Banking regulators in Beijing and Shanghai have ordered local crypto-currency exchanges to shut down, state media reported today, in the latest blow to the once flourishing Chinese market for virtual money.
	A Beijing-based regulator required all exchanges in the city to submit a plan by 6pm on September 20 for winding down their operations, according to the official Xinhua news agency.
	Shanghai's exchanges were also ordered closed last week, it said, without providing more information.
	The international value of bitcoin has plunged in recent days amid speculation that the Chinese authorities would shut down the trading platforms, following a ban on initial coin offerings earlier in the month.
	It was trading at USD 3,969 today, down from highs of USD 4,359 a week ago.
	Xinhua's report follows announcements last week by China's two largest bitcoin platforms -- BTCC and OKCoin -- that they would stop all trading operations following new Chinese government regulations clamping down on 

Beijing, Shanghai shut down bitcoin exchanges: media

PTI Automatic

President Donald Trump warned leaders gathered at the UN General Assembly today that the United States may have to destroy North Korea if Kim Jong-Un's nuclear-armed regime threatens its neighbours.
	"The United States has great strength and patience, but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea.
	"Rocket Man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime," he said, using his new nickname for the North Korean leader. "The United States is ready, willing and able, but hopefully this will not be necessary.

Trump warns US may have to 'destroy' North Korea

Bangladesh has launched a birth control drive in its overcrowded Rohingya refugee camps, an official said today, fearing a population boom would worsen the humanitarian crisis unfolding along its border.
	Family planning teams have been deployed to offer advice and distribute condoms and other contraceptives throughout its ill-equipped camps, which have been overwhelmed by the arrival of 420,000 Rohingya refugees since August 25.
	Authorities have already identified 70,000 new or expectant mothers among the latest influx from Myanmar, and fear without intervention the population pressures could worsen in coming months as the crisis drags on.
	"They have six, seven, eight, nine, 10 children," said Pintu Kanti Bhattacharjee, head of the government's family planning department in Cox's Bazar district where the camps are located.
	"We are very worried. If they are here for another six months to a year, another 20,000 children will be born."
	Mothers with newborns, pregnant women and ...

Bangladesh frets about population boom in Rohingya camps

US President Donald Trump denounced the Iran nuclear deal as an "embarrassment" today, in the latest sign that he plans to tear up or renegotiate the landmark accord.
	"Frankly, that deal is an embarrassment to the United States, and I don't think you've heard the last of it," Trump told the UN General Assembly.
	"Believe me. It is time for the entire world to join us in demanding that Iran's government end its pursuit of death and destruction.

Trump says Iran nuclear deal an 'embarrassment'

An outbreak of fighting between government and rebel forces in South Sudan's oil-producing north left at least 25 people dead, a state official said today.
	The clash between rebels loyal to exiled former deputy president Riek Machar and government forces occurred early Monday in Nhialdiu, a village close to the town of Bentiu which has changed hands repeatedly since civil war began nearly four years ago.
	"The number of the bodies that were found on the ground were 25," said Lam Tungwar, information minister for Northern Liech State, adding the rebel attack was "repulsed".
	Lam Paul Gabriel, a spokesman for the SPLA-IO rebels confirmed the clash claiming "a successful operation" in which "the gallant SPLA-IO forces took control of Nhialdiu", killed 19 government soldiers and seized dozens of weapons.
	Tungwar said most of the dead were civilians.
	Tens of thousands have been killed and millions uprooted since 2013 during a conflict characterised by rape, ethnic massacres and attacks .

At least 25 dead in S Sudan oil state battle

US President Donald Trump laid out his vision of a world order based on strong "sovereign nations" rather than multilateral alliances today, in his first address to the United Nations General Assembly.
	"As long as I hold this office, I will defend America's interests above all else, but in fulfilling our obligations to our nations, we also realize that it's in everyone's interests to seek the future where all nations can be sovereign, prosperous and secure," he said.
	"America does more than speak for the values expressed in the United Nations charter," he said. "Our citizens have paid the ultimate price to defend our freedom and the freedom of many nations represented in this great hall.

