Eleven children were killed when a bus driver lost control of his vehicle and ploughed into a Muslim procession marking the birthday of Prophet Mohammed in northern Nigeria, police said today.
	The accident yesterday in Malam Sidi village in Gombe state was due to a brake failure, said police spokesman Ahmed Usman.
	"A total of 11 children died in the incident while 17 others were seriously injured," Usman told AFP.
	He said the victims were aged between 11 and 15, prompting an angry mob to descend on the bus driver and beat him to death.
	Police have launched an investigation into the accident, he added.
	Muslims in northern Nigeria celebrate the birthday of Prophet Mohammed with month-long religious gatherings and street processions.
	Nigeria is almost evenly divided between a mainly-Muslim north and predominantly Christian south.

11 children killed as bus runs into Muslim procession

PTI Automatic

The Kremlin said today it was too early to conclude who was behind the murder of Russian ambassador Andrei Karlov in Ankara, after Turkey's foreign minister put the blame on exiled cleric Fethullah Gulen.
	"In this case it is hardly worth hurrying to any conclusions until the investigation determines - as our president said - who was behind the murder of our ambassador," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
	In the first official accusation against Gulen by a top Turkish official over the killing, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told US counterpart John Kerry in a phone call yesterday that Turkey believed Gulen's group FETO was involved, the foreign ministry said.
	The US-based Gulen - who Ankara says also orchestrated an attempted coup in July - had earlier issued a statement to condemn the assassination as a "terrorist act" that left him "shocked and deeply saddened."
	President Vladimir Putin will take part in mourning ceremonies for the slain ambassador ...

Kremlin says too early to say who was behind envoy's murder

Three Turkish soldiers were killed and 11 wounded in clashes with Islamic State (IS) jihadists in Syria today as the military faces increasing resistance from the extremists in a battle to take a key town, reports said.
	The IS-held town of Al Bab, 25 kilometres from the Turkish border, has become the main target of the army's more than three-month campaign inside Syria in support of pro-Ankara Syrian rebels.
	One of the wounded was in a serious condition, the Dogan news agency reported. It said the deaths came in clashes with IS jihadists which were ongoing.
	The Amaq news agency, affiliated to IS, said a suicide attack was carried out against the Syrian rebels and Turkish troops west of Al Bab, without giving further details.
	After the lightning speed of the earlier campaign that saw the border town of Jarabulus taken on the first day of the offensive, the Turkish army has suffered increasing casualties in the fight for Al Bab.
	Around two dozen Turkish soldiers are believed to ...

Three Turkish soldiers killed in fight for Syria IS-held town

The Philippines said today that President Rodrigo Duterte's killing of three people in the 1980s was part of a police operation, after the United Nations rights chief urged Manila to investigate him for murder.
	In several speeches last week, Duterte recounted how in 1988, early in the first of his several terms as mayor of the southern city of Davao, he and local police ambushed and killed three suspected kidnappers.
	UN rights chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said in a statement yesterday that Duterte's killings, by his own admission, "clearly constitute murder" and Philippine judicial authorities must launch a murder investigation.
	Duterte spokesman Ernesto Abella said today Zeid's comments were nothing more than "his (Zeid's) opinion".
	"Again, let me just remind one and all, that the incident referred to by the president was actually covered by media and it was (a) legitimate police action," Abella added.
	He did not address Duterte's possession and discharge of a firearm while not a 

Philippines defends Duterte killings as UN seeks probe

A Japanese programme aimed at accepting a small number of refugees from war-torn Syria is under fire for implying that pregnant women are not welcome.
	Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced in May that immigration-shy Japan, with a population of about 127 million, would accept up to 150 Syrian students over five years from 2017.
	That number compares with vastly higher figures in other countries. Norway, with a population of about 5.1 million, has pledged to accept some 9,000 Syrians.
	Abe separately pledged at a refugee summit hosted by US President Barack Obama in September that Japan was also prepared to "warmly welcome" family members of the students.
	But the Japanese unit of Amnesty International has raised concerns that the programme for Syrians virtually excludes pregnant women.
	As advertised, the programme - entitled "Japanese Initiative for the future of Syrian Refugees" - has several requirements for potential applicants.
	Originally, they included the line: "Pregnant ...

