Iran's President Hassan Rouhani today ordered the country's scientists to start work on nuclear-powered ships in response to the expected renewal of sanctions by the United States.
	In letters read out on state television, Rouhani criticised the US move as a breach of last year's nuclear accord and told Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation to start work on "planning the design and production of nuclear fuel and reactors for maritime transport."
	The president said he had also ordered the foreign ministry to prepare a legal complaint to the international committee that oversees the nuclear accord.
	Under the deal signed in July 2015, world powers agreed to lift international sanctions in exchange for curbs to Iran's nuclear programme.
	But US lawmakers recently voted to renew 10-year-old sanctions legislation against Iran related not just to nuclear issues, but also ballistic missile-testing and human rights.
	President Barack Obama is expected to sign the measure into law in the coming ..

Iran eyes nuclear-powered ships after US sanctions move

PTI Automatic

Egypt's interior ministry has accused fugitive Muslim Brotherhood leaders who have fled to Qatar of training and financing the perpetrators of the bomb attack on a Cairo church that killed 25 people.
	It said investigations revealed the group was led by a suspect who received financial and logistical support and instructions to carry out the attacks by Brotherhood leaders residing in Qatar.
	The Muslim Brotherhood had denied any involvement with the explosion at the Saint Peter and Saint Paul Church on Sunday.
	The incident was the deadliest attack in recent memory on the Christian minority, who make up about 10 per cent of Egypt's population.
	In a statement, the interior ministry said investigations showed 22-year-old Mahmoud Shafik Mohamed Mostafa, the suspected suicide bomber, had been arrested in 2014 while securing Muslim Brotherhood convoys while armed. He was released in May the same year.
	President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi had named Mostafa as the suicide bomber earlier on ...

Egypt accuses Brotherhood of supporting church attackers

Hundreds of thousands of British commuters faced travel chaos today as train drivers went on strike in what is expected to be the worst rail disruption in decades.
	Southern Rail, which runs trains between England's south coast and London, warned of severe disruption as it cancelled all of its 2,284 services after workers launched three days of industrial action.
	Around 1,000 drivers are involved in the strike which will affect around 300,000 passengers, including those travelling to London's Gatwick airport.
	A 48-hour walkout began at midnight Monday with a further 24-hour strike planned for Friday and another six days of action in January.
	The long-running dispute centres on plans for "driver-only operated trains" which mean guards would no longer be required to open and close train doors.
	Union leaders have raised concerns about safety and possible job losses, although the rail company has said staffing levels will not be affected.
	Passengers on routes from Brighton and other .

British commuters face worst rail strike in decades

State-owned Qatar Petroleum, one of the largest oil companies in the world, announced today that it will reduce production levels from the beginning of next year.
	The reduction -- beginning on January 1 -- comes following the recent decisions by OPEC and non-OPEC oil-producing countries to cap output.
	"We have started advising our customers of the expected reductions in oil deliveries to ensure the state's compliance with OPEC's allocations," said a statements from Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, president and chief executive of state-owned Qatar Petroleum.
	"This decision comes in line with the state of Qatar's commitment to the recently agreed production levels by the members of OPEC during its ministerial meeting held on 30 November, 2016."
	No further details about production levels were given in the statement.
	On November 30, Qatar was among the OPEC countries which agreed to reduce output by 1.2 million barrels per day (bpd).
	This was followed earlier this month by non-OPEC oil ...

Qatar to cut oil production from January 1

Jakarta's Christian governor choked back tears as he gave an impassioned defence against blasphemy charges today, in a court case that has stoked fears of growing intolerance in the Muslim-majority nation.
	Basuki Tjahaja Purnama -- the first Christian to govern the capital in more than 50 years -- is standing trial accused of insulting the Quran, an offence that carries a five-year jail term.
	The governor has apologised for his controversial remarks, which angered Muslims across Indonesia and drew hundreds of thousands to the streets of Jakarta in protests larger than any seen in nearly two decades.
	Facing court for the first time, the governor gave an emotionally charged defence against the charges, pausing several times to compose himself as he maintained his innocence.
	"I know I have to respect the holy verses of the Quran. I do not understand how I can be said to have offended Islam," he said, occasionally dabbing his eyes with a handkerchief.
	Purnama, better known by his ...

