Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte today defended his threat to kill criminals as "perfect" and vowed no let-up in his war on crime, as the death toll surged past 3,700.
	International Criminal Court chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said yesterday she was "deeply concerned" about the violence, and signalled Duterte could face prosecution by her body for his incitements to kill.
	But Duterte launched a typically defiant counter-attack today, defending his rhetoric and the crime war that is seeing more that 1,000 people killed every month.
	"There is nothing wrong in threatening criminals to death. By that statement alone: 'You criminals, I will kill you. Do not fool around.' It is a perfect statement," Duterte said.
	Describing his critics as "fools", Duterte reiterated his position he was not breaking any domestic laws by threatening to kill criminals and pledged the crime war would continue until there were no more illegal drugs in society.
	"I will not stop. Be sure of it, you can .

Philippines' Duterte says kill threat 'perfect'

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Thai television flicked back to colour today - but with orders to keep it subdued - as the government lifted a black-and-white rule imposed out of respect for the country's late king.
	All channels, including international satellite networks, have been replaced with prepared state media programmes praising revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej's death, who died Thursday after a 70-year reign.
	The monochrome order was initially set for 30 days.
	But the government said Friday that broadcasters could resume their own programming by the end of the day, albeit with new mourning-period guidelines.
	"Programmes or advertisements must not be aired to entertain," said a statement from broadcasting authorities.
	Unacceptable content would include scenes of "dancing, celebrations and violence."
	News presenters must also dress in black and white, which are both mourning colours in Thailand, and cannot "broaden, analyse, or criticise" information on any royal funeral ceremonies.
	The latter directive 

Thai TV flicks back to colour, subdued, after king's death

Twenty-four hours after awarding Bob Dylan the Nobel prize for literature, the Swedish Academy said today they had still not managed to speak to the reclusive US singer.
	"The Academy has spoken to Dylan's agent and his tour manager," the Academy's chancellor Odd Zschiedrich told AFP.
	But as yet they have spoken directly to Dylan himself, he said.
	The new poet laureate of rock'n'roll played to a packed house in Las Vegas last night, hours after seeing off favourites including Britain's Salman Rushdie to become the first American to win the literature Nobel since Toni Morrison in 1993.
	But fans hoping for a gushing response to the win were disappointed -- true to his usual taciturn form, Dylan uttered not a word between songs, leaving the world to keep guessing what he thought about his elevation to the pantheon of literature.
	According to the Washington Post, which contacted people close to the 75-year-old star: "Dylan remained silent throughout the day about the award".
	One of ..

No response yet from Dylan on Nobel win

Germany's chief prosecutor today rejected Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's appeal against the dropping of a probe into a TV comic who satirised him.
	The chief public prosecutor's office in the western German city of Koblenz said in a statement that the appeal filed by Erdogan was "unfounded".
	Rather it upheld an earlier decision by prosecutors to scrap the case against TV comic Jan Boehmermann over his so-called "Defamatory Poem" that satirically accuses Erdogan of bestiality and paedophilia and which unleashed a bitter row between Germany and Turkey.
	Boehmermann said the piece was a reaction to Ankara's decision to summon Germany's ambassador over another satirical song broadcast on German TV, which lampooned Erdogan in far tamer language.
	The comic acknowledged the poem was intended to provoke, and would flout Germany's legal limits to free speech.
	The poem did not go down well in Ankara and Erdogan had filed a criminal complaint.
	In April, Chancellor Angela Merkel ...

German prosecutor rejects Erdogan's appeal over satire probe

Iran has arrested 11 people on suspicion of planning suicide bombings on behalf of the Islamic State group and seized large quantities of explosives, local media reported today.
	It was the latest in a series of alleged plots by the Sunni extremists uncovered in Shiite Iran which has been a major supporter of the campaign against them in neighbouring Iraq.
	"Eleven people were arrested and the terrorist group dismantled," General Ahmad-Ali Goudarzi, who heads the security forces in the southern province of Fars, was quoted as saying.
	"Dozens of cars and motorbikes, as well as 100 kilogrammes of explosives, were seized."
	The Mehr news agency quoted the province's deputy governor as saying those arrested were believed to be members of IS.
	The jihadist group regards Shiites as apostates and has carried out numerous attacks against Shiite civilians in both Iraq and Syria.
	Iran's powerful intelligence and security service have so far managed to shield the country from similar attacks, .

