The bodies of two pilots killed when their tourist plane crashed in the French Alps were recovered today after intense searches in the mountains east of Chambery, the city's prosecutor said.
	The two men, who have not yet been identified, had taken off from Dortmund in Germany yesterday, according to the Chambery prosecutor who is investigating the cause of the accident in the Savoie region of eastern France.
	The two-seater tourist plane was heading to the French city of Albertville and a search began yesterday evening when it failed to land as scheduled.
	The wreckage was spotted on Mount Trelod in the Bauges mountains with an altitude of around 2,200 metres.
	"The aircraft had slammed into the eastern face of the summit during bad weather conditions," the prosecutor said.
	Rescuers on the ground brought down the bodies of the two victims on Saturday.
	An autopsy will be carried out Monday to determine if either of the pilots had fallen ill.

2 pilots killed in tourist plane crash in French Alps

PTI Automatic

Syrian state media said government forces today captured the largest rebel-held district of Aleppo, in what would be a major breakthrough in its offensive to retake the entire second city.
	Masaken Hanano was the first district the rebels took in the summer of 2012 in a move that divided Aleppo into an eastern area held by the insurgents and a western district controlled by government forces.
	Since then, more than 250,000 civilians have been trapped under government siege for months in the rebel-held east, with dwindling food and fuel supplies.
	The capture of Masaken Hanano in northeastern Aleppo is part of a major government offensive now in its 12th day that could isolate that part of the city from rebel-held areas in the south.
	Since November 15, regime bombardment of eastern Aleppo has killed 212 civilians, including 27 children, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
	Regime forces had been advancing inside Masaken Hanano for several days, and ...

Syria says largest rebel area in Aleppo retaken

Rainfall caused widespread flooding in Qatar today, potentially raising fresh concerns about infrastructure in the Gulf country due to host the 2022 football World Cup.
	Several major roads were flooded, prompting official warnings.
	"As the rain continues to pour in most parts of the country, motorists are advised to be cautious," the interior ministry tweeted after earlier calling the rainfall "medium to heavy".
	Some apartment buildings on the Pearl Qatar, an artificial island in Doha, estimated to have cost USD 15 billion (13.5 billion euros) to build, suffered flooding, as did the nearby suburb of Qanat Quartier, built to resemble Venice.
	The Doha News website reported that the Qatar Animal Welfare Society pleaded urgently for foster homes to take care of its dogs because of the conditions.
	The Peninsula English-language newspaper reported that rain caused leaks at major Doha shopping centre the Landmark Mall.
	Many people used social media to post videos and pictures, with ...

Gulf state Qatar hit by flooding

At least eight members of Libyan pro-government forces were killed today during a fresh offensive on Islamic State group holdouts in the jihadists' stronghold of Sirte, a medical source said.
	Forces supporting the Government of National Accord (GNA) - Libya's UN-backed, Tripoli-based administration - launched a bid to retake the city from IS six months ago.
	They quickly seized large chunks of the city, but the offensive slowed amid an effort to avoid losses and to protect civilians still trapped by the jihadists.
	A hospital where pro-GNA forces are treated said today that it had received eight dead and 26 wounded fighters.
	The loyalist forces' press centre said on its Facebook page that IS had carried out two suicide attacks. It added that a woman had opened fire as troops tried to secure an escape for her from a house retaken from the militants.
	Pro-GNA fighters said they had taken around 30 buildings from IS in Sirte, the former hometown of longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi, ...

8 loyalist troops killed in Libya's Sirte: medics

Kuwaitis turned out in large numbers today for the first election contested by the opposition in nearly four years amid fresh disputes over cuts in subsidies due to falling oil revenues.
	Turnout was high with some polling stations reporting that 80 per cent of eligible voters had cast their ballots by the time polls closed at 8 pm (1700 GMT), according to state-run Kuwait Television.
	Vote counting started at some centres but final results are not expected before early tomorrow.
	While Kuwait's two previous elections yielded poor turnout due to opposition boycotts, voters said they were encouraged by seeing their candidates running this time around.
	"Their return is needed to strike a political balance in the country. They are more capable of monitoring the government actions," retired voter Ibrahim Al-Tulaihi told AFP at a polling station south of Kuwait City.
	"A wise opposition is needed because we don't want more political disputes," Jarrah Mohammad, a government employee, said .

