's Hezbollah movement on Friday said a US pledge to keep its troops in Syria to defeat the Islamic State group was just a "flimsy excuse" to occupy the country.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Wednesday that US forces would remain in Syria to both fight IS and counter the influence of President Bashar al-Assad.

Assad is a key ally of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah, which has deployed its forces to keep the Damascus regime in power.

During a televised address to commemorate Hezbollah fighters killed in Syria, the group's chief Hassan Nasrallah fired back at the US.

"The Americans are the last people to have anything to do with rolling back Daesh," he said, using the Arabic acronym for IS.

The US, according to the Hezbollah leader, was "creating flimsy excuses to keep their forces and bases in the region. This is the real aim."

The United States has deployed around 2,000 ground troops to Syria and its warplanes patrol the skies over the east of the country, hunting IS remnants.

In a speech on Wednesday at Stanford University, Tillerson said the US "will maintain a military presence in Syria, focused on ensuring that ISIS cannot re-emerge".

But he also said the open-ended deployment is intended to help create conditions for Syrians to be able to remove Assad from office and reject Iranian influence.

The US has long considered Hezbollah a "terrorist" organisation and has targeted it with sanctions.

Last week, the US Justice Department announced it was also creating a special task force to investigate Hezbollah's alleged involvement in the international drug trade.

Current and former US officials have described a massive money-laundering operation involving drugs and used cars that they say has helped Hezbollah fund its operations.

But Nasrallah vehemently denied the claims on Friday.

"These are unjust accusations, that are not based on facts or truth," he said.

"Hezbollah has a very clear religious, jurisprudent, moral position on this. For us, dealing drugs is forbidden (in Islam) and not allowed," Nasrallah said.

He accused American security services and the CIA of "destroying societies" by spreading drug use abroad.

"Have a committee investigate your own involvement," Nasrallah said.

Source: AFP

Jordan said on Thursday that Israel had formally apologized for the deaths of two of its citizens killed by an Israeli security guard last July in an incident that soured ties and led to the closure of the Israeli embassy in Amman, state media said.

Government spokesman Mohammad al Momani was quoted by state news agency Petra as saying the Israeli foreign ministry had sent a memorandum expressing "deep regrets and apologies" over the incident at the embassy and pledging to take legal action in the case.

Jordan had said it would not allow Israel to reopen its embassy in Amman until it launched legal proceedings against the security guard.

The Israeli prime minister's office said on Thursday that the embassy in Amman would resume full operations immediately.

The handling of the shooting had tested ties between Israel and Jordan, one of only two Arab states that has a peace treaty with Israel. The two have a long history of close security ties.

The embassy was closed shortly after Israel hastily repatriated the guard under diplomatic immunity to prevent Jordanian authorities interrogating him and taking any legal action against him. The Israeli ambassador and embassy staff were pulled out.

Jordan maintained that even if the guard had diplomatic immunity that did not mean he could not be punished.

Israel has now pledged to "implement and follow up legal measures" in the case and also take action in the shooting of an unarmed Jordanian judge by an Israeli soldier in an incident in 2014, Momani said.

Israel would pay compensation to the three families, he said.

Israel said at the time the armed guard opened fire after being attacked and lightly wounded by the workman, who was delivering furniture at his home within the embassy compound, and acted in self-defence in what Israeli officials called a "terrorist attack".

Israel then said it was highly unlikely it would prosecute the security guard.

Jordanian officials have treated the shooting as a criminal case and say the two unarmed Jordanians - the other was a bystander - were killed in cold blood by the armed guard.

The government statement said the Israeli government had met all of Jordan's demands for the return of the ambassador and the reopening of the embassy.

Many Jordanians, in a country where the peace treaty with Israel is unpopular and pro-Palestinian sentiment widespread, were outraged that the guard was allowed to leave and staged protests calling on the authorities to scrap the 1994 peace treaty.

A televised welcome home for the guard and a hero's embrace from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahuhad enraged King Abdullah. In a rare outburst, he accused Netanyahu of using the incident as a "political show" saying it was "provocative on all fronts".

Source: AFP

A German rapper turned Islamic State fighter who reportedly married the FBI translator hired to spy on him has been killed in an airstrike in Syria, a US-based monitoring group has said.

Denis Cuspert, who performed under the stage name Deso Dogg, became one of the extremist group's most famous Western fighters, appearing in numerous propaganda videos including one that apparently pictured him with a man's severed head.

The German-Ghanaian was killed on Wednesday during an airstrike in the town of Gharanij in Syria's Deir Ezzor province, said a statement from the pro-IS Wafa' Media Foundation translated into English by the SITE monitoring group.

The jihadist group also posted eight graphic photographs on the Telegram messaging app that it said were of his bloody corpse, SITE said.

Cuspert's death has been reported before, including by the Pentagon which announced he had been killed in an airstrike in Syria in October 2015. It later acknowledged he appeared to have survived the attack.

Jihadist sources in April 2014 also said Cuspert had been killed in Syria but they later retracted the claim.

Daniela Greene, an FBI translator with "top secret" security clearance, allegedly sneaked off to Syria in June 2014 to marry Cuspert after she grew attracted to the extremist while spying on him, according to US court documents.

Greene, who was arrested on her return to the US less than two months after travelling to Syria, pleaded guilty to "making false statements involving international terrorism" and served a two-year prison sentence.

Cuspert had pledged an oath of loyalty to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and was a chief recruiter of German fighters.

US officials have said Cuspert had made threats against former US president Barack Obama and US and German citizens, and had also encouraged Western Muslims to carry out IS-inspired attacks.

Source: AFP

Japan's Olympic chief has slammed a top canoeist for spiking a rival's drink with a banned substance to scuttle his Tokyo 2020 selection hopes, describing his act as "unthinkable".

The Japan Anti-doping Agency last week banned Yasuhiro Suzuki for eight years for putting a prohibited muscle-boosting agent into the drink bottle of fellow sprint canoeist Seiji Komatsu during a domestic competition last September.

Canoe officials branded Suzuki's actions "evil" and Japan Olympic Committee (JOC) president Tsunekazu Takeda also blasted the disgraced athlete Friday, accusing him of bringing shame on Japan before next month's Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.

"For a scandal like this to break as we head to Pyeongchang is extremely sad," Takeda told AFP.

"It was an unthinkable act and totally goes against the spirit of the Olympics. It's a real shame and we cannot afford to let this kind of thing happen ever again."

Suzuki admitted to spiking the drink after receiving an intensive anti-doping lecture during a training camp, according to the federation.

"We meet top athletes regularly to teach them the importance of maintaining their credibility and still this has happened," said Takeda.

"I met with all the Olympic organisations yesterday and called for them to go back to the drawing board and make sure this doesn't happen again."

The Japan Canoe Federation could still impose a life ban on Suzuki, 32, citing a history of sabotaging rivals, sometimes by stealing their equipment.

Komatsu won the race in September but was later provisionally suspended after he tested positive for the drug, which he strenuously denied using. His suspension has now been lifted.

Both Suzuki and Komatsu were among the top candidates to represent Japan at the forthcoming 2020 Olympics.

Source: AFP

Nearly 140 chief executives from companies around the world will gather at the Versailles Palace outside Paris on Monday, as the French government steps up its efforts to attract more foreign investors.

President Emmanuel Macron orchestrated what is being billed as an "attractiveness summit" as executives converge for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, next week.

A handful of economic accords are to be announced, including a major investment in "traditional industry" and two in "high-tech and artificial intelligence", an official in the president's office said.

"We are going to take advantage of the fact that on their way to Davos, corporate leaders are coming to Europe and can make a stop in Paris," the official said, asking not to be named.

The 40-year-old French leader has introduced a series of business-friendly reforms since taking power in May, including loosening labour laws and cutting taxes, and is aiming to slash unemployment from 9.7 percent to 7.0 percent by 2022.

The session will begin with a lunch with Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, followed by sessions with government ministers and prominent figures including the mathematician Cedric Villani, who became an MP last year as part of Macron's Republic On The Move (LREM) party.

Macron will cap the event with a closed-door speech and dinner.

"The president had a quiet straightforward goal, that an 'attractiveness summit' doesn't make any sense unless it comes with concrete projects," the source said.

About ten projects are currently being negotiated, the source added.

"The important thing for us, beyond explanations, is to show projects that will make them want to invest in France."

Roughly half of the participants will come from European companies, including Bosch, SAP, Novartis and Rolls-Royce.

About 25 percent will come from American groups, and the remainder from Africa, the Middle East and Asia.

The bosses of JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, HSBC and Bank of America are expected to attend, while China's Alibaba will be represented by its deputy CEO.

Some 3,000 participants are expected to head to Swiss Alps for the 48th Davos conference that opens Tuesday.

Source: AFP

South Korea's prime minister apologised Friday for suggesting the country's women's ice hockey team had no chance of a medal at the Winter Olympics in an unsuccessful attempt to dampen criticism over a unified team with the North.

The two Koreas agreed this week to field a unified women's ice hockey side at the Games, which begin in Pyeongchang next month.

It came after Pyongyang agreed to attend what organisers and Seoul have sought to proclaim a "peace Olympics", easing tensions over the nuclear-armed North's weapons programme.

But critics in the South said a unified team would disrupt the side and deprive some Southern squad members of the chance to play on the Olympic stage.

South Korea qualified for the women's ice hockey tournament as hosts, rather than on merit, and Prime Minister Lee Nak-Yon said Tuesday that the team was out of medal contention, with the South ranked 22nd in the world and the North 25th.

"I've heard our team's ultimate goal was to win just one or two games," he said then, adding: "Athletes are also in favour of bringing in a few good players from the North to enhance competence."

In the face of widespread public criticism, Lee apologised Friday to those who were hurt by the remarks.

"I acknowledge that my remarks had room for misunderstanding," he said at an annual policy briefing.

Another element of the agreement causing controversy in the South is that the two Koreas would march together at the opening and closing ceremonies under a unification flag.

A Realmeter poll released Thursday showed only 40.5 percent of South Koreans supported this.

A larger share -- 49.4 percent -- were in favour of the neighbours holding their own national flags.

- 'Lot of negativity' -

The presidential Blue House website has been flooded with petitions against forming a unified team. "Athletes should not be sacrificed for political reasons," read one.

Kim Se-Hyung, who plays with the Korea University ice hockey team and whose sister is on the national team, said the intentions behind the move were good, but because "we think in an athlete's way, we have a lot of negativity towards it".

It might help North-South relations, he told AFP, "but it is something really small that won't really affect anything. I hope they can think about our players."

Seoul has suggested expanding the ice hockey team roster to accommodate North Korean players, but other countries are likely to see that as conferring an unfair advantage.

The International Olympic Committee, which has the ultimate say on Games matters, is set to finalise the arrangements in talks with both Koreas in Lausanne on Saturday.

Source: AFP

Peter Mayle, the author best known for writing A Year in Provence, has died.

His publisher, Alfred A Knopf, announced on Thursday that the British writer died in a hospital near his home in the south of France at the age of 78 after a brief illness.

Mayle’s dozens of books included the best-selling A Year in Provence, a 1989 publication that chronicled his recent move from England to France, and the novel A Good Year, which was made into a film of the same name in 2006, starring Russell Crowe and Marion Cotillard. He also wrote educational books and children’s stories.

Speaking to the Guardian 20 years after his breakthrough memoir was first published, Mayle explained how he fell in love with Provence while trying to write a novel.

“I found myself completely distracted – much more taken up with the curiosities of life in Provence than with getting down to work on the novel. The daily dose of education I was receiving at the hands of the plumber, the farmer next door, the mushroom hunter and the lady with the frustrated donkey was infinitely more fascinating than anything I could invent,” he said.

Although A Year in Provence was published with little fanfare, it went on to become one of the most successful travel books of all time, selling more than a million copies in the UK and 6 million internationally.

Hundreds of fans even sought out his home in Ménerbes.

“I remember the first fan well – a man in a BMW. I invited him in, plied him with wine and signed his book at least twice. He was followed over the course of several years by hundreds of others,” the author said in 2010.

In 2002, Mayle was awarded France’s highest order of merit, the Legion d’Honneur, for his contributions to French culture.

In recent years, Mayle completed a quartet of novels: The Vintage Caper, The Corsican Caper, The Marseille Caper and The Diamond Caper.

Source: AFP

The funeral of Cranberries singer Dolores O'Riordan, who died suddenly in London this week, will take place near Limerick, Ireland on Tuesday, the church where she will be buried said Friday.

"The Funeral Mass for the late Dolores O'Riordan... former member of the Cranberries will take place in the Church of Saint Ailbe, Ballybricken, at 11.30am on Tuesday 23 January followed by private family burial," the church announced.

Her body will lie in repose at a funeral home close to her home town of Limerick before Tuesday's private service that will be attended by around 200 family members and friends.

The 46-year-old frontwoman of the multi-million selling Irish rock band was found dead in a London hotel on Monday, aged 46.

Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar was among the first to pay tributes, calling O'Riordan "the voice of a generation".

London coroner Stephen Earl said Friday that he was awaiting test results following a post-mortem, with a full inquest set for April 3, although her death is not being treated as suspicious.

The Cranberries achieved international success in the 1990s with their debut album "Everyone Else is Doing it, So Why Can't We?", which included the hit single "Linger".

The follow-up album gave rise to politically-charged single "Zombie", an angry response to the deadly Northern Ireland conflict, which hit number one across Europe.

The band sold around 40 million records worldwide.

She was in London to record a version of "Zombie" with the hard rock band Bad Wolves, the group said on Tuesday.

The Cranberries' greatest hits collection "Stars: The Best Of 1992-2002" has hit number 16 on Britain's album chart, higher than when it was released in 2002.

Source: AFP

British police said Thursday they are investigating a man over a third sexual assault, with the Press Association news agency reporting that US actor Kevin Stacey is the suspected assailant.

The assault allegedly occurred in central London in 2005, during Spacey's 11-year tenure at The Old Vic theatre in the British capital.

"On 13 December we received an allegation that the man sexually assaulted a man (Victim 3) in 2005 in Westminster," a Metropolitan Police spokeswoman told AFP on Thursday.

The force does not name people before they are charged with a crime, but the Press Association said the accused was the same man from earlier complaints.

