Israeli soldiers shot dead a Palestinian teenager today during a confrontation in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian officials said.
	Security officials said that troops entered the village of Beit Rima, near Ramallah, after midnight and were confronted by stone-throwing youths.
	The Palestinian health ministry said that Ahmed Hazem Atta, 19, was killed in the ensuing army fire.

Israeli troops kill Palestinian in clash: officials

PTI Automatic

A suicide bomber killed at least 30 Yemeni soldiers today when he detonated his explosives at a gathering in the southern city of Aden, military officials and medics said.
	Many others were wounded in the attack that targeted a crowd of soldiers gathered to collect their salaries at a base in northeastern Aden, the officials and medics said.

At least 30 Yemeni soldiers killed in Aden suicide bombing

At least 20 Yemeni soldiers killed in suicide bomb in

Dozens of health facilities supported by the World Health Organisation in strife-torn areas of Sudan risk closure due to a lack of funds, exposing one million people to likely epidemics.
	Eleven clinics have already been shut in Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan where years of fighting between government troops and black African rebels has forced tens of thousands of people to flee their homes.
	As an acute cash crunch worsens and with the world's eyes focused on other conflicts such as Syria, another 49 facilities in these regions are also at risk, the WHO head in Sudan, Naeema al-Gasseer, told AFP.
	"We don't have enough funds to continue supporting clinics in remote areas that provide people with health services," Gasseer said.
	"About 11 clinics have already been closed and another 49 are facing closure.
	"We are talking about a million people who can be affected."
	The closures could impact immunisation services, while some 323,000 women of child-bearing age and children under 

Cash crunch closing WHO clinics in Sudan war zones

A stunning four-goal blitz in 10 minutes allowed Sevilla to leapfrog Barcelona into second in La Liga on Saturday as Luciano Vietto scored twice in a 4-1 win over Malaga.
     Atletico Madrid registered a first win in four games as Saul Niguez's excellent 25-yard strike earned a nervy 1-0 victory against Las Palmas.
     However, Atletico end the year in sixth after wins for Villarreal and Real Sociedad at Sporting Gijon and Granada respectively maintained their one-point lead over Diego Simeone's men.
     Sevilla edge a point ahead of Barca and to within five of league leaders Real Madrid, who are not in league action this weekend as they face Kashima Antlers in the Club World Cup final in Yokohama, Japan, on Sunday.
     Barca, though, can reclaim second when they host Espanyol in Sunday's Catalan derby (1945GMT).
     Sevilla killed Malaga off with a series of brilliant first-half team moves as Vietto slotted home Steven N'Zonzi's through ball for the opener before being left with 

Sevilla up to second, Atletico claim much-needed win

Trapped civilians and rebels waited desperately today for evacuations to resume from an opposition-held enclave in Aleppo, as the UN Security Council prepared to vote on sending observers to the flashpoint Syrian city.
	A rebel representative told AFP an agreement had been reached to allow more people to leave the city which has been ravaged by some of the worst violence of the nearly six-year war that has killed more than 310,000 people.
	But there was no confirmation from President Bashar al-Assad's regime or its staunch allies Russia and Iran, which are under mounting international pressure to end what US President Barack Obama denounced as the "horror" in Aleppo.
	The UN Security Council was set to meet at 11:00 am (local time) to vote on French proposals to dispatch monitors to oversee evacuations and report on the protection of civilians, but faced resistance from veto-wielding Russia.
	French Ambassador Francois Delattre said an international presence would prevent Aleppo from .

Desperate 'thousands' await evacuation from Aleppo

The UN Security Council will vote today on a French proposal to send observers to the flashpoint Syrian city of Aleppo to monitor evacuations and report on the protection of civilians, diplomats said.
	The council will meet at 10:00 am (2030 IST) to decide on the draft resolution, despite resistance from Russia, Syria's ally and a veto-wielding Security Council member.
	France circulated a draft text late Friday stating that the council is "alarmed" by the worsening humanitarian crisis in Aleppo and by the fact that "tens of thousands of besieged Aleppo inhabitants" are in need of aid and evacuation.
	Thousands of trapped civilians and the last remaining opposition fighters in Aleppo were waiting for evacuations to resume yesterday, a day after the operation was suspended by the Syrian government.
	Syrian forces this week moved to assert full control over the east of the city, which had been held by opposition fighters since 2012.
	French Ambassador Francois Delattre said the ...

