Police in Montreal raided six cannabis shops one day after they opened, following a warning by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that recreational marijuana is not yet legal in Canada.
	Ten people were arrested in the raids, police said, including veteran pro-cannabis activist Marc Emery.
	Trudeau, who campaigned last year on a promise to end nearly a century of pot prohibition, warned that the government is still at least one year away from legalizing pot use.
	"We haven't changed the legislation yet," Trudeau told reporters earlier in Montreal. "It is coming, but we're going to take the time to do it right."
	Until that happens, the current ban on the possession and sale of marijuana for recreational use remains in effect, he said.
	Emery on Thursday however went ahead and opened in Montreal six boutiques of the Cannabis Culture franchise chain, which already exist in other cities.
	Police raided the stores at the end of the day as buyers braved frosty conditions to crowd into the ...

Canada police raid Montreal pot stores after Trudeau's warning

PTI Automatic

Thirteen Turkish soldiers were killed and dozens more wounded today in a car bombing targeting off-duty conscripts being taken by bus on a weekend shopping trip, the latest in a string of attacks to rock Turkey in recent months.
	Forty-eight soldiers were wounded in the attack in central Anatolian city of Kayseri, the army said in a statement, adding there could also be civilian casualties.
	Television pictures showed that the bus had been reduced to a smouldering wreck by the impact of the blast, as wounded were taken to waiting ambulances.
	The explosion comes a week after 44 people were killed on December 10 in a double bombing in Istanbul after a football match. The attack was claimed by Kurdish militants.
	Deputy Prime Minister Veysi Kaynak said in televised comments that the attack in Kayseri was "unfortunately similar" to last weekend's strikes in Istanbul.
	The army said that the bus -- carrying low-ranking privates and non-commissioned officers -- was attacked after leaving ..

Car bombing kills 13 Turkish soldiers

Iran summoned the top British diplomat in Tehran for the second time this month to complain about criticism of its actions in Syria, state television reported today.
	The move came after British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson called in the Russian and Iranian ambassadors in London on Thursday to express his "profound concern" over their countries' role in the "suffering" of the people of Aleppo.
	"Following the ill-considered statements and positions of British officials concerning the role of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Syrian crisis, the British charge d'affaires was summoned to the ministry of foreign affairs to receive the protest," a statement published by state broadcaster IRIB said.
	A charge d'affaires was summoned as ambassador Nicholas Hopton is currently out of the country.
	Iran has provided substantial military and financial support to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and played a key role in overwhelming rebel forces in Aleppo over the past month.
	Tensions ...

Iran summons British envoy in Syria tit for tat

Australia were chasing runs in pursuit of a declaration and holding a massive lead of 489 runs over Pakistan on the third day of the day-night first Test at the Gabba today.
     Skipper Steve Smith did not enforce the follow-on after Pakistan were dismissed for 142, some 287 runs behind on the first innings.
     Instead Australia amassed a formidable lead over the beleaguered tourists heading into the tricky twilight session under lights.
     Smith went after the runs and brought up his 19th Test half-century off 59 balls with his eye on a declaration.
     But he was caught at long-on by Rahat Ali going for a heave off leg-spinner Yasir Shah for 63 off 70 balls with 11 fours.
     Usman Khawaja, out cheaply in the first innings, cracked 74 off 109 balls before he was splendidly caught by Misbah-ul-Haq off Rahat nearing the dinner break.
     Nic Maddinson once again failed and was out for four off just three balls before he was caught off Wahab Riaz.
     Both openers were out ...

Australia lead Pakistan by 489 runs at dinner

Thirteen Turkish soldiers were killed and 48 wounded today in a car bomb blast that targeted a bus transporting them in the central city of Kayseri, the army said.
	The soldiers -- all low-ranking privates and non-commissioned officers -- had been given permission for leave from the commando headquarters in the city, it said in a statement.
	The wounded were being treated in hospital while there could also be additional civilian casualties, it added.