Jakarta's Christian governor stands trial for blasphemy

Qatar flew home 10,000 workers who were victims of labour abuse during 2015, official government figures have revealed.
	The number was released by the Gulf state's Ministry of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs as Qatar announced it had abolished its controversial "kafala" labour system from today.
	All the flights were paid for by the state, said officials, who gave no more details about the nature of the abuses or any measures taken against employers.
	There are 2.1 million migrant labourers in Qatar, according to the ministry, from countries including Nepal, Bangladesh and India.
	Many are working on World Cup infrastructure projects.
	Human rights groups have long claimed that labour conditions in Qatar, the host of the 2022 football World Cup, leave vulnerable workers open to abuse.
	Doha has introduced a new contract-based system for foreign workers from December 13, which it says will give more protection to workers and safeguard their rights.
	Under ...

Qatar flew home 10,000 labour abuse victims in 2015

Rick Perry, the former governor of oil-rich Texas who once vowed to eradicate the Energy Department if elected president, is Donald Trump's pick for energy secretary, US media reported.
	The Texas native, who participated in the Republican primary but was crushed by President-elect Trump early on, was seen Monday afternoon entering and exiting Trump Tower in Manhattan.
	Perry once assailed Trump as a "cancer on conservatism" and threw his support behind Texas Senator Ted Cruz after dropping out of the race in September 2015, but he has long been rumored to be one of Trump's main contenders for the energy post.
	NBC and CBS news both reported late Monday that Trump had chosen Perry for the job, citing two sources familiar with the transition process.
	The 66-year-old former governor, who also ran for the Republican party's 2012 nomination, famously fumbled a debate when he vowed to abolish three US departments -- but could only remember the names of two.
	"The third agency of ...

Trump to name ex-Texas governor Perry as energy secretary:

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani today ordered the country's scientists to start work on nuclear-powered ships in response to the expected renewal of sanctions by the US.
	   In letters read out on state television, Rouhani criticised the US move as a breach of last year's nuclear accord and told Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation to start work on "planning the design and production of fuel and nuclear power plants for maritime transport."
	   The president said he had also ordered the foreign ministry to prepare a legal complaint to the international committee that oversees the nuclear accord.
	   Under the deal signed in July 2015, world powers agreed to lift international sanctions in exchange for curbs to Iran's nuclear programme.
	   But US lawmakers recently voted to renew 10-year-old sanctions legislation against Iran related not just to nuclear issues, but also ballistic missile-testing and human rights.
	   President Barack Obama is expected to sign the measure into law in the .

Iran orders work on nuclear ships in response to US sanctions

Japan is postponing a summit with China and South Korea, the government said today, after the impeachment of South Korean President Park Geun-Hye.
	The Asian powers were planning to hold an annual trilateral gathering this month in Japan, which is the rotating chair.
	South Korea's parliament voted Friday to impeach Park, who is engulfed in a scandal over her friendship with a long-time confidante charged with meddling in state affairs.
	Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, while not directly mentioning Park's impeachment, said "various factors" were behind the decision.
	"We decided to re-arrange it and hold the summit at an appropriate time next year," he told reporters after a regular cabinet meeting.
	South Korea's foreign ministry confirmed the postponement, with a spokesperson in Seoul saying only that the three sides "had difficulty setting a date this year".
	China, meanwhile, said it was important to keep up the "momentum" of three-way cooperation.
	"We believe that the ..

Japan, China, S Korea summit postponed on Park woes

Syrian pro-government forces have carried out at least 82 execution-style killings of civilians in recent days, including women and children, the UN said today, citing credible reports from the ground.
	The United Nations human rights office said it had received reports of "pro-government forces killing at least 82 civilians including 11 women and 13 children in four different neighbourhoods" in the former rebel stronghold of eastern Aleppo, spokesman Rupert Colville told reporters in Geneva.
	"We have also been informed that pro-government forces have been entering civilian homes and killing those individuals found inside," Colville added.
	He said the atrocities were committed in recent days, "most likely" in the last 48 hours, and that his office had the names of the victims.
	Colville added that some civilians "managed to flee" the brutal fighting on Monday, but others "were reportedly caught and killed on the spot and others were arrested."
	Witnesses have also told UN that ...

Syria forces kill 82 Aleppo civilians in recent days: UN

A pact by leading producers to cut output could quickly begin sopping up the glut on the oil market that has weighed on prices, the IEA said today as it also hiked its demand forecast.
	The agreements, if implemented, would "hasten the market's return to balance by working off the inventory overhang," said the International Energy Agency, which analyses energy markets for major oil consuming nations.
	The recent deals are the first joint cuts by OPEC and non-OPEC nations since 2001 and aim to reduce production by just under 1.8 million barrels per day (mbd).
	"If OPEC and non-OPEC were to implement strictly their agreed cuts, global inventories could start to draw in the first half of next year," it added.
	The IEA said it was not making any forecast, but suggested that implementation of the pact could result in a draw of 0.6 mbd into stocks.
	Oil stocks in the advanced nations which fund the IEA hit a record of 3,102 mb in July.
	While they have since declined, "they remain 300 mb ...