The other two alleged victims said they were assaulted in 2005 and 2008 in the Lambeth area of the city where The Old Vic is located.

They came forward in the wake of the Hollywood scandal which erupted last year after numerous claims of sexual assault and harassment were made against mogul Harvey Weinstein.

Spacey has since faced a series of abuse allegations, prompting The Old Vic to launch an investigation into the actor's tenure at the theatre between 2004 and 2015.

A total of 20 claims of inappropriate behaviour were received, covering a broader period of 1995 to 2013, and have not been verified.

Source: AFP

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday ruled out the possibility of salvaging the Iranian nuclear deal if President Donald Trump decides to pull the United States out of the agreement.

"This agreement cannot be implemented if one of the participants unilaterally steps out of it," Lavrov told a news conference at the United Nations.

"It will fall apart and there will be no deal then," he said, adding: "I think everyone understands that."

Trump last week agreed to again waive US nuclear-related sanctions on Iran, but demanded that US lawmakers and European allies fix the "disastrous flaws" in the deal or face a US exit.

"This is a decisive moment," Lavrov said.

Russia and the United States are among the six world powers that signed the 2015 landmark deal with Iran that aims to curb Tehran's nuclear program in exchange for lifting sanctions.

Lavrov made clear that there would be no attempt by Russia to salvage it with the five remaining powers, if the United States pulls out.

Russia will make every effort to persuade the United States "not to touch this thing," said Lavrov, saying that the deal was "not dead yet."

The foreign minister again made the argument that killing off the Iran nuclear deal would also compromise any bid to persuade North Korea to scrap its nuclear arsenal.

If the Iranian nuclear deal is not upheld, "how can we ask North Korea to use the same option" and abandon its nuclear ambitions, asked Lavrov.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the Security Council this week that it was in the world's interest that the nuclear agreement "be preserved."

Source: AFP

A British teenager managed to access the communications accounts of top US intelligence and security officials including the then CIA chief John Brennan, a London court heard Friday.

Kane Gamble, now 18, was aged 15 and 16 when, from his bedroom in Coalville, central England, he managed to impersonate his targets to gain highly sensitive information.

"Kane Gamble gained access to the communications accounts of some very high-ranking US intelligence officials and government employees," prosecutor John Lloyd-Jones told England's Old Bailey central criminal court.

"He also gained access to US law enforcement and intelligence agency networks."

Gamble has admitted 10 offences against the computer misuse act, between June 2015 and February 2016, and is awaiting sentencing.

The court heard how the teenager founded the group Crackas With Attitude (CWA), who used "social engineering" -- manipulating call centres and help desks into divulging confidential information -- which they then exploited.

Gamble impersonated Brennan in calls to the telecommunications companies Verizon and AOL, although in one attempt, he stumbled on a question about Brennan's first pet.

Several sensitive documents were reportedly obtained from Brennan's private email inbox and Gamble managed to get information about military and intelligence operations in Iran and Afghanistan.

"It also seems he was able to successfully access Mr Brennan's iCloud account," the prosecutor said.

Gamble called AOL and initiated a password reset, and took control of Brennan's wife's iPad.

- 'I own you' -

Gamble also targeted the then US secretary of homeland security Jeh Johnson and made calls to his phone number.

He left Johnson's wife a voicemail saying "Am I scaring you?" and managed to get a message to appear on the family television saying: "I own you".

Other targets included the then US president Barack Obama's deputy national security adviser Avril Haines, his senior science and technology adviser John Holdren, and FBI special agent Amy Hess.

Gamble gained extensive unauthorised access to the US Department of Justice network and was able to access court case files, including on the Deepwater oil spill.

The British teenager gave some of the material he managed to access to WikiLeaks and boasted that he had a list of all Homeland Security employees.

- Clashing autism reports -

The court heard from consultant forensic psychiatrist Dr Steffan Davies, whose assessment was that Gamble did not have a full understanding of the impact of what he was doing, due to autism.

"I'm very clear that he has an autistic spectrum disorder (ASD)," he said.

"He spent most of his life in his bedroom on the internet and that is where he is getting his cues from.

"He has a very black and white understanding of what was happening, seeing it more as a video game with goodies and baddies.

"He was trying to right what he saw as an injustice."

However, another expert, Dr Philip Joseph, said he doubted Gamble was autistic.

"He's at the mild end (of the spectrum), if he's on it at all," he said.

"If he had that condition, it doesn't explain why he committed these offences."

Gamble was arrested at his home on February 9 last year at the request of the FBI.

He claimed he was motivated to act out of support for the Palestinians, and due to the United States "killing innocent civilians", the prosecutor said.

Wearing a black jacket, he spoke only to confirm his name, mumbling "yes", and sat in the court next to his mother.

He will be sentenced at a date yet to be fixed.

Source: AFP

An Iraqi teenager on Friday pleaded not guilty to allegations he was behind the attempted bombing of a London underground train last year which left 30 people injured.

Ahmed Hassan, 18, is facing charges of attempted murder and causing an explosion over the September 15 attack at Parsons Green station.

Wearing a purple jumper, Hassan appeared at the London court by video link from prison.

The blast, which occurred during rush hour, inflicted flash burns on passengers, while others were injured in the subsequent panic to escape the packed London Underground train.

Thirty people were treated in hospital following the explosion, which could have had a far more devastating impact but failed to detonate correctly.

The device had been placed in a plastic bag and contained hundreds of grams of explosives, as well as metal shrapnel including knives and screws, a prosecutor said during an earlier court hearing.

The bombing at Parsons Green, a quiet and wealthy neighbourhood, was Britain's fifth terror attack in six months and was claimed by the Islamic State group.

Hassan was arrested a day after the bombing when he was recognised by an officer at the southeastern ferry port of Dover.

He had been living in Surrey just south of London and has said his parents were killed in Iraq.

The two-week trial is due to start on March 5, after a further hearing scheduled for February 23.

Source: AFP

German insurers estimated Friday that ferocious gales that battered Germany caused 500 million euros ($614 million) in damages, as the number of dead across the country rose to eight.

Trains on Germany's intercity lines gradually resumed operation a day after they were suspended due to the hurricane-force winds which caused transport chaos across northern Europe.

Two more people were reported killed in the worst storm to strike Germany in a decade, adding to an earlier toll of six which included two firefighters responding to emergency calls.

A 64-year-old man fell eight metres (26 feet) while he was working to secure the roof of a house. He later died in hospital, police from the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt said.

Another man, 34, also succumbed to his injuries after he was crushed by a falling tree, police said.

The huge storm caused another three deaths elsewhere in northern Europe and left air and rail traffic in chaos.

In southern Germany, high-speed ICE trains were running as normal on Friday morning, although the service in the rest of the country remained subject to major disruptions, rail operator Deutsche Bahn said.

The company had on Thursday suspended all high-speed services due to storm Friederike -- the first such stoppage since 2007, when major gales battered the country.

- Baby in storm -

By the end of the morning, trains should be running to all the main cities, Deutsche Bahn said, with the service expected to be back to normal by the weekend.

Regional train services were also disrupted on Friday, particularly in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany's most populous state.

Hundreds of rail staff worked through the night to clear the tracks of fallen branches and trees.

Many trees were uprooted by the force of the storm which saw winds of up to 130 kilometres per hour (80 miles per hour) while others worked to repair damage to the lines, it said.

The German Insurance Association said 500 million euros of damage was caused by the country's worst storm in more than a decade, although it was only a quarter of that inflicted by another deadly tempest in 2007, which cost some two billion euros.

Separately, Dutch insurers reported 90 million euros in damages across The Netherlands, where train services were on Friday also slowly creaking back into gear.

"According to our first estimates, the damage to homes and cars is at least 90 million euros," the Dutch Association of Insurers said.

But it said it had yet to add in the cost to businesses, government buildings and the agriculture sector.

The Netherlands bore the initial brunt of Thursday's severe storms which slammed in with winds of up to 140 kilometres (86 miles) an hour off the North Sea before barrelling across northern Europe.

On a lighter note, a baby boy was born in his parents' car in the western city of Cologne as they were caught up in the traffic chaos unleashed by storm, city authorities said.

The couple have called him Anton.

Source: AFP

India's top court on Friday upheld the acquittal of a Bollywood director accused of raping an American research scholar in a case that has sparked intense debate about consent in a country with high levels of sexual violence.

Mahmood Farooqui was initially found guilty of rape in 2016, but the Delhi high court last year overturned the conviction on appeal, ruling the incident had been consensual.

One of the judges hearing that appeal said Farooqui may not have been aware that the woman had not consented to sex, a comment that attracted fierce criticism from rights activists.

"In cases where the parties are known to each other, it could be really difficult to decipher whether a feeble 'no' – little or no resistance – actually amounts to denial of consent," said Justice Ashutosh Kumar.

The alleged victim sought to appeal, but the Supreme Court on Friday dismissed her plea, saying the acquittal had been sound.

"The high court judgement is well written. It does not require our interference," said S.A. Bobde, one of the judges hearing the case.

Activist Kavita Krishnan said Friday's ruling was a "betrayal of women's rights" and of the new, tougher laws on sexual violence introduced after the fatal gang rape of a Delhi student in 2012.

"If you made a drink for a man, our Supreme Court thinks your No can then be read as Yes," tweeted Krishnan, secretary of the All India Progressive Women's Association.

"SC refusal to even admit the plea against atrocious 'Feeble No' verdict is a betrayal of women's rights and of the 2013 rape law."

The case dates back to 2015 when the scholar had travelled to India to seek Farooqui's assistance with her research.

She travelled home to the US shortly afterwards but returned to India to report the matter to police.

India has a grim record of sexual crimes against women, with nearly 39,000 rape cases reported in 2016, according to government data.

The 2012 Delhi gang rape sparked mass protests and led to an overhaul of rape laws that increased penalties for offenders and accelerated trials through courts.

But activists say much more needs to be done.

Source: AFP

A Taiwanese businessman who has been investigated and sanctioned by authorities on suspicion of selling oil to North Korea attempted suicide on Friday, prosecutors said.

Chen Shih-hsien was rushed to hospital in southern Kaohsiung city where he lives and was later discharged.

"We are aware of Chen's attempted suicide. We will consider his health state before deciding on the date for his next questioning," said Ke Kuang-hui, a spokesman for the Kaohsiung district prosecutor's office.

An emotional Chen, sitting in a wheelchair, told reporters as he was leaving the hospital that he was "framed by China", according to Central News Agency.

"I would not do business with North Korea," he was quoted by the agency as saying.

Taiwan's justice ministry last week announced a ban on all financial dealings with Chen and froze his companies' bank accounts due to the ongoing investigation into his activities.

Chen is being probed over links to a Hong Kong-registered ship that Seoul has said it detained in November.

The ship, known as the Lighthouse Winmore, is suspected of transferring oil products to a North Korean vessel and breaching UN sanctions against the nuclear-armed regime.

Chen is under investigation for making a false declaration that a ship he chartered was bound for Hong Kong when it actually sailed to international waters to sell oil, according to prosecutors.

He has told prosecutors that he did not know the oil products were bound for a North Korean vessel, sources told AFP.

Local media said the ship he chartered was the Lighthouse Winmore and that Chen sold oil products through "a Chinese middleman".

The Lighthouse Winmore was impounded in November by South Korean authorities after it allegedly transferred 600 tonnes of oil to a North Korean vessel, according to Seoul.

It was chartered by the Billions Bunker Group, which is incorporated in the Marshall Islands and cannot be traced directly to Chen.

But Taiwanese authorities found him to be the sole shareholder of another company with a similar name, Bunker's Taiwan Group, incorporated in the British Virgin Islands.

Taiwan has slapped sanctions on both firms.

Two other entities backed by Chen were also sanctioned by Taiwan under terrorism financing prevention laws.

Chen is currently on bail and has not yet been formally charged.

The US had previously asked the United Nations Security Council to blacklist 10 ships -- including the Lighthouse Winmore -- for violating sanctions against the North.

Taiwan announced in September it was banning all trade activities with North Korea.

Source: AFP

A Taiwanese businessman who has been investigated and sanctioned by authorities on suspicion of selling oil to North Korea attempted suicide on Friday, prosecutors said.

Chen Shih-hsien was rushed to hospital in southern Kaohsiung city where he lives and was later discharged.

"We are aware of Chen's attempted suicide. We will consider his health state before deciding on the date for his next questioning," said Ke Kuang-hui, a spokesman for the Kaohsiung district prosecutor's office.

An emotional Chen, sitting in a wheelchair, told reporters as he was leaving the hospital that he was "framed by China", according to Central News Agency.

"I would not do business with North Korea," he was quoted by the agency as saying.

Taiwan's justice ministry last week announced a ban on all financial dealings with Chen and froze his companies' bank accounts due to the ongoing investigation into his activities.

Chen is being probed over links to a Hong Kong-registered ship that Seoul has said it detained in November.

The ship, known as the Lighthouse Winmore, is suspected of transferring oil products to a North Korean vessel and breaching UN sanctions against the nuclear-armed regime.

Chen is under investigation for making a false declaration that a ship he chartered was bound for Hong Kong when it actually sailed to international waters to sell oil, according to prosecutors.

He has told prosecutors that he did not know the oil products were bound for a North Korean vessel, sources told AFP.

Local media said the ship he chartered was the Lighthouse Winmore and that Chen sold oil products through "a Chinese middleman".

The Lighthouse Winmore was impounded in November by South Korean authorities after it allegedly transferred 600 tonnes of oil to a North Korean vessel, according to Seoul.

It was chartered by the Billions Bunker Group, which is incorporated in the Marshall Islands and cannot be traced directly to Chen.

But Taiwanese authorities found him to be the sole shareholder of another company with a similar name, Bunker's Taiwan Group, incorporated in the British Virgin Islands.

Taiwan has slapped sanctions on both firms.

Two other entities backed by Chen were also sanctioned by Taiwan under terrorism financing prevention laws.

Chen is currently on bail and has not yet been formally charged.

The US had previously asked the United Nations Security Council to blacklist 10 ships -- including the Lighthouse Winmore -- for violating sanctions against the North.

Taiwan announced in September it was banning all trade activities with North Korea.