Trump tells UN 'sovereign nations' basis of world order

Italian motorcycling ace Valentino Rossi has returned to training just 18 days after suffering a double leg fracture, his Movistar Yahama team confirmed.
     Rossi underwent surgery in Ancona, in eastern Italy, on September 1, a day after a crash in training, discharging himself from hospital the following day.
     The 38-year-old rode his first couple of laps around the Misano circuit on Monday before the session was cut short by rain, his team said.
     "The evaluation of Rossi's physical condition was inconclusive," the team said with a decision expected midweek on whether the veteran will attempt to take part in this weekend's Aragon MotoGP.
     If Rossi cannot compete his place should be taken by Dutch Superbike rider Michael van der Mark.
     Rossi missed the San Marino Grand Prix but remains fourth in the standings, 42 points behind world champion Marc Marquez of Spain and Italy's Andrea Dovizioso with five rounds to go.
     Rossi won the Dutch MotoGP in Assen in June to .

Rossi back on bike 18 days after double leg fracture

US President Donald Trump warned world leaders today of the threat posed by nuclear- armed "rogue nations," in his first address to the United Nations General Assembly.
	"Rogue regimes represented in this body not only support terror, but threaten other nations and their own people with the most destructive weapons known to humanity," he said.

Trump warns UN assembly of 'rogue nations' threat

Pace bowler Rubel Hossain was prevented from boarding a flight to South Africa with the Bangladesh tour squad after the airline claimed he did not have immigration clearance, officials said today.
     "There is a new a provision that the passenger needs to have some sort of 'OK to Board' clearance from his ultimate destination," Bangladesh Cricket Board chief executive officer Nizamuddin Chowdhury told AFP after Rubel, 27, was refused a boarding pass at Dhaka airport on Saturday.
     "We are in touch with Cricket South Africa and hopefully the matter will be resolved soon. He will fly to South Africa on the first available flight once the matter is resolved," he said.
     The rest of the 14-member Bangladesh squad has already arrived in South Africa ahead of the first Test starting at Potchefstroom on September 28.
     The second and final Test will be played in Bloemfontein staring on October 6.
     Rubel is now likely to miss the team's three-day warm-up match at Benoni near ...

Bangladesh's Rubel denied entry to South Africa

Global anxieties about a nuclear war are at their highest level in decades, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said today as he opened a gathering of world leaders dominated by the crisis with North Korea.
	Addressing the high-level debate at the General Assembly, Guterres said millions of people are living in dread as a result of North Korea's provocative nuclear and missile tests.
	"The use of nuclear weapons should be unthinkable," Guterres told the 193-nation assembly meeting in New York.
	"But today global anxieties about nuclear weapons are at the highest level since the end of the Cold War."
	The fear of nuclear warfare "is not abstract," he added. "Millions of people live under a shadow of dread cast by the provocative nuclear and missile tests" carried out by Pyongyang.
	The United States backed by Japan, South Korea and its western allies are pushing for a strong international response to North Korea after it conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test and fired ...

World afraid of nuclear war with N Korea: UN chief Guterres

Bayern Munich have confirmed their Germany goalkeeper and captain Manuel Neuer will be out until January having undergone another operation today after again fracturing his left foot.
     The 31-year-old had only returned at the end of August after fracturing the same foot in April.
     He suffered the fresh injury in training on Monday as Bayern prepared for Tuesday's German league match at Schalke.
     "The fact that Manuel Neuer has suffered a new injury means we are all very sorry for him", said Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.
     "The operation went optimally and that is the most important thing now.
     "Manuel will be available for us again, back at his old strength, in January."
     This is Neuer's third operation on the same foot in six months after minor surgery for a toe injury in March and then again in April after initially fracturing his foot.
     Neuer's latest injury blow sparks concerns about Germany's skipper nine months before the World Cup kicks off.
 

Neuer out until January after foot op - Bayern

Sri Lanka today appointed former Test player Graeme Labrooy as the chief selector, days before a two-Test series kicks off in the UAE against Pakistan.
     Labrooy's appointment comes after a selection panel led by batting great Sanath Jayasuriya resigned en masse following the team's humiliating 3-0 whitewash at home to India in a recent three-match Test series.
     Sri Lanka also went on to lose a five-match one-day international series and a one-off T20 game against India.
     "The new selectors will begin their term with the selection of the Test squad to take on Pakistan in their tour of UAE (United Arab Emirates) commencing early next week," Sri Lanka Cricket said in a statement.
     The 53-year-old Labrooy played nine Tests for Sri Lanka, taking 27 wickets at an economy rate of 3.31.
     Gamini Wickremasinghe, Jeryl Woutersz, Sajith Fernando and Asanka Gurusinha are the other members of the new panel.
     The Test series with Pakistan beginning September 28 will see Sri ..

