Usman Khawaja was back in the runs  and Steve Smith threatened another big score as Australia  recovered from losing both openers on the first day of the  second Ashes Test against England in Adelaide on Saturday.
Khawaja stepped up from his scratchy batting in Brisbane  with a half-century as the tourists claimed the wickets of  Cameron Bancroft and David Warner after surprisingly sending  the Australians into the bat after winning the toss.
At the dinner break in the first-ever Ashes day-night  Test, Australia were 138 for two with Khawaja on 53 and  skipper Steve Smith unbeaten on 25.
Smith, the bane of England's bowlers at the Gabba with  his match-defining unbeaten 141, was soon engaged in a war of  words with Stuart Broad as the tourists looked for a way to  unsettle the imperious Australian skipper.
Khawaja, searching for a confidence-restoring innings  after an uncertain 11 in Brisbane, showed improved technique  against the spin of Moeen Ali and grew in confidence the  longer 

Khawaja, Smith put Australia in strong position

PTI Automatic

A Catholic priest whose disappearance  in Bangladesh days before a visit by Pope Francis raised fears  among minority Christians has been found safe and well, police  said today.
Walter William Rosario, a 40-year-old priest and school  headmaster, went missing on Monday from a village in northern  Bangladesh where suspected Islamist extremists last year  hacked a Catholic grocer to death.
His disappearance followed a rise in Islamist extremism  in the Muslim-majority country, where at least three  Christians, including two converts from Islam, have been  hacked to death in recent years.
Police said Rosario had been found in the northeastern  city of Sylhet, adding the disappearance was likely for  personal reasons.
"He has been found unscathed," said Biplob Bijoy  Talukder, police chief in Rosario's home district of Natore.
The news came as Pope Francis met with Rohingya refugees  in Dhaka at the end of a visit dominated by the plight of the  Muslim minority who have fled ethnic ...

Missing Bangladesh Catholic priest found safe

Scoreboard at dinner on day one in  the second Ashes Test between Australia and England in  Adelaide on Saturday:
Australia first innings
C. Bancroft
run out (Woakes)
10
D. Warner
c Bairstow b Woakes  47
U. Khawaja
not out
53
S. Smith
not out
25
Extras (lb3)
3
Total (2 wickets; 51 overs)
138
Fall of wickets: 1-33 (Bancroft), 2-86 (Warner)
Bowling: Anderson 13-1-29-0, Broad 11-4-18-0, Woakes  9-2-35-1, Overton 10-2-32-0, Moeen 8-1-21-0.

Adelaide, Dec 2 (AFP) Scoreboard at dinner on day one in

Syrian air defences intercepted and  destroyed at least two Israeli missiles fired at a government  "military position" in Damascus province, the state SANA news  agency reported today.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based  monitor of the war, said the missiles, presumably Israeli,  targeted "positions of the Syrian regime and its allies"  southwest of Damascus.

Syria army intercepts Israel missiles near Damascus: state

US Senate Republicans narrowly  passed landmark tax reform today, a critical step toward  delivering a monumental legislative victory for President  Donald Trump in his first year in office.
After a marathon session that stretched overnight, the  chamber voted 51 to 49 in favour of the nation's largest tax  overhaul in 31 years, overcoming stubborn internal Republican  resistance and dismissing Democrats angry over the last-minute  revisions to the bill.
The Senate version and one passed recently by the House  of Representatives must now be reconciled into a single bill,  and approved again by both chambers, before it can be signed  into law.
Both versions dramatically lower the corporate tax rate  from 35 per cent to 20 per cent, and include more modest tax  cuts aimed at individuals across all income levels.
The Senate vote amounts to a reversal of fortune for  Trump and Republican leaders, whose bill just 24 hours earlier  was on the brink of collapse when a handful of Republican  .

US Senate passes tax rewrite, in major win for Trump

Scoreboard at tea on day one in the  second Ashes Test between Australia and England in Adelaide on  Saturday.
Australia first innings
C. Bancroft
not out
10
D. Warner
not out
21
Extras (lb2)
2
Total (0 wickets; 13.5 overs)  33
Bowling: Anderson 6-0-11-0, Broad 4-1-8-0, Woakes 3.5-1-  12-0.

