A Hong Kong court today ruled to disqualify two pro-independence lawmakers from parliament, a week after Beijing said it would not allow the pair to be sworn into office as fears grow of the city's liberties coming under threat.
	Baggio Leung and Yau Wai-ching, who deliberately misread their oaths of office, inserted expletives and draped themselves with "Hong Kong is not China" flags during a swearing-in ceremony last month, said they would appeal the decision.
	"Mr Leung and Ms Yau have been disqualified from assuming and have vacated the office of a member of the Legislative Council," judge Thomas Au said in a written judgement.
	"The oaths purportedly taken by Mr Leung and Ms Yau on October 12 2016... Are invalid and void and have no legal effect," Au said.
	Au also said the way the democratically elected pair took their oaths showed "clearly that they did not truthfully and faithfully intend to commit themselves to uphold and abide by" the city's constitution.
	Leung said they ...

Anti-China lawmakers disqualified from Hong Kong parliament

PTI Automatic

The long-delayed trial of two Uighur men accused of bombing a Bangkok shrine finally kicked off today as a military court allowed Beijing to supply translators for the suspects despite their objections.
	Yusufu Mieraili and Bilal Mohammed are accused of planting a bomb in a Hindu shrine in Bangkok's commercial heart in August 2015 that left 20 dead, mostly ethnic Chinese tourists.
	The blast came weeks after Thailand's junta forcibly repatriated 109 Uighurs to China, where rights activists say the Muslim minority faces cultural and religious repression.
	The timing prompted speculation that the attack was part of a revenge plot against a country that had been a key transit hub for Uighurs as Thailand's military leaders grew closer to Beijing.
	Thai authorities have rejected that theory saying the attackers were part of a people-smuggling network angered by a recent crackdown, a motive most analysts say is simply not compelling.
	The trial for the two men, who have been held in ...

Bangkok bomb trial starts after months of delays

Saudi air defence forces today intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile fired from Yemen towards the kingdom, the Riyadh-led anti-rebel coalition said.
	The missile was fired towards the Najran region but was shot down, said a coalition statement published by the official Saudi Press Agency.
	Coalition forces responded by targeting the source of the fire inside Yemen, it added.
	The coalition has been engaged in a bombing campaign against the Iran-backed Shiite Huthi rebels and their allies since March last year, and the insurgents have targeted their air bases.
	Saudi Arabia has deployed Patriot missiles to counter such attacks.
	Last month, the rebels launched one of their longest-range strikes against Saudi Arabia, firing a ballistic missile that was brought down near the holy Muslim city of Mecca, an attack that was roundly condemned by Riyadh's Gulf allies.
	The rebels insisted that the missile had been fired at Jeddah, the Red Sea city in the sprawling Mecca region, not at .

Saudis intercept missile fired from Yemen

A strong and unified Europe is "good" for the United States and NATO is "absolutely vital" for US security and prosperity, US President Barack Obama said today as he launched his final European trip.
	"We believe a strong, prosperous and unified Europe is not only good for the people of Europe but good for the world, and good for the United States," Obama told Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos in Athens.
	He added that the trans-Atlantic relationship is "the cornerstone of our mutual security as well as prosperity."
	Obama will seek to calm the nerves of allies concerned by Donald Trump's shock presidential election victory, especially as the brash Republican has downplayed the importance of the NATO military alliance.
	Obama stressed that NATO "is something that provides significant continuity even as we see a transition of government in the United States."
	"Across Democratic and Republican administrations there is a recognition that the NATO alliance is absolutely vital," he ...

Strong Europe 'good' for the US, NATO 'vital': Obama

Italy's coastguard said today that 15 people had been rescued from a sinking rubber dinghy off Libya, amid fears dozens more may have drowned.
	The coastguard would only confirm that a merchant ship had gone to the aid of the stricken dinghy yesterday and that 15 people had been rescued, before being transferred to the Diciotti, a coastguard vessel.
	"They are now being taken to Catania (in Sicily) and for the moment we cannot confirm any other news or numbers," a coastguard spokesman said.
	It would be extremely unusual, if not unheard of, for traffickers to set off from Libya with as few as 15 people on the kind of vessel which is typically crammed with between 100 and 150 migrants.
	Fears of a new major tragedy mounted as harrowing testimony emerged from another of the five rescues coordinated by the coastguard yesterday.