Japan hit over pregnancy clause in Syria refugee programme

Roads in front of Buckingham Palace will be shut during the daily Changing of the Guard ceremony starting today following the truck attack that killed 12 people in Berlin, British police said.
	The military ceremony regularly brings crowds of tourists outside the gates of Queen Elizabeth II's residence in central London and previously there have only been some traffic restrictions while it takes place.
	London's Metropolitan Police said the closures were a "necessary precaution" because of "the event's high profile in an iconic location with a substantial military presence and attracting large crowds".
	The closures had already been planned for a three-month trial period but police said this was being brought forward after a truck ploughed into a crowded market in the centre of the German capital on Monday.
	"The planned implementation has been brought forward following the events" in Germany, the police said in a statement.
	"Alongside the road closures, additional barriers will be ..

Roads shut outside Buckingham Palace after Berlin attack

Japan and Indonesia agreed today to cooperate on maritime security at a time when both countries are embroiled in sea rows with China.
	Beijing asserts sovereignty over almost all of the resource-rich South China Sea, despite rival claims from Southeast Asian neighbours.
	Indonesia has no dispute with China over ownership of reefs or islets.
	But China's expansive claims overlap with Indonesia's exclusive economic zone -- waters where a state has the right to exploit resources -- around the Natunas, a remote scattering of islands with rich fishing grounds.
	In June Indonesian President Joko Widodo toured the islands on a warship, in a move seen sending a strong message to Beijing to respect his country's sovereignty.
	In Tokyo, Indonesia's coordinating minister for maritime affairs Luhut Panjaitan and Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida met to exchange documents to launch the cooperation framework, including in maritime security and economic development in remote islets.
	"Japan ..

Japan, Indonesia to cooperate on maritime security

South Korea's Constitutional Court will tomorrow start hearings into whether to confirm the impeachment of President Park Geun-Hye, with her ruling conservative party deeply split on the issue before a likely fresh election.
	The court has up to 180 days to decide whether to uphold or reject parliament's impeachment of the country's first female president on charges ranging from bribery to abuse of power.
	Park has been suspended from her duties since the impeachment vote on December 9, with the prime minister taking over.
	If the judges back impeachment after hearing from both sides, she will be formally ousted and a presidential election held within 60 days. But any split in the Saenuri Party would drastically reduce its chances in such a poll.
	More than 30 Saenuri lawmakers who have been at odds with Park have vowed to leave, arguing that the party's current leadership refuses to embrace reforms despite the corruption scandal and impeachment crisis.
	"We've reached a conclusion ...

South Korean court to mull impeachment, ruling party split

A massive explosion gutted Mexico's biggest fireworks market, killing at least 31 people and injuring 72, the authorities said.
	The conflagration in the Mexico City suburb of Tultepec set off a quick-fire series of multicolored blasts that sent a vast cloud of smoke billowing over the capital.
	The market had been packed with customers buying pyrotechnics for traditional end-of-year festivities. Christmas and New Year parties in many Latin American countries often wrap up with clattering firework blasts.
	"You just heard the blast. And everything started to be on fire. People came running out on fire," Walter Garduno said.
	"People were alight -- children," he added before trailing off.
	From a few kilometers away, the multiple explosions that started at 2:50 pm almost looked festive, alight in blue, red and white. They were anything but.
	Of the 31 confirmed dead, "26 (died) at the scene and five in hospitals," local media reported Mexico's chief prosecutor Milenio Alejandro Gomez ..

At least 31 dead, 72 hurt in Mexico fireworks market blast

The days of capital punishment may be numbered in the United States, with sharp reductions in new death sentences and executions carried out amid waning public support, according to a report released today.
	The Death Penalty Information Center, a Washington-based nonprofit organization, said statistics point to a continued record decline in the use of killing as punishment.
	"America is in the midst of a major climate change concerning capital punishment," said Robert Dunham, DPIC's executive director and the author of the report.
	"Whether it's concerns about innocence, costs, and discrimination, availability of life without parole as a safe alternative, or the questionable way in which states are attempting to carry out executions, the public grows increasingly uncomfortable with the death penalty each year."
	Though two-thirds of US states still allow the death penalty, this year is expected to end with 31 new death sentences, the DPIC said in a year-end report.
	That would be a ..