UN Security Council to vote today on Aleppo observers

Libya's unity government leader Fayez al-Sarraj has officially announced the end of military operations in Sirte, after the liberation from Islamic State group forces of what was the last significant territory they held in the country.
	However prime minister-designate Sarraj warned that the battle against the Islamic rebels was not over.
	Eight months after the start of the operations against IS in the coastal town of Sirte "I officially announce the end of military operations and the liberation of the town", Sarraj said in a televised speech yesterday, two weeks after the announcement that the area was in control of forces loyal to the government.
	The capture of Sirte, first announced on December 5, boosts the authority of Sarraj's UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA), which was launched in Tripoli in March but whose legitimacy is contested by a rival administration based in eastern Libya.
	The country descended into chaos following the NATO-backed ousting of longtime ...

Libya officially proclaims liberation of Sirte from IS

Regional West African leaders said The Gambia's president Yahya Jammeh must step down next month when his term runs out, just over a week after he challenged the result of an election in which he had already conceded defeat.
	The 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) issued its call in a statement at the end of a summit in Nigeria.
	"The Authority calls on President Yahya Jammeh to accept the result of the polls and refrain from any act likely to compromise the transition and peaceful transfer of power to the president-elect," they said.
	The summit vowed "to take all necessary action to enforce the results" of the December 1 poll, without spelling out what the measures would be.
	Opposition leader Adama Barrow was declared the winner of the presidential ballot and Jammeh initially conceded defeat, only to reverse his decision a week later, condemning "unacceptable errors" by election authorities and calling for a new vote.
	The summit in Abuja was attended by ..

West African leaders call on Gambia's Jammeh to step down

Nationalist protesters stormed the local headquarters of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) in the central Turkish city of Kayseri and several other Turkish cities after an attack that left 14 soldiers dead.
	With the government pointing the finger at the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) for the attack earlier in Kayseri, the protesters yesterday took out their anger on the HDP in a string of revenge attacks.
	In Kayseri, protesters broke into the building where the HDP office is located, scattering papers and furniture on the street and removing the HDP sign from the entrance, images taken by the Dogan news agency showed.
	A group then ascended to the top of the building, setting off a fire and draping from the top a giant red flag with three crescent moons, the insignia of right-wing Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).
	The HDP said similar attacks also took place on its offices in seven districts in Istanbul as well as branches in the cities of Erzincan, Ankara and 

Protesters ransack pro-Kurdish party local headquarters

Bolivia's ruling socialist party today defied the results of a February referendum and backed President Evo Morales for a fourth term in 2019.
	The Movement for Socialism (MAS) party, holding a congress in the eastern city of Montero, approved the candidacy of Morales -- Bolivia's first president with an indigenous background -- in a unanimous vote.
	Morales welcomed the party's decision, saying, "If the people decide it, Evo will continue."
	He added: "So many times we have defeated the right."
	Morales was first elected president in 2005, and re-elected in 2009 and 2014.
	But he narrowly lost the referendum in February on the question of whether he was constitutionally permitted to run again in 2019. His current term expires on January 22, 2020.
	The party congress today, however, recommended "four legal alternatives" to allow his candidacy within the constitutional framework, according to a union leader who read the conclusions.
	The first was a partial constitutional reform ...

Bolivia ruling party defies referendum, backs Morales

At least 38 Islamic State group fighters have been killed in US-led coalition air strikes this week near Syria's ancient city of Palmyra, a monitor said on Saturday.
	The jihadists retook Palmyra in central Syria on December 11, just eight months after the army backed by Russia drove them out.
	On Thursday, US-led coalition aircraft destroyed heavy weaponry seized by the jihadists when they retook the city, the coalition said.
	A statement yesterday said the strikes destroyed an air defence artillery system, 14 tanks, three artillery systems, two IS-held buildings and two tactical vehicles.
	Among the Russian weaponry IS captured around Palmyra were thought to be modern surface-to-air missiles, or SAMs, giving jihadists the potential capability to shoot down aircraft, a coalition official told AFP.
	The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group based in Britain, said that "at least 38 IS members were killed in the air strikes".
	The strikes, near the Tiyas military air ..

