Pope Francis began his traditional Easter mass in Rome today with thousands of the faithful being subjected to heightened security measures.
	The Easter mass, the highlight of the Christian calendar, started at 0800 GMT under a cloudy sky where worshippers had gathered since the early hours to gain access. Heavy rain lashed down for several minutes around one hour later.
	The mass followed Francis's Good Friday prayer in which he deplored the suffering of migrants, victims of racism and the persecution of Christians around the world.
	A week of Easter events had a bloody beginning last Sunday when attacks claimed by the Islamic State group on two Coptic churches in Egypt left 45 people dead.
	The entire area around St Peter's Basilica was blocked, with only several access points for those admitted after their bags had been inspected.
	Access to St Peter's Square itself was only possible after security checks similar to those at airports. Hundreds of police and security forces stood ...

Pope's Easter address marked by heightened security

PTI Automatic

The death toll in a suicide car bomb attack on buses carrying Syrians evacuated from two besieged government-held towns has risen to at least 112, a monitoring group said today.
	The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that 98 evacuees from the northern towns of Fuaa and Kafraya were killed when an explosives-laden vehicle hit their buses at a transit point west of Aleppo yesterday.
	It said the remainder of the dead were aid workers and rebels tasked with guarding the buses.
	It warned the death toll may rise further as "hundreds" more were wounded in the blast.
	Dozens of buses carrying several thousand refugees had been stuck by the roadside in the rebel-held town of Rashidin after leaving Fuaa and Kafraya on Friday under a deal reached between the government and opposition groups.
	Fuaa and Kafraya have been under rebel siege for more than two years. As part of the deal, several hundred people including armed rebels will be transported out of Madaya and Zabadani, towns near ..

Death toll in bomb attack on Syria evacuees rises to 112

A Polish round-the-world yachtsman had to be convinced of the "gravity of the situation" before he agreed to be rescued from his stricken craft in a remote part of Pacific Ocean today, New Zealand authorities said.
	A Polish speaker was taken on a four-hour flight from New Zealand to persuade him to abandon his craft.
	The sailor, identified by local media as 64-year-old Gregor Wegrzyn, had activated an emergency beacon on Thursday after the steering failed on his 10.6-metre yacht Reginar R.
	He was located by a New Zealand Air Force search aircraft 2,700 kilometres east of New Zealand and a cargo vessel was diverted to pick him up.
	But when the ship Key Opus arrived yesterday, the man was reluctant to leave, New Zealand search and rescue coordinator Dave Wilson said.
	The air force plane, with the Polish speaker onboard, had to return to the yacht and drop a radio to the sailor today to establish communication and convince him to abandon his yacht.
	"The man spoke little English, a .

Polish sailor coaxed into leaving stricken yacht in Pacific

A fugitive former governor of Mexico's Veracruz state suspected of embezzling hundreds of millions of dollars has been detained in Guatemala after six months on the run, officials have said.
	Javier Duarte "was located and detained for the purpose of extradition in the municipality of Panajachel" in Guatemala's Solola department, Mexico's attorney general said in a statement yesterday.
	Mexico requested Guatemala's assistance in capturing the fugitive ex-governor of Veracruz, which borders the Gulf of Mexico. The operation was carried out jointly with national civil police and Interpol.
	Mexican authorities issued an arrested warrant against Duarte in October for his alleged responsibility in organised crime and embezzlement.
	Duarte resigned last year before the end of his term and then went on the lam.
	Interpol issued an international arrest warrant against him.
	In January, authorities got two companies to return USD 19.3 million obtained illegally from the Duarte government.
	A ..

Fugitive Mexican ex-governor held in Guatemala

Turkey today began voting in a referendum on expanding the powers of the head of state under President Tayyip Erdogan that will determine its future political destiny but whose outcome remains in doubt after a bitterly-contested campaign.
	Over 55.3 million Turks are able to vote in the referendum on sweeping changes to the president's role which, if agreed, would grant Erdogan more power than any leader of Turkey since its founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk and his successor Ismet Inonu.
	Polling stations opened in Diyarbakir and other cities of eastern Turkey at 0930 IST, an AFP correspondent said, with voting in Istanbul, Ankara and other cities getting underway an hour later.
	Opinion polls, always treated with caution in Turkey, predicted wildly divergent scenarios with analysts saying the outcome remains too close to call despite the clear advantage in resources and airtime enjoyed by the 'Yes' campaign.
	As the rival sides held rallies up until the last hour of legal campaigning ...