Adelaide, Dec 2 (AFP) Scoreboard at tea on day one in the

England captain Joe Root's gamble  to bowl first after winning the toss in the second Ashes Test  failed to yield any early reward against Australia's opening  pair at the Adelaide Oval on Saturday.
Root became the first England captain since Bob Willis in  1982 to bowl after winning the toss in Adelaide and got no  early joy against openers David Warner and Cameron Bancroft.
At tea -- the day's first interval due to the day-night  format -- after two rain stoppages, the home side, riding high  after their 10-wicket win in the first Test in Brisbane, were  33 without loss with Warner on 21 and Bancroft on 10.
Fast bowlers James Anderson and Stuart Broad were guilty  of bowling short of a length with the pink ball as the  Australian pair safely negotiated the opening session of play  in the day-night Test.
Broad was taken out of the attack after bowling three  overs and replaced by Chris Woakes in a bid to find a wicket.
Only 13.5 overs were possible in the first session as  showers ...

No joy for England after Ashes toss gamble

North Korea held mass celebrations for  its latest successful long-range missile test, Pyongyang's  state media said today, with a propaganda-filled display of  fireworks and dancing in public squares.
The ruling Workers Party official daily Rodong Sinmun  covered its front page with colour photographs showing  thousands of tightly packed soldiers and people applauding in  Pyongyang's Kim Il-Sung square, which was decorated with large  portraits of the North's late leaders.
"We heartily celebrate the successful test launch of the  Hwasong-15 which showed Chosun (North Korea)'s power and  greatness to the whole world", read one banner held up by the  crowd, referring to the missile.
North Korea on Wednesday successfully tested a new  intercontinental ballistic missile, with leader Kim Jong-Un  declaring his country had now achieved full nuclear statehood.
The US in response warned that Kim Jong-Un's regime would  be "utterly destroyed" if its pursuit of a long-range nuclear  missile ...

North Korea holds mass celebrations for latest missile test

New Zealand all-rounder Colin de  Grandhomme cracked his maiden Test century off just 71 balls  to leave the West Indies reeling at stumps on the second day  of the first Test in Wellington on Saturday.
It was the ninth fastest Test century of all time as de  Grandhomme, in only his seventh Test, made light of a tiring  attack and plundered the boundary on a demoralising day for  the West Indies.
At stumps New Zealand were 447 for nine, holding a 313-  run lead after the West Indies were rolled for 134 in their  first innings.
De Grandhomme was out for 105 after a rollicking innings  that included three sixes and 11 fours.
Senior batsman Ross Taylor and Henry Nicholls set the  stage for an all-out attack with their 127-run stand for the  fourth wicket which led to de Grandhomme and Tom Blundell  adding 148 for the seventh.
There was no sign of nerves from the debutant Blundell  who was unbeaten on 57 at stumps to go with Taylor's 93 and 66  for Nicholls on a day in which New Zealand ..

Rollicking de Grandhomme ton leaves Windies reeling

Scoreboard at stumps on day two  of the first Test between New Zealand and the West Indies in  Wellington on Saturday:
West Indies first innings 134
New Zealand first innings (overnight 85-2)
T. Latham c Roach b Holder
37
J. Raval c Dowrich b Roach 42
K. Williamson c Hope b Roach 1
R. Taylor lbw Roach 93
H. Nicholls c Gabriel b Cummins 67
M. Santner b Cummins 17
C. de Grandhomme c Powell b Chase 105
T. Blundell not out 57
N. Wagner b Chase 3
M. Henry c Dowrich b Gabriel 4
T. Boult not out 2
Extras (b4, lb2, nb13) 19
Total (for nine wickets, 127 overs) 447
Fall of wickets: 1-65 (Latham), 2-68 (Williamson), 3-109  (Raval), 4-236 (Taylor), 5-272 (Nicholls), 6-281 (Santner), 7  -429 (de Grandhomme), 8-437 (Wagner), 9-442 (Henry)
Bowling: Gabriel 26-3-80-1 (7nb),  Roach 19-5-73-3,  Cummins 24-7-74-2 (4nb), Holder 27-7-85-1 (2nb), Chase 23-2-  83-2, Brathwaite 8-0-46-0.

Wellington, Dec 2 (AFP) Scoreboard at stumps on day two

The Honduran government declared  a state of emergency late last night that restricts free  movement in an attempt to stop violent demonstrations across  the country triggered by claims of presidential election  fraud.
The decree approved by President Juan Orlando Hernandez,  who is seeking re-election despite a constitutional ban on a  second term, "restricts the free movement of people for a  period of 10 days ... between 6:00 pm and 06:00 am the  following day," government coordinator Jorge Ramon Hernandez  Alcerro said.