Coalition strikes near Palmyra killed 38 jihadists: monitor

Palestinian Islamist group Hamas said today a Tunisian engineer murdered in the North African country was one of its leaders, accused Israel of the killing and vowed to avenge him.
	Mohamed Zaouari, a 49-year-old engineer, was murdered at the wheel of his car outside his house in Tunisia's second city, Sfax, on Thursday.
	Al-Qassam Martyrs Brigade, the armed wing of Hamas that controls the Gaza Strip, told AFP today that drone expert Zaouari was killed by "Zionist treachery", referring to Israel.
	It said Zaouari had worked for the "resistance" for 10 years, and announced a day of mourning.
	"Zaouari's assassination in Tunisia is aggression against the resistance, and Al-Qassam Brigades and the enemy should know that the blood of the leaders will not be wasted and lost in vain," it said in a separate statement.
	Tunisia's Islamist Ennahdha movement has called for an investigation into the killing, which it said posed a threat to the country's stability.
	Authorities in Tunisia have ...

Hamas says Israel killed its drone expert in Tunisia

Bolivia's ruling socialist party today defied the results of a February referendum and backed President Evo Morales for a fourth term in 2019.
	The Movement for Socialism (MAS) party, holding a congress in the eastern city of Montero, approved the candidacy of Morales -- Bolivia's first president with an indigenous background -- in a unanimous vote.

Bolivia ruling party defies referendum

Fourteen Turkish soldiers were killed and dozens more wounded today in a suicide car bombing blamed on Kurdish militants targeting off-duty conscripts, the latest in a string of attacks to rock Turkey in recent months.
	The government said all signs so far suggested the the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) was behind the bombing in the city of Kayseri, a usually calm industrial hub in the heart of Anatolia.
	Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said a total of 56 people were wounded, half a dozen of them seriously. The death toll has risen from 13 to 14 after one more soldier died in hospital, the official Anadolu news agency said.
	Television pictures showed the bus reduced to a smouldering wreck by the blast, which came a week after 44 people were killed in a double bombing in Istanbul after a football match hosted by the top side Besiktas.
	That attack, which targeted a police bus, was claimed by the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK) seen as a radical offshoot of the PKK. No claim .

Suicide car bombing kills 14 off-duty Turkish soldiers

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos today received the Lampara peace prize, the "Catholic Nobel", for his efforts to reach a deal with his country's Marxist FARC rebels.
	The award, handed over in the Italian city of Assisi, comes a week after Santos received the actual Nobel Peace Prize at a ceremony in Oslo, in recognition of his work to end the half-century conflict that has claimed more than 260,000 lives.
	"I wanted to be an instrument of peace for my country, and there have been many instruments of peace among those who have joined me in this work," he said after receiving the lamp of Saint Francis, a symbol of peace for Roman Catholics.
	"Today I want to ask Saint Francis to continue to inspire us so that this peace we have agreed can be felt in every Colombian town, village and family."
	His visit to Assisi came a day after Pope Francis brought him together with his predecessor as Colombian president, Alvaro Uribe, at the Vatican.
	Uribe led opposition to the agreement with 

Colombian president receives 'Catholic Nobel' for FARC deal

Several thousand people protested today outside the presidential palace in Warsaw over alleged vote fraud and the rightwing government's plans to impose new restrictions on media coverage of parliament.
	The fresh demonstrations came after an unprecedented night of unrest that saw demonstrators blockade the exits of the parliament building and opposition lawmakers take over its main chamber, with some pledging to remain until next week.
	Protesters today waved Polish flags, blasted air horns and chanted "Stop the devastation of Poland" and "Liberty, equality, democracy" during a march toward parliament.
	"I don't want to see Poland turned upside down" by the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, a protester in her 60s, Malgorzata Kramarz, told AFP.
	Inside the parliament on Friday opposition lawmakers launched a protest, chanting "Democracy!" and "Free media!".
	The speaker of parliament had to interrupt the session and hours later transferred the proceedings to another gallery so ...