Death penalty may be on the way out in US: report

China said today it welcomed Sao Tome and Principe's decision to sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a move that comes as US President-elect Donald Trump questions Washington's policy towards the self-ruled island.
	The small west African nation suspended ties with China in 1997, when it chose to officially recognise Taiwan, which split from the mainland in 1949 after a civil war.
	Beijing has repeatedly asserted its belief that there is only "one China" and that the island remains part of its territory awaiting reunification.
	Tensions between the mainland and what it refers to as a "renegade province" have heightened since president Tsai Ing-wen, who leads Taiwan's pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party, took office in May.
	Adding fuel to that fire, Trump angered Beijing with comments earlier this month suggesting he could use recognition of the island as a bargaining chip to extract trade deals from China.
	"We welcome Sao Tome and Principe back onto the correct path of the .

China welcomes Sao Tome's split with Taiwan

While most of Scotland voted against leaving the European Union, whisky makers have quietly been raising a wee dram to a side-effect of the Brexit vote -- a plunge in the value of the pound.
	   The currency devaluation has made exports cheaper, generating a bump since 90 per cent of Scotch whisky is sold outside Britain, although the industry warns the longer-term outlook is far more cloudy.
	   David Williamson, communications director for the Scotch Whisky Association, said: "Because of the relative strength of the pound we're certainly getting anecdotal reports back from our member companies that has helped to boost exports."
	   And Tony Reeman-Clark, who runs the Strathearn Distillery in Perthshire -- a relative newcomer to the market -- said: "I have been talking to people from bigger distilleries who said there has been a lot of interest, and a lot of sales, because of the weak pound."
	   Reeman-Clark, who is also the founder of the Scottish Craft Distillers Association, said 

In pro-EU Scotland, whisky makers cheer Brexit boon

Four crew from a Philippine-flagged fishing vessel have been snatched in waters off the country's south where Abu Sayyaf Islamic militants have previously taken hostages, the military said today.
	A sister vessel found the unmanned FB Ramona 2 in the Celebes Sea early Tuesday, two hours after the crew of both vessels made their last radio contact, regional military spokesman Major Filemon Tan said.
	Tan told reporters that seamen from the sister ship "found all crews on board missing and the VHF Radio/GPS was stolen".
	He said the Filipino boat captain and three other crew members were believed to have been abducted. The area is close to the remote Sulu island group more than 1,000 kilometres south of Manila.
	The Sulu group is a stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf, which is blamed for the deadliest bombings in the Philippines as well as kidnappings for ransom of foreign tourists and Christian missionaries.
	Tan could not immediately say if the Abu Sayyaf was involved in the latest ...

Four snatched off Philippines near Abu Sayyaf stronghold

South Korea's ruling conservative party today faced an imminent split over the impeachment of scandal-hit President Park Geun-Hye, a development that would seriously undermine its presidential election chances.
	More than 30 lawmakers of the Saenuri Party, who have been at odds with Park, have vowed to leave, arguing the party's current leadership refuses to embrace reforms despite the corruption scandal and impeachment crisis.
	"We've reached a conclusion that conservatives' reform through the Saenuri Party is impossible", Yoo Seung-Min, an eminent lawmaker among the dissenters told journalists.
	A split would also complicate a possible run by outgoing UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, who had been widely expected to compete as a centre-right candidate on the Saenuri ticket.
	Thirty-five lawmakers have agreed to break away from the party on December 27, the group said, adding they will try to convince more parliamentary members to join them.
	Their departure will leave the party with 

South Korean ruling party faces split over impeachment

The US military has officially ended operations in a former Islamic State bastion in Libya, officials have announced.
	The Pentagon had launched Operation Odyssey Lightning to help local forces push the jihadists from the coastal city of Sirte on August 1.
	"In partnership with the Libyan Government of National Accord, the operation succeeded in its core objective of enabling GNA-aligned forces to drive Daesh (IS) out of Sirte," the US military's Africa Command said in a statement.
	US drones, gunships and warplanes had hammered IS positions, conducting a total of 495 strikes.
	"We are proud to have supported this campaign to eliminate ISIL's hold over the only city it has controlled outside Iraq and Syria," Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook told reporters, using an IS acronym.
	Officials said the United States would continue to strike IS jihadists if the Libyan unity government asked for help in doing so.
	Unity government leader Fayez al-Sarraj on Saturday announced that military .