Source: AFP

Russia on Thursday warned at the UN Security Council that the collapse of the Iranian nuclear deal would send an "alarming" message to the world and compromise efforts to persuade North Korea to scrap its nuclear arsenal.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told a council meeting on non-proliferation that the 2015 deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) was a major diplomatic achievement.

"Clearly the failure of the JCPOA, especially as a result of one of the parties ... would be an alarming message for the entire international community architecture, including the prospects for dealing with the nuclear problem on the Korean peninsula," said Lavrov.

President Donald Trump on Friday agreed to again waive US nuclear-related sanctions on Iran, but demanded that US lawmakers and European allies fix the "disastrous flaws" in the deal.

Washington is concerned that the deal, thrashed out over 12 years of talks, does nothing to punish Iran over its ballistic missile program, interference in regional conflicts or human rights abuses at home.

Russia, one of the six world powers along with the United States that signed the deal with Iran, dismissed US concerns as politically-motivated.

"We cannot for the benefit of political agendas of certain countries abandon a genuine achievement of international diplomacy," said Lavrov.

At a Moscow press conference this week, Lavrov said that North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un will not agree to give up nuclear weapons in exchange for lifting sanctions if the same arrangement with Tehran collapses.

"If this arrangement is taken away and Iran is told: you remain within the framework of your obligations and we will reimpose sanctions - then put yourself in North Korea's place," Lavrov said.

In his address to the council, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the nuclear deal was being "questioned" and stressed it was in the world's interest that the agreement "be preserved."

Source: AFP

Mortar fire on a town in northern Syria held by Turkish-backed rebels wounded at least 14 people in a psychiatric hospital, a monitor said on Friday.

The Thursday evening fire on the town of Azaz just across the border from Turkey came after Ankara bombarded the adjacent Kurdish-held enclave of Afrin for five straight days ahead of a threatened invasion.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor of the war, said the mortar rounds were fired by the Syrian Democratic Forces, a US-backed alliance dominated by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG).

But SDF spokesman Mustefa Bali denied that the alliance fired the rounds that hit the hospital, when asked by AFP.

Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said most of the wounded were among the more than 100 patients being treated at the hospital, many for post-traumatic stress disorder resulting from Syria's near seven-year civil war.

Paramedics transferred the wounded patients to a nearby clinic, an AFP correspondent reported. One had lost several fingers.

The mortar fire destroyed a second storey wall of the hospital, showering the beds of the ward with debris.

Turkey has said repeatedly this week that an operation to oust the YPG from the Afrin enclave is imminent and has massed troops and armour on the border.

It regards the YPG as an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), an outlawed rebel goup that has waged a deadly insurgency in southeastern Turkey since 1984.

The YPG, which also controls a much larger stretch of the border region further east, has vowed to defend the enclave.

Russia has some 300 military observers deployed in Afrin and, on Thursday, Turkey's army and intelligence chiefs held talks in Moscow that were seen as an essential precursor to any invasion.

Source: AFP

Robert Redford said Thursday the #MeToo and Time's Up movements were a "tipping point" that would change Hollywood in favor of women's equality and intolerance for sexual misconduct.

"From my standpoint, change is inevitable and change is going to come... I'm pretty encouraged right now," the 81-year-old double Oscar-winner told a news conference launching his annual Sundance Film Festival.

"What it's doing is bringing forth more opportunities for women and more opportunities for women in film to have their own voices heard and do their own projects. I'm pretty excited by that," he said.

Redford said that as women were pushing back against harassment and demanding equal pay they were forcing the traditional male powerbrokers in the film industry to make changes.

"It's kind of a tipping point because it's changing the order of things, so women are going to have a stronger voice," he told reporters as he kicked off the annual showcase for independent films at the ski resort of Park City, Utah.

Sundance is the first major film festival since scores of women came forward in October to accuse movie mogul Harvey Weinstein -- an independent film specialist and a supporter of the 10-day event -- of harassment and abuse.

In the following weeks numerous high-profile figures including Kevin Spacey, Brett Ratner, Dustin Hoffman and Louis C.K. have faced a flood of allegations of sexual misconduct.

- 'Sickened' -

The festival, which runs through January 28, will shine the spotlight on more than 100 independent features, most of them world premieres including many from newcomers trying to make their mark.

The #MeToo movement against sexual misconduct has particular resonance at Sundance as it has been spearheaded by actress Rose McGowan, who accused Weinstein of attacking her at the 1997 edition of the festival.

Weinstein was considered a titan of independent film and greatly influential in getting smaller features funding and distribution -- not to mention a front row seat in the Oscars conversation.

But Redford described the veteran producer as "a moment in time" that the indie sector would move past, adding that his backing of Sundance was motivated by financial self-interest.

Sundance Institute executive director Keri Putnam said she was "sickened" to learn that at least two of the allegations against Weinstein related to his behavior at Sundance.

Although Redford has always insisted that Sundance organizers are above politics, this year's festival continues the tradition of filmmakers using their platform in Park City to highlight the issues of the day.

Among the most hotly anticipated entries, Jennifer Fox's "The Tale" stars Laura Dern as a woman forced to confront a sexual relationship she had at age 13 with two adults coaches.

- 'Fake news' -

"Seeing Allred" profiles Gloria Allred, the New York lawyer who has made her name representing women in sexual abuse cases, while "RBG" focuses on Ruth Bader Ginsburg, one of three female justices on the US Supreme Court.

Offscreen, organizers of last year's Women's March are staging a Respect Rally on Saturday, with speakers set to include Allred and Jane Fonda, whose documentary "Jane Fonda in Five Acts" gets its world premiere at Sundance.

Meanwhile, Morgan Spurlock's "Super Size Me 2" was dropped from the schedule after he admitted sexual misconduct on Twitter.

The panelists were pressed during the hour-long discussion for their views on President Donald Trump's controversial labelling of media coverage he doesn't like as "fake news."

"Journalism is a big deal for me and it always seems to be under threat periodically" said Redford, who famously played investigative reporter Bob Woodward in Watergate thriller "All the President's Men" (1976).

"Something comes up and then dies down, comes up and dies down. Journalism is our means of getting to the truth, and I think getting to the truth is getting harder and harder in this climate."

Source: AFP

Catalonia's former leader Carles Puigdemont, who was sacked by Madrid over his attempt to break from Spain, said Friday he can govern the region from Belgium where he is in self-imposed exile as he eyes a comeback after scoring big in elections.

"There are only two options: in prison I would not be able to address people, write, meet people," Puigdemont, who risks arrest on charges of rebellion, sedition and misuse of public funds if he returns to Spain, told Catalunya Radio.

"The only way is to continue doing it freely and safely."

"Nowadays big business, academic and research projects are essentially managed using new technology," he added.

His comments came as Catalonia's new parliamentary speaker, Roger Torrent from the pro-independence ERC party, held talks with party representatives to pick a candidate for the regional presidency.

Puigdemont, who was sacked along with his cabinet on October 27 after the regional parliament declared independence, is the only candidate from Catalonia's separatist grouping to lead the region.

And given pro-independence parties won an absolute majority in elections on December 21, he in theory stands a good chance to be voted in at a parliamentary session due by the end of the month.

- Plan to 'restore policies' -

But there is a huge stumbling block in the way: he is in Belgium and won't come back to Spain.

The Catalan parliament's legal experts say the contender has to be physically present.

But Puigdemont insists he has the legitimate mandate of the people to rule after his Together for Catalonia list won the most votes within the separatist camp in the elections.

He wants to present his candidacy and government programme to parliament -- a prerequisite to being voted in -- remotely via videolink or by having someone else read it for him.

The central government in Madrid, though, has warned it will take the matter to court and keep direct control over Catalonia if Puigdemont tries to govern from Belgium.

"To persist in this way is not the solution, to the contrary, it is a bad idea," government spokesman Inigo Mendez said.

Ultimately, it will be up to Torrent and his deputies -- three of whom are pro-independence and three others against it -- to decide whether to allow lawmakers to vote for a president even if he is not present.

On Monday, Puigdemont will take part in a debate at the University of Copenhagen - his first public trip since fleeing Spain.

His visit to Denmark could help avoid problems in Belgium, where European citizens can live without a residency permit for three months, after which they theoretically have to leave. If they return they can stay another three months.

In the interview, Puigdemont said he wanted to reinstate his sacked government as well as its policies, marked by disobedience towards Spanish courts and a failed strategy to break from Spain while he was president.

"We have a plan to restore democracy, the institutions and policies," he said.

"The result of these elections validate our government programme."

Madrid's direct rule, imposed after the independence declaration, has caused resentment in a region that had enjoyed considerable autonomy before its leaders attempted to break away from Spain.

According to Economy Minister Luis de Guindos, the secession crisis -- that kicked off in earnest on October 1 when Catalan leaders held an independence referendum despite a court ban -- has taken a financial toll.

He has said the crisis has slowed economic growth in the region at an estimated cost of one billion euros ($1.2 billion).

More than 3,000 companies have moved their legal headquarters out of the region as uncertainty persists.

Source: AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron said Friday that his ambitious EU plans to reform the European Union needed German backing, as Chancellor Angela Merkel gears up for a crucial vote on forming a new coalition.

"Our ambition cannot come to fruition alone," Macron told a joint press conference with Merkel before talks in Paris. "It needs to come together with Germany's ambition."

On Sunday, some 600 delegates from Germany's Social Democrat (SPD) party will be asked to give the green light to a preliminary coalition agreement reached with Merkel's conservatives last week.

Merkel's political future is on the line, after more than 12 years in power.

At the meeting with Macron, which appeared aimed at giving her a boost, Merkel said that a "stable German government" was crucial for the EU to move forward with its reform agenda.

In November, she was left considerably weakened after her first attempt to form a new government collapsed when the pro-business FDP party walked out.

She then turned to the SPD, her outgoing governing partners with whom she hopes to form another grand coalition.

Macron, who is driving attempts to reform the EU in the wake of Britain's decision to leave the bloc, refused to be drawn into trying to predict the outcome of Sunday's vote, saying it could be "counterproductive".

But he stressed the pro-European credentials of the SPD and said the coalition blueprint showed "true European ambition".

Merkel said her CDU/CSU alliance and the SPD had a shared commitment to Europe.

Macron had made no secret of the fact that he would like to see the SPD, which is enthusiastic about his proposals for closer eurozone integration, including a common budget, remain on the front benches.

Last week he said a conservative-social democrat tie-up would be "good for Germany, good for France and above all good for Europe."

Source: AFP

 US President Donald Trump plans to meet Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May at the World Economic Forum in Davos next week, the White House said Friday.

The announcement came after Trump cancelled a planned trip to London, casting further doubt on the strength of the vaunted trans-Atlantic "special relationship."

"President Trump looks forward to having a bilateral meeting with UK Prime Minister May in Davos next week to further strengthen the US–UK special relationship," spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said.

A Downing Street spokesman confirmed that the pair would meet on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss Alpine resort.

May was the first world leader to visit Trump at the White House after his inauguration last year and brought with her an invitation from Queen Elizabeth II for a state visit.

Since then, however, ties have become strained and thousands of Britons have taken to social media to promise large-scale street protests if the visit goes ahead.

The latest blow to ties came on January 11 when Trump confirmed in a tweet that he had "cancelled" a visit to London during which he had been expected to open the new US embassy.

Instead, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will on Monday head to London to visit the embassy and hold talks with his British counterpart, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson.

Tillerson will also visit Paris before joining Trump later in the week in Davos, which is hosting its annual policy forum for the global business elite.

A State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that Tillerson would use his visit to London "to reaffirm the US-UK special relationship."

"My understanding is that he will make a visit to the mission," the official said.

"I don't think that there is a ribbon-cutting or any sort of ceremony planned, in part because the facilities are still in the final phase of construction," he said.

"I think there's still quite a lot of pieces and debris in the lobby and elsewhere and it's really not the moment for a ribbon-cutting, but he is visiting the new embassy."

- 'Bad deal' -

The US embassy's move from Grosvenor Square in the West End of London near the British Government's Whitehall headquarters to Nine Elms, on the south bank of the Thames, had been planned for 10 years.

But Trump suddenly came out against the idea earlier this month in one of his trademark angry tweets -- accusing his predecessor of having overspent on an unnecessary project.

"Reason I canceled my trip to London is that I am not a big fan of the Obama Administration having sold perhaps the best located and finest embassy in London for 'peanuts,' only to build a new one in an off location for 1.2 billion dollars," he tweeted.

"Bad deal. Wanted me to cut ribbon-NO!"

But the outburst was widely interpreted as an excuse from a sensitive president fearful that his visit would trigger an embarrassing public rejection from the British public.

Trump, while a supporter of those campaigning to bring Britain out of the European Union, has offended many other Britons with what they see as his divisive rhetoric.

The president has repeatedly sparred with London's Muslim mayor, Sadiq Khan, and other British officials on Twitter, accusing them of downplaying the threat of "radical Islamic terror."

And in November last year, he won a rebuke from May herself when he retweeted three propaganda videos promoted by the far-right racist movement Britain First.

But, despite the tensions, British leaders remain very keen to preserve trans-Atlantic ties, particularly so that their impending "Brexit" from Europe will not leave them isolated.

Source: AFP

President Donald Trump and the Senate's top Democrat on Friday both touted "progress" in 11th hour talks on breaking an impasse over spending, raising hopes that a US government shutdown could be averted.

With a midnight deadline looming to reach a short-term deal to keep the federal government running at full capacity, both Trump and Senator Chuck Schumer struck an optimistic tone.

"Excellent preliminary meeting in Oval," Trump tweeted, saying they were "working on solutions" with Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan.

"Making progress - four week extension would be best!" Trump added.

But Schumer admitted that a "good number of disagreements" remain between the two sides, despite what he described as a "long and detailed meeting," at which they discussed "all of the major outstanding issues."

"The discussions will continue," the New York Democrat told reporters.

The president shelved plans to fly to Florida to celebrate the first anniversary of his inauguration at his Mar-a-Lago estate -- which falls on Saturday -- to remain in Washington to ride out the storm, and the possible late-night Senate votes.

"He's not leaving until this is finished," White House budget director Mick Mulvaney told reporters.