New anti-govt demos in Poland after parliament blockade

Egypt's state prosecutor has ordered that the remains of those killed in the crash of EgyptAir flight 804 be handed over to relatives, his office said in a statement today.
	The Airbus A320 had been en route from Paris to Cairo in May when it crashed into the Mediterranean, killing all 66 on board, including 40 Egyptians and 15 French nationals.
	On Thursday, the aviation ministry in Cairo had announced that traces of explosives had been found on the victims' remains.
	But France's air safety agency said it was not possible to determine what caused the crash, saying it did not have information on how the samples were collected.
	The prosecutor ordered the return of remains "of Egyptian victims, and there is currently coordination with foreign embassies to turn over the remains of foreigners," the statement said.
	A lawyer for relatives of the French victims had said in September that there was nothing to "justify" the delay in handing over the remains.
	Aviation experts have said ...

Egypt to hand over MS804 air crash victims' remains

Congolese crisis talks to ensure a peaceful transition of power were suspended today, Catholic church negotiators said, announcing they would resume only a day after President Joseph Kabila's last legal term in office ends.
	The announcement follows nearly a week of church-led negotiations between Kabila's ruling power and opposition parties to determine a path forward after December 20, when Kabila's second term ends.
	The Congolese constitution bans presidents from a third term, but Kabila has showed no signs of stepping down and no elections have yet been planned, leading international observers to fear the situation could descend into violence.

'DR Congo crisis talks suspended until Wednesday'

Scoreboard after the third day of
the day-night first Test between Australia and Pakistan at the Gabba on Saturday.
     Scoreboard
     Australia 1st innings 429
     Pakistan 1st innings (97-8 overnight)
        S Aslam   c Wade b Bird        22
	   A Ali    c Khawaja b Starc      5
	   B Azam  c Smith b Hazlewood    19
	   Y Khan  c Wade b Hazlewoood     0
	   M Ul-Haq  c Renshaw b Bird      4
	   A Shafiq  c Khawaja b Starc     2
	   S Ahmed    not out             59
	   W Riaz    c and b Hazlewood     1
	   Y Shah    c Khawaja b Starc     1
	   M Amir    c Wade b Bird        21
	   R Ali     run out (Warner)      4
	   Extras (lb-3, w-1)              4
	   Total (all out, 55 overs)      142
	   Fall of wickets: 1-6, 2-43, 3-43, 4-48, 5-54, 6-56, 7-66, 8-67, 9-121
	   Bowling: Starc 18-2-63-3 (1w), Hazlewood 14-1-22-3, Bird 12-6-23-3, Lyon 11-2-31-0
	   Australia 2nd innings
	   D Warner      c Wahab b Amir            12
	   M Renshaw     c Younis b Rahat           6
	   U Khawaja 

Brisbane, Dec 17 (AFP) Scoreboard after the third day of

Pakistan were in a backs-to-the-wall struggle to save the day-night first Test as Australia took a strangle-hold on the third day at the Gabba on Saturday.
     At the close, the tourists were hanging in at 70 for two with Azhar Ali not out 41 and 112-Test veteran Younis Khan not off the mark after facing 19 balls. Pakistan trailed by 419 runs.
     Pakistan made a much better fist of playing in the tricky twilight session with the pink ball losing just two wickets after their catastrophic seven for 24 in the first innings on the previous evening.
     The openers lasted into the 12th over before Starc got Sami Aslam to edge to Matt Renshaw at first slip for 15.
     Babar Azam fell to spinner Nathan Lyon in the final half-hour when he edged to Steve Smith at slip for 14.
     It was slow going but at least the tourists were not shedding wickets in clumps to keep the Australians at bay and still with two long days to play.
     "We have had some very good partnerships and we are ...

AFP

AFP

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