Turkish army says 13 soldiers killed, 48 wounded in bombing

Scoreboard at dinner on the
third day of the day-night first Test between Australia and Pakistan at the Gabba today.
	   Australia first innings 429 (S. Smith 130, P. Handscomb 105; W. Riaz 4-89, M. Amir 4-97
	   Pakistan first 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, 10-142.
	   Bowling: Starc 18-2-63-3, Hazlewood 14-1-22-3, Bird 12-6-23-3, Lyon 11-2-31-0
	   Australia second innings
	   D Warner      c Wahab b Amir   12
	   M Renshaw     c 

Brisbane, Dec 17 (AFP) Scoreboard at dinner on the

Turkish army says 13 soldiers killed, 48 wounded in

Scoreboard at tea on the third day of the day-night first Test between Australia and Pakistan at the Gabba today.
     Australia first innings 429 (S. Smith 130, P. Handscomb 105; W. Riaz 4-89, M. Amir 4-97
     Pakistan first 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 in 55 overs)   142
     Fall of wickets: 1-6, 2-43, 3-43, 4-48, 5-54, 6-56, 7-66, 8-67, 9-121, 10-142.
     Bowling: Starc 18-2-63-3, Hazlewood 14-1-22-3, Bird 12-6-23-3, Lyon 11-2-31-0
     Australia second innings
     D Warner      c Wahab b Amir   12
     

Brisbane, Dec 17 (AFP) Scoreboard at tea on the third day of the day-night first Test between Australia and Pakistan at the Gabba today.

Australia tightened their grip on the day-night first Test with a 327-run lead over Pakistan after not enforcing the follow-on on the third day at the Gabba today.
     Pakistan's last two partnerships battled for almost an hour before they were all out for 142 to trail Australia by 287 runs.
     Skipper Steve Smith did not enforce the follow-on, preferring to rest up his bowlers and make a likely declaration for the final twilight session under lights.
     The Australians lost both openers and at tea were 40 for two with Usman Khawaja not out 13 and Smith on eight.
     David Warner looked to attack but fell for 12 when he went to hit Mohammad Amir through midwicket only to miscue his pull shot to Wahab Riaz at mid-on.
     Matthew Renshaw was caught by Younis Khan at second slip off Rahat Ali for six.
     Wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed earlier top scored with a fighting unbeaten 59 off 64 balls as the tourists added 45 runs to their overnight total 97 for eight.
     Two miniscule ...

Australia lead Pakistan by 327 runs at tea

Several people were wounded today in a car bombing close to a public bus in the central Turkish city of Kayseri, reports said.
	Initial television pictures showed that the bus had been reduced to a smouldering wreck by the impact of the blast.
	The Dogan news agency said that the blast took place opposite the Erciyes University in the city. NTV television said that there could be fatalities as a result of the blast.
	The explosion comes a week after 44 people were killed in an attack in Istanbul claimed by Kurdish militants.
	Turkey has seen a spate of deadly bombings in 2016 blamed both in jihadists and Kurdish militants that have left dozens dead.
	One of the main cities of central Turkey, Kayersi is a key industrial hub that is usually seen as a peaceful area.
	It is well west of the southeast of the country that has been hit by months of deadly fighting between Kurdish militants and the security forces.

Several wounded in car bombing in central Turkish city:reports

Sri Lanka has secured USD 1.34 billion in loans from the World Bank to boost the cash-strapped island's economy over the next three years, the finance ministry said today.
	The loans would be at concessionary rates and repayments spread out over 15 years, the ministry said in a statement.
	"This is a great victory for us and it will help us in the fiscal consolidation programme that the new government has started," Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake said.
	There was no immediate comment from the World Bank.
	The new government, which came to power in January last year, also secured a USD 1.5 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund in June after facing a balance of payments crisis.
	The IMF last month described Sri Lanka's performance since the rescue as  "broadly satisfactory", but said it needed to build its dwindling foreign reserves.
	On Wednesday, the ports minister said talks were under way to sell part of Sri Lanka's loss-making USD 1.4 billion harbour to a Chinese .