Sri Lanka name new selectors ahead of Pak series

Everton striker Wayne Rooney was given a lift to training today after he was banned for two years for drink-driving.
     The 31-year-old was disqualified from the roads for two years and ordered to perform 100 hours of unpaid work as part of a 12-month community order by a judge on Monday after he pleaded guilty to drink-driving.
     Rooney, wearing a black baseball cap, arrived at the club's Finch Farm training complex in the passenger seat of a black Range Rover to prepare for the club's League Cup tie at home to Sunderland on Wednesday.
     The former England captain issued a statement following his court appearance in which he apologised for his "unforgivable lack of judgement in driving while over the legal limit. It was completely wrong".
     Stockport Magistrates' Court in northwest England heard Rooney was almost three times over the legal limit when he was stopped driving a Volkswagen Beetle on September 1.

Banned Rooney gets lift to training

Barcelona hope record signing Ousmane Dembele could be back in action in three and a half months after successful surgery on a torn hamstring in Helsinki today.
     "Dembele was successfully operated on Tuesday to repair a ruptured biceps femoris in his left leg," Barca said in a statement.
     "He is expected to be out for three and a half months."
     The Catalan giants feared their record 105 million-euro ($125 million) signing could be sidelined for four months after suffering the injury attempting a backheel in Saturday's 2-1 win at Getafe.
     It is the first major injury of Dembele's career and Barca boss Ernesto Valverde admitted a more experienced player may have picked up on signs all wasn't well before completely tearing the muscle.
     "He doesn't have experience of recognising small niggles or more explosive moves that can mitigate these type of things," Valverde said on Monday.
     "A backheel is the most aggressive move for the hamstring. Possibly a more ...

Barca lower Dembele recovery time after operation

Russian officials and Orthodox priests today unveiled a statue in Moscow of inventor Mikhail Kalashnikov, whose iconic AK-47 assault rifle has claimed countless lives worldwide.
	A priest sprinkled holy water on the seven-metre tall statue of Kalashnikov gripping his deadly creation, which will now loom over motorists from a traffic island in one of the sprawling capital's central thoroughfares.
	Culture minister Vladimir Medinsky praised the inventor and called the rifle -- which has been reproduced an estimated 100 million times worldwide -- a "cultural brand for Russia."
	Kalashnikov had "the best traits of a Russian: an extraordinary natural gift, simplicity, integrity," Medinsky said.
	Born in a Siberian village in 1919, Mikhail Kalashnikov died in December 2013 in Izhevsk, the capital of the Russian republic of Udmurtia, where he lived.
	Kalashnikov came up with the idea of inventing a new automatic rifle that could work in all conditions after becoming disgruntled by the Soviet 

Russia unveils statue of AK-47 inventor Kalashnikov

Teenagers in America today are about three years behind their counterparts from the 1970s, when it comes to taking up sex, drinking alcohol, and working for pay, researchers said today.
	The findings in the journal Child Development were based on an analysis of seven large, nationally representative surveys of 8.3 million teenagers between 1976 and 2016.
	The surveys sought to find out how those, aged 13 to 19, spent their time and how often they engaged in adult activities such as drinking alcohol, dating, taking jobs, driving, or having sex, said the report.
	What researchers found was a "broad-based cultural shift", said the study.
	Adolescents in the 2010s are "less likely to work for pay, drive, date, drink alcohol, go out without their parents, and have sex than adolescents in previous decades," it said.
	These changes were apparent across the nation, and regardless of race, gender or socio-economic lines.
	"The developmental trajectory of adolescence has slowed, with teens ...

