Bangladesh today recalled left-arm spinner Mosharraf Hossain for the crucial final One-day International against Afghanistan as they seek to clinch the series locked at 1-1.
     Afghanistan pulled off a two-wicket victory against Bangladesh on Wednesday to level the series, after losing a thrilling opening match days earlier by seven runs.
     Mosharraf, who played the last of his three three ODIs back in 2008, replaces pace bowler Rubel Hossain for the decider on Saturday in Dhaka.
     "We have seen Afghanistan were struggling to play spin bowling in the first two matches. So we've decided to include Mosharraf for the third match," said chief selector Minhajul Abedin.
     Rubel, who returned to the side after a long injury lay-off, conceded 62 runs in nine overs for one wicket in the first match and was given just three overs in the second one.
     Afghanistan have proved tenacious opponents against the more fancied Bangladesh.
     The Afghanistan series was hastily arranged to 

Bangladesh recall spinner Mosharraf for Afghan ODI

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Russia today said it is pressing on with its bombing campaign in Syria despite the US warning it will end talks on the conflict if Moscow does not halt the assault on Aleppo.
	A ceasefire deal hammered out between Moscow and Washington that could have led to the two countries coordinating strikes on jihadists has unravelled in acrimony, with both sides blaming each other for the failure.
	Russia is backing up a ferocious assault by the forces of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad to seize the rebel-held eastern half of the city of Aleppo that has sparked condemnation from the West.
	Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov insisted Moscow was still interested in seeing the deal with the US work out, but said Washington had failed to deliver on its side of the bargain.
	"We have unfortunately taken note of the rather unconstructive character of the rhetoric from Washington over the past few days," Peskov said.
	"Moscow maintains its interest in cooperating with Washington for the realisation of .

Russia says Syria bombing continues amid US threats

Train crashes into New Jersey station, casualties

Former champions Pakistan and the West Indies start a narrow two-way fight for an automatic place in the 2019 Cricket World Cup in a three-match One-day series starting here tomorrow.
     Pakistan, the 1992 champions, need to win the series 3-0 to rise one place from ninth while their opponents -- champions in the first two World Cups in 1975 and 1979 -- need to avoid a clean sweep to maintain their current eighth spot.
     Hosts England and the seven highest-ranked sides in the one-day rankings on September 30 next year will qualify directly for the World Cup.
     The bottom four teams in the standings will be joined by six Associate sides in a 10-team qualifying round in 2018 from where two teams will qualify.
     Both Pakistan and the West Indies will also play in three one-day matches in the Caribbean next March.
     Pakistan also have a tough five-match series in Australia early next year but West Indies will be hard pressed to play England and India before the cut-off ...

Pakistan, West Indies launch World Cup fight

England bowlers James Anderson and Mark Wood have been ruled out of next month's tour of Bangladesh due to injury, the England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed today.
     Anderson, England's all-time leading Test wicket-taker, has not played since the fourth Test loss to Pakistan in August because of a shoulder injury. Durham seamer Wood, 26, has been having treatment for an ankle injury.
     England play three One-day Internationals and two Tests on the tour, for which they leave on Thursday.
     Nottinghamshire's Jake Ball, named in the ODI squad for Bangladesh but not the Test party, may get the nod to stay on for the second half of the tour.
     Middlesex's Steven Finn has been added to the ODI squad and England's selectors will consider a further replacement for the Test squad at a later date.
     The first Test begins in Chittagong on October 20, with England having two two-day warm-up games ahead of the match.
     The opening Test of the India tour is due to begin in ...

England's Anderson, Wood ruled out of Bangladesh tour

Asian and European stock markets rallied today and energy-linked currencies advanced after OPEC's shock deal to trim oil output.
	The announcement yesterday lit a fire temporarily under oil prices, sending petroleum-linked shares surging on Wall Street and later across Asian and European stock markets.
	Despite crude later falling back on doubts about the cartel following up on its deal, energy firms managed to hold onto their strong share price gains.
	"Even though there still have to be doubts whether the OPEC deal will ever actually be implemented, Royal Dutch Shell and BP are at the top of the FTSE 100 leader board" with gains of 4.0 and 5.3 per cent respectively, noted Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
	Around 1615 IST, London's benchmark FTSE 100 was up 1.0 per cent overall.
	In the eurozone, the Paris CAC 40 jumped 1.0 per cent and Frankfurt's DAX 30 gained 0.7 per cent compared with yesterday's closing levels.
	An oil-price rally fuelled by OPEC's deal to cut crude ..