Honduras declares state of emergency over post-vote violence

A Florida hospital faced an  unsettling ethical quandary when paramedics brought in an  unconscious patient with "Do Not Resuscitate" tattooed across  his chest -- leaving doctors grappling with whether the  message accurately conveyed his end-of-life wishes.
The 70-year-old man was admitted to the Jackson Memorial  Hospital in Miami with respiratory problems, a high blood  alcohol concentration and no identification documents,  according to the doctors' story published on Thursday in The  New England Journal of Medicine.
"This patient's tattooed DNR request produced more  confusion than clarity," doctors said, saying they "initially  decided not to honour the tattoo, invoking the principle of  not choosing an irreversible path when faced with  uncertainty."
But considering the patient might have gone to extreme  lengths to ensure his will was understood -- the word "No" on  his chest was underlined, and the message included his  signature -- medical personnel requested an ethics  ...

US man's tattoo leaves doctors with life-or-death dilemma

Ross Taylor fell just short of a  century but not before he ensured New Zealand were firmly in  command of the first Test against the West Indies on day two  in Wellington on Saturday.
At tea, New Zealand were 267 for four to lead the West  Indies by 133 runs with six wickets remaining.
Henry Nicholls was 66 not out, his fifth half-century,  with Mitchell Santner on 12.
The West Indies had singled out Taylor as the wicket to  get if they were to have any chance of salvaging something  from the Test after their meagre first innings of 134.
But by the time they dismissed New Zealand's senior  batsman -- with judicious use of the review system after an  lbw appeal had been rejected -- they were already more than  100 runs behind.
Taylor was on 93 and closing in on his 17th century to  equal the New Zealand record held by his mentor, the late  Martin Crowe, and current captain Kane Williamson, when he was  trapped in front by Kemar Roach.
There were two noises which suggested an inside ...

West Indies claim Taylor but New Zealand in command

Fresh clashes broke out today as  the counting of votes in a cliff-hanging presidential election  rolled into a fifth day.
Police said at least two officers and 12 civilians were  injured, some by gunfire, after violence erupted in several  parts of the country -- sparked by opposition candidate  Salvador Nasralla claiming fraud and calling his supporters  onto the streets.
Thousands of Nasralla supporters across the country  blocked roads -- with viral footage of confrontations with  police, who attempted to disperse demonstrators with tear gas,  circulating on social media.
Meanwhile, in the capital Tegucigalpa, protesters lit  bonfires of sticks and tires on boulevards and on exit routes  out of the city.
The unrest sparked panic, with people rushing to  supermarkets and gas stations to stock up after stores were  closed yesterday.
"Yesterday (Thursday) we were closed because of the  protests, and today when we opened the store was full of  people," an employee at Tegucigalpa's La .

Clashes as Hondurans wait on poll result

A member of the US National  Security Agency's elite hacking team has been charged with  illegally removing top secret materials, in an embarrassing  breach for the crucial electronic espionage body.
The Justice Department said today that Nghia Hoang Pho,  67, a 10-year veteran of the NSA's Tailored Access Operations  unit, which broke into computer systems, agreed to plead  guilty to a single charge of removing and retaining top-secret  documents from the agency.
He kept the material at his Ellicott City, Maryland home.
According to The New York Times, it was Vietnam-born  Pho's computer that apparent Russian hackers accessed via his  use of Kaspersky software to steal files and programs the NSA  developed for its own hacking operations.
The Justice Department said Pho had taken printed and  digital copies of documents and writings labelled "secret,"  and containing sensitive "national defence information," and  stored them in his home from 2010 until he was caught in 2015.
It gave ..

Elite US government hacker charged with taking secret

Clashes erupted in Yemen's capital  today, witnesses said, as talks between feuding rebel allies  failed to broker a truce.
It is the third consecutive night of armed violence  between supporters of former president Ali Abdullah Saleh and  Yemen's northern Huthi rebels, who jointly control the capital  Sanaa.
Multiple witnesses said heavy gunfire could be heard in  southern Sanaa, but there were no immediate reports of  casualties.
Fighting also erupted near the home of Brigadier Tarek  Saleh, a nephew of the former president and commander in the  force loyal to the Yemeni strongman.
Three people were killed in clashes with the Huthis  outside of the commander's home last night, Saleh's General  People's Congress (GPC) said.
Talks between members of the GPC and the Huthis'  political council today failed to reach an agreement between  the two parties, a high-ranking GPC source told AFP.
An internal rift has shaken the fragile alliance between  the Iran-backed Huthis and Saleh ...