Today's US teens about three years behind '70s generation

Two suicide bombers killed at least three people and wounded 34 today in a northern Iraq restaurant frequented by militiamen battling the Islamic State group, security sources said.
	The twin bombings came just five days after a gun and bomb attack on a restaurant and nearby checkpoint in southern Iraq killed 84 people, the deadliest assault claimed by the jihadists since their defeat in second city Mosul in July.
	The bombers struck today in the town of Hajaj, in Salaheddin province between the cities of Tikrit and Baiji.
	"Two attackers detonated their explosive belts in a restaurant in Hajaj, killing three people and wounding 34," interior ministry spokesman Saad Maan said in a statement.
	"A third assailant was shot dead by the security forces."
	A police lieutenant colonel said the restaurant was frequented by members of the Hashed al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation), a paramilitary force mainly composed of Iran- trained militias which has played a major role in the fightback ...

Suicide bombers kill three in northern Iraq restaurant

Iraqi security forces and paramilitary units launched a dawn assault today against one of the Islamic State group's last bastions in the vast western province of Anbar bordering Syria.
	The Joint Operations Command, which is coordinating Iraqi security forces battling IS, said an offensive had begun to retake the town of Anna and the nearby village of Al-Rayhanna.
	"Infantry units and armour backed by the Hashed al-Shaabi began an offensive to liberate Anna and Al-Rayhanna from Daesh terrorists," JOC head General Abdelamir Yarallah said in a statement, using an Arabic name for IS.
	A general in the area said the operation was "developing along three axes" involving the army, police and the Hashed al-Shaabi, a paramilitary force composed largely of Iran- trained Shiite militias.
	The operation was supported by Iraqi army helicopters and warplanes from the US-led coalition battling IS in Iraq and Syria, the general said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
	The head of Anna's municipal .

Iraqi forces launch assault for last IS bastions in Anbar

Stanislav Petrov, a Soviet military officer who is widely credited with helping prevent a nuclear war with the US, has died aged 77, his son said today.
	Petrov, whose extraordinary story was told in a documentary titled 'The Man Who Saved the World', received several international awards, was honoured at the United Nations and met Hollywood superstars such as Robert De Niro and Matt Damon.
	Yet Petrov lived in a small town outside Moscow and died in relative obscurity on May 19. His death making headlines in Russia and abroad only months later when a German friend wrote a blog post about his death.
	In September 1983, Petrov was an officer on duty at a secret command centre south of Moscow when an alarm went off signalling that the US had launched intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).
	The officer -- who had only a few minutes to make a decision and was not sure about the incoming data -- dismissed the warning as a false alarm.
	Had he told his commanders of an imminent US ...

'The man who saved the world' dies in Russia

Critics of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte have adopted the three-finger salute from the hit "Hunger Games" films as a sign of resistance against his rule and drug war killings.
	The sign is in contrast to Duterte's own iconic gesture, a clenched fist raised at or above eye level that is immensely popular with his support, but which opponents have likened to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler's hand salute.
	Opposition lawmakers and other members of a new anti- Duterte coalition performed the Hunger Games salute in unison Monday, while announcing protests on Thursday against what they said was his "path filled with violence, contempt for law and hate".
	"Yes, we adopted the three-finger salute to signify resistance, same as that of the Hunger Games trilogy," House of Representatives member Gary Alejano told AFP.
	"It resonates with many young people," said Emman Hizon, chief of staff of opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros, another of those who made the three-finger salute.
	Used by the lead 

Philippines' Duterte facing 'Hunger Games' protests

Rebel shelling of a residential neighbourhood in Yemen's third-largest city Taiz killed four boys aged between seven and 15, a local official said today.
	The city is largely in the hands of the Saudi-backed government forces, but has been a key battlefield in the conflict that has gripped Yemen since March 2015 as the rebels hold much of the surrounding countryside.
	Last evening's shelling hit the residential neighbourhood of Al-Jamaliya, one of the oldest in the city, the official said.
	It followed a similar bombardment on Friday which killed three children, two of whom were playing football at the time.
	Those deaths drew condemnation from the International Committee of the Red Cross and Human Rights Watch.
	"What happened on Friday is yet another stark reminder of the immense suffering that civilians across Yemen are enduring in their daily lives," said ICRC regional director for the Near and Middle East Robert Mardini.
	"We urge all warring sides to take every precaution to ...

AFP

AFP

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