Sri Lanka says it secures USD 1.34 bn World Bank loan

Gunmen shot dead five female airport workers and their driver in southern Afghanistan today, underlining the threat to employed women in the country.
	The women were in a van driving to the airport in the southern Kandahar province when at least three gunmen on motorcycles opened fire at them, provincial spokesman Samim Kheplwak told AFP.
	"All the women and their driver aboard the van were killed. The attackers fled the area and we have launched an investigation," he said.
	Kandahar International Airport Director Ahmadullah Faizi said the women were employees of a private company who would provide luggage and body search services for female passengers.
	He said the women were concerned about their security after receiving death threats from people who disapproved of their career.
	No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but Kandahar females who work outside their homes have long been at high risk of attack from Taliban militants and other insurgent groups.
	Afghan ..

Gunmen kill five female airport workers in Afghanistan

Protesters began gathering in the streets of Seoul for the eighth straight week today, pushing their demands for the swift and permanent removal of impeached South Korean President Park Geun-Hye.
	Organisers said the mass rally would march on the Constitutional Court whose nine justices are considering the validity of the impeachment bill passed by the national assembly more than a week ago.
	The court has 180 days to make a ruling, but the protesters are pressing for a swift judgement.
	Although Park has been stripped of her substantial executive powers, she is allowed to retain the title of president and continue to live in the presidential Blue House while the court deliberates.
	The protesters are adamant that she should resign immediately and face criminal prosecution.
	But Park still has her supporters, many of them elderly voters who remain steadfast admirers of her father, the late military dictator Park Chung-Hee -- credited as the architect of the South's economic ...

S Korea protests switch focus to impeachment court

Desperate Venezuelans looted delivery trucks and clashed with police as a botched plan to introduce new banknotes left people without cash -- the latest shortage in a spiraling economic crisis.
	Faced with world-high inflation that has made its money increasingly worthless, the government is trying to introduce new bills in denominations up to 200 times higher than the old ones.
	But the plan went off the rails when President Nicolas Maduro ordered the 100-bolivar note removed from circulation before the new bills arrived.
	Formerly the highest denomination bill, the 100-bolivar note was worth about three US cents, and accounted for 77 per cent of the cash in circulation in Venezuela.
	Angry protests erupted yesterday around the country as the chaotic reform left people without money to buy food or Christmas presents.
	In the second city of Maracaibo in the west, groups of protesters hurled stones at police, reports said.
	In the eastern city of Maturin, dozens of people blocked off a 

Venezuela cash crisis sparks looting, protests

Buoyed by victories in their most recent five Test matches, Sri Lanka embark on a two-month tour of South Africa with a three-day match against a youthful South African Invitation XI, starting in Potchefstroom on Sunday.
     It is likely to be a relatively gentle introduction to a tough challenge in a country where Sri Lanka have struggled on four previous tours.
     In anticipation of having to deal with South Africa's strong fast bowling attack on pitches with pace and bounce, the Sri Lankan batsmen practiced on granite surfaces before leaving for the tour.
     Sri Lanka have been beaten in eight of the ten Test matches they have played in South Africa, with just one win and one draw.
     But they have done better in one-day internationals.
     Although South Africa have won 15 times on home soil, Sri Lanka have had seven wins and a tie in 2003 which ended South Africa's hopes of progressing in a World Cup they hosted.
     The current tour includes three Test matches, five ...

Granite-tough Sri Lanka braced for South Africa

Doyen Sports, one of football's major transfer market dealers, ploughed funds into prostitution, kickbacks and tax evasion schemes, the latest Football Leaks report claimed.
     The Doyen Sports group is owned by four brothers of Kazakh-Turkish origin who built a financial empire based on the chemical industry following the fall of the Soviet Union in the 1990s.
	Profits from their investment allowed the Arif brothers to plunge 75 million euros into their football business, said the Football Leaks report released by the Mediapart group in France.
	Assets were deposited in tax havens such as Panama, the Isle of Man, the Netherlands, Malta or the British Virgin Islanda, said Mediapart.
	The French media organisation published a series of WhatsApp messaging service exchanges between Doyen officials who allegedly attempted to facilitate the transfer of French midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia to Real Madrid by offering prostitutes.
	Kondogbia was eventually transferred to Sevilla, Monaco and 