Clashes erupt in Yemen capital after failed rebel talks

The  Palestinian president's office has warned of the potential  destructive effects of any move denying their claim to east  Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.
"The American recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of  Israel destroys the peace process," president Mahmud Abbas's  spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina said yesterday in a statement to  AFP.
"The American recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's  capital and moving the American embassy to Jerusalem involves  the same level of danger to the future of the peace process  and pushes the region into instability," he said.
The warning comes as US President Donald Trump is due to  decide by Monday on whether to move his country's embassy from  Tel Aviv to the disputed holy city.
Reports emerged that Trump could again delay moving the  embassy but recognise Jerusalem as the capital of the Jewish  state.
The Palestinians see east Jerusalem as the capital of  their future state and fiercely oppose any changes that could  be ...

Palestinians fire warning ahead of Trump Jerusalem decision

President Nicolas Maduro's  leftist government and the main opposition coalition resumed  talks in the Dominican Republic today, aimed at resolving  Venezuela's crushing economic and political crisis.
Both sides held preliminary meetings today with foreign  ministers from Latin American nations acting as guarantors in  the talks.
Dominican President Danilo Medina -- who is hosting the  talks with fellow mediator and former Spanish prime minister  Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero -- said he expects "good will" to  yield positive results.
"This is not a dialogue, but a negotiation. We hope that  we can get something important," Medina said of the talks,  which are due to end Saturday.
Previous meetings hosted by Medina have failed to take  the negotiations beyond preliminary discussions.
The main demand of the Democratic Union Roundtable (MUD)  coalition is the opening of a "humanitarian corridor" to allow  the import of desperately needed food and medicines and  therefore alleviate the ...

Venezuela rivals begin new crisis negotiations bid

The United States, Britain,  France and six other countries today requested a meeting of  the UN Security Council on human rights abuses in North Korea,  which is already under fire for its missile and nuclear tests.
The meeting, expected to be held on December 11, will  mark the fourth time since 2014 that the council holds an  annual meeting on North Korea's dismal rights record.
Italy, Japan, Senegal, Sweden, Ukraine and Uruguay joined  the three permanent council members in requesting the meeting,  according to a letter seen by AFP.
China, North Korea's ally, has in the past sought to  block any discussion on human rights in North Korea, arguing  that the Human Rights Council in Geneva was the forum for  those concerns, and not the Security Council.
But China has all three times failed to win a procedural  vote, and the meeting was allowed to continue.
The UN General Assembly is also expected this month to  adopt a resolution condemning North Korea for human rights  violations and 

US, allies push for UN meeting on North Korea rights abuses

Bosnian Croat war criminal  Slobodan Praljak likely died from heart failure after  swallowing potassium cyanide, Dutch prosecutors said today,  two days after he committed suicide in front of UN judges.
"The preliminary results of the toxicological test showed  that Mister Praljak had a concentration of potassium cyanide  in his blood," the Dutch prosecution said in a statement in  English.
"This has resulted in a failure of the heart, which is  pointed out as the suspected cause of death."
The preliminary results were released after an autopsy  was carried out on the body of Praljak, who on Wednesday in a  last act of defiance against the International Criminal  Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, swallowed the poison in  front of UN judges just moments after they upheld his 20-year  jail term.
"Praljak passed away in Westeinde hospital in The Hague  after consuming a fluid substance in the courtroom of the  International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia  (ICTY)," the ...

Potassium cyanide killed war criminal: Dutch prosecutors

President Donald Trump today  tried to stifle reports that he was on the verge of sacking or  forcing out his chief diplomat, Secretary of State Rex  Tillerson.
Tillerson is due to embark on a major European trip on  Monday but preparations have been clouded by anonymous White  House leaks suggesting he was to be replaced within weeks.
But Trump took to Twitter after lunch with Tillerson to  declare the speculation "FAKE NEWS!" -- just hours after the  secretary had brushed off the leaks as "laughable.

AFP

AFP

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