"There's a really good chance it gets fixed" before government offices open on Monday, Mulvaney added.

'Shutdown coming?'

Trump seemed to revel in the high-stakes brinksmanship unfolding in Washington, with Senate passage of a government funding extension that was pushed through the House of Representatives on Thursday up in the air.

"Shutdown coming?" he tweeted to begin the day Friday. White House officials said he made several calls to Democrats to try to win votes before his talks with Schumer.

"Democrats are needed if it is to pass in the Senate - but they want illegal immigration and weak borders," Trump said on Twitter.

Republicans, who have a tenuous one-seat majority in the Senate, need as many as a dozen Democratic crossover votes to reach the 60 votes required for passage.

Democrats, however, appeared determined to block the measure, insisting on a deal that would protect from deportation so-called "Dreamers" -- the 700,000 immigrants who entered the country illegally as children.

The House measure, which would extend federal funding until February 16, reauthorizes for six years a health insurance program for poor children -- a long-time Democratic objective -- but not the Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals program, known as DACA, that affects Dreamers.

White House officials insisted there was no urgency to fix DACA, which expires March 5.

"This is purely an attempt by the Senate Democrats led by Schumer -- why we call it the 'Schumer shutdown' -- to try and get a shutdown the president gets blamed for," Mulvaney said.

Political risks

With mid-term congressional elections looming later this year, Republicans risk being blamed by voters if the government grinds to a halt over lack of funds.

A new Washington Post/ABC poll found that 48 percent of Americans blame Trump and the Republicans for a potential shutdown, and only 28 percent hold Democrats responsible.

There have been four government shutdowns since 1990. In the last one in 2013, more than 800,000 government workers were put on temporary leave.

Essential functions like the military, law enforcement, the White House and Congress would continue working but with reduced staff. Some agencies would shut down altogether.

But others in the massive bureaucracy will be sent home without pay.

International ratings agency Fitch said a partial shutdown was unlikely to affect America's AAA/stable rating for US sovereign debt.

And Wall Street seemed unconcerned so far, with the S&P and Nasdaq closing at new records.

'Like a Sphinx'

Schumer said if agreement is not reached by Friday night, Democrats would support a shorter-term funding measure that would "give the president a few days to come to the table."

McConnell said the House bill provides for four weeks of funding, enough to allow talks to continue "without throwing the government into disarray for no reason."

Negotiations with the White House on a bipartisan compromise on DACA blew up last week after Trump reportedly referred to African nations and Haiti as "shithole countries."

Trump's unpredictable Twitter outbursts and sudden changes of position also have bedeviled Republican leaders as they maneuver to cut a deal.

In the past, Schumer has described Trump as "like a Sphinx on this issue," a sentiment Republicans also appeared to share.

"We need to know where the president stands," Senator John Kennedy, a Republican from Louisiana, said Friday on CNN.

"Let's suppose we reach an agreement with the Democrats, and I think we will -- I want to know the president is going to sign it."

Source: AFP

 Pope Francis sounded a stark warning about the future of the Amazon and its peoples during a visit to the region on Friday, saying they had "never been so threatened."

In a speech to thousands of tribe members on the edge of the rainforest in Peru, he said the Amazon and its peoples bore "deep wounds."

Francis lamented "the pressure being exerted by great business interests that want to lay hands on its petroleum, gas, lumber, gold" and industrial scale farming.

He later highlighted the "endless violence" endured by the region's women.

Bare-chested tribesmen, their bodies painted and their heads crowned with colorful feathers, danced and sang for the pope when he arrived in the Peruvian city of Puerto Maldonado.

Thousands of indigenous people had traveled to meet the pontiff from throughout the Amazon basin region of Peru, Brazil and Bolivia.

"We ask you to defend us," said Yesica Patiachi, a representative of the Harakbut people -- one of 23 indigenous peoples specifically mentioned in the pope's greeting at the start of the meeting. "If they take away our land, we can disappear."

- 'Our land was beautiful' -

"I'm 67, I remember that our land was beautiful, with abundant plants and fish," said Luzmila Bermejo of the Awajun people. "The oil, forestry and mining groups came... all of this polluted and weakened us."

Members of one of the tribes presented the leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics with a bow and arrow in a symbolic gesture aimed at urging him to help defend their land rights.

"The native Amazonian peoples have probably never been so threatened on their own lands as they are at present," said the pope, who appeared visibly moved by the reception.

"Amazonia is being disputed on various fronts," he said.

"The problems strangle her peoples and provoke the migration of the young due to the lack of local alternatives.

"We have to break with the historical paradigm that views Amazonia as an inexhaustible source of supplies for other countries without concern for its inhabitants."

The Amazon region will be the focal point of a world bishops' meeting, or synod, to take place in October 2019.

Local tribal leaders and conservationists are increasingly concerned about rampant illegal gold mining and logging that have devastated ancestral lands.

The pope later received a raucous welcome when he visited a shelter for vulnerable children and adolescents, victims of physical, sexual or psychological abuse.

"The world needs you, young men and women of the first peoples, and it needs you as you are," he told them.

Francis encouraged them to study, so as not to be "content to be the last car on the train of society, letting yourselves be pulled along and eventually disconnected. We need you to be the engine, always pressing forward."

Returning to Lima in the afternoon, the Argentine pontiff hit out against corruption in a speech to dignitaries at government headquarters, where his audience included President Pedro Pablo Kuczynsky.

"How much evil is done to our Latin American people and the democracies of this continent by this social 'virus', a phenomenon that infects everything, with the greatest harm being done to the poor and mother earth," said Francis.

On Saturday he is scheduled to visit the northern city of Trujillo, where floods killed more than 130 people, and speak about climate change.

He will fly back to Rome on Sunday after mass at an air base.

- Protests in Chile -

The pontiff, 81, arrived Thursday afternoon in Peru, the second and last leg of a week-long South American visit.

During the first part of his visit, in Chile, Francis highlighted the plight of vulnerable immigrants, offered an apology to victims of sexual abuse by Catholic priests, prayed with survivors of Augusto Pinochet's brutal dictatorship, and called for protection of Chile's persecuted indigenous communities.

Before his visit to Chile, the US-based NGO Bishop Accountability said that almost 80 members of the Roman Catholic clergy had been accused of sexually abusing children in Chile since 2000.

At the pope's first public mass in Santiago on Tuesday, he faced protests over the church's handling of decades of sexual abuse.

Scuffles broke out between riot police and demonstrators near O'Higgins Park, and police used water cannons on protesters. More than 50 people were arrested, authorities said.

At the end of his visit, he robustly defended a Chilean bishop, Juan Barros, who is accused of covering up the sexual abuse of minors by another priest.

Source: AFP

 Turkey on Friday started fresh shelling of the Syrian town of Afrin in a move to oust a US-backed Kurdish militia that Ankara considers "terrorists" and vowed to press on with a full-scale operation against them.

The Turkish government has repeatedly warned it will strike Syrian towns controlled by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia, including Afrin, after the US said it was training a 30,000-strong border force there.

"The Afrin operation will take place," Defence Minister Nurettin Canikli told A Haber television.

"The presence of all the terror lines in northern Syria will be removed. There's no other way out," he said.

Turkish troops fired on several YPG targets in Afrin to prevent the formation of a "terror corridor" on the border, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

Army howitzers in the frontier Hatay province launched at least 10 rounds of artillery fire, targeting the "terror nests of the terror organisation in Afrin," Anadolu said.

A military convoy of 20 buses carrying Syrian opposition rebels backed by Ankara also crossed over into Syria through the Oncupinar border crossing in the Kilis province, Turkish media reported.

Separately, around 30 buses full of Syrian fighters headed towards the Cilvegozu border crossing in the town of Reyhanli, an AFP photographer said.

- 'De facto start'-

Canikli said with the shelling "in fact, the operation has de facto started."

Asked about the timing of a ground incursion, Canikli said: "It could be tomorrow, it could be in the evening. What we say is that this operation will take place."

Syria's deputy foreign minister Faisal Mekdad warned on Thursday that the Syrian air force could destroy any Turkish warplanes used in a threatened assault on the war-torn country.

The YPG is a major bone of contention in ties between Turkey and the US which considers it a key ally in fighting IS.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had reacted with fury to the announcement of the US-backed border force, denouncing it as an "army of terror".

The Pentagon said it does not plan to create an "army" and that the force is aimed at fighters from the Islamic State group and maintaining stability in areas recaptured from the jihadists.

Ankara however said it was not satisfied with the US assurances.

Turkey accuses the YPG of being a branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) that has waged an insurgency in its southeast since 1984.

Meanwhile, mortar fire on the Syrian town of Azaz just across the border from Turkey and held by Turkish-backed rebels wounded at least 14 people in a psychiatric hospital, a monitor said on Friday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor of the war, said the mortar rounds on Thursday were fired by the Syrian Democratic Forces, a US-backed alliance dominated by the YPG.

The Turkish army condemned the mortar fire and said wounded civilians were also taken across the border into Turkey for treatment.

Analysts say Turkey needs the green light from Russia for a full cross-border operation because of Moscow's military presence in the area.

In a surprise development, Turkey's army chief General Hulusi Akar and spy chief Hakan Fidan were in Moscow on Thursday for talks with Russian counterparts on security issues and Syria.

Source: AFP

German insurers estimated Friday that ferocious gales that battered Germany caused 500 million euros ($614 million) in damages, as the number of dead across the country rose to eight.

Trains on Germany's intercity lines gradually resumed operation a day after they were suspended due to the hurricane-force winds which caused transport chaos across northern Europe.

Two more people were reported killed in the worst storm to strike Germany in a decade, adding to an earlier toll of six which included two firefighters responding to emergency calls.

A 64-year-old man fell eight metres (26 feet) while he was working to secure the roof of a house. He later died in hospital, police from the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt said.

Another man, 34, also succumbed to his injuries after he was crushed by a falling tree, police said.

The huge storm caused another three deaths elsewhere in northern Europe and left air and rail traffic in chaos.

In southern Germany, high-speed ICE trains were running as normal on Friday morning, although the service in the rest of the country remained subject to major disruptions, rail operator Deutsche Bahn said.

The company had on Thursday suspended all high-speed services due to storm Friederike -- the first such stoppage since 2007, when major gales battered the country.

- Baby in storm -

By the end of the morning, trains should be running to all the main cities, Deutsche Bahn said, with the service expected to be back to normal by the weekend.

Regional train services were also disrupted on Friday, particularly in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany's most populous state.

Hundreds of rail staff worked through the night to clear the tracks of fallen branches and trees.

Many trees were uprooted by the force of the storm which saw winds of up to 130 kilometres per hour (80 miles per hour) while others worked to repair damage to the lines, it said.

The German Insurance Association said 500 million euros of damage was caused by the country's worst storm in more than a decade, although it was only a quarter of that inflicted by another deadly tempest in 2007, which cost some two billion euros.

Separately, Dutch insurers reported 90 million euros in damages across The Netherlands, where train services were on Friday also slowly creaking back into gear.

"According to our first estimates, the damage to homes and cars is at least 90 million euros," the Dutch Association of Insurers said.

But it said it had yet to add in the cost to businesses, government buildings and the agriculture sector.

The Netherlands bore the initial brunt of Thursday's severe storms which slammed in with winds of up to 140 kilometres (86 miles) an hour off the North Sea before barrelling across northern Europe.

On a lighter note, a baby boy was born in his parents' car in the western city of Cologne as they were caught up in the traffic chaos unleashed by storm, city authorities said.

The couple have called him Anton.

Source: AFP

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Friday he would stand in a presidential election due to take place in March.

"I announce to you in the honesty and transparency which we are used to... my candidacy for the post of president of the republic," Sisi said at a conference in Cairo, broadcast live on state television.

Sisi is widely expected to win in the first round, set for March 26-28.

Egypt's former army chief, Sisi was elected in 2014, a year after leading the military's ouster of his predecessor Mohamed Morsi amid mass protests against the Islamist's year-long rule.

That was followed by a crackdown against thousands of Morsi supporters who demonstrated for weeks to demand his reinstatement.

In August 2013, security forces stormed a sit-in to disperse protesters, killing hundreds within hours and arresting thousands.

Egypt has since faced a string of deadly jihadist attacks, particularly in North Sinai, where an Islamic State group affiliate led what became a full-fledged insurgency following Morsi's ouster.

Sisi announced his candidacy Friday during the final segment of a three-day conference named "Story of a Nation" which showcased his accomplishments during his first term.

He said he had "done all I could".

"Regardless of who your vote will be for, all that I wish of you (is that you) show the world your participation in the elections and choose whoever you wish to," said Sisi.

The conference saw ministers and members of the public discuss issues including completed infrastructure projects, the military's counter-terrorism efforts, foreign policy and the war on drugs.

- Who will stand? -

So far, two prominent potential candidates have announced that they will not take part in the poll.

Former prime minister Ahmed Shafiq, who had been seen as a major rival to Sisi, said on January 7 that he would not be a candidate, reversing a pledge he made from the United Arab Emirates in November.

Shafiq had disappeared for 24 hours after being deported to Egypt last month following years in exile in the UAE.

On Monday, Mohamed Anwar Sadat, a dissident and nephew of Egypt's late president of the same name, announced he would not run in the poll because the climate was not right for free elections.

Other potential candidates include Khaled Ali, a rights lawyer and 2012 presidential candidate who challenged the government over Egypt's controversial transfer of two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia.

It remains unclear whether he will stand, as he was sentenced in absentia in September to three months in jail on accusations of "offending public decency", a ruling he appealed.

Ali said only the committee organising the election could decide whether that disqualified him as a candidate.

Separately, military Colonel Ahmed Konsowa was sentenced by a military court in December to six years in jail after he announced his intention to stand.

The head of Egypt's Zamalek football club, Mortada Mansour, said on Saturday he would put forward his candidacy.

Campaigning for the election begins on February 24 and will last until March 23.

The National Elections Authority will accept applications between January 20 and 29 from presidential hopefuls who are collecting the required number of signatures to stand.

Source: AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron said Friday that the Islamic State group in Syria and Iraq would be defeated militarily "in the coming weeks," as he laid out plans for bolstering France's defence capabilities.