Stock markets rally on OPEC agreement

Human Rights Watch today accused Bangladeshi security forces of "kneecapping" opposition members and supporters by deliberately shooting them in the leg and then falsely claiming to have acted in self-defence.
	Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan rejected the report, saying police were only shooting at criminals as a "last resort".
	The 45-page report quoted victims recounting how they had been shot without provocation by police officers who then claimed that they had opened fire in self-defence.
	"Security forces in Bangladesh have long killed detainees in fake 'crossfire killings', pretending the victim was killed when the authorities took him back to the scene of the crime and were attacked by one of his accomplices," said Brad Adams, Asia director of HRW.
	"Now they're adopting tactics similar to those once used by the Irish Republican Army and engaging in 'kneecappings' of people they have arrested, apparently because they belong to or support an opposition party."
	The New York-based 

Bangladesh accused of 'kneecapping' opposition activists

The UN envoy for Syria said today there was little prospect of an imminent restart of negotiations to try to end the raging conflict.
	"At the moment, when bombs are falling all over, it is very difficult to justify resuming talks," Staffan de Mistura told AFP after he met Pope Francis at the Vatican.
	Russia said yesterday it was ready to relaunch talks in Geneva with the United States following the collapse of a ceasefire.
	But Washington threatened to suspend its engagement with Russia following escalating bombardments on rebel-held parts of the city of Aleppo.
	De Mistura said he welcomed Francis's willingness to speak out over the attacks, after the pontiff warned on Wednesday that God would hold those responsible for the Aleppo bombing to account.
	"We are in a very critical moment, that's why it is so essentially urgent to have the voice of people with the moral authority of the pope about the fact that there is no military solution," de Mistura said.
	"You can't bomb your way .

UN envoy says Syria talks 'very difficult with bombs falling'

Chinese entertainment and real-estate giant Wanda said today it had fired an executive implicated in the bribery of a local government official.
	The announcement followed media reports that the executive had been named in court documents related to a government corruption trial.
	Wanda said in a statement that former manager Leng Chuanjin had "seriously violated" company rules by using corporate funds to pay a local party chief 300,000 yuan (USD 45,000) as it sought to shake off partial government ownership and move into private hands.
	The company first learned about the bribery case from media reports that Jin Cheng, former party chief of Wanda's home district, had been sentenced to jail on corruption charges, it said.
	According to the Benxi Intermediate People's Court's judgement, two Wanda executives used company funds to pay Jin the sum in two instalments.
	The bribes were to "thank" Jin for helping Wanda transition from a state-owned company into a privately-held firm, the ...

China's Wanda fires executive who bribed official

Germany's second largest lender Commerzbank said today it plans to cut 9,600 jobs, or one- fifth of its workforce, by 2020 and withhold dividends to pay for a 1.1-billion-euro restructuring.
	The Frankfurt-based firm added that the USD 1.23-billion plan, still to be agreed at a supervisory board meeting on Friday, would see it report a loss in the third quarter as it writes down the value of goodwill and other intangible assets.
	But it forecasts a "slightly positive" bottom line for the whole of 2016.
	Like other German banks, Commerzbank is fighting headwinds from low interest rates in the eurozone, tough regulation, intense competition, and the arrival of new digital actors on the market.
	Board members aim to achieve "sustainable profitability" by focusing on private and business banking customers while shrinking investment banking activities, it said in a statement.
	"Profit volatility and risks from regulatory changes will be reduced and capital freed up for the core business" ..

Commerzbank says to cut 9,600 jobs by 2020

Indonesia's Aceh province, which has gained international infamy for its strict Islamic laws, won rare praise from rights activists today for introducing the country's most generous maternity leave policy.
	The decision to give female civil servants six months' maternity leave, double the typical amount elsewhere in the country, is an unusual move in a province routinely criticised for breaching women's rights.
	However it has sparked a row with the central government in Jakarta, which says it runs counter to national law that stipulates three months maternity leave.
	Andreas Harsono, Indonesia researcher for Human Rights Watch, welcomed the move: "They're becoming more progressive." However he added Aceh still "has a lot of work to do in reviewing discriminatory bylaws".
	The devout western province is the only part of the world's most populous Muslim-majority country allowed to implement sharia laws and is often criticised by rights groups.
	There are canings for people caught ...

