Australia's Nick Kyrgios was hit with a $16,500 fine today after his extraordinary performance at the Shanghai Masters where he tanked points and argued with fans.
     The combustible world number 14 received the maximum $10,000 fine for "lack of best efforts", plus $5,000 for abusing a spectator and another $1,500 for unsportsmanlike conduct.
     Trouble-prone Kyrgios, 21, patted a slow serve into his opponent's court and failed to properly contest several points in his 6-3, 6-1 defeat to 110th-ranked Mischa Zverev.
     Kyrgios also clashed with the chair umpire and fans, received a code violation for swearing and had a heated argument with one spectator when he was facing match points.
     Afterwards, he lashed out at the crowd who booed him on several occasions during the second-round match and as he left the court.
     "I'm good at hitting a tennis ball at the net. Like, big deal. I don't owe them anything. It's like, it's my choice," he said.
     "If you don't like it, I ...

Kyrgios fined $16,500 over Shanghai meltdown

PTI Automatic

US songwriter Bob Dylan today won the Nobel Literature Prize, the first songwriter to win the prestigious award and an announcement that surprised prize watchers.
	Dylan, 75, was honoured "for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition," the Swedish Academy said.

US songwriter Bob Dylan wins Nobel Literature Prize

Rescuers in China used helicopters and a digger to free three wild Asian elephants -- including one young calf -- from a water tank where they were helplessly trapped for more than two days, state media said.
	Pictures showed the trio languishing in muddy waters with their trunks raised to breathe inside a concrete basin just a few meters wide, with the baby submerged up to its eyes.
	The young elephant probably fell in before the adults tried unsuccessfully to help it out, the official Xinhua news agency cited forestry officials in the southwestern province of Yunnan as saying.
	More than a dozen wild elephants soon surrounded the tank, becoming agitated after repeated attempts to pull out their companions using their trunks.
	The baby became increasingly frail, Xinhua said, as heavy rain stalled rescue efforts on Monday.
	"We were worried that the baby elephant might choke on the water or die from exhaustion," Xinhua cited Xiong Chaoyong, deputy manager of Yunnan's Asian elephant ...

Elephants rescued from SW China water tank

US songwriter Bob Dylan wins Nobel Literature Prize. (AFP)

The Iraqi foreign ministry summoned the Turkish ambassador today to protest the continued presence of Turkish troops in northern Iraq without Baghdad's permission, a ministry spokesman said.
	Turkish troops are deployed in the Bashiqa area near the jihadist-held city of Mosul, and Turkey's prime minister has said that they will stay despite Baghdad's demands that they be withdrawn.
	The Turkish ambassador was given a "a strongly worded formal note of protest" regarding "the continued presence of Turkish forces near Bashiqa and recent abusive statements from their leadership," spokesman Ahmed Jamal told AFP.
	Earlier this week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to "know your place," and said that he is "not on my level."
	And Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said last week that the country's forces would stay "no matter what the Iraqi government in Baghdad says."
	Abadi has repeatedly demanded that the Turkish troops be withdrawn and said ...

Iraq summons Turkish ambassador to protest troop presence

Russian and Syrian warplanes pounded Aleppo again today after two days of heavy bombardment that killed more than 70 civilians, as world powers prepared for last-ditch weekend talks on a ceasefire.
	Syria has been plunged into some of the worst violence of its five-year war after the collapse of a hard-won truce brokered by Washington and Moscow.
	The ensuing surge in fighting saw government forces declare a large-scale offensive, backed by Russian and Syrian air power, to capture the opposition-held half of battered Aleppo.
	More than 20 air strikes hit the rebel-controlled east at dawn today, killing seven civilians, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said.
	On the northeastern outskirts of the city, advancing regime troops captured several hilltops overlooking opposition-held areas.
	Syrian state television said four children were killed by rebel rocket fire on a school in a western regime-held neighbourhood.
	Moscow has come under mounting international ...