"Today, thanks to the efforts of all the nations involved, the Daesh military organisation in the Levant is almost completely defeated," Macron said in a speech aboard a helicopter carrier in the southern port of Toulon, using an Arabic acronym for IS.

"I'm confident that in the coming weeks we will achieve a military victory on the ground," he said.

"I want us now to firmly commit with our partners to stabilisation, reconstruction and aide to populations" after years of conflict, he said.

With many of its leaders dead and its fighters on the run, IS has now lost almost all the land it once controlled in Syria and Iraq.

France, which recently pulled out two of the 12 Rafale fighter jets it had been operating in the region, currently has about 1,200 personnel in the international coalition fighting the militants.

Macron said that although combat operations would continue, the country would "adapt" its contribution this year to developments, without providing details.

The French government has increased the 2018 defence budget by 1.8 billion euros, bringing it to 34.2 billion euros ($42 billion).

Macron reiterated his pledge to lift French defence spending to two percent of the country's GDP by 2025, in line with the target agreed to by NATO members in 2014.

The increased spending will include a "renewal" of France's nuclear arsenal during his five-year term, Macron said, calling nuclear deterrence "the keystone of our defence strategy for the past 50 years."

Source: AFP

Daud Salman and his family stayed put in their Iraqi village despite years of regular clashes between tribes, but when a stray bullet wounded his son, it was time to move.

In the north of Basra province, "bullets talk," he said.

Feuds between the region's half-dozen tribes often flare into pitched battles with assault rifles and machineguns, killing bystanders and driving a never-ending cycle of revenge attacks.

Security forces, fearing reprisals, rarely intervene.

The region near Iraq's southern border with Kuwait has long been the scene of inter-tribal battles over business disputes, questions of honour or even football matches.

But with security forces deployed to the country's north to battle the Islamic State group (IS), Basra residents caught in the crossfire say they feel abandoned.

"Peaceful families that have no weapons can't live," said Daud, 41.

The clashes have transformed residential areas into battlefields, he said.

It was during yet another gunfight that Daud's son Ali, 15, took a bullet to the shoulder as he stood in front of the family home.

That finally prompted the family to move to Basra city, away from the tribal areas.

Residents of the province's north say security forces are powerless to halt the clashes.

In the absence of heavily armed military and federal police forces, "local police are reluctant... to get involved in these battles because there is nothing to protect them," said provincial council member Ghanem Hamid.

Even in situations where they could prevent the violence, police officers -- many of whom hail from the tribes involved -- hesitate to intervene for fear of later reprisals.

Haydar Ali, a 34-year-old engineer, suggested deploying soldiers and policemen from other provinces "who have no social relations or tribal ties that could affect their role".

Residents have called on security forces to confiscate weapons, but regular raids have had little impact on the vast numbers of arms circulating in the province.

Tribes in Basra, the only province of Iraq with access to the sea, obtained a glut of weapons when the army of the late Saddam Hussein withdrew from Kuwait in 1991 in a hasty retreat.

They further boosted their stockpiles following the US-led invasion in 2003, said Sheikh Abbas al-Fadhli, who advises the provincial governorate on tribal affairs.

The tribal disputes have a direct impact on Basra's economy.

Clashes in the oil-rich region, a base for several foreign companies and oil refineries, have caused many to suspend operations, said General Jamil al-Shomary, an army commander in Basra.

"A tribal fight can close down roads for three or four days," preventing people from reaching work, he said.

"There have even been attacks against oil companies."

- 'Condemned by society' -

Ali said putting an end to the violence would also require a change in mentalities.

"Criminals and people who provoke tribal clashes need to be condemned by society before they're condemned by the courts," he said.

Teacher Saadoun Jassim al-Ali, 46, blamed "lawlessness and impunity" that had allowed instigators of clashes to remain at large.

Sheikh Mohammad al-Zidawi, an elder of the Bu Zayd tribe, said "the wide availability of weapons" was to blame.

He is a member of a committee set up to mediate between tribes.

In 2017, "it resolved 176 tribal disputes, including some that had lasted 15 years," he said.

The committee organises meetings between dignitaries from tribes involved in disputes.

Families of slain tribal members spend hours wrangling over the "blood price" -- financial compensation for their bereavement -- or the banishment of certain tribal members.

Kirk Sowell, a political risk analyst who publishes Inside Iraqi Politics, said the Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary coalition set up to fight IS was complicating matters.

"Many of the myriad of Hashed groups are turning into local mafias," he said.

"Basra has both a major tribal violence problem and (a problem with) organised crime."

Source: AFP

Turkey on Thursday described as far from satisfactory US assurances playing down plans to create a border force in northern Syria made up of Kurdish militia forces deemed as "terrorists" by Ankara.

Washington said it is training a 30,000-strong border force on Syria's northern frontier with Turkey, comprised of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia, whom Ankara accuses of being a terror group.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reacted furiously to the announcement of the plan over the weekend, denouncing the force as an "army of terror".

But the Pentagon said late Wednesday it does not plan to create an "army" and the force is aimed at fighters from the Islamic State (IS) group and maintaining stability in areas recaptured from the jihadists.

"Did this satisfy us in full? No, it did not," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told CNN-Turk television in an interview.

"The establishment of a so-called terror army would cause irreversible damage in our relations ... it is a very serious situation," he warned.

The YPG is a major bone of contention in ties between Turkey and the United States, which considers it a key ally in fighting IS.

Turkey accuses the YPG of being a branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) that has waged an insurgency in its southeast since 1984.

- Russian approval key -

The tensions come as Turkey repeatedly warns it is on the verge of launching an operation against towns in Syria controlled by the YPG, including the key centre of Afrin.

But analysts say a full cross border operation would be near impossible without the approval of Russia, which has a military presence in the area.

In a surprise development, Turkey's army chief General Hulusi Akar and spy chief Hakan Fidan were in Moscow on Thursday for talks with Russian counterparts on security issues and Syria, the army said in a statement.

Turkish artillery has already been shelling YPG positions near Afrin, Turkish media reported.

Cavusoglu said despite their disagreements over Syria -- including on the future of Moscow's ally President Bashar al-Assad -- Turkey has been working with Russia on the issue.

"The Russians should not oppose an Afrin operation," he said.

"What we need to coordinate is the situation of their observers (on the ground) there to avoid an accident," he added. "We have coordinated and are coordinating many steps with Russia thus far."

Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka are well known for it and now tennis has a new shrieker and grunter, who was so loud at the Australian Open the crowd started imitating her.

Rising Belarusian star Aryna Sabalenka's screeching got so grating in her Australian Open clash with local hope Ashleigh Barty late Tuesday that the irritated centre court crowd began mocking the 19-year-old.

It prompted the chair umpire to admonish them, with the irony not lost on spectators, who jeered louder in response.

Twitter also lit up in response with former player Todd Woodbridge joining the critics.

"Nice player #Sabalenka but something needs to b done about her noise and grunting on court!!!!," he said.

 
The head of women's tennis in Australia Nicole Pratt agreed it was a problem.

"The player does rely on the sound of the ball coming off the racket," she told local media.

"And probably more the issue is when players grunt or scream for an extended period of time because then that is impeding on your hitting time and hitting space.

"There is a bit of an issue when it does get extended."

Grunting has long been a divisive issue in tennis, with Sharapova routinely derided for it.

Britain's famously inventive tabloid press have even utilised a "gruntometer" during Wimbledon to measure the often ear-splitting shrieks of the top players.

It is not just women who can get loud. The likes of Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal can also be prominent vocalists on court.

In Australia, the Herald Sun newspaper began running an online poll Wednesday on whether the grunting had gone too far, and so far 94 percent of respondents said "yes".

Despite the distraction, Barty managed to shut out the noise in her come-from-behind first round win.

She said she knew what to expect, having been warned by her coach.

"He was aware it was coming. A lot of players grunt. A lot of players don't grunt," she said.

"It's just the way they are, the way they play. For me, it wasn't a distraction. It wasn't anything like that. It was just part and parcel. I knew it was coming

Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic made an unexpected visit Thursday to the site of a massacre of Muslim civilians by Bosnian Croats during the country's 1990s war, an atrocity that led to several war crimes convictions.

Grabar-Kitarovic, on an official visit to Bosnia, paid her respects to 116 Muslim civilians, among whom 33 children and women, killed by Bosnian Croats in the village Ahmici in central Bosnia in April 1993.

Such gestures are still rare among leaders in the former Yugoslavia, torn apart by a series of bloody wars in the 1990s.

"I like to visit those sites of piety in silence, to bow to the victims and think about the past, but notably with idea that this past does not repeat ever again," Grabar-Kitarovic told reporters.

Journalists were not present during her visit to Ahmici.

In photos released by her office the Croatian president is seen laying wreaths at a monument for the victims and posing with an imam.

She also visited neighbouring Krizancevo Selo village, where some 90 Croat civilians and military personnel were killed by Muslim forces in December 1993.

The two villages are seen as symbols of the conflict between Bosnia's Croats and Muslims.

Although allies against ethnic Serbs during most of the war, Croats and Muslims also fought each other in 1993 and 1994.

Grabar-Kitarovic's predecessor Ivo Josipovic in 2010 also visited the two villlages and was the first Croatian leader to acknowledge the Ahmici massacre victims.

Local imam Mahir Husic said Grabar-Kitatovic's gesture was a "very important message which advocates peace and co-existence."

Bosnian Croats sentenced by the UN war crimes court over the Ahmici atrocity included Dario Kordic, vice-president of the self-declared Bosnian Croat state within Bosnia, who was sentenced to 25 years in jail.

In its final verdict in November, the UN court sentenced on appeals six former Bosnian Croat wartime leaders. One of them, Slobodan Praljak, committed suicide drinking poison in the courtroom.

Bosnia's 1992-1995 war claimed some 100,000 lives.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg urged Macedonia on Thursday to keep up newfound momentum towards solving a 27-year-old dispute with Greece over its name, a key condition for joining the alliance.

"I welcome the willingness of your government to resolve this issue and the resolve the government has shown," Stoltenberg told Macedonia's parliament in Skopje during a two-day visit, the first by a NATO chief since 2014.

A two-hour meeting on Wednesday of negotiators on the issue at the United Nations in New York was a "valuable step", Stoltenberg said.

"I am encouraged by recent progress – as are all NATO Allies – and I urge you to take this chance to move forward."

Greece blocked Macedonia from joining NATO 10 years ago because of the row dating from the 1991-92 breakup of Yugoslavia.

Athens argues that the name Macedonia suggests that Skopje has territorial claims to the northern Greek region of the same name.

After the talks in New York, UN envoy Matthew Nimetz said he was "very hopeful" that a solution was within reach.

The two sides resumed talks on the issue after a change of power in Skopje last year, when a social democratic party replaced conservatives led by nationalist Nikola Gruevski following snap elections.

"There is no other way to join NATO without solving the name issue," Stoltenberg said after meeting Prime Minister Zoran Zaev later Thursday.

But "NATO doors remain open," he added.

Zaev said earlier this month that he believed a solution could be found by July.

Stoltenberg also commended Macedonia for reform efforts including "important progress on transparency, accountability, oversight of the intelligence and security agencies, and judicial reform".

In bluntly vulgar language, President Donald Trump questioned Thursday why the U.S. would accept more immigrants from Haiti and “shithole countries” in Africa rather than places like Norway, as he rejected a bipartisan immigration deal, according to people briefed on the extraordinary Oval Office conversation. Trump earlier today denied using that language.

Trump’s contemptuous description of an entire continent startled lawmakers in the meeting and immediately revived charges that the president is racist. The White House did not deny his remark but issued a statement saying Trump supports immigration policies that welcome “those who can contribute to our society.”

Yet Trump himself tweeted early today: “The language used by me at the DACA meeting was tough, but this was not the language used.” He went on to criticize the immigration deal, saying: “What was really tough was the outlandish proposal made – a big setback for DACA!”

The White House did not immediately respond to questions about the president’s tweet.

Trump’s comments Thursday came as two senators presented details of a bipartisan compromise that would extend protections against deportation for hundreds of thousands of young immigrants — and also strengthen border protections, as Trump has insisted.

The lawmakers had hoped Trump would back their accord, an agreement among six senators evenly split among Republicans and Democrats, ending a monthslong, bitter dispute over protecting the “dreamers.” But the White House later rejected it, plunging the issue back into uncertainty just eight days before a deadline that threatens a government shutdown.

Dick Durbin of Illinois, the Senate’ s No. 2 Democrat, explained that as part of that deal, a lottery for visas that has benefited people from Africa and other nations would be ended, the sources said, though there could be another way for them to apply. Durbin said people who would be allowed to stay in the U.S. included those who had fled here after disasters hit their homes in places such as El Salvador, Guatemala and Haiti.

Trump specifically questioned why the U.S. would want to admit more people from Haiti. As for Africa, he asked why more people from “shithole countries” should be allowed into the U.S., the sources said.

The president suggested that instead, the U.S. should allow more entrants from countries like Norway. Trump met this week with Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg.

Asked about the remarks, White House spokesman Raj Shah did not deny them.

“Certain Washington politicians choose to fight for foreign countries, but President Trump will always fight for the American people,” he said.

Trump’s remarks were remarkable even by the standards of a president who has been accused of racism by his foes and who has routinely smashed through public decorum that his modern predecessors have generally embraced.

Trump has inaccurately claimed that Barack Obama, the nation’s first black president, wasn’t born in the United States. He has said Mexican immigrants were “bringing crime” and were “rapists.” He said there were “very fine people on both sides” after violence at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, left one counter-protester dead.

House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer of Maryland said, “President Trump’s comments are racist and a disgrace.” But it wasn’t just Democrats objecting.

Republican Rep. Mia Love of Utah, the daughter of Haitian immigrants, said Trump’s comments were “unkind, divisive, elitist and fly in the face of our nation’s values.” She said, “This behavior is unacceptable from the leader of our nation” and called on Trump to apologize to the American people “and the nations he so wantonly maligned.”

Trump has called himself the “least racist person that you’ve ever met.”

The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to publicly describe the conversation. One said lawmakers in the room were taken aback by Trump’s remarks.