Tense Turkey votes in crunch referendum on Erdogan powers

Barcelona are capable of springing another remarkable Champions League comeback from 3 -0 down against Juventus on Wednesday, insists coach Luis Enrique.
     The Spanish champions made history by overcoming a 4-0 first leg deficit by beating Paris Saint-Germain 6-1 in the second leg of their last 16 tie.
     "It is obvious it is not our most consistent season, we have struggled more than in other years," said Enrique, after Barca's 3-2 win over Real Sociedad on Saturday.
     "But this is group of winners and champions capable of anything.
     "Anyone who doubts that can switch off the lights on their way out."
     Enrique, who will step down at the end of the season, predicted before the return leg of the PSG tie that has side would at least get back into the tie at some point at the Camp Nou.
     And he repeated that prediction for the visit of the Italian champions despite Juventus' excellent defensive record having conceded just two goals in nine Champions League games this ..

Barca 'champions' capable of fresh comeback - Luis Enrique

Turkey today votes in a referendum on expanding the powers of the head of state under President Tayyip Erdogan that will determine its future political destiny but whose outcome remains in doubt after a bitterly- contested campaign.
	Over 55.3 million Turks are able to vote in the referendum on sweeping changes to the president's role which, if agreed, would grant Erdogan more power than any leader of Turkey since its founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk and his successor Ismet Inonu.
	Opinion polls, always treated with caution in Turkey, predicted wildly divergent scenarios with analysts saying the outcome remains too close to call despite the clear advantage in resources and airtime enjoyed by the 'Yes' campaign.
	As the rival sides held rallies up until the last hour of legal campaigning yesterday to sway undecided voters, Erdogan confidently predicted that the 'Yes' camp had victory in the bag.
	But he urged people not to succumb to "lethargy" in voting, saying "the stronger result the ..

Tense Turkey braces for crunch referendum on Erdogan powers

Britain said it was "concerned" by reports that North Korea conducted a missile test today, which the US Defence Department said blew up almost immediately.
	The Foreign Office in London said it was "concerned by reports of a missile test by North Korea" and was "monitoring the situation closely".
	The failed missile came the day after Pyongyang publicly showcased its ballistic arsenal at a giant military parade.
	British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson earlier urged North Korea to abide by UN resolutions and stop its pursuit of nuclear weapons.
	"We have been here before but continue to monitor the situation carefully," Johnson said in a statement.
	"We stand alongside our international partners in making clear that North Korea must adhere to UN resolutions designed to secure peace and stability in the region and stop its pursuit of nuclear weapons."
	The nuclear-armed state is under United Nations sanctions over its weapons programmes.
	North Korea's weapons of war rolled through ...

Britain 'concerned' by North Korea missile test

Pentagon confirms apparent failed North Korea missile

Opponents and backers of Venezuela's embattled President Nicolas Maduro have announced new marches for Wednesday after violence in ongoing anti- government protests that have left five people dead.
	Both sides yesterday promised to hold sway across Caracas on the heels of two weeks of demonstrations that also have seen 117 people arrested.
	The latest in more than a week of violent clashes erupted overnight Thursday to Friday in the town of Los Teques near the capital.
	Protesters mounted barricades and hurled Molotov cocktails, and police fired tear gas, photographs on social media showed.
	The demonstrations are expected to be the next big showdown in an increasingly fraught crisis that has raised international concerns about Venezuela's stability.
	The opposition is demanding the authorities set a date for postponed regional elections.
	It is also furious over moves to limit the powers of the legislature and ban opposition leader Henrique Capriles from politics.
	Those moves have ..