Heavy turnout at Kuwait polls as opposition returns

Leading Sudanese opposition groups today called for a three-day nationwide strike against fuel subsidy cuts even as security forces cracked down on activists in a bid to quell sporadic protests.
	The authorities announced a 30-per cent hike in petrol and diesel prices this month that has led to a stiff rise in the cost of other goods, including medicines.
	Since then groups of protesters have staged rallies in Khartoum and some other towns, which have been swiftly dispersed by anti-riot police.
	A previous round of fuel subsidy cuts in 2013 sparked serious unrest that was only suppressed with a deadly crackdown that drew international condemnation.
	The government is determined to avoid any repetition and has rounded up more than a dozen opposition leaders over the past few weeks to prevent widespread protests.
	Several protesters including women have also been put on trial for staging rallies in the capital.
	Despite these arrests, leading opposition groups and activists today called 

Sudan opposition calls for 3-day strike over fuel prices

The EU-Turkey deal that has substantially reduced the flow of migrants to Europe "must be respected and will be", said European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker in an interview published today.
	Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened yesterday to walk away from the agreement, speaking a day after the European Parliament angered Ankara by backing a freeze of its EU accession talks.
	"We made an agreement, it must be respected and it will be," Juncker told Belgium's La Libre Belgique newspaper.
	He pointed to the period from 2003-2014 while Erdogan was prime minister, when Turkey "made a lot of progress in terms of the quality of its democracy". But in the past two years, the country has "distanced itself from European principles and values," Juncker said.
	"I believe that Erdogan and his government are in the process of 'pre-blaming' Europe for the failure of its accession negotiations," he added.
	He noted that the current impasse between the two sides stems in ...

EU-Turkey migrant pact 'must be respected': Juncker

Zimbabwe will issue "bond notes" equivalent to the US dollar from next week to ease critical cash shortages, the central bank announced today, despite widespread public fear of a return to hyperinflation.
	"The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe is pleased to advise the nation of the introduction of bond notes with effect from Monday," the bank said in a statement.
	The southern African country has used the US dollar since 2009 after a rate of inflation that peaked at 500 billion percent rendered the Zimbabwe dollar unusable.
	But the country has in recent months experienced a severe shortage of US dollar banknotes forcing authorities to print what locals have dubbed "surrogate money".
	"The initial release of bond notes shall be in an amount of USD 10 million (9.5 million euros) in denominations of USD 2 and USD 2 million in $1 bond notes," the central bank said in a statement.
	Depositors will be allowed to withdraw a maximum of USD 50 worth of bond notes per day and USD 150 a week.
	The 2009 

Zimbabwe to roll out derided 'bond notes' on Monday

Spain's King Felipe VI today paid tribute to Fidel Castro, describing him as "a figure of indisputable historic importance", as supporters and opponents of the late Cuban leader took to the streets of Madrid.
	In a telegram sent to Cuba's current President Raul Castro -- brother of the revolutionary who died yesterday aged 90 -- the Spanish monarch expressed his condolences and noted his "family links with Spain", Cuba's colonial power until 1898.
	The brothers' father was born in the northern Spanish village of Lancara.
	"The great closeness between Cuba and Spain means that everything that affects Cuba is felt very strongly here," the king wrote.
	In Madrid, police had to step in to separate rival groups protesting for and against Castro outside the Cuban embassy.
	Around a dozen demonstrators shouted "The tyrant is dead!" and clinked glasses to cheer the death of a man loathed by many for crushing his opponents but seen as a hero by supporters of the revolution for his fight ...

Castro protesters take to streets in Spain

The authorities in Turkey today detained a journalist working for the BBC's Turkish language service in the southeast of the country, the broadcaster said.
	Hatice Kamer was detained while reporting on a mine disaster in the Kurdish-dominated Siirt region of the southeast that left 10 miners dead and six missing, BBC Turkce (BBC Turkish) said in a statement on its website.
	It said that she had been looking to talk to relatives of the miners at the copper mine, which collapsed late on November 17. Rescue efforts are still continuing at the mine.
	There had been no explanation of the reason for her detention, it added, and no comment from Turkish officials.
	BBC Turkce said Kamer is a board member for the association of journalists in southeast Turkey.
	Dozens of journalists have been detained in Turkey under the state of emergency in the wake of the July 15 failed coup.
	Critics say the scope of the crackdown goes far beyond measures against the suspected coup plotters and is ...