The Trump administration announced late last year that it would end a temporary residency permit program that allowed nearly 60,000 citizens from Haiti to live and work in the United States following a devastating 2010 earthquake.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has fired his powerful intelligence chief, state media said Thursday, in the latest shake-up of the country's security services.

Sisi appointed his chief-of-staff and close ally General Abbas Kamel as interim replacement for outgoing intelligence head General Khaled Fawzy, according to state media.

No reason was given for the move, which comes ahead of presidential elections to be held in March.

Sisi, who has run the country with an iron fist since 2014, has not yet officially declared himself a candidate, but he is widely expected to stand and win.

A former army chief, Sisi was elected in 2014 a year after leading the military's overthrow of his predecessor Mohamed Morsi amid mass protests against the Islamist's year-long rule.

Since then Egypt's security forces have faced a string of attacks, notably in the Sinai Peninsula where the Islamic State group is waging a deadly insurgency.

In October Sisi named a new armed forces chief of staff and announced changes in key security positions after at least 16 police officers were killed in the Western Desert some 200 kilometres (125 miles) southwest of Cairo.

Kamel, like Fawzy, keeps a low public profile.

Dubbed Sisi's "box of secrets" by the press, he has been the president's chief-of-staff since 2010 while at military intelligence, the defence ministry and then the presidency.

Struggling Swiss former winner Stan Wawrinka was knocked out of the Australian Open by American Tennys Sandgren in the second round on Thursday.

The 97th-ranked Sandgren defeated ninth seeded Wawrinka 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 and will next play Germany's Maximilian Marterer.

It has been tough so far this year for Wawrinka, who was playing in his first tournament since Wimbledon six months ago following left knee surgery.

He was never in the contest and had his serve broken five times and made only 21 winners and 35 unforced errors.

The three-time Grand Slam winner, who defeated Rafael Nadal to win the 2014 Australian Open, has slipped to nine in the world rankings and faces a battle to climb higher after his early round exit.

He made the semi-finals at last year's Australian Open where he lost to eventual champion Roger Federer in five sets.

Wawrinka had a troubled lead-in to the year's opening Grand Slam, pulling out of an exhibition event in Abu Dhabi on his way to Australia.

He has not played a competitive match prior to his first round Open win over Lithuania's Ricardas Berankis, having only decided to take part last weekend.

Sandgren's next opponent, world No.94 Marterer, reached the third round with a 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(5), 3-6, 6-3 over Spanish veteran Fernando Verdasco.

Aggressive world number one Simona Halep kept her quest for a maiden Grand Slam title on course by cruising into the third round of the Australian Open on Thursday.

The Romanian top seed needed just an hour and five minutes to sweep to an easy 6-2, 6-2 victory over struggling Eugenie Bouchard on Margaret Court Arena.

"I thought that I played well tonight," said Halep, who dominated the encounter.

"I just wanted to make my game, to open the court, to stay closer to the baseline, to play a little bit more aggressive, which I did.

"Also to try to finish the points down the line, which I did pretty well with the backhand today."

Four years ago this match-up was the Wimbledon semi-final, which the then up-and-coming teenager Bouchard won 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 after Halep was compromised by an ankle injury.

Halep has since risen to number one while Bouchard, once touted as the game's new golden girl, has tumbled outside the top 100.

There was no chance of a Wimbledon repeat as the 23-year-old's form woes were cruelly exposed by Halep who broke the Canadian's serve at will.

So poor was Bouchard's delivery that she couldn't hold on to her serve a single time during a first set which Halep ripped through 6-2 in 33 minutes

She finally held serve in the third game of the second set to sympathetic cheers from the Margaret Court Arena crowd.

- Ankle pain -

But it was to be the only time in the match as Halep, scampering around the baseline, showed few ill-effects from rolling her ankle worryingly in her first-round win over Destanee Aiava.

"I felt the pain but I didn't think about it," said Halep of her fragile ankle which she said had needed some outside support.

"I couldn't practise much. But during the match, I just forgot about it. I had a very tight tape. I could move," she said.

"The most important thing is that I could play my game not thinking about the ankle. I did it great today."

The 26-year-old Romanian, who currently has no clothing sponsor, was wearing the same "lucky" red dress that she used while registering a dominant victory at the Shenzhen Open just over a fortnight ago.

She found the outfit on the internet. "Was a (web)site, in China actually, and one of my managers helped me, and in 24 hours I had the outfit, and it was perfect. I was lucky," she had said before her first-round match.

It helped her fight back from 5-2 and set point down against Australian teen Aiava.

But Halep needed no extra help Thursday to overcome the sadly out-of-form Bouchard.

She will face unseeded American Lauren Davis on Saturday for a place in the last 16 as the Romanian continues her quest for a first Grand Slam title.

IMF chief Christine Lagarde has joined calls on Germany to invest in future economic growth even at the cost of relaxing its cherished budgetary discipline, raising hackles in Europe's powerhouse.

"There is an excess of savings over investments which suggests that Germany can afford to spend and invest more" Lagarde said at a Thursday conference with top economists and policymakers from around Europe hosted in Frankfurt by the IMF and the Bundesbank, Germany's central bank.

Increasing investments "will help to reduce global imbalances which we're concerned" about at the IMF.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative-led governments have pursued the "black zero" policy, which calls for paying down old debts and avoiding creating new ones.

Proponents argue Germany must put its financial house in order to meet EU rules and brace itself for a looming demographic transition, which will see the economy transformed as millions born during the postwar baby boom head into retirement.

However there have long been grumbles from Germany's partners in the eurozone about Berlin's trade and budget surpluses and there have been regular calls for Berlin to step up spending to boost growth throughout the region.

- Frosty reception from Bundesbank -

Lagarde's advice met with a frosty reception from Bundesbank chief Jens Weidmann, who argued Germany should "maintain a safety margin to the existing fiscal rules (on debts and deficits) in the face of the looming democratic challenges" in his speech to the conference.

Investments and other measures to boost potential growth "require a shift in public expenditure from consumption to investment, rather than increased spending," he insisted.

"This may not be the most attractive thing to do. But it would be the right thing to do," Weidmann added.

Germany's Finance Minister Peter Altmaier, speaking in Paris, said that Germany had in fact spent more than planned during the past four years.

But increasing investments now could mean "higher growth in the long term will improve prosperity, helping to offset the costs of an aging society," Lagarde wrote in a blog post ahead of the conference.

Lagarde, a former French finance minister, also urged Germany to stoke wage growth to help boost inflation in the 19-nation euro area.

"We have also advised the government to spend more on reforms that help women go back to work, such as opening more childcare centres and kindergartens," as well as "creating training programmes for refugees", she added.

Berlin should spend budget surpluses "to invest more in public infrastructure, such as roads, railways and digital infrastructure," she also wrote.

The question of public spending and investment was a key source of friction between Merkel's conservative Christian Democrats and the leftist Social Democrats which reached a preliminary deal on forming a coalition government, but which now have to hammer out the details.

The Social Democrats have called for stepping up investment in infrastructure and government spending on programmes for the middle and lower classes, while Merkel's conservatives have argued that Germany can't afford to loosen the purse strings.

India's top court on Thursday overturned a ban imposed by several states on the release of a Bollywood epic about a mythical Hindu queen.

The Supreme Court said the ban, which followed violent protests by members of the Hindu right who claimed the film falsely depicted a romance between the queen and a Muslim ruler, violated creative freedoms.

India's film censor board had cleared "Padmaavat" for release subject to certain changes, but at least four states said they would ban its screening.

"Cinemas are an inseparable part of right to free speech and expression," said Chief Justice Dipak Misra.

"States... cannot issue notifications prohibiting the screening of a film."

Harish Salve, a lawyer representing the movie's producers, said the states "cannot ban screening to appease their political constituency".

Such a move would "lead to constitutional breakdown", he told The Hindu newspaper.

Last January protesters from a hardline Hindu group attacked the film's director Sanjay Leela Bhansali and vandalised the set during filming in Rajasthan.

The leader of the group also offered 50 million rupees ($769,000) to anyone who "beheaded" lead actress Deepika Padukone or Bhansali.

Protesters attacked another set near Mumbai in March, burning costumes and other props.

"Every story can't be told how bullies want it," tweeted author and screenwriter Chetan Bhagat in response to the court's ruling.

"Artists, just as anyone else, have freedom to express in India. The states involved should respect decision and curb bullies."

US President Donald Trump insisted Thursday that his plan for a wall along the Mexican border has "never changed or evolved," in tweets posted after his chief of staff said he was not "fully informed" when he pledged to build it last year.

Retired General John Kelly's remarks, made to members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and reported by the New York Times Wednesday, were a rare departure from the president on one of the core issues that defined his upstart run for office.

He told the lawmakers he had persuaded Trump the wall was not necessary and that the president's opinion on the barrier had "evolved."

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But Trump hit back on Twitter, writing: "The Wall is the Wall, it has never changed or evolved from the first day I conceived of it."

The president added that some of the wall will be "see through" -- a protection, he said last July, against people throwing "large sacks of drugs" over -- and repeated that it will be paid for "directly or indirectly" by Mexico.

"The $20 billion dollar Wall is 'peanuts' compared to what Mexico makes from the U.S. NAFTA is a bad joke!" he said, reasserting his position on the trade pact which is currently being renegotiated.

Meanwhile, Trump also clarified the wall would not be built in areas of natural protection.

The Twitter burst comes amid rocky efforts in Congress to reach a deal on funding to avert a government shutdown, which could come as early as midnight Friday unless a short term fix is found.

Democrats have demanded a broader deal that includes continued protection against deportation for hundreds of thousands of immigrants who arrived in the country as children.

"If there is no Wall, there is no Deal!" Trump said in another tweet that described Mexico as "now rated the most dangerous country in the world."

Kelly was brought in as chief of staff six months ago in a bid to put order to the command center of Trump's chaotic presidency.

Turkish engineers on Thursday began a complex operation to lift with two cranes a passenger plane which skidded off the runway at a provincial to a precarious position just metres from the sea.

The Pegasus Airlines Boeing 737-800 plane had landed normally at Trabzon airport late on Saturday on a flight from Ankara but then went off the runway just metres (feet) from the waters of the Black Sea with its wheels stuck in mud.

Since then, it has remained on the steep slope that descends from the airport apron into the sea for four days, its nose pointing down and managing to defy gravity by being stuck in thick mud.

The Turkish aviation authorities closed Trabzon airport from 0100 GMT to all air traffic so that the salvage operation can take place, with flights diverted to the nearby Ordu-Giresun airport, also on the Black Sea.

The authorities sent two cranes from Ankara and Samsun to carry out the operation, the Dogan news agency said.

Engineers began the operation by tying cables around the wing area of the plane in cradle fashion and also around the tail area. Both cranes will then work to lift the plane onto the runway.

Once it is back on the runway, it will be emptied of remaining fuel, taken to a hanger, where the baggage and personal possessions of the passengers will finally be removed.

All 162 passenger and six crew were safely evacuated but witnesses said at the time it was miracle there had been no casualties and the plane did not slip into the sea.

The pilot told prosecutors investigating the incident that the plane had undergone a sudden surge of power from one of the engines while taxiing on the runway.

The cause of the technical issue has yet to be made clear although images showed one of the engines had broken off and fallen into the sea.

More than fifty people were killed in a passenger bus fire on Thursday in Kazakhstan as it traveled along a major highway.

The dead, believed to be immigrant workers from a neighboring Uzbekistan, were on a 1,370 mile highway linking Shymkent in southern Kazakhstan and Samara in Russia.

Both drivers were confirmed to be among the dead.

"According to preliminary information, there were 57 people -- all Uzbek citizens -- on the bus and of them 52 passengers have died, while five managed to get out on their own," Aktilek Kenes, a spokesman for the Aktobe regional emergency situations department, said.

Doctors and psychologists were at the scene of the fire and two hotlines were reportedly set up for the victims' families.

The route is commonly used by Uzbek migrant laborers traveling to construction sites in Russia.

No cause for the fire was given, however, regional authorities said that most of the 200 vehicle fires in 2017 were attributed to electrical problems.

US officials mis-spoke about a plan to set up a 30,000-strong militia in eastern Syria and owe angry ally Turkey an explanation, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson admits.

On Sunday, the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group in Syria announced that it was training local fighters, including Kurdish militia, as a "border security force."

Turkey, which regards the US-backed YPG militia as a faction of the outlawed Kurdish separatist PKK and thus a terrorist group, reacted with fury and vowed to destroy the new unit.

Pentagon officials have since backtracked on how they describe the force, insisting it will operate within Syria to protect areas liberated from the Islamic State group.

But Turkey has not been reassured and Tillerson, who met his Turkish counterpart Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Tuesday in Vancouver, admits the issue was badly handled.

"It's unfortunate that entire situation has been mis-portrayed, mis-described. Some people mis-spoke," he told reporters on his plane late Wednesday.

"We are not creating a border security force at all," he said, adding that he had spoken to US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to confirm this.

"We have shared with the Turks what we are doing is we are trying to ensure that local elements are providing security to liberated areas," he explained.

In Ankara, even after talking to Tillerson, Cavusoglu said Turkey continues to reject the idea of the force.

"Did this satisfy us in full? No, it did not," he told CNN-Turk television.

"The establishment of a so-called terror army would cause irreversible damage in our relations ... it is a very serious situation," he warned.

Tillerson explained that the Islamic State group, while diminished, is still capable of carrying out attacks in parts of northwest Syria and in the Euphrates valley.

The new US-backed force "is just more training and trying to block ISIS from their escape routes" he said, not a means to protect Kurdish areas on the Turkish border.

"I think it's unfortunate that comments were made by some that left that impression. That is not what we're doing," he said.

"We owe them an explanation. It was not properly described, and it's unfortunate. We understand why they reacted the way they did."

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday urged the Security Council to revive efforts to punish those responsible for chemical weapons use in Syria after Russia killed off a UN probe of the gas attacks.

Guterres said the use of chemical weapons in Syria's nearly seven-year war "seriously challenges the global taboo against these weapons of mass destruction."

"If the use of chemical weapons in Syria is once again determined, the international community needs to find an appropriate way to identify those responsible and hold them to account," he told a council meeting on non-proliferation.

Russia used its veto power twice in November to block the renewal of a UN investigative panel tasked with identifying those responsible for chemical attacks in Syria.