Transfer fixers used 'prostitutes, kickbacks' - Football Leaks

The UN Security Council has extended the mandate of its peacekeeping mission in South Sudan for a year, demanding an end to the fighting as the war entered its fourth year.
	After days of tough negotiations, the council yesterday unanimously adopted a US-drafted resolution that extends the mandate of the 14,000-strong UNMISS force to December 2017.
	According to the measure, the mission will include a new regional force of 4,000 troops, which the council decided to deploy in August but has yet to hit the ground.
	The resolution threatens sanctions against those who undermine South Sudan's stability and warns that the council will consider "appropriate measures" including an arms embargo "to address the evolving situation."
	US Ambassador Samantha Power described the measure as an "upgrade" of the UNMISS mission, which has come under criticism for failing to protect civilians during the three-year war.
	Russia, China, Venezuela and the three African countries on the council have balked 

UN Security Council extends South Sudan mission

Costa Rica this week abruptly changed its migration policy to stop visitors using visas for the EU's Schengen zone or for Japan from entering the country, causing many "problems," according to one official.
	The decision was not explained.
	It came into effect on Tuesday, just as the tropical Central American country was gearing up for its end-of-year high tourist season.
	"There has been a change in the past few days for Schengen visas and we have had problems with many people for this reason," one government official told AFP.
	European embassies did not seem to be aware of the modification. The European Union's Schengen zone encompasses 26 countries, including some non-EU countries. Persons can cross internal borders without being subjected to border checks.
	The order from Costa Rica's migration service said its change was made after "two years of studies" and the "necessary changes" were based on international accords. It did not elaborate.
	The decision does not affect citizens .

Costa Rica scraps entry for EU Schengen, Japan visa holders

At least 12 Burkina Faso soldiers were killed in what local authorities said was the biggest ever jihadist attack on the army, at a base near the restive border with Mali.
	"A detachment of our army's anti-terrorist force suffered a murderous attack which claimed the lives of 12 of our valiant soldiers and left some wounded," said President Rock Marc Christian Kabore yesterday, in an address to the nation.
	"I strongly condemn this horrible attack which shows the cruelty of these perpetrators," added Kabore, who did not specify the number of injured.
	Two more men were missing after around 40 jihadists riding pick-up trucks and motorbikes attacked the army's Nassoumbou base some 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the Burkina-Mali border, the high commissioner of Soum province, Mohamed Dah, earlier told AFP by phone.
	"They were heavily armed with Kalashnikovs and rocket-launchers. They opened fire at the depots, the tents and set fire to some of the vehicles," he said, adding that it was ..

12 Burkina Faso troops killed in jihadist attack

Nine people died of fentanyl opioid abuse in the Canadian city of Vancouver in just the past 24 hours, Mayor Gregor Robertson has said.
	Flanked by the city's police chief and other emergency officials, he lauded existing harm reduction services such as drug consumption rooms in the city, but said more treatment options are urgently needed.
	"It's desperate times in Vancouver and it's hard to see any silver lining right now when we haven't hit rock bottom," Robertson warned yesterday.
	"Can you imagine nine people dying from another cause in one day in our city?" Police Chief Adam Palmer said, calling for more help for addicts.
	Canada has been struggling to contain an overdose crisis that claimed 2,000 lives last year, with even more expected in 2016.
	Vancouver has seen an average of 15 overdoses a month and police are currently investigating 160 fatalities, according to Palmer.
	As the crisis snowballed, the city council approved a 0.5 percent property tax hike this week to help ...

Nine dead of fentanyl opioid abuse in one day in Vancouver:

US President Barack Obama declared today that Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime and its Iranian and Russian backers are solely responsible for the slaughter of civilians in Aleppo.
	"The world as we speak is united in horror at the savage assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian regime on the city of Aleppo," he told an end-of-year news conference.
	"This blood and these atrocities are on their hands.

AFP

AFP

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