Dozens feared dead in new Med migrant sinking

Three hospitals in rebel-held areas of northern Syria have been hit by air raids in the past 24 hours, leaving medical staff and patients wounded, a monitor said today.
	The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it could not immediately determine whether the strikes in Aleppo province had been carried out by Russian or Syrian government aircraft.
	One hospital in the village of Awijel in the west of the province was hit during the night.
	Among the wounded were patients who had been moved there after a hospital in the nearby village of Kafr Naha was hit yesterday, the Britain-based monitoring group said.
	A third hospital - in the town of Atareb - was hit five times in the early hours yesterday, the group added. The strikes destroyed operating rooms and the hospital pharmacy, damaged ambulances and wounded medical staff.
	The hospitals in Atareb and Kafr Naha have both been hit by previous air strikes.
	Human rights groups have accused the Syrian government and its ally Russia of ..

Raids hit three hospitals in northern Syria: monitor

German police today carried out sweeping raids across 10 states in a probe against an Islamist group suspected of propagating hate and inciting 140 youths to fight alongside jihadists in Syria and Iraq.
	The group called The True Religion (Die wahre Religion) is now also banned, Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said.
	"Across the country, jihadist Islamists came together in this group named The True Religion," he said.
	"Under the pretext of promoting Islam... Hate messages were propagated and young people radicalised," added the interior minister.
	De Maiziere noted that "140 young people travelled to Syria and Iraq where they joined the fight with terrorist groups".
	The raids, which targeted around 200 homes and sites in 10 states including North Rhine-Westphalia in the west, Hamburg in the north and Baden-Wuerttemberg in the southwest, began at dawn.
	De Maiziere stressed that today's action is not targeted against those who "abuse religion and who use it as a pretext to ...

German police in raids across 10 states against Islamist group

The British government has no overarching plan for Brexit and may take another six months to agree a negotiating strategy, according to a leaked memo today.
	Civil servants are struggling to cope with more than 500 Brexit-related projects and an extra 30,000 extra staff may be needed to handle the workload, according to the memo published by The Times, reportedly prepared for the government by a consultant.
	The document, dated November 7 and titled "Brexit update", says "no common strategy has emerged" for leaving the European Union, despite lengthy debate among senior officials.
	The government of Prime Minister Theresa May denied the claims and said it did not commission the report.
	"This is not a government report and we don't recognise the claims made in it," a spokesman for May's office said.
	"We are focused on getting on with the job of delivering Brexit and making a success of it," he said.
	It could take another six months for the British government to agree on its ...

Britain has no Brexit plan, leaked memo claims

Lionel Messi had to reach for the sick bag as the plane carrying the Argentina team endured a bumpy ride from Buenos Aires to San Juan ahead of a World Cup qualifier.
     The Barcelona superstar and several of his team-mates took ill due to the turbulence during the journey to the city near the Andes where Argentina will face Colombia.
     The bout of illness will not stop Messi or any of his colleagues from playing in what is a crucial game for Argentina's hopes of reaching the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
     Edgardo Bauza's side are sixth in the South American qualifying group after 11 matches following a 3-0 defeat in Brazil last week.
     They are a point off fourth-place Ecuador, with the top four qualifying directly and the team in fifth going into a play-off against a team from the Oceania zone.

Bumpy plane ride too much for Messi

A Chinese man who killed a village official with a nail gun after his home was forcibly demolished was executed today, a court said, despite a public outcry over his condemnation.
	Jia Jinglong killed his village chief in the northern province of Hebei last year, state media said.
	Lawyers and online commenters had called for Jia's sentence to be commuted on the grounds that the demolition of his home by local officials constituted extenuating circumstances, and because he confessed to the crime.
	The house was pulled down just weeks before his wedding day in 2013, the state-run Global Times reported previously, adding he was beaten and denied compensation.
	Today's edition of the paper carried another report on legal experts urging the execution be halted in a letter to China's Supreme People's Court, citing "mismanagement" in rural areas and inadequate judicial procedures.
	But the Intermediate People's Court in Shijiazhuang said on a verified social media account: "The execution of 

China executes man who killed official over home demolition

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett has taken stakes in three large US airlines, in a USD 1.3 billion bet that marks a sharp U-turn of his antagonistic views on the sector.
	Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Invested USD 797 million in American Airlines, USD 249 million in Delta Air Lines and USD 237 million in United Continental Holdings, according to a regulatory filing reviewed Monday by AFP.
	Berkshire Hathaway also took a stake in Southwest Airlines, CNBC television network reported Monday.
	The financial guru was known for his dislike of the airline industry after his disastrous bet on preferred shares of US Airways in 1989, calling the sector a "death trap."
	The surprise Berkshire news pushed airline shares sharply higher in after-market trades. American Airlines jumped 3.5 per cent, Delta was up 2.9 per cent and United Continental, parent of United Airlines, gained 2.6 per cent.
	Buffett, the head of the massive Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate, is the world's third wealthiest 