BBC Turkish says reporter detained in southeast Turkey

Syria President Bashar al-Assad today hailed Fidel Castro's "legendary resistance" to the embargo imposed by the United States against Cuba in a statement marking the death of the revolutionary leader.
	"The great leader Fidel Castro led his people's and his country's struggle against imperialism and hegemony for decades," Assad, whose government is facing US sanctions, said in a message of condolences.
	"His resistance became legendary and inspired leaders and people all over the world," he said in the letter addressed to Castro's brother Raul, who is president of Cuba.
	"Cuba, a friendly country, was able thanks to its leaders to resist against the toughest sanctions and most unjust campaigns in our modern history," Assad said, referring to the US embargo on the island.
	The United States and the European Union have imposed a series of sanctions on Syria since the war started in March 2011 with a massive regime crackdown on anti-government protests.
	Most of Assad's inner circle and 

Syria's Assad hails Castro's resistance against US embargo

British foreign minister Boris Johnson pledged today that after his nation's exit from the European Union its commitment to Afghanistan would remain unchanged and "long term".
	Johnson made the remarks on a 24-hour visit to Kabul, his first, after a trip to neighbouring Pakistan.
	"The message I have for President (Ashraf) Ghani and Chief Executive (Abdullah) Abdullah is that we are here for the long term and we are committed to Afghanistan's side," Johnson told reporters, adding that many Britons had lost their lives in the country.
	He was referring to the campaigns of the 19th century that left thousands of British empire soldiers dead, as well as the troops that fought the Taliban until 2014 after the American invasion in 2001.
	The top diplomat also said Britain would continue to help with the training of Afghan forces and that aid would be focused on the education system.
	"Wherever I go people aren't interested in whether the UK is part of the European Union or not," said ...

UK's Afghan commitment 'long term': Johnson

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau marked the death of Cuba's revolutionary leader Fidel Castro calling him a "remarkable leader" who would be mourned by Canada.
	"While a controversial figure, both Mr Castro's supporters and detractors recognized his tremendous dedication and love for the Cuban people who had a deep and lasting affection for 'El Comandante,'" he said in a statement.
	Trudeau's father, former prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, became the first leader of a NATO-member state to travel to Castro's Cuba, arriving in January 1976 during the middle of the Cold War against Washington's wishes.
	"I know my father was very proud to call him a friend and I had the opportunity to meet Fidel when my father passed away," the prime minister said.
	The Canadian leader visited Cuba only last week to boost ties, as the communist island's historic breakthrough in relations with the United States hangs in the balance following Donald Trump's presidential election win.
	"Fidel ...

Canada's Trudeau marks death of 'remarkable leader' Castro

Swiss federal prosecutors said today a criminal probe into suspected jihadist propaganda has been expanded to include the leader of the country's largest Islamic organisation.
	The office of Switzerland's attorney general confirmed in an email to AFP that Nicolas Blancho, of the Islamic Central Council of Switzerland (ICCS), was under investigation.
	The ICCS slammed the move as "political" and said it was ready to "counter the accusations in a courtroom."
	Prosecutors opened the case last December, charging that an ICCS board member -- German national Naim Cherni -- had violated "the prohibition of groups like Al-Qaeda, Islamic State and similar organisations."
	He was suspected of creating "for propaganda purposes" a video from a trip into parts of war-ravaged Syria, "without having explicitly distanced himself from Al-Qaeda activities" in the country, last year's statement said.
	Today, the attorney general's office said its probe "has been expanded to the president of the ICCS and 

Swiss probe top Muslim leader over jihadist propaganda

Argentine soccer legend Diego Maradona today lamented the death of former Cuban leader Fidel Castro as the loss of a "great" man who was "like a second father" to him.
	"They called me from Buenos Aires and it was a shock" to learn the 90-year-old historic revolutionary leader had died, Maradona said.
	"I'm terribly sad as he was like a second father," Maradona told reporters in Zagreb, where he is watching the Davis Cup final between Argentina and Croatia.
	Maradona spent time in Cuba on several occasions and underwent rehabilitation treatment for drug abuse. He met Castro on several occasions and expressed warm admiration for the leader of the 1959 Cuban revolution.
	Maradona first visited Cuba after the 1986 World Cup which Argentina won after the stocky striker had scored a handballed goal during the quarter-final against England.
	Castro referred to the star as a "great friend" while Maradona had a leg tattood with the likeness of the then Cuban president, of whom he once said: ..

Maradona hails Castro as "second father"

At a Stockholm mosque just after morning prayers today, unidentified attackers burst into the building, spraypainting swastikas and hate speech on the walls and throwing firecrackers, police said.
	All of the worshippers had left the mosque at the time of the attack except one, and he was shaken but unharmed, mosque officials told Swedish news agency TT.
	Police said they were investigating the incident as vandalism and a hate crime. No arrests had been made several hours after the attack.
	"This is not something one would expect... It's hard to understand what is going on in society, both internationally and in our own country. I don't recognise Sweden anymore," Mustafa Tumturk, a representative of Stockholm's Muslim community and one of the founders of the mosque in 1985, told TT.
	Sweden has seen a spate of attacks against mosques and refugee centres in recent years, as the country has taken in record numbers of refugees - 2,45,000 in 2014 and 2015.