Warplanes hit Syria's Aleppo ahead of new diplomatic push

Former world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury's licence to box has been suspended by the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC), the national governing body announced today.
     The decision came after the troubled British boxer, who has admitted taking cocaine to deal with depression, vacated his World Boxing Organization (WBO) and World Boxing Association (WBA) titles with "immediate effect" to concentrate on his "medical treatment and recovery" late Wednesday.
     The BBBofC said Fury's licence to box had been suspended pending further investigation into "anti-doping and medical issues".
     Fury, 28, was set to be stripped of his titles after cancelling two planned rematches this year against former champion Wladimir Klitschko, having upset the odds to beat the Ukrainian in November last year.
     That was Fury's last fight, with the boxer also taking Klitschko's International Boxing Federation (IBF) title. However, he had to previously vacate that belt after failing to ...

Former heavyweight champion Fury's licence suspended

England's Jos Buttler admitted to being "anxious" about captaining the side for their controversial one-day international tour of Bangladesh, before coming away with a thrilling series win.
    Buttler was named skipper after regular one-day captain Eoin Morgan decided against going on the tour after Islamist militants earlier this year attacked and killed 22 mostly foreign hostages at a Dhaka cafe.
    Security concerns have hung over the series, with the massacre casting doubt on whether Bangladesh's security forces could guarantee the England team's safety.
    But Buttler said the tour had been fantastic so far and praised his players for a gritty performance on Wednesday to defeat Bangladesh by four wickets and clinch the series 2-1.
    "I think we showed immense character," Buttler said after the match that saw England restrict the home side to 277-6 and hit the winning runs with 13 balls to spare.
    "I was nervous and anxious a little bit about doing it but I think I enjoyed 

England's Buttler 'anxious' before Bangladesh win

FIFA president Gianni Infantino's plan to expand the World Cup faces a key test from Thursday at a meeting of world football's top executives.
     Infantino wants to expand the tournament to 48 teams, a contentious move that critics say would dilute the quality of World Cup competition and add new fixtures to football's already packed calendar.
     "It is not a secret that I believe in an expansion of the World Cup," Infantino told AFP last week, opting for a 48-team competition by 2026.
     Infantino has floated a proposal that would see the 16 winners of group qualifying rounds automatically book a place in the showcase tournament.
     An additional 32 teams would battle it out in a new pre-tournament play-in round, with 16 nations moving on to the World Cup.
     Infantino told AFP that for the World Cup proper "the ideal format is 32 teams", but that would not stop him from seeking to widen opportunities for more countries while boosting revenues from the cash cow tournament.
 

48-team World Cup faces test at FIFA meet

The question has had the Washington restaurant scene buzzing since news in May of the US capital's first Michelin Guide -- who will get a coveted star?
	"Michelin, they're pretty secretive... I don't think anybody has any idea," said Aaron Silverman, the 34-year-old owner and chef of two lauded restaurants in the capital, Rose's Luxury and the newer Pineapple and Pearls.
	Restaurants are anxiously awaiting the publication of the first Washington restaurant guide by Michelin, the venerable French company that currently covers restaurants in only three US cities: New York, Chicago and San Francisco.
	Just a few of the recommended entries in the Washington guide are expected to win a star in the three-star rating system that ranges from very good to exceptional.
	With his seasoned view of the scene, Tom Sietsema, The Washington Post's food critic since 2000, ventured a cautious forecast.
	"There should be at least two three-star restaurants in the city. I would be surprised if there were 

'Star' gazing before Washington's first Michelin Guide

A bomb exploded at a far-right bookshop in the heart of Athens, causing some material damage, a police source said today.
	The blast, caused by a small explosive device, came after a phone call was placed to a left-wing newspaper warning of the imminent attack.
	Police cordoned off the area in central Athens after the last night's attack.
	The bookshop, which has been the target of other attacks in the past, suffered minor material damage.
	The building where the bookshop is housed is also home to the Athens prosecutor of the appeals court.
	In the past 10 years, hundreds of arson and bomb attacks have hit financial, diplomatic and political targets, with police blaming extremist groups.
	Such attacks have grown rarer in recent years, however, with several fringe groups now dismantled.