A month earlier, the panel had released a damning report that found the Syrian air force had dropped sarin on the rebel-held village of Khan Sheikhun in April, killing scores of people.

The Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM), set up by Russia and the United States in 2015, shut down in November but Western powers have kept up efforts to restore some sort of mechanism for accountability.

US Ambassador Nikki Haley this month sent a letter to Guterres that contained a US rebuttal of Russia's objections to the gas attacks investigations in Syria.

The letter was seen as laying the ground for a renewed US push at the council to restore the chemical weapons investigation with a possible new resolution.

Russia's arguments "are misleading, unprofessional, inconsistent, and at times, completely false," said the US document, seen by AFP.

Haley told the council that Russia stood in the way of international action to hold its Syrian ally accountable, and said the top UN body "must respond to this outrageous violation of international law."

France will host an international meeting in Paris on Tuesday on boosting cooperation against "unacceptable impunity in the use of chemical weapons," French Ambassador Francois Delattre said.

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) continues to present to the council reports from its fact-finding missions in Syria.

A recent OPCW report concluded that sarin was used in another incident on March 30 in the village of Latamneh and is currently before the council.

Deputy foreign minister Faisal Mekdad warned on Thursday that Syria's air force could destroy any Turkish warplanes used in a threatened assault on the war-torn country.

"We warn that the Syrian Air Force is ready to destroy Turkish air targets in the skies of Syria," Mekdad told reporters, according to Syria's official SANA news agency.

"We warn the Turkish leaders that if they start fighting in the region of Afrin, it will be seen as an aggression by the Turkish army against the sovereignty of Syria," he added.

Afrin is among the areas Turkey has said it will attack in northern Syria to target the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia.

Ankara accuses the YPG of being a branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) that has waged an insurgency in Turkey since 1984.

The US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group said at the weekend it was working to create a 30,000-strong border security force in northern Syria.

Ankara immediately objected, fearing the new force would be comprised of the YPG.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said this week that Turkey had to "nip this terror army in the bud".

The United States later insisted it does not intend to create an army or conventional border guards.

Erdogan said on Monday that Turkey would soon begin an operation against towns in Syria controlled by Kurdish militia, calling the areas "nests" of terror.

"Tomorrow, (or) the day after, (or) within a short period, we will get rid of terror nests one-by-one in Syria starting with Afrin and Manbij" in northern Syria, he said in a televised speech.

Deputy foreign minister Faisal Mekdad warned on Thursday that Syria's air force could destroy any Turkish warplanes used in a threatened assault on the war-torn country.

"We warn that the Syrian Air Force is ready to destroy Turkish air targets in the skies of Syria," Mekdad told reporters, according to Syria's official SANA news agency.

"We warn the Turkish leaders that if they start fighting in the region of Afrin, it will be seen as an aggression by the Turkish army against the sovereignty of Syria," he added.

Afrin is among the areas Turkey has said it will attack in northern Syria to target the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia.

Ankara accuses the YPG of being a branch of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) that has waged an insurgency in Turkey since 1984.

The US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group said at the weekend it was working to create a 30,000-strong border security force in northern Syria.

Ankara immediately objected, fearing the new force would be comprised of the YPG.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said this week that Turkey had to "nip this terror army in the bud".

The United States later insisted it does not intend to create an army or conventional border guards.

Erdogan said on Monday that Turkey would soon begin an operation against towns in Syria controlled by Kurdish militia, calling the areas "nests" of terror.

"Tomorrow, (or) the day after, (or) within a short period, we will get rid of terror nests one-by-one in Syria starting with Afrin and Manbij" in northern Syria, he said in a televised speech.

Pope Francis highlighted the plight of vulnerable immigrants on Thursday and robustly defended a bishop accused of covering up sexual abuse at the end of a visit to Chile overshadowed by controversy.

In the northern border region of Iquique, which he said was "the land of dreams" for so many, the pope hit out at human traffickers and others who seek to take advantage of helpless immigrants.

"Let us be attentive to those who profit from the irregular status of many immigrants who don't know the language or who don't have their papers 'in order'," Francis told a colorful congregation of around 50,000 at an open-air mass on Iquique's sprawling Lobito beach.

The 81-year-old pontiff has confronted sensitive issues at every turn since he began his visit Monday, offering an apology to victims of priestly sexual abuse, praying with survivors of Augusto Pinochet's brutal dictatorship, and calling for protection of the rights of Chile's persecuted indigenous communities.

The sex abuse issue dogged him almost to the altar as he prepared to celebrate mass on Thursday.

Chit-chatting about the visit with journalists as he stepped down from his popemobile, Francis' mood turned serious when tackled about his support for the controversial bishop.

"The day they bring me proof against Bishop Barros, then I will speak," the pope said in response to a journalist's question about the 61-year-old, appointed by Francis in 2015 despite being accused of covering up another priest's abuse of boys.

"There is not a single piece of proof against him. Everything is slander. Is this clear?" the pope said before walking off to prepare for the mass.

Bishop Juan Barros was attending the ceremony along with hundreds of other bishops and clergy. Barros has been a conspicuous presence at both of the pope's previous open-air masses and his meeting with clergy at the Santiago cathedral.

Days before the start of the visit on Monday, the US-based NGO Bishop Accountability said that almost 80 members of the Roman Catholic clergy had been accused of sexually abusing children in Chile since 2000.

Local Catholic groups in Barros' southern diocese of Osorno are demanding that Francis remove him for his ties to one of the highest-profile abusers, disgraced pedophile priest Fernando Karadima.

Barros "is a liar, a delinquent, who has amnesia after covering up for Karadima. He has covered-up abuses and should be in jail or at least dismissed," said Juan Carlos Cruz, one of Karadima's victims.

- Land of Dreams -

Some 1,800 kilometers (1,120 miles) north of the capital Santiago, Iquique has been a huge draw for illegal immigrants from Chile's poorer neighbors, helping to drive an economic boom.

"This land is a land of dreams, but let us work to ensure that it also continues to be a land of hospitality," said Francis in his homily.

"Like Mary at Cana, let us make an effort to be more attentive in our squares and towns, to notice those whose lives have been 'watered down,' who have lost -- or have been robbed of -- reasons for celebrating."

And he urged people not to be afraid to speak out over injustice against immigrants when they come across it.

Overnight, worshippers camped out on the sand, waiting for the pope's final mass in Chile.

"It is wonderful to be here to find, in Francis, strength to cope. It is difficult when I feel indifference or when doors are closed because I am Bolivian," Claudia Escalera, 31, told AFP.

"Francis' words in favor of the foreigners who live here are needed, differences must be respected," said 22-year-old Monserrat Caballero, from Ecuador.

- Denounces violence -

Demonstrations against Church sex abuse scandals and attacks on churches marked the opening days of his visit to Chile.

The pope celebrated mass in a restive southern region on Wednesday, denouncing the use of violence in the struggle for indigenous rights, only hours after assailants firebombed churches and other targets.

The state has long been accused of persecuting the Mapuche people, who centuries ago controlled vast areas of Chile but have since been marginalized.

At the pope's first public mass in Santiago on Tuesday, he faced protests over the church's handling of decades of sexual abuse by the clergy.

Scuffles broke out between riot police and demonstrators near O'Higgins Park, and police used water cannons on protesters. More than 50 people were arrested, authorities said

Later, the pope met privately with a small group of people sexually abused by priests, after he publicly asked for forgiveness.

After Thursday's mass in Lobito beach, the pope leaves Chile for a four-day visit to Peru, the final leg of his South American trip that is set to include stops in the cities of Puerto Maldonado, Trujillo and Lima.

The Israeli army on Thursday revealed details of a massive underground barrier being built along the border with the Gaza Strip in a bid to neutralise the threat of Palestinian attack tunnels.

Eventually stretching some 65 kilometres (41 miles), the concrete wall will be accompanied by motion sensors designed to detect tunnel digging and is expected to be completed by mid-2019.

The project had been previously announced, but details of its construction had been kept secret until Thursday, when journalists were allowed to view aspects of it.

The details were unveiled days after the army destroyed what it described as a tunnel intended for attacks stretching from the blockaded Palestinian enclave into Israel and eventually Egypt, at least the third uncovered and demolished in less than three months.

Tunnels were among Hamas's most effective tools during the 2014 war with Israel, with militants using them to enter the Jewish state, carry out attacks and at times even return to Gaza through the underground passages.

The devastating 2014 conflict killed 2,251 Palestinians, while more than 10,000 were wounded and 100,000 were left homeless.

On the Israeli side, 74 people were killed, all but six of them soldiers.

Hamas and other militant groups in Gaza say tunnels are needed for defence.

An Israeli state inquiry published last year accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and top army brass of being unprepared for the "strategic threat" of the tunnels from the enclave run by Islamist movement Hamas.

But with the new underground barrier and sensors detecting movement, militant groups would no longer be able to build and use tunnels, a senior Israeli army official said.

"They understand that the strategic weapon of underground tunnels crossing the border is going to end," the official told reporters.

- 'Deep enough' -

Workers -- local and from abroad -- have been labouring around the clock for nearly a year.

The barrier is being built on Israeli territory, east of the existing border fence, with four kilometres completed so far -- in the area of the town of Sderot, off the northern Gaza Strip, and the Nahal Oz area near Gaza City.

The technique used is similar to that for building support walls for high-rise buildings or underground parking lots, the military official said at one of the barrier construction sites along the border.

Heavy machines dig a deep, narrow trench, filling it with bentonite slurry that keeps the trench from collapsing.

A metal reinforcing cage is inserted, with tubes sucking out the slurry and then filling the trench with cement drying into a wall approximately a metre wide.

Attack tunnels from Gaza can reach the depth of dozens of metres, with the Israeli army official only saying the new barrier would be "deep enough".

A new, eight-metre high border fence being erected atop the underground wall will further prevent infiltrations of Gazans into Israel, the senior official said.

Speaking to reporters near the Israeli community of Kissufim, where an attack tunnel built by Islamic Jihad was demolished in late October, Israeli military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus said the underground wall would be the first such "complete underground barrier."

The operation to demolish the tunnel in October left 12 militants dead.

"Any attempt to tunnel into Israel ... will be detected and targeted" by the army, Conricus said.

But eliminating the tunnel threat would not mean that Gaza militants would cease their attacks on Israel, the senior military official said.

"They're training, building forces for the sea and land," he said.

The UN's agency for Palestinian refugees is the only reason Umm Mohamed could afford a C-section delivery, send her five children to school or have her rubbish collected.

So the massive funding cuts to UNRWA announced this week by the United States' pro-Israeli administration mean nothing less than catastrophe for the 42-year-old and her family.

"People are going to suffer a lot. We have no money for education or health care. Our only hope is UNRWA," said Umm Mohamed, standing in her living room in Burj al-Shmali camp, in southern Lebanon.

The agency, set up after the 1948 creation of Israel that drove huge numbers of Palestinians from their homes, faces what the UN has described as the "most severe" crisis in its history.

The United States held back $65 million that had been destined for UNRWA on Tuesday, two weeks after President Donald Trump threatened future payments.

The funding shortfall threatens the running of hundreds of schools and medical facilities for the roughly five million refugees living in UNRWA camps scattered across the Middle East.

Two weeks ago, Umm Mohamed had half of her medical testing expenses reimbursed by UNRWA. "What are people going to do now when it comes to health costs?," she wondered, a flowery grey veil framing her genial face.

Four of her children go to UNRWA schools and she is entitled to free visits to the doctor's.

- 'Thrown on the street' -

"If the schools close down, the children will be thrown on the street," her husband Freij said, sitting on his sofa in a grey tracksuit.

"UNRWA-supported education gives me some breathing space. I just can't afford to send them to other schools," he said.

His only income is from fixing and selling recycled furniture.

Freij's elder son dropped his business studies to join the masses of migrants seeking new opportunities in Europe and undertook the perilous boat crossing a few weeks ago, hoping he would soon be able to send money back to his parents.

A maze of narrow streets over which hangs a strong smell of sewage leads to their modest home.

Over the years and decades, Burj al-Shmali, which lies near the southern coastal city of Tyre, grew into a little town with shops, schools and multi-storey buildings.

According to a recent census, at least 174,000 Palestinians live in Lebanon. UNRWA's estimate is higher but in any event all depend on the agency for their survival.

Last year, 160,000 of them received care in UN-funded clinics and $14 million were disbursed to cover hospital fees.

Rubbish collection is supported by UNRWA, as are the maintenance of the infrastructure and sometimes home renovations.

- 'Catastrophic' -

"All these activities are at stake," Claudio Cordone, the Lebanon director of the Palestinian refugee agency, told AFP.

"If UNRWA cannot provide functioning clinics, cannot support people who are below the poverty line, if we have to close the schools you can see what is the impact on all these families and individuals."

The Norwegian Refugee Council warned it would be hugely difficult for aid groups to pick up the bill and fill the gaping vacuum left by reduced UN involvement.

"Cuts to UNRWA will have an incredible downstream effect on humanitarian aid agencies like NRC," the organisation's Lebanon spokesman, Mike Bruce, said.

The fate of the schools is one of the worst causes for alarm if donors fail to bridge the gap left by the US cuts, which compound a pre-existing funding crisis.

"There's already been several rounds of funding cuts, and another shock to that system is really a lot more than these communities can absorb," Bruce warned.

Iman Farat has been teaching in UNRWA schools for six years and the US announcement has left wondering about her future.

"Am I going to have work and get paid next month," asked the young English teacher. "Now they can just say bye-bye and tell me it's over. We're all very scared."

The schoolmaster, Jihad al-Khanaf, had little to say that would reassure her and could not rule out having to let go of Iman and 10 other teachers -- out of 24 -- with temporary contracts.

"A child who doesn't go to school here will end up in the street: that means drugs, terrorist groups. The situation we're facing is catastrophic," he said.

The policies of US President Donald Trump and his embrace of populist strongmen have dealt a blow to rights campaigns around the world but resistance is building, Human Rights Watch said Thursday.

In its annual report, the group denounced rights abuses in unstable states like Syria and Myanmar as well as authoritarian trends in powers like Turkey and China -- while also weighing in on the first year of Trump's term.