Oil pact could quickly sop up market glut: IEA

A wall funded by Britain to try and stop migrants from the former Calais "jungle" camp reaching its shores has been completed -- seven weeks after the site was cleared, a French official said.
	The four-metre-high wall runs along a kilometre-long stretch of the main road leading to Calais port, next to the area that used to house the sprawling camp.
	The concrete barrier -- estimated to cost 2.7 million euros (USD 3 million) -- aims to prevent new arrivals stowing away on trucks bound for Britain.
	Work on the wall, which is covered with plants on the traffic side, began in September. The squalid camp was razed after thousands of migrants were taken to shelters around France in October.
	The structure is complete, a spokesman for the local prefecture told AFP late Monday.
	The wall was built to boost a network of wire fences that had failed to prevent near nightly attempts by migrants to waylay trucks en route to Europe's second-busiest port.
	This year alone, several migrants died ...

UK-funded anti-migrant wall completed in Calais

China is ready to give the Philippines weapons to help President Rodrigo Duterte wage his controversial war on drugs which has claimed over 5,000 lives, the Chinese ambassador to Manila said.
	Beijing has previously said it supports Duterte's bloody crime war, which has been slammed by the United Nations and human rights watchdogs over alleged extrajudicial killings.
	Beijing and Manila have experienced a rapprochement since Duterte's election in May, despite their conflicting territorial claims to the South China Sea.
	Ambassador Zhao Jianhua, in remarks late Monday, confirmed China was ready to supply the Philippines with weapons.
	"We're exploring the possibilities of providing arms, light arms," Zhao told reporters.
	"Arms for fighting against terrorism, (for the) anti-drug campaign."
	The ambassador said talks were still in the initial stages, adding there was no agreement on price or the specific type of weapons, though they would most likely be rifles.
	Duterte, 71, won ...

China offers Philippines weapons for drug war

Cristiano Ronaldo called it "a dream come true again" as he won his fourth Ballon d'Or to get one over his nemesis Lionel Messi for the title of best player in the world.
     It was the perfect ending to another fantastic year for the Real Madrid star, who won the Champions League for the second time in three seasons and then led Portugal to their first major title at Euro 2016 -- albeit he went off early injured and in tears in the surprise victory over France.
     As has been the case for almost a decade now, the 31-year-old's main rival was Messi -- but the Barcelona and Argentine maestro had to relinquish the crown after a less-than-stellar year for club and country by his lofty standards.
     Ronaldo is now one Ballon d'Or behind Messi, who was second this time with French striker Antoine Griezmann third.
     Never one to play down his achievements, Ronaldo was spotted midweek in training having dyed his hair gold in anticipation and several media outlets published a photo ...

Ronaldo caps dream year with fourth Ballon d'Or

A man who attacked a group of school children with a knife in eastern Indonesia has died after an angry mob beat him to death inside his jail cell, police said.
	Seven children were injured after a man went on a stabbing spree inside a primary school on Savu, a small island in East Nusa Tenggara province.
	The 32-year-old attacker tried to flee but was caught and taken to a police station, said local officer Silfeston, who like many Indonesians goes by just one name.
	But once there hundreds of locals, furious at news of the attack, rushed to the station, forcing their way past police and into the cell where the man was being held.
	"The suspect was tortured by the mob and died," Silfeston said.
	Footage aired on local broadcasters showed dozens of shouting men pushing past police and climbing over walls at the station.
	The injured children, aged eight to 11, were taken to hospital for treatment, Silfeston said.
	Police are still investigating the mob killing and the motivation ...

Indonesian mob kills man after school knife attack: Police

Turkish police detained two more pro-Kurdish lawmakers hours after arresting over 200 people accused of links to Kurdish militants, their party said early today.
	The two women, Caglar Demirel and Besime Konca, who represent the largest Kurdish-majority city of Diyarbakir and Siirt in the southeast respectively, were detained as part of a sweeping anti-terror probe, state news agency Anadolu said.
	"Head of the party's parliamentary group Caglar Demirel and Siirt MP Besime Konca were unlawfully detained in front of our (Ankara) headquarters," the leftwing pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) said on Twitter.
	However, neither the party nor Anadolu provided further detail on what the MPs are accused of.
	Their detention comes after twin blasts hit Istanbul on Saturday killing 37 police officers and seven civilians.
	The attacks were claimed by the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK), which is seen as a radical offshoot of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
	In response to .