US military formally ends anti-IS operation in Libya's Sirte

The White House blocked new leases for oil and gas drilling in sections of the Arctic and Atlantic, a high-stakes bid to forestall exploration and tie Donald Trump's hands.
	With Trump is bringing a strident pro-oil stance to the White House, the outgoing administration has launched a rearguard action.
	President Barack Obama announced he was placing swaths of the Arctic and Atlantic "indefinitely off limits to future oil and gas leasing."
	The protection covers an area of the Arctic roughly the size of Spain or Thailand and 31 sea canyons in the Atlantic.
	A senior administration official said that there was a "strong legal basis" for the move, and suggested Trump could not revoke the decision without an act of Congress.
	The move, based on a law from the 1950s, was taken in tandem with the Canadian government and introduces an additional headache should Trump try to row it back.
	Obama said in a statement that the measures would "protect a sensitive and unique ecosystem."
	He also ..

Obama moves to tie Trump's hands on Arctic, Atlantic drilling

A massive explosion gutted Mexico's biggest fireworks market, killing at least 29 people and injuring 70, authorities said.
	The conflagration, in the Mexico City suburb of Tultepec, set off a quick-fire series of multicoloured blasts and sent a vast cloud of smoke billowing over the capital city yesterday.
	The market had been packed with customers buying pyrotechnics for traditional end-of-year festivities. Christmas and New Year's parties in many Latin American countries often wrap up with clattering firework blasts.
	From a few kilometres away, the multiple explosions that started at 2:50 pm (local time) almost looked festive, alight in blue, red and white. They were anything but.
	"We recovered 26 bodies at the scene of the incident. And three more have died in the hospital, for a total of 29 dead," Mexico state's governor Eruviel Avila said.
	Federal police said on Twitter that 70 people were hurt and were transported to emergency rooms.
	Fire crews struggled for three hours ...

At least 29 dead, 70 hurt in Mexico fireworks market blast

A strong 6.5-magnitude earthquake rattled northern Australia and parts of Indonesia today with residents in Darwin reporting widespread shaking, but there were no immediate reports of damage.
	The tremor struck off the coast of eastern Indonesia, US seismologists said, but no tsunami warning was issued.
	"TV nearly rattled off the cabinet, two storey house was swaying around," said Rosie McCurrach on broadcaster ABC's Darwin Facebook page.
	Another poster said: "Mitchell Centre felt like it was going to tumble over," while Gaylene Whenmouth noted: "On 7th floor in the city. Rocking and rolling!"
	The undersea quake hit about 278 kilometres east-northeast of Dili in East Timor at a depth of 158 kilometres, the US Geological Survey said.
	Australia's Northern Territory News said the quake was widely felt across Darwin and surrounding areas.
	"We're on the third floor and it gave us a shake," said Darwin-based Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Chris Kent, who said the quake lasted .

6.5-magnitude earthquake rattles northern Australia

A massive explosion that gutted Mexico's biggest fireworks market has left at least 26 dead, an official said.
	"We recovered 26 bodies at the scene of the incident" in the Mexico City suburb of Tultepec, Mexico state prosecutor Alejandro Gomez told reporters at the site.
	The conflagration, in the suburb of Tultepec, set off a quickfire series of multicolored blasts and a vast cloud of smoke that hung over Mexico City. Federal police said on Twitter that at least 70 people were injured.

At least 26 dead in Mexico fireworks market blast: official

Gambian President Yahya Jammeh will not face prosecution on leaving office, a spokesman for the opposition coalition that backed president-elect Adama Barrow has said.
	Jammeh led the Gambia for 22 years but conceded defeat in polls this month before reversing his position and claiming victory, bringing calls from the international community to accept the result and step down.
	"ECOWAS wanted to know whether the incoming administration plans to prosecute outgoing President Yahya Jammeh," spokesman Halifa Sallah said following talks with the Economic Community of West African States on the peaceful transfer of power.
	"There is no indication of a threat (of prosecution) or the need to threaten outgoing President Yahya Jammeh," he said.
	"President-elect Barrow says he is going to treat outgoing President Yahya Jammeh like a former head of state and would consult him for advice," Sallah added.
	Also yesterday, French President Francois Hollande said the results of the December 1 polls ..

AFP

AFP

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