Billionaire Warren Buffett invests in 3 big US airlines

Coach Darren Lehmann declared only four players were sure to keep their places in the Australian team after another demoralising batting collapse handed South Africa a crushing series victory in Hobart on Tuesday.
     In what is becoming a regular occurrence, the Australians folded spectacularly losing eight wickets for 32 runs in just under 20 overs for an innings and 80-run defeat to the Proteas before lunch on the fourth day.
     The batting freefall has intensified scrutiny on Steve Smith's embattled side after their fifth straight heavy Test defeat this year, all by 100 runs or more.
     Lehmann, whose coaching position is also under scrutiny after it was extended to 2019 only last August, said there will "definitely" be changes for next week's final day-night Test in Adelaide.
     As a consequence of the early-finishing Hobart Test, all batsmen, including wicketkeeper Peter Nevill and spinner Nathan Lyon, but not the three pace bowlers, will be required to play in this ...

Only four safe in shattered Australia: Lehmann

China today weakened the yuan's fix against the dollar to a nearly eight-year low as the surging dollar put further pressure on the unit.
	The central People's Bank of China set the value of the yuan -- also known as the renminbi -- at 6.8495 to the greenback, down 0.30 per cent from Monday's fixing, according to data from the Foreign Exchange Trade System.
	The unit has reached a series of six-year lows in recent weeks in the face of a greenback rising on expectations of sharper US interest rate hikes, with President-elect Donald Trump pledging during his campaign to ramp up spending and cut taxes.
	But Tuesday's fix was the weakest since December 2008, and beyond the roughly 6.83 level at which Beijing virtually pegged the unit for nine months in 2009-10.
	China only allows the yuan to rise or fall two percent on either side of the daily fix, one of the ways it maintains control over the currency.
	During the presidential campaign Trump repeatedly accused China of keeping the yuan ..

China weakens yuan to eight-year low

South Korean President Park Geun-Hye has hired a lawyer ahead of questioning by prosecutors over a snowballing political scandal that has engulfed her administration, her spokesman said today.
	Park, who would be the first sitting president to be interrogated in a criminal case, has seen her approval ratings plunge, with hundreds of thousands of protesters taking to Seoul's streets on Saturday demanding she resign.
	The scandal centres on Park's shadowy confidant Choi Soon-Sil, who is accused of using her ties with the president to coerce local firms to donate millions of dollars to non-profit foundations that Choi then used for personal gain.
	Choi, whose father was an elusive religious figure and a long-time mentor to Park until his death in 1994, was arrested earlier this month for abuse of power and fraud. Two presidential aides have also been arrested.
	Choi, 60, is also accused of interfering in state affairs to the extent of nominating officials and editing Park's speeches even 

S Korea's Park hires lawyer ahead of questioning

Boxing icon Manny Pacquiao has teased fans about a possible rematch with Floyd Mayweather, smiling as he gamely showed off a suit with pictures of himself and Mayweather on the lining.
     Pacquiao, 37, posted on his social media accounts Monday a photo of himself wearing the suit with his picture on the right side of the coat and Mayweather's on the left.
     "Like my jacket?", Pacquiao, who was elected to the Philippines Senate in May, captioned the photo.
     Pacquiao's post, which had received 215,000 likes on Facebook by Tuesday, fuelled talk of "Pacquiao-Mayweather 2" which began after he won the World Boxing Organization welterweight title from Jessie Vargas earlier this month.
     Mayweather had taken up an invitation from Pacquiao to watch the Filipino multiple world champion's Las Vegas comeback from ringside.
     Pacquiao said after the fight that he was eager to avenge his 2015 loss to Mayweather in the richest fight in history.
     "Not only for myself, but the fans 

Pacquiao teases Mayweather rematch

South Africa demolished Australia by an innings and 80 runs after yet another batting collapse to claim their third successive Test series Down Under today, piling the pressure on coach Darren Lehmann and captain Steve Smith.
     The Proteas bowled out the home side for 161 before lunch on the fourth day, taking their last eight wickets for 32 in 116 balls after routing Australia for 85 in the first innings.
     The latest overpowering victory followed a 177-run win against Smith's shattered team in the first Perth Test, with South Africa emulating the intimidating West Indies teams of the 1980-1990s with three straight series wins in Australia.
     "This cricket team is a tough team to get a win against them on their home soil," said South African captain Faf du Plessis.
     "So to come here and do it is special for us. To win a series 2-0 with one game to play, I am very proud of the way the team is moving forward."
     The second innings destruction heaped more pressure on ...

S. Africa hammer hapless Australia to win Test series

Scoreboard on the fourth day of the
second Test between Australia and South Africa at Bellerive Oval.
     Australia 1st innings: 85
     South Africa 1st innings: 326
     Australia 2nd innings (overnight 121 for 2)
     J Burns      c de Kock b Abbott       0
     D Warner     b Abbott                45
     U Khawaja    c de Kock b Abbott      64
     S Smith      c De Kock b Rabada      31
     A Voges      c Duminy b Abbott        2
     C Ferguson   c Elgar b Rabada         1
     P Nevill     c Duminy b Rabada        6
     J Mennie     lbw b Rabada             0
     M Starc      c De Kock b Abbott       0
     J Hazlewood  not out                  6
     N Lyon       c Philander b Abbott     4
     Extras: (LB-1, NB1)                   2
     Total: (all out; 60.1 overs)        161
     Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-79, 3-129, 4-135, 5-140, 6-150, 7-150, 8-151, 9-151.
     Bowling: Abbott 23.1-3-77-6, Philander 16-6-31-0, Duminy 1-0-8-0, Rabada 17-5-34-4, Maharaj 3-0-10-0.

Hobart, Nov 15 (AFP) Scoreboard on the fourth day of the

Russia's Investigative Committee today said it had detained Economy Minister Alexei Ulyukayev on suspicion of taking a two-million-dollar bribe over a massive deal involving state-controlled oil giant Rosneft.
	The Investigative Committee said in a statement the detention was carried out as a result of an operation by the FSB security service, the successor to the KGB.
	It claimed the minister received the money yesterday for giving the go-ahead for Rosneft to acquire a majority stake from the state in Russian oil company Bashneft in a $5.2 billion deal last month. The statement does not say who gave the bribe to Ulyukayev.
	The sale of the 50.07 per cent stake in Russia's sixth-largest producer came after months of wrangling that has seen Rosneft -- headed by Igor Sechin, a powerful ally of President Vladimir Putin -- face down opposition from some in the government, while Ulyukayev said Rosneft could bid for the stake.
	"The entire sum -- 329.69 billion rubles -- will go to the ...

Russia detains economy minister for $2 mln bribe over Rosneft

Police in Rome are examining CC-TV footage in a bid to identify vandals who damaged one of the city's most famous pieces of public sculpture, Bernini's Elephant and Obelisk.
	The landmark work, tucked away in a little square near the Pantheon, features an elephant carrying the obelisk on its back and was first placed in the Piazza della Minerva in the 17th Century.
	Gian Lorenzo Bernini oversaw the sculpture of the elephant, which had the tip of its left trunk broken off in the overnight incident. The elephant was commissioned by the then pope, Alexander VII, to support an obelisk from ancient Egypt that had only recently been excavated.
	The damage to the Bernini elephant comes after fans of Dutch football club Feyenoord caused outrage in February 2015 by damaging a fountain created by the sculptor that stands at the bottom of Rome's fabled Spanish Steps.

Rome in shock as another historic landmark vandalised

Rescuers in New Zealand were scrambling today to evacuate up to 1,200 tourists stranded by a 7.8 earthquake that caused "utter devastation" on the coast of the South Island.
	A navy ship was steaming towards the seaside town of Kaikoura, which bore the brunt of the quake that claimed two lives when it struck early yesterday.
	Huge landslides have cut road and rail links to the town, where police say water is running low, power is intermittent and hundreds of people are staying in evacuation shelters.
	It has a population of 2,000, which Prime Minister John Key said was bolstered by an extra 1,200 tourists attracted by the area's popular whale-watching cruises.
	He said four military helicopters would begin ferrying the trapped visitors, mostly international backpackers, in small groups to Christchurch from early today.
	Naval ship HMNZS Canterbury would take hundreds more when it arrives, likely tomorrow, he added.
	"It's more water and food, it's more chemical toilets, it's fixing up 

Evacuations planned for quake-hit New Zealand

US forces may have committed war crimes in Afghanistan from 2003-2004 by torturing prisoners in what appeared to be a deliberate policy, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has said.
	Unveiling the results of a lengthy initial probe into atrocities in Afghanistan, prosecutor Fatou Bensouda yesterday said she would decide "imminently" whether to ask to launch a full-blown investigation -- and take the world's only permanent war crimes court into uncharted territory.
	She stressed that the Taliban militia and the affiliated Haqqani network, Afghan government forces and US troops as well as the CIA all appeared to have carried out war crimes since the Islamic militia was ousted by a US-led invasion in 2001.
	And she blamed the Taliban and its allies for the deaths of some 17,000 civilians since 2007 to December 2015 in a brutal insurgency with "numerous attacks" on schools, hospitals and mosques.
	But for the first time, Bensouda highlighted allegations of "war ...

AFP

AFP

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