New protests set in troubled Venezuela

North Korea fails in new missile test: Seoul (AFP)

Thousands of protesters gathered today in cities across the United States to pressure President Donald Trump to release his tax returns, a move of transparency he has refused to make.
	"Until he does, we'll never know what he's hiding or who his policies are designed to benefit. We need a president who works for all Americans -- and a tax system that does, too," said the organizers of the "Tax March" demonstrations on its website.
	The protests were timed to coincide with the traditional April 15 deadline for US tax filings (though this year the deadline falls on April 18).
	In Washington, several thousand protesters of all ages gathered in front of the Capitol building housing Congress, holding up signs such as "What is he hiding?" and "Real men pay their taxes."
	A huge inflatable chicken, adorned to look like Trump, toured the area, apparently to suggest that the Republican president was afraid, or chicken, to publish his tax records.
	"If he's got nothing to hide, he should ...

Protesters march to press Trump to release tax returns

Egyptian Coptic Christians observed Easter Mass under tight security today with the ancient minority still reeling from twin church bombings that killed dozens just days before.
	In Saint Mark's Cathedral, where Coptic Pope Tawadros II led the mass, worshippers passed through three metal detectors as policemen and soldiers stood guard in the sprawling compound and on the streets outside.
	Two Islamic State group suicide bombers had struck two churches north of Cairo last Sunday, killing 45 people in the worst attack on Copts in recent memory.
	Police cordoned off roads leading to the cathedral compound, where another suicide bomber had attacked last December, killing 29 people.
	The government declared a state of emergency and called in the army to protect "vital" installations following last Sunday's suicide bombings in Tanta and Alexandria.
	The Islamic State group, which claimed all three bombing, has threatened more.
	Following the Palm Sunday attacks, the church had said it would 

Security tight as Egypt Copts hold Easter mass

Emma Morano, an Italian woman believed to have been the oldest person alive and the last survivor of the 19th century, died today at the age of 117, Italian media reported.
	Morano, born on November 29 1899, died at her home in Verbania, in northern Italy, the reports said.
	"She had an extraordinary life, and we will always remember her strength to move forward in life," the mayor of Verbania was quoted as saying.
	According to the US-based Gerontology Research Group (GRG), Morano ceded the crown of the world's oldest human being to Jamaican Violet Brown, who was born on March 10, 1900.
	Morano's death means there is no one living known to have been born before 1900.
	Her first love died in World War I, but she married later and left her violent husband just before the Second World War and shortly after the death in infancy of her only son.
	She had clung to her independence, only taking on a full-time carer a couple of years ago, though she had not left her small two-room apartment .

Italian Emma Morano, last known survivor of 19th century, dies

At least 25 soldiers and rebels have died in clashes around a key military base near Yemen's west coast, military and medical sources said today.
	Loyalist forces backed by a Saudi-led coalition launched an assault to seize the Khaled Ibn Al-Walid base from Shiite Huthi rebels and their allies who had controlled it for over two years, military sources said.
	After seizing a mountain overlooking the camp in recent days, forces loyal to internationally recognised president Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi had advanced on the camp from two directions, they said.
	The camp, one of the biggest in Yemen, is 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the government-held Red Sea town of Mokha which pro-government forces retook in February.
	It sits on a key road linking Mokha to the Huthi- controlled port city of Hodeida and third city Taez, which is under rebel siege.
	Nine rebels were killed and two others wounded in twin coalition air strikes targeting three vehicles bringing reinforcements to the camp, military 

Yemen fight for Red Sea base leaves 25 dead

Two suspected recruiters of "terrorists" from Central Asia were arrested in Saint Petersburg, justice authorities said today, in connection with a deadly bomb attack on the Russian city's metro.
	One suspect, aged 32, is accused of recruiting for the Islamic State group, while the other, aged 39, faces allegations of being a recruiter for "terrorist organisations in Syria".
	One of the two is from the Osh region of Kyrgyzstan, an area known for the number of recruits it has provided for Islamic State in Syria and Iraq.
	Fourteen people died and dozens were injured in the April 3 blast which has been blamed on 22-year-old Akbarjon Djalilov, thought to be a Russian national born in Kyrgyzstan, who died in the blast.
	There has been no claim of responsibility for the attack but investigators say they are probing possible links to Islamic State jihadists.
	Eight people -- all from mainly Muslim Central Asia -- have been detained in Moscow and Saint Petersburg over alleged involvement in ..

