The European Union today ordered Apple to pay a record 13 billion euros in back taxes in Ireland, saying deals allowing the US tech giant to pay almost no tax were illegal.
	In a ruling that is set to anger Washington, the European Commission said the world's most valuable company avoided tax bills on almost all its profits in the bloc under the arrangements with the Irish government.
	Ireland has been seeking to attract US multinationals by offering extremely favourable tax conditions, known as sweetheart deals.
	"The Commission's investigation concluded that Ireland granted illegal tax benefits to Apple, which enabled it to pay substantially less tax than other businesses over many years," EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said.
	"In fact, this selective treatment allowed Apple to pay an effective corporate tax rate of one per cent on its European profits in 2003 down to 0.005 per cent in 2014," she said in a statement.
	Ireland immediately said it would appeal against .

Apple hit with record 13 bn euro Irish tax bill

PTI Automatic

A suicide car bomb exploded outside a popular hotel close to the presidential palace in Somalia's capital Mogadishu today, in an attack claimed by Shabaab jihadists.
	"There was a blast close to the SYL hotel area, near the main checkpoint of the presidential palace," said security officer Ibrahim Mohamed.
	A witness described seeing a huge blast. "I saw a car speeding towards the area and huge smoke and fire went up in the sky," said Elmi Ahmed.
	An AFP journalist at the scene saw two bodies in the street and described widespread damage to buildings in the area, but reported no gunfire immediately after the explosion.
	The Al-Qaeda aligned Shabaab jihadists claimed responsibility for the attack saying it targeted SYL hotel because it "is close to the presidential palace, and also home to apostates and unbelievers."
	The hotel was previously attacked in both February this year and January last year.

Suicide car bomb targets Somalia hotel: official

A British backpacker hailed as a hero after being stabbed in an attack at an Australian hostel in which a fellow Briton was killed has died of his injuries, police said today.
	Tom Jackson, 30, sustained critical head injuries in the attack in a rural town in the north of Queensland state last Tuesday. A Frenchman has been in custody since the attack and is expected to be charged with a second count of murder.
	Mia Ayliffe-Chung, 21, died from multiple stab wounds while a 46-year-old Australian man suffered non-life threatening wounds.
	"Police can confirm 30-year-old British man Thomas Jackson, critically injured in an alleged knife attack at Home Hill on August 23, has today passed away in the Townsville Hospital," the authorities said in a statement.
	"Detectives will upgrade a charge of attempted murder against a 29-year-old man at his next appearance in Townsville Magistrates Court on October 28."
	Frenchman Smail Ayad has been charged with the murder of Ayliffe-Chung and is also 

British 'hero' dies after Australian hostel stabbing

France will ask the European Commission to halt negotiations on a massive trade deal between the European Union and the United States, the country's junior minister for trade said today.
	"There is no more political support in France for these negotiations" and "France calls for an end to these negotiations," Matthias Fekl told RMC radio.
	Negotiators from the US and the EU are in talks to finalise the proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) which would create the world's largest free-trade area.
	But the negotiations have been bogged down over the terms of the agreement as well as Britain's shock vote to leave the EU and rising opposition to the deal in France and Germany.
	The setbacks have raised serious doubts that it will be achieved by the end of the year as hoped.
	Fekl said the talks are weighted in favour of the Americans.
	"The Americans give nothing or just crumbs... That is not how negotiations are done between allies," he said.
	"We need a clear and 

France to call for halt to talks on EU-US trade deal: minister

Defending champion Novak Djokovic overcame an arm injury scare and long-time rival Rafael Nadal shone in 33-degree heat as the US Open showcased its $650 million upgrade on Monday.
     World number one Djokovic, also the 2011 winner in New York and chasing his third major of the year, defeated Jerzy Janowicz of Poland 6-3, 5-7, 6-2, 6-1.
     Nadal, the 2010 and 2013 champion and seeded to face Djokovic in the semi-finals, eased to a 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 win over Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan.
     In the women's event, second seeded Angelique Kerber, the Australian Open champion, needed just 33 minutes to progress but Roland Garros winner Garbine Muguruza required three sets and a visit from the doctor before she survived.
     Djokovic had admitted that he was "not 100 percent" after suffering a wrist injury on the eve of the Olympics where he was a first-round loser.
     But it was the upper right arm that bothered the Serb on Monday night as he played his first Grand Slam match since his 

Djokovic beats scare, Nadal eases at revamped US Open

A car driven by a suicide bomber exploded after ramming through a gate at the Chinese embassy in Kyrgyzstan today, wounding three people, authorities said.
	"As a result of the explosion, only the suicide bomber terrorist died. Security guards were injured," Kyrgyzstan's Deputy Prime Minister Jenish Razakov told journalists.
	Razakov said the three wounded were all Kyrgyz employees of the Chinese embassy and that they had been taken to hospital. Local medics said their injuries were not serious.
	Bishkek police sources told AFP that a Mitsubishi Delica car smashed through a gate at the embassy before blowing up in the centre of the compound close to the ambassador's residence.
	Another source from the security service of the ex-Soviet Central Asian nation -- which borders China -- said an "explosive device" had been placed inside the vehicle.
	Local residents told AFP that the blast had blown in their windows and caused their houses to shake.
	Employees from the Chinese and nearby ...

Three hurt in suicide blast at China's Kyrgyzstan embassy

Hurricane Madeline is expected to pass near