Turkey detains 2 more pro-Kurdish party MPs

The billionaire owner of China's property-to-entertainment conglomerate Wanda Group has warned Donald Trump that over 20,000 US jobs would be put at risk if the US president-elect mishandles Chinese investment in the country.
	"I have over USD 10 billion investment in the United States and employ over 20,000 people," Wanda's CEO Wang Jianlin said in a forum over the weekend, according to a transcript posted Saturday to the company's official site.
	"If things are mishandled, they will have nothing to eat," he added.
	Wang said he had asked Chris Dodd, chairman of the Motion Picture Association of America, to deliver his message to Trump.
	He was responding to a question about US lawmakers' increasing scrutiny of Chinese acquisitions of American entertainment assets.
	"At least in the movie and TV industry, you have to realise that English-language films rely on their Chinese box office for growth," Wang added.
	Chinese firms have been on a high-profile overseas acquisition spree in ...

Chinese billionaire warns Trump about losing US jobs

Syrian troops were poised to recapture all of second city Aleppo today, in what would be the biggest blow to rebels since they launched their uprising in 2011.
	UN chief Ban Ki-moon voiced alarm at reports of atrocities against civilians in Aleppo, where entire districts are in ruins and unclaimed bodies lie in the streets.
	Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad have said the battle for the city is in its "final phase" after they seized more than 90 percent of the eastern districts which had been held by the rebels since 2012.
	The turnaround in the government's fortunes has come through decisive support from its allies Iran and Russia, which has waged a bombing campaign in support of Assad since September last year.
	Early today, troops were conducting searches in newly recaptured neighbourhoods around Aleppo's Old City, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
	"The regime is combing the districts of Bustan al-Qasr, Kalasseh, Fardaws, and other neighbourhoods it seized ...

Syrian government poised for Aleppo victory

The number of people left homeless after an earthquake struck western Indonesia has soared to nearly 84,000, leaving authorities struggling to care for the victims, an official said today.
	The shallow quake last week killed more than 100 people and injured many more when it struck Aceh province, one of the areas worst affected by the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004.
	Thousands of homes, businesses and mosques were levelled by the 6.5-magnitude quake, which struck at dawn as many in the predominantly Muslim region were preparing to pray.
	Hospitals and field clinics were quickly overwhelmed by the injured, and kitchens and shelters swamped by people left with nothing.
	As the scale of the disaster continues to unfold, the number of those displaced has nearly doubled to more than 83,800, said national disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho.
	"People are afraid and worried about aftershocks, so feel more comfortable in the evacuation shelters," he said in a ...

84,000 people displaced by Indonesia earthquake: official

Malaysia today installed its 15th king, Sultan Muhammad V, a relatively youthful monarch known for his fondness for four-wheel driving and other extreme sports.
	In a ceremony steeped in pomp and centuries of tradition, the 47-year-old Sultan, dressed in gold-coloured traditional Malay formal wear, took the oath of office in the national palace in Kuala Lumpur.
	The ceremony, marked by honour guards and Islamic prayers, was televised nationally and attended by Prime Minister Najib Razak and hundreds of guests decked out in Islamic finery.
	Sultan Muhammad V, currently the ceremonial ruler of the conservative Islamic northern state of Kelantan, takes the national throne under the rotating monarchy in place since independence from Britain in 1957.
	In a unique arrangement, the throne of the Muslim-majority country changes hands every five years between the rulers of the nine Malaysian states still headed by Islamic royalty.
	Sultan Muhammad V studied at St Cross College at Oxford and ...

Malaysia enthrones new king in lavish ceremony

Senior US, Japanese and South Korean officials with special responsibility for the North Korean nuclear issue held talks today, at a time of political flux and policy uncertainty in Washington and Seoul.
	"We shared the view that it is more important than ever to keep close cooperation among the three countries," South Korea's nuclear envoy Kim Hong-Kyun told reporters after the meeting in Seoul.
	The three envoys get together regularly in each other's capitals and one of their main aims is to shape and maintain a consensus on how best to deal with the growing nuclear weapons threat from Pyongyang.
	It's a consensus that is looking particularly frail at the moment.
	The trio's meeting in Seoul on Tuesday was the first since the eruption of a major political scandal in South Korea that resulted in parliament voting last week to impeach President Park Geun-Hye.
	Park took a hard line with North Korea and was a staunch ally of Washington's policy of "strategic patience" -- essentially a .

AFP

AFP

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