Russia arrests two suspected 'terrorist' recruiters

Cyprus is at a vital moment in its UN-backed peace process aimed at reunifying the island, President Nicos Anastasiades said today, but admitted that differences with his Turkish Cypriot negotiating partner remained.
	"We find ourselves before critical and defining developments for the future of our homeland," Anastasiades said in a televised Easter address.
	The Mediterranean resort island has been divided since 1974 when Turkish troops invaded the northern third in response to an Athens-inspired coup.
	Successive peace efforts between its Greek- and Turkish- speaking communities have stumbled over issues including territory and security.
	The current process, which saw talks resume in May 2015, is seen by analysts as the best hope for a lasting peace deal.
	Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci have agreed to schedule four new meetings, in a new phase of talks, with the first beginning on April 20.
	"In order to achieve a solution acceptable by the people, we must ..

Cyprus leader says peace talks at 'critical' moment

A cool, calm and collected Valtteri Bottas claimed his first pole position today when he beat his Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton with a well-controlled fastest lap in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix.
     The 26-year-old Finn, who joined the team as replacement for retired 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg, made the most of a less competitive final lap by the Briton to claim the prime starting position for Sunday's race.
     "Obviously, I am really happy," said Bottas. "It took a few races, but hopefully it's the first of many."
     Bottas clocked a best lap of one minute and 28.769 seconds in the final seconds and it was, as Hamilton admitted, too good for him to beat. Hamilton had clocked 1:28.792.
     Bottas' lap was comfortably faster than Rosberg's pole time last year of 1:29.493, but the overall speed of the new era 'fatter-and-faster' machines was less notable in the desert heat than it had been at the two previous races.
     Hamilton, who was seeking his seventh ...

Bottas ends Hamilton run for first career pole

Emma Morano, an Italian woman believed to have been the oldest person alive and the last survivor of the 19th century, died today at the age of 117, the Italian media reported.
	Morano, born on November 29 1899, died at her home in Verbania, northern Italy, the reports said.
	"She had an extraordinary life, and we will always remember her strength to help us move forward in life," the mayor of Verbania was quoted as saying.

Last known survivor of 19th century, dies at 117

The United States is deploying "a few dozen" troops to Somalia to assist the national army and conduct unspecified security operations, a US military spokeswoman said today.
	The soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division, a light infantry unit trained for air assaults, will mainly train and equip Somalia's army "to better fight Al-Shabab," an Al-Qaeda linked extremist group, the spokeswoman for the US Africa Command based in Germany, Samantha Reho, told AFP.
	They will also conduct "security force assistance," she said, confirming a report by Voice of America.
	"For operational security issues, we will not discuss specifics of military efforts nor speculate on potential future activities or operations," she said, declining to say precisely how many troops were being sent.
	Somalia's fragile central government is still propped up by the international community and a 22,000-strong African Union peacekeeping force after nearly three decades of civil war and anarchy.
	While Shabab ...

'A few dozen' US troops deployed to Somalia: Pentagon

Spanish authorities said today they had arrested two Britons after intercepting a stash of synthetic drugs "80 times stronger" than cannabis smuggled inside sacks of coffee into the southeastern city of Alicante.
	Police said the stash reached Spain hidden in packets posted from Hong Kong, adding that the British pair, aged 36 and 37, had been remanded in custody.
	They did not specify when the two had been intercepted but authorities last month launched an investigation into drug trafficking via Alicante airport.
	Their inquiries led them to a bar popular with Britons at El Campello, a resort just outside Alicante and where they made one arrest.
	The second arrest followed some days later at the airport. Police, who valued the street value of the 12.2 kilo (26 pounds) stash at 3.5 million euros (USD 3.2 million), said the second suspect was seeking "to flee justice" when he was tracked down.
	Police said examination of the drugs suggested "a strong synthetic cannabinoid" whose ...

AFP

AFP

Page 1155 - Afp