Indonesia sharia stronghold wins rare praise for rights

Israeli leaders and crowds of mourners began paying their last respects today to ex-president and Nobel Peace Prize winner Shimon Peres, whose body was lying in state outside parliament.
	A solemn ceremony saw President Reuven Rivlin, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, parliament speaker Yuli Edelstein and opposition leader Isaac Herzog lay wreaths beside Peres's flag-draped coffin at a plaza outside parliament.
	The ceremony was held in silence, with none of the leaders speaking.
	Afterwards, beginning at 9.00 AM (local times), several hundred mourners began making their way into the grounds of parliament to view the coffin after passing through security checks.
	Many took photographs as they approached. A cordon kept them around five metres from the coffin.
	Peres's body is to lie in state until 9.00 PM ahead of funeral tomorrow to be attended by world leaders, including US President Barack Obama, former US president Bill Clinton, French President Francois Hollande and German ...

Israel begins paying last respects to Peres

The world's largest maker of diabetes treatments, Novo Nordisk, said today it was cutting 1,000 jobs worldwide to cut costs as it faces price pressure in the United States.
	"This is one of several actions taken to reduce operating costs as the company faces a challenging competitive environment in 2017, especially in its large US market," the Denmark-based company said in a statement.
	Novo Nordisk's shares plunged last month when the firm, which controls nearly half of the global insulin market, announced it was facing intense pressure from firms that manage prescription drug services between health insurers and insured patients in the United States and lowered its growth forecast.
	The company's shares have fallen by more than 20 per cent since the start of August.
	Today, the firm said it was sticking to its August forecast of sales growth between five and seven per cent this year in local currencies, and an increase in operating profit of between five and eight per cent.
	The ...

Novo Nordisk says to cut 1,000 jobs

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has condemned a decision by an Iranian appeals court to uphold a 10-year jail sentence against journalist and human rights activist Narges Mohammadi.
	Mohammadi, 44, is one of Iran's best-known journalists and was awarded the City of Paris medal earlier this year for her work as a defender of women's rights.
	She was the spokesperson of the Centre for Human Rights Defenders and campaigned for an end to the death penalty in Iran.
	Initially arrested in May 2015, the mother-of-two was sentenced to a total of 16 years in April, according to a statement from RSF.
	Under a law passed last year, she will only serve the sentence linked to the most important charge - in this case 10 years for "forming and managing an illegal group" which pressed for an end to capital punishment.
	RSF said her lawyers received the news as her colleague, 2003 Nobel peace laureate Shirin Ebadi who founded the Centre for Human Rights Defenders, was meeting with Paris mayor Anne ...

Watchdog condemns Iran journalist's 10-year sentence

A North Korean soldier walked across one of world's most heavily fortified borders today and defected to the South, military authorities said.
	The man crossed the military demarcation line around 01:00 GMT on the central-eastern part of the border, Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.
	There was no exchange of fire during the defection.
	"He is now being held in custody for questioning", the JCS added.
	It is rare for North Korean defectors to walk across the mine-riddled border, which is guarded by tens of thousands of soldiers on both sides.
	The last time in happened was June last year when a teenage North Korean soldier surrendered himself to South Korean border guards at Hwacheon, north-east of Seoul.
	Hundreds of North Koreans flee their isolated and impoverished homeland each year.
	Most cross the porous frontier with China first before travelling through a south-east Asian nation and eventually arriving in South Korea.
	In 2012, a North Korean soldier walked unchecked ...

N Korea soldier defects to S Korea across border

Bangladesh authorities are promising England's cricketers unprecedented security when they begin a controversial tour Friday, desperate to prevent the country from becoming a no-go zone for international sport.
     An attack on a cafe in Dhaka in July that killed 18 foreigners threw a powerful spotlight on the dangers posed by Islamist extremists who have also slain dozens of activists and members of Bangladesh's religious minorities.
     After their own security expert carried out an assessment in Bangladesh, England's cricket board decided to go ahead with a month-long tour that begins with three ODIs followed by two Test matches.
     But while Alistair Cook will captain the Test team as normal, ODI skipper Eoin Morgan has decided not to travel on security grounds, handing over responsibility to Jos Buttler.
     And even the Barmy Army, the diehard supporters' group which normally follows the team around the world, has held back from endorsing the trip, saying there is "too much 