Blast hits far-right bookshop in Athens: police

China's defence ministry vowed today to improve living standards for military veterans after thousands of disgruntled ex-soldiers gathered outside army offices in Beijing for a rare protest this week.
	China has laid off more than a million troops since the 1980s and vowed last year to cut 300,000 more from its standing army of more than two million personnel.
	Tens of thousands of army veterans have staged protests in recent years against officials who they accuse of denying them benefits. But the demonstration in Beijing on Tuesday was unusual for its central location and size.
	Reports said that 10,000 ex-soldiers were involved. Pictures posted online showed large crowds wearing army uniforms.
	China's defence ministry confirmed in a fax to AFP Thursday that "retired soldiers gathered near the offices of the central military commission to express problems relating to employment and livelihood".
	It added that authorities had issued policies to improving living standards for retired 

China vows better veterans treatment after rare protest

Bermuda braced for Hurricane Nicole, now a powerful Category Four storm, as it churned toward the islands, with forecasters warning of a possible direct hit.
	"On the forecast track, the core of Nicole will pass over or near Bermuda on Thursday," the US National Hurricane Center said in a 0300 GMT update.
	The storm's top sustained winds have increased to near 130 miles (215 kilometers) per hour, with higher gusts, the Miami-based NHC said.
	Nicole was about 180 miles (290 kilometers) south-southwest of the tiny British islands in the Atlantic, moving north-northeast at 12 miles per hour.
	Hurricane-force winds extend 65 miles from the center, the HNC said.
	A hurricane warning is in effect for Bermuda.
	The authorities closed schools and government offices, and buildings were boarded up as rains hit the islands on Wednesday. Airlines have canceled flights to the islands.
	"I believe we are generally ready for it," local media reported Premier Michael Dunkley as saying. "Now we just ..

'Extremely dangerous' Hurricane Nicole threatens Bermuda: NHC

China's President Xi Jinping arrived in Cambodia today for a state visit to one of its staunchest regional allies, with ties flourishing after the kingdom supported Beijing in a maritime dispute.
	Hundreds of students waving Cambodian and Chinese flags greeted Xi alongside officials at the airport before his motorcade sped into town for an audience with the royal family and later Prime Minister Hun Sen.
	Cambodia has long been a strident supporter for Beijing's communist rulers, who have lavished the poor country with aid and loans.
	In recent years it has become a thorn in the side for its neighbours hoping to present a unified front against Beijing's island building in the South China Sea.
	Several Southeast Asian nations have competing claims to parts of the strategic waters and many in the region want to keep pressure on China over its efforts to militarise the sea.
	But Cambodia's unwavering support for China has scuppered regional efforts to jointly rebuke Beijing.
	Ahead of his 

Cambodia embraces China's President Xi on state visit

Italian playwright and actor Dario Fo, who won the Nobel prize for literature in 1997, has died at the age of 90, Prime Minister Matteo Renzi announced today.
	"With Dario Fo's death, Italy has lost one of the great characters of its theatre, culture and civilian life. His satirical work, research, stage work and multi-faceted artistic activity are the legacy of a great Italian to the world," Renzi said in comments carried by the Agi news agency.
	Left-winger Fo, one of the leading figures in 20th century farce and political theatre, was best known for his works "Accidental Death of an Anarchist" and "Can't Pay, Won't Pay".
	He stirred controversy with his 1969 work "Mistero buffo" ("Comical Mystery"), a retelling of the Christian gospels in an improvised format.

Nobel prize winning Italian playwright Dario Fo dead

Tyson Fury has given up his WBO and WBA world heavyweight titles "with immediate effect" to concentrate on his "medical treatment and recovery", said a statement released by his promoters Hennessy Sports.
     The British boxer has admitted taking cocaine to deal with depression and was set to be stripped of his titles after cancelling two planned rematches this year against Ukrainian former champion Wladimir Klitschko.
     "I feel that it is only fair and right and for the good of boxing to keep the titles active and allow the other contenders to fight for the vacant belts that I proudly won and held as the undefeated heavyweight champion of the world when I defeated the long-standing champion Wladimir Klitschko," Fury said in the statement released late yesterday.
     "I won the titles in the ring and I believe that they should be lost in the ring, but I'm unable to defend at this time."
     Mick Hennessy, Fury's promoter, said the decision was "heartbreaking".
     Peter Fury, ..