Under Trump, the United States cosied up to leaders like the Philippines' Rodrigo Duterte and encouraged Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's bloody intervention in Yemen, HRW said.

But in an interview with AFP, the group's executive director Kenneth Roth hailed the growing civic and political resistance to populists.

- Unlikely champions -

"The big theme this year is really how much the world has changed," Roth said. "Because a year ago, just as Donald Trump was entering the White House, it was a moment of despair.

"What has been encouraging over the last year is how much resistance we've seen in many countries to this rise of populism."

He cited signs that Duterte was now encountering domestic resistance to his brutal anti-drugs crackdown and that Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro has had to contend with sustained street protests.

He also praised the role of Western nations in pressing nations to end rights abuses, such as Iceland's efforts at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, which led Duterte to rein in his "murderous police".

And when Russia vetoed bids to hold Syria to account, "it was the superpower of Lichtenstein that led an effort at the UN General Assembly to appoint a special prosecutor," Roth said drily.

- French 'turning point'-

Roth also noted efforts by US judges and activists to fight back -- not always successfully -- against measures such as Trump's moves to curb immigration from Muslim-majority nations.

He also hailed Emmanuel Macron's victory over far-right candidate Marine Le Pen in France's presidential election.

"The reason we chose Paris to issue this report is really because of Macron's electoral campaign," Roth said at a press conference Thursday.

"We saw it as a real turning point in the reaction to the rise of populism," he said, referring to Macron's criticism of the rights records of Russia and Turkey during meetings with those countries' leaders.

But Roth noted that Macron had not pressed China's leaders on human rights during his visit there this month and also expressed concern over France's tough new anti-terror laws.

"We are worried that the greater ease with which the police can conduct searches, restrain some people's movements, close off certain facilities, is going to lend itself to discriminatory abuse, particularly against the Muslim population," he said.

- Saudi prince: reformer or warmonger?

Myanmar saw its cautious year-old transition towards elected civilian rule morph into a "massive human rights and humanitarian crisis" for its Muslim minority, the HRW report said.

According to the group 650,000 members of the Rohingya minority fled "mass killings, sexual violence, arson and other abuses amounting to crimes against humanity by the security forces."

Most criticism -- and some new US sanctions -- has been aimed at Myanmar's generals, sparing the country's civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

"Nobody believes that she led the ethnic cleansing against the Rohingya, but she has in essence defended it. She's refused to publicly criticise it," Roth told AFP.

In the Middle East, HRW said weapons supplied by the US and Britain had killed civilians in Yemen, where Saudi Arabia is leading a coalition of regional allies battling Shiite Huthi rebels backed by Iran.

"The war is also exacerbating the world's largest humanitarian catastrophe. Both sides are unlawfully impeding the delivery of desperately needed humanitarian aid," the report said.

Although the crown prince is seen as pushing a modernising drive such as allowing women to drive and arresting princes suspected of corruption, he has also pursued the blockade of Yemeni ports.

Roth said the bombings and blockades had left more than six million Yemenis facing starvation and a million with cholera.

"So I take this view of the Saudi crown prince as being a reformer with a big grain of salt," he said.

Turkey has ramped up its rhetoric to threaten an imminent cross-border incursion against Kurdish militia in Syria but the attitude of Russia and to a lesser extent the United States will determine the nature of the operation, analysts say.

The Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia controls key northern Syrian towns including Manbij and Afrin, and is an ally of the US but Ankara accuses the group of being a terror organisation.

Tensions have risen to a new peak in the last days after the United States announced plans for a new 30,000-strong border security force in northern Syria that would be composed partly of YPG fighters.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened to destroy the force, describing it as an "army of terror".

"The preparations have been completed, the operation could start at any moment," Erdogan said this week, as the Turkish army sent dozens of military vehicles and hundreds of additional personnel to the border area.

- 'Needs Russian green light' -

Yet executing the operation on the ground -- especially against a well-populated urban centre such as Afrin -- could prove much harder than making threats in fiery language.

Crucial will be the attitude of Russia, which has worked increasingly closely with Turkey on Syria in the last year but has a military presence in the area where it cooperates with the YPG.

"Can Ankara dare to attack Afrin without getting a green light from Russia? It's a sure 'no' for me," said Metin Gurcan, security analyst at Istanbul Policy Center and Al Monitor columnist.

He said that despite the increasingly inflammatory language from Erdogan, a full operation would require that Russia open Afrin's air space to Turkey and withdraw its soldiers from the area.

Tensions between Moscow and Ankara have grown in the last days as Russia seeks wide attendance at a peace conference on Syria at the end of the month. But Turkey insists it will not attend if the YPG is there.

In a potentially decisive meeting, Turkey's army chief General Hulusi Akar and spy supremo Hakan Fidan held talks in Moscow on Thursday with Russian counterparts on Syria.

- 'Hard to back down' -

"The only external power that can stop an invasion at this point is Russia," said Aaron Stein, resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council's Rafik Hariri Center.

He said Erdogan had threatened incursions inside Syria "once a week, every week" for the past year since the Euphrates Shield incursion Turkey launched in August 2016, which ended the following spring.

"What makes this different is that the rhetoric is far more specific, pointed and hostile towards the US. I assume that he will carry out his threat, but the scale of the operation is still an unanswered question," he said.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu insisted Thursday that Russia would not oppose an Afrin operation, saying that Ankara needed to coordinate with Moscow to ensure its military observers on the ground were not harmed.

Aaron Lund, a fellow with The Century Foundation, said that "it would be hard for Erdogan to back down at this point" following such "loud and persistent" threats.

He said if the operation turned into full-out combat, much of the actual fighting would be done by Turkey-backed Syrian rebel forces like in the Euphrates Shield operation.

But he added that Afrin has tough terrain and was well fortified while the "YPG is a disciplined and effective force."

- 'Not a US problem' -

Moreover, any Turkish intervention may not find the warmest of receptions in Washington, which has closely cooperated with the YPG as its main ally on the ground in the fight against the Islamic State extremist group.

Yet Afrin -- which lies to the west of the main Kurdish zone of influence in Syria -- may not be a prime concern of Washington which is more interested in the Kurdish-controlled areas stretching east to the Iraqi border.

"As far as I can tell, the Americans do not view Afrin as being their problem," said Lund, saying the American military was in Syria on a "fairly narrow counter-terrorism mandate."

"That said, they must be worried that this could create trouble for them" especially if Turkey fired on YPG-controlled areas to the east with a US presence, he said.

Stein said there was a "recognition in Washington that this is a Turkish show" and "little to be done to dissuade Erdogan" if he chooses to go ahead with the incursion.

Israeli forces raided a Palestinian city in the occupied West Bank overnight to arrest suspects in the recent murder of an Israeli, leaving one of them dead and sparking clashes, officials said.

Two Israeli special forces members were wounded during the raid on Jenin that began late Wednesday and continued into Thursday morning, the Israeli military said. A number of arrests were made.

The Palestinian health ministry confirmed a Palestinian was killed in the operation, naming him as Ahmed Ismail Jarrar, 31.

It had earlier identified the dead man as Ahmed Nasser Jarrar, 22 and the son of a militant from the Hamas Islamist movement.

The whereabouts of Ahmed Nasser Jarrar remain unclear, with his family saying he was missing.

Palestinian witnesses said they saw at least two Palestinians arrested, with clashes continuing into Thursday morning.

Witnesses said two houses belonging to the family were also demolished during the operation.

The Israeli military said that during the raid "a violent riot was instigated. Palestinian rioters hurled IEDs (improvised explosive devices), blocks and rocks and fired at the forces."

"In order to disperse the violent riot, forces responded with riot dispersal means and fired live rounds selectively," it said.

Videos posted online by Palestinians showed multiple Israeli armoured vehicles entering the city.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on a visit to India, said in a statement that "we will track down all who attack us and we will hold them accountable."

Raziel Shevah, a 35-year-old rabbi, was shot dead near Havat Gilad, the wildcat Jewish settlement outpost he lived in near the West Bank city of Nablus, on January 9.

Israeli forces have been hunting for the assailants since then, with roadblocks and checkpoints set up around Nablus following the murder.

There are frequent tensions between Israeli settlers in the Nablus area and Palestinians. Some 600,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank and annexed east Jerusalem alongside nearly three million Palestinians.

US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital on December 6 triggered unrest in the Palestinian territories, although it was unclear if the murder was related.

Eighteen Palestinians have been killed since Trump's declaration, most of them in clashes with Israeli forces. Shevah is the only Israeli killed during that time period.

Barely a month after Baghdad declared victory over the Islamic State group, the jihadists could still recapture areas of Iraq, especially near the border with Syria, experts and officials say.

Ali al-Bayati, a commander of the Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary units which fought alongside Iraqi security forces in a gruelling battle against the group, said the Nimrud area of northern Iraq could "fall at any time because security there is fragile".

Last July, the authorities in Baghdad announced with much fanfare the "liberation" of nearby Mosul, Iraq's second city and capital of Nineveh province.

IS fighters who fled their former stronghold and took refuge to the west, in the vast desert towards the Syrian border, have since launched attacks on security forces and civilians, Bayati said.

Hiding out in valleys and gullies as well as trenches dug before their ouster from Mosul, the jihadists have built up stockpiles of arms, fuel, water and food and pose a persistent threat to populated districts along the Tigris valley, like the Nimrud area downstream from Mosul.

More than 4,000 jihadists have been arrested in Nineveh province since Mosul's capture, according to police chief General Wathiq al-Hamdani.

But Aed al-Louayzi of Nineveh provincial council said several civilians have been robbed or killed inside the city itself, some by assailants disguised as soldiers.

He said the attacks have been the work of IS members from the areas of Tal Afar and Hatra, both towns also recaptured last year from the jihadists.

Hisham al-Hashemi, a specialist on jihadist movements, said Iraq's announcement in December of military victory "simply means that the (black) IS flag is no longer flying" over government buildings.

To counter the threat of an IS resurgence, "several operations have been carried out south of Mosul" with US-led coalition support to seize arms, said coalition spokesman Colonel Ryan Dillon.

- Active not sleepers -

Louayzi said that "geographically, the territory has been retaken... but not all the jihadists there have been arrested".

"We are in the same security situation as that which led to the fall of Mosul" back in 2014, which came after the extremists had seized control of some areas, he said.

To try to avoid past mistakes, Dillon said, "the coalition has trained Iraqi security forces to address the transition and future threats. We knew there would be a transition from fighting to policing."

The Hashed, which is patrolling the border with war-torn Syria, says it faces infiltration attempts by jihadists on a daily basis.

Although IS is also on the verge of overall military defeat in Syria, it surprised observers last week by announcing a comeback in the country's northwest.

In the Hawija area of northern Iraq, at least three civilians and a Hashed fighter have been killed this month, according to security sources.

They said around 60 jihadists have died in fighting around the town, one of the last IS urban strongholds retaken by Iraqi forces.

Iraq plans to hold parliamentary and provincial assembly elections on May 12 but they may yet be put off until the end of the year.

Large numbers of Sunni Arabs have yet to return to their homes in Nineveh and in Anbar province, west of Baghdad, after fleeing the fighting with IS.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi is seeking a new term at the head of a "Victory Alliance" while the Hashed are to stand separately on their own list as both seek to make political capital out of the military campaign.

On Monday, twin suicide bombings in Baghdad cost more than 30 lives, prompting Abadi to order security forces to "eliminate IS sleeper cells" and protect civilians.

But Hashemi said the threat is more immediate.

"This concept of sleeper cells is a mistake. They are not sleepers, they are active," he said. "They are capable of mounting attacks and even of taking control of zones."

The spill from a sunken Iranian tanker off China's east coast has spawned four oil slicks as authorities prepared to send robots to the wreckage to assess the environmental damage.

The Sanchi, which was carrying 136,000 tonnes of light crude oil from Iran, sank in a ball of flames in the East China Sea on Sunday, a week after colliding with Hong Kong-registered bulk freighter the CF Crystal.

The bodies of only three out of 30 Iranian and two Bangladeshi crew members have been found.

The State Oceanic Administration of China said late Wednesday that it was monitoring four slicks with a total area of almost 101 square kilometres (39 square miles), roughly the same size as Paris.

The office is attempting to "control the spread of the oil spill and is carrying out work to estimate its impact on the marine ecological environment", it said on its website.

The type of condensate oil carried by the Sanchi does not form a traditional surface slick when spilt, but is nonetheless highly toxic to marine life and much harder to separate from water. The cargo amounted to nearly one million barrels (bbl) of oil.

Japan's coast guard said Thursday a patrol ship and plane examined the oil spill and found that it was spreading 30 kilometres east and eight kilometres northwest from the wreck, with a maximum width of 800 metres.

"The swathe of oil slick is being diffused and disappearing," the coast guard said in a statement. "Chinese and other patrol ships continue to look for missing (crew) members and carrying out oil removal missions."

On Tuesday, China had reported two slicks measuring about 69 square kilometres and an additional 40-square-kilometre area of "scattered" oil.

The transport ministry said late Wednesday the vessel lay at a depth of around 115 metres (50 feet) and that robots would be deployed to explore the shipwreck.

- Sea life at risk -

The area where the ship went down is an important spawning ground for species like the swordtip squid and wintering ground for species like the yellow croaker fish and blue crab, among many others, according to Greenpeace.

It is also on the migratory pathway of numerous marine mammals, such as humpback and gray whales.

In addition to the light crude oil, the Sanchi also carried a fuel tank able to accommodate some 1,000 tonnes of heavy diesel.

If all of the Sanchi's cargo spills into the sea, it would be the biggest oil slick from a ship in decades.

By comparison, in the sixth-worst spill since the 1960s, the Odyssey dumped 132,000 tonnes some 700 nautical miles off Canada's Nova Scotia in 1988, according to figures from the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation website.

Richard Steiner, an Alaska-based oil spill consultant, called on the Chinese government to conduct a survey of the sunken vessel as soon as possible, citing concerns about the possibility of continued leakage.

"It is critical to know if any condensate remains on board," he said in an email, adding that instead of evaporating it could create a "more concentrated toxic underwater plume."

"If the entire 1 million bbl cargo is released (which seems likely at this point), this will be the largest condensate spill in history."