Bangladesh assures England as tour begins

Barcelona proved they can win away in Europe even without Lionel Messi as they posted a 2-1 comeback victory at Borussia Moenchengladbach in the Champions League on Wednesday.
     Thorgan Hazard -- the younger brother of Chelsea midfielder Eden -- gave Gladbach a shock, yet deserved first-half lead.
     But goals in the final 25 minutes, from Arda Turan and Gerard Pique, sealed Barcelona's second Group C win after their 7-0 hammering of Celtic at the Camp Nou a fortnight ago.
     With Messi out due to a groin injury, Barca coach Luis Enrique opted to start Spain international Paco Alcacer in the superstar's place alongside Neymar and Luis Suarez.
     But as Gladbach coach Andre Schubert had predicted in the pre-match press conference, the hosts refused to be overawed by their illustrious opponents.
     Neymar and Suarez were rarely allowed more than a split-second on the ball.
     Gladbach had the better of the opening exchanges at Borussia Park and fulley merited their lead.
   

Messi-less Barca fight back to down Gladbach

Oil prices surged today after the OPEC producers' group surprised the market with a deal to slash output.
	At the end of six hours of negotiations and weeks of horse trading, OPEC announced the plan to cut production to a level of 32.5-33 million barrels per day (bpd) from 33.47 billion, bpd in August, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said.
	The informal meeting was held on the sidelines of an IEA meeting in a bid to stabilise prices that have been battered by a stubborn supply glut since 2014.
	Oil prices soared by as much as six per cent following the news and extended gains in Asian trade today although at a slower pace.
	At around 0630 IST, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in November was up 23 cents to USD 47.29 and Brent crude for November added 22 cents to USD 48.91 a barrel.
	The decision to cut output caught the market offguard.
	Market watchers had been pessimistic about a cut or a freeze after similar efforts fell apart in April due to ...

Oil prices surge after OPEC's surprise output cut deal

Raheem Sterling netted at both ends as Manchester City were made to fight for a 3-3 draw with Celtic in a Champions League thriller on Wednesday, while Atletico Madrid once again did for Bayern Munich.
     While City's perfect start to the season was ended in Glasgow, their Premier League rivals Arsenal eased to a 2-0 victory against Basel.
     Atletico had eliminated Bayern in the semi-finals last season and repeated the trick at the Vicente Calderon to make it a double for Spanish clubs against German opposition as Barcelona downed Borussia Moenchengladbach.
     On paper, the Group C clash at Celtic Park appeared to be a bit of a mismatch with City looking to equal Tottenham Hotspur's English record of 11 successive victories at the start of a campaign from 1960.
     But instead Pep Guardiola's men found themselves having to come from behind three times to claim a point at a raucous Parkhead, with Celtic first scoring in the third minute when an Erik Sviatchenko header went in ..

Celtic hold City in thriller, Atleti sink Bayern

Tiger Woods has endured two tough runner-up finishes in majors at Hazeltine, but he could be reduced even further, to sandwich delivery man, at the Ryder Cup here this week.
     Woods, the 14-time major winner who is set to return next month after more than a year off due to a back injury, is serving as an assistant to US captain Davis Love at this week's 41st edition of the US-Europe team golf showdown.
     "We're dividing responsibilities," Love said of himself and his assistants. "I'm in charge and I've given (the assistants) their charge. Tiger was giving me a hard time a couple weeks ago. He said, 'You're giving me way too much to do.'"
     Former world number one Woods could find himself with some unusual duties given Love's desire to make sure his players have anything and everything they need to help them win.
     "We're all having fun and just supporting the team," Love said. "If that means we run back and get a sweater, I'll go get a sweater.
     "My son and I just ...

'Hey Tiger, how about a sandwich?'

Details of Arnold Palmer's public memorial service next week were unveiled as grieving golfers at the Ryder Cup continued to share stories and sadness with one another.
     The iconic figure died of heart issues last Sunday at age 87 and will have a public ceremony Tuesday in his hometown of Latrobe, Pennsylvania.
     "A Celebration of the Life and Legacy of Arnold Palmer" will be staged at 11 a.M. (1500 GMT) at the Saint Vincent College Basilica. Seating will be limited with indoor overflow seating locations on campus with feeds of the ceremony, to be shown live on the Golf Channel, a network Palmer co-founded to boost the sport's profile.
     Palmer's family asked that in lieu of sending flowers, people should visit the website iam.Arniesarmy.Org to share stories about Palmer.
     Sharing stories has been a way for golfers at the Ryder Cup, many of whom were inspired by Palmer personally, to cope with the sorrow felt at his passing.
     "We all talked about it when we got ...

AFP

AFP

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