Fury vacates world heavyweight titles

The United States has bombed three radar sites controlled by Huthi rebels in Yemen, the first direct US strike against the group following missile attacks against US warships last week, the Pentagon said today.
	The strikes in Huthi-controlled territory on Yemen's Red Sea coast, authorised by President Barack Obama, were conducted with Tomahawk cruise missiles fired by the destroyer USS Nitze, a US official said.
	"Initial assessments show the sites were destroyed," Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook said in a statement.
	The strikes "targeted radar sites involved in the recent missile launches threatening USS Mason and other vessels operating in international waters in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandeb," it added.
	"These limited self-defense strikes were conducted to protect our personnel, our ships, and our freedom of navigation in this important maritime passageway."
	The USS Mason, a destroyer, was targeted on Wednesday. The missile fired from rebel-held territory crashed into ..

US strikes Huthi rebel targets in Yemen: Pentagon

Final scores in the fifth and
final one-day international between South Africa and Australia at Newlands:
     South Africa
     Q de Kock c Marsh b Boland           12
     H Amla b Mennie                      25
     R Rossouw c Marsh b Tremain         122
     F du Plessis b Mennie                11
     J Duminy c Bailey b Mennie           73
     D Miller c Smith b Tremain           39
     A Phehlukwayo b Boland               11
     K Rabada not out                      9
     K Abbott c Wade b Tremain             0
     D Steyn not out                       6
     Extras (B-6, LB-5, W-8)               19
     Total (For 8 wkts in 50 overs)       327
     Fall of wickets: 1-37, 2-37, 3-52, 4-230, 5-281, 6-306, 7-308, 8-309.
     Bowling: Tremain 10-0-64-3, Boland 10-0-68-2, Mennie 10-2-49-3, Marsh 7-0-53-0, Head 8-0-49-0, Zampa 5-0-33-0.
     Australia
     D Warner run out (Imran Tahir)      173
     A Finch b Imran Tahir                19
     S Smith b Imran Tahir            

Cape Town, Oct 13 (AFP) Final scores in the fifth and

David Warner hit a magnificent century for Australia but could not prevent South Africa from completing a clean sweep by winning the fifth and final one-day international by 31 runs at Newlands.
     Warner hit 173 off 136 balls but received scant support from his teammates as Australia, chasing South Africa's 327 for eight, were bowled out for 296.
     South Africa won all five matches in the series, the first time Australia have suffered such a beating in a five-game bilateral series. Australia will retain their number one ranking in one-day internationals, however, with South Africa two points behind in second place.
     "Davey was phenomenal but the rest of us didn't stand up," said Australian captain Steve Smith. "Credit to South Africa, we've been outplayed in all the games."
     Rilee Rossouw hit 122 and JP Duminy made 73 as South Africa piled up the third-highest total in a one-day international at Newlands, making them firm favourites on a ground where the highest ...

South Africa sweep Australia despite Warner heroics

The first Catholic cardinal of the Central African Republic marched for peace as more deadly violence in the war-ravaged country left at least six people dead.
	The latest violence, in which between six and nine people died, occurred during fighting in the central market town of Kaga-Bandoro yesterday, security sources said.
	The violence broke out when four ex-Seleka militiamen tried to steal a local radio station's generator and launched reprisals after one of their men was killed.
	"Ex-Seleka" is the term used for remnants of the supposedly disbanded alliance of mainly-Muslim armed groups which seized power in CAR in late 2013 before being chased from the capital the following year.
	Faced with such deadly violence Dieudonne Nzapalainga, the Bangui archbishop who was appointed cardinal by Pope Francis at the weekend, led a march for peace in a Muslim area of the capital on yesterday.
	"Let nobody divide us, We want peace for the future of our country," said Nzapalainga, who at 49 ..

C Africa's first Catholic cardinal marches for peace

The Moon is bombarded by so much space rock that its surface gets a complete facelift every 81,000 years, according to a study released today based on NASA data.
	This churn -- affecting the top two centimetres (nearly an inch) of mostly loose moon dust -- happens 100 times more frequently than previously thought, scientists reported.
	The study also estimates that asteroids and comets crashing into Earth's only natural satellite create, on average, 180 new craters at least 10 metres (33 feet) in diameter every year.
	The findings, published in Nature, come from "before and after" pictures taken by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft, which has been mapping the Moon since 2009.
	By comparing images of the same area at regular intervals, a team of scientists led by Emerson Speyerer from Arizona State University in Tempe were able to tally the number of new craters and extrapolate to the entire surface of the Moon.
	"We detected 222 new impact craters and found 33 percent ...

AFP

AFP

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