Attackers burst into Stockholm mosque, paint swastikas

Cuba's historic revolutionary leader Fidel Castro has died aged 90, after defying the United States during a half-century of iron-fisted rule and surviving the eclipse of global communism.
	One of the world's longest-serving rulers and modern history's most singular characters, Castro defied 11 US administrations and hundreds of assassination attempts.
	His younger brother, President Raul Castro, announced the news shortly after midnight (1030 IST Saturday) but gave no details of the cause of death.
	Fidel Castro crushed opposition at home from the moment he took power in 1959 to lead the communist Caribbean island through the Cold War. He stepped aside only in 2006 after intestinal surgery.
	For defenders of the revolution, Castro was a hero who protected the ordinary people against capitalist domination.
	For his opponents, including thousands of Cuban exiles living in the United States, he was a cruel tyrant.
	Castro eventually lived to see the restoration of diplomatic ties with ..

Cuba's historic leader Fidel Castro dies at 90

President-elect Donald Trump today weighed in on the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, tweeting simply "Fidel Castro is dead!"
	Castro died yesterday night aged 90 after defying the United States during a half-century of iron-fisted rule.
	Trump's shock victory this month has cast uncertainty over two years of moves by President Barack Obama to end more than 50 years of Cold War enmity with the communist island.
	Blocked from ending the US embargo on the island by a Republican-controlled Congress, Obama pushed smaller reforms using executive authority.
	That means Trump, who takes office on January 20, will be able change course just as easily, potentially reinstating trade and financial restrictions and reversing developments like the resumption of air and cruise-ship travel, and postal service.
	"All of the concessions that Barack Obama has granted the Castro regime were done through executive order, which means the next president can reverse them and that I will do .

Trump weighs in on Cuban leader's death: 'Fidel Castro is

Up to 1.3 million protesters braved sleet and freezing temperatures in Seoul today to demand President Park Geun-Hye resign over a corruption scandal or face impeachment, organisers said.
	Participants raised candles, sung and danced while chanting "Arrest Park Geun-Hye" and "Throw Park into jail", with cries from the main rally site reportedly reaching the presidential Blue House some 1.5 kilometres away.
	The figure offered by organisers would make this the largest of a series of huge weekly protests that began a month ago in the South Korean capital, after an influence-peddling scandal engulfed the president.
	Police put the turnout at 260,000. At 8 pm (local time) demonstrators put out their candles, only to relight them a minute later as a warning that their protests would not burn out until Park left office.
	"I don't think Park would step down voluntarily, but we need to raise our voice as much as possible to encourage parliament to push through with its move to impeach her," ..

'Million' rally to demand S Korea president's ouster

Lewis Hamilton claimed pole for Sunday's title-showdown Abu Dhabi Grand Prix by outpacing his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg in Saturday's tense and dramatic qualifying at the Yas Marina circuit.
	   The defending three-time champion dominated the session and clocked a fastest time in one minute and 38.755 seconds to beat the championship-leading German by three-tenths of a second.
	   Hamilton's performance gives him the ideal opportunity to claim a fourth consecutive victory in Sunday's race in which Rosberg can secure his maiden drivers title if he finishes on the podium.
	   Hamilton, who trails Rosberg by 12 points, said: "I didn't over-cook into turn one and after that I was in total control.
	   "It's been a great weekend so far.
	   "I've got the car in a real sweet spot, with some great work done by my engineers and faultless mechanics who've done an incredible job."
	   "Lewis did an incredible job - a really incredible job - and you can't say more," said Mercedes team ...

Hamilton shades Rosberg for title-deciding pole

Thousands of protesters gathered in the Bangladesh capital today, demanding the government scrap a massive coal-fired power plant they say will destroy the world's largest mangrove forest.
	Slogan-shouting activists traveled from all over the country to join the demonstration at the Shaheed Minar memorial in Dhaka.
	Campaigners have been protesting for the last three years against the under-construction plant which is 14 kilometers (nine miles) north of Sundarbans forest, part of which is a UNESCO world heritage site.
	"We can build as many power plants as possible. But we can't create another Sundarbans if it is destroyed by the Rampal power plant. All the rare tigers, dolphins and other animals will be destroyed," said Saddam Hossain, 21, from the northern city of Bogra.
	"It is a unique forest and one of its kind in the world. But by building the power plant, the government is writing its obituary," said student Mashuk Helal Onik.
	Organisers said more than 20,000 people had joined 

AFP

AFP

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