Iran arrests 11 over suspected IS suicide bombing plot

Samsung today said the crisis over its exploding Note 7 smartphones would cost another USD 3 billion-plus in lost profit over the next two quarters, but hoped expanded sales of its other flagship handset would help cushion the impact.
	The profit warning came two days after the South Korean electronics giant slashed its operating profit for the third quarter by USD 2.3 billion.
	After a recall problem with the large-sized Galaxy Note 7 turned into a full-blown crisis, Samsung announced earlier this week that it was scrapping the model entirely -- a devastating move for a company that prides itself on the quality production of cutting-edge technology.
	On top of the third-quarter loss, Samsung said the drop in sales arising from the decision to discontinue the Note 7 would continue to impact profit margins in October-March -- including the crucial holiday buying season.
	It estimated an operating profit loss in the fourth quarter at around the "mid-2 trillion (USD 2.2 billion) won ...

Samsung sees further $3bn profit hit from Note 7 crisis

- The main Maldives opposition party accused President Abdulla Yameen of behaving like a despot Friday for quitting the Commonwealth in the face of mounting criticism over his rights record.
	The party of the exiled former president Mohamed Nasheed said the unilateral decision to pull out of the 53-member bloc was another example of how Yameen was turning the honeymoon islands into a diplomatic pariah.
	"President Yameen has made the Maldives a very isolated place," the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) said in a statement.
	"This is an absolute despotic move, which says much about the Yameen regime and its political posturing and disregard for international or public opinion."
	The Maldives has been wrangling with the Commonwealth over its human rights record since the toppling of Nasheed, the Indian Ocean archipelago's first democratically-elected leader, in February 2012.
	Nasheed secured political asylum in Britain earlier this year after travelling to London for medical treatment .

Maldives opposition slams 'despotic' Commonwealth exit

Melania Trump threatened People Magazine and a former staff reporter with legal action over "false and completely fictionalized" statements in the writer's account of Donald Trump forcing himself on her during a 2005 interview.
	The Republican presidential candidate's wife denied that she encountered or conversed with writer Natasha Stoynoff in New York, tweeting a letter from her lawyer demanding a "prominent retraction and apology" of certain statements in the article, and threatening that Melania would otherwise "consider her legal options."
	"The true facts are these: Mrs Trump did not encounter Ms Stoynoff on the street, nor have any conversation with her," lawyer Charles Harder wrote. "The two are not friends and were never friends or even friendly."
	His law firm requested that People and Stoynoff confirm within 24 hours that the demands were being met, saying "failure to do so will require Mrs Trump to consider her legal options."
	The letter did not dispute Stoynoff's ...

Melania Trump threatens People Magazine with lawsuit

Most Asian stock markets rose today on news Chinese factory gate prices rose for the first time in more than four years, while Thai stocks rallied on news of King Bhumibol Adulyadej's death, with analysts saying a sell-off this week was overdone.
	Beijing said the producer price index increased last month after 54 consecutive months of falling, beating estimates for a drop and providing some much-needed hope for the Chinese economy a day after market-sapping trade figures.
	Chinese firms have for years been battered by falling prices for their goods in the face of chronic overcapacity and weak demand, putting a damper on growth in a key driver of the world economy.
	Consumer prices also rose more than expected.
	"The end of PPI deflation is a good signal for the economy's stabilisation," Gao Yuwei, a researcher at Bank of China in Beijing, told Bloomberg News. "PPI is expected to be remain expansionary in the coming months."
	Traders around Asia broadly welcomed the news on the ...

Most Asia stocks up after China data, Bangkok soars

The price of goods at the factory gate rose in China for the first time in more than four years in September, officials said today, in a positive sign for demand in the world's second-largest economy.
	The producer price index (PPI) rose 0.1 per cent year-on-year in the month, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, adding it "ended 54 consecutive months of year-on-year falls".
	Chinese firms have for years been battered by falling prices for their goods in the face of chronic overcapacity and weak demand, putting a damper on growth in a key driver of the world economy.
	Protracted drops in PPI bode ill for industrial prospects and economic growth, as they put off customers -- who seek to delay purchases in anticipation of cheaper deals in future -- starving companies of business and funds.
	September's increase was the first rise since January 2012 and came in ahead of expectations of a 0.3 per cent fall in a survey of economists by Bloomberg News.
	The consumer price index, .

China producer prices in first rise for over 4 years: govt

At least 10 people were killed and seven others seriously injured after their tour bus crashed and caught fire on a highway near South Korea's southeastern city of Ulsan, police said today.
	Although the precise cause of the accident is still under investigation, the driver of the bus was taken into custody for questioning about the vehicle's maintenance record.
	The bus was carrying 20 people late Thursday night when one of the front tires exploded, causing it to crash into a concrete guardrail and catch fire, South Korea's Yonhap news agency cited an eyewitness as saying.
	"A few people escaped from the bus which then went up in flames after some loud explosions," the unnamed witness who was driving behind the bus said.
	Half the passengers were trapped inside by a door blocked by the concrete guardrail.
	Most passengers were retirees returning from the airport after a trip to China.

Tour bus crash kills 10 in S Korea

FIFA executives will make a final decision on World Cup reform in January after weighing up three proposals on Thursday, as president Gianni Infantino pushes plans to grow the lucrative tournament.
     Infantino said it was possible that FIFA will leave the competition as a 32-team event, but he has made no secret of his desire to see the World Cup involve more countries, and more revenue, from 2026 and beyond.
     One option studied by the powerful FIFA Council at Thursday's meeting was a 40-team World Cup, with eight groups of five teams, or 10 groups of four.
     A 48-team proposal, favoured by Infantino, would see the 16 group winners of a qualifying round automatically book a place in the tournament, while an additional 32 teams would compete in a new pre-tournament play-off.
     From the play-off, 16 nations would then move on to the World Cup itself.
     "We'll keep an open mind and an open spirit and maybe we don't change anything and maybe we change everything," ...

FIFA to decide on World Cup reform in January

- Scores at close on the opening day of the first day-night Test between Pakistan and West Indies played at Dubai stadium today:
	  	Pakistan, first innings
	   Sami Aslam b Chase                90
	   Azhar Ali not out                146
	   Asad Shafiq not out               33
	   Extras: (b1, lb2, nb6, w1)        10
	   Total: (for 1 wkt; 90 overs)     279
	   To bat: Babar Azam, Misbah-ul-Haq, Sarfraz Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Yasir Shah, Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Amir, Sohail Khan
	   Bowling: Gabriel 14-2-55-0 (4nb), Cummins 16-2-62-0 (1w), Holder 15-4-30-0, Brathwaite 8-2-21-0, Bishoo 16-3-45-0, Chase 21-2-63-1

Cricket: Pakistan v West Indies scoreboard - 2nd update

Opener Azhar Ali became the first batsman to record a century in a day-night Test off a pink ball as he helped Pakistan dominate West Indies in Dubai today.
	Ali's unbeaten 146 guided Pakistan to 279-1 at close on the opening day of the first Test -- just the second day-night match in Test cricket's 140-year history -- after Misbah-ul-Haq won the toss and opted to bat on a flat Dubai stadium pitch.
	   Asad Shafiq was the other not out batsman with 33.
	   Cricket saw the innovation of day-night Tests with a pink ball for the first time when Australia played New Zealand at Adelaide in November last year, attempting to reverse the trend of dwindling Test crowds.
	   Australia won the low-scoring affair on the third day by a narrow three-wicket margin, with Australian wicket-keeper Peter Nevill's 66 the top individual score.
	   Ali bettered that and put his name in the records book with a 366-minute stay at the crease, hitting 14 boundaries, but unlike Adelaide where the attendance was 

Cricket: Ton-up Azhar lights up Pakistan's day-night Test

Waves 2.5 metres high, winds of 50 kilometres an hour and a sinking dinghy - rescuers described today a race into Libyan waters to save 113 migrants, with 15 others lost to the raging sea.
	The white rubber dinghy had set off yesterday from Sabrata, taking advantage of a break in the bad weather to make a bid for Italy's shores, but the 130 or so people aboard soon ran into trouble when the wind whipped up.
	"It became hellish", said AFP photographer Aris Messinis, who is aboard the Astral, a vessel chartered by Spanish humanitarian NGO, Proactiva Open Arms, which patrols the area looking for boats in distress.
	As night began to fall the desperate migrants sent a distress call to the Italian coast guard, which sent the Astral their way, along with the Phoenix, run by the Maltese NGO MOAS, and the Iuventa, run by the German NGO Jugend Rettet.
	The Phoenix's drone managed to pin-point the dinghy eight nautical miles off the Libyan coast, some four miles inside Libyan waters and ...

Migrants lost at sea off Libya in nighttime horror

US President Barack Obama today congratulated Bob Dylan on what he called his "well-deserved" Nobel literature prize, calling the music legend "one of my favorite poets."
	Obama's message on Twitter contained a link to a Spotify playlist of Dylan's greatest hits including "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" and "Like A Rolling Stone."
	"Congratulations to one of my favorite poets, Bob Dylan, on a well-deserved Nobel," Obama tweeted -- a message retweeted nearly 3,000 times in 30 minutes.
	The shock Nobel victory for the 75-year-old Dylan -- the first songwriter to take the prize -- stunned prize watchers.
	He was honored "for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition," the Swedish Academy said.

Obama hails Nobel winner Dylan as one of 'favorite poets'

American TV reality star Kim Kardashian has lodged a formal complaint in France after she was filmed at her luxury Paris apartment following a robbery by gunmen, her lawyers said today.
	Kardashian is also filing a civil party petition as the victim of "a serious assault and a jewellery theft" on October 3 after French prosecutors formally opened an investigation.
	The statement from her lawyers said the video was made "without her consent or the police's and while the police were investigating the crime scene".
	The video, carried on several entertainment news websites, shows 35-year-old Kardashian fiddling with her mobile phone while police are in the apartment.
	No suspect has been arrested, but investigators are examining DNA traces found in the apartment where five gunmen robbed Kardashian of jewellery worth some USD 10 million, sources close to the probe have said.
	Kardashian, who is married to rap superstar Kanye West, filed a lawsuit Tuesday against US website ...

Kardashian files complaint in France over crime scene video

A top diplomat and longtime adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has resigned from his post for personal reasons, the foreign ministry announced today.
	Dore Gold has served as director general of Israel's foreign ministry since June 2015 and has been a close adviser to Netanyahu for more than two decades.
	The ministry statement did not provide further details of why he was resigning.
	"I would like to thank Prime Minister Netanyahu for his confidence in me," the statement quoted Gold as saying.
	"As in the past, I will make myself available to the prime minister's needs in any capacity he sees fit."
	Netanyahu, who also holds the post of foreign minister, praised the "important contribution" made by Gold to reinforce relations between Israel and the international community, including in Africa.
	"Dore has been at my side for 25 years and I am sure he will remain available for any (future) mission," he said in a statement.
	Netanyahu's office later announced that the .

Top adviser to Israeli prime minister resigns

Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer's stock rose today after the company said it was "close" to a deal with US authorities to settle corruption allegations that have dogged it since 2010.
	Embraer, the world's third-largest commercial plane-maker after Boeing and Airbus, is under investigation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission over allegations it violated anti-corruption regulations in sales outside Brazil.
	The company "is looking to finalise definitive agreements with the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission in the United States to resolve the allegations," it said in a statement released yesterday.
	It is also in talks with Brazilian authorities to settle a local investigation, it said.
	Embraer's stock rose more than three per cent on the New York stock exchange and 1.5 per cent in Sao Paulo today morning.
	The international corruption probe was opened after officials in the Dominican Republic allegedly accepted a USD 3.5 million bribe to 

Brazil's Embraer 'close' to deal to end US graft case

Russia today said it was ready to guarantee safe passage for rebels to quit eastern Aleppo with their weapons, amid fierce Western criticism of its bombing campaign.
	"We are ready to ensure the safe withdrawal of armed rebels, the unimpeded passage of civilians to and from eastern Aleppo, as well as the delivery of humanitarian aid there," Russian Lieutenant General Sergei Rudskoy said in a televised briefing.
	The announcement comes as Moscow and Washington gear up for international Syria talks on Saturday, the first since the United States suspended ceasefire negotiations with Russia in protest at the fierce assault on Aleppo.
	Moscow -- which is backing Syrian regime forces -- first announced in late July the creation of corridors for civilians and armed rebels to leave eastern Aleppo, but the plan was viewed by some as a cynical ploy to force the evacuation of the city and failed to work.
	Rudskoy said that the Syrian army has already offered to guarantee the safety of armed ...

Moscow offers 'safe withdrawal' for armed rebels in Aleppo

A Syrian bomb plot suspect found hanged with a T-shirt in his cell had not been deemed an "acute" suicide risk, a German jail official said today.
	Jaber al-Bakr, 22, had been "quiet and calm, there was no indication of emotional issues," said Rolf Jacob, who heads the prison in the eastern city of Leipzig.
	Although the detainee had begun a hunger strike following his imprisonment on Monday, a "very experienced psychologist" who interviewed him had assessed that "there was no acute suicide risk", Jacob said.
	The psychologist therefore suggested that the regular checks, which were initially set at 15 minute intervals, be reduced to half hourly from Tuesday, said Jacob.
	He said the suspect was nevertheless held in isolation as he was deemed to pose a potential threat to other inmates.
	Bakr's death in custody marks a second official fiasco after police commandos earlier botched his arrest, sparking a nationwide weekend-long manhunt.
	The suspect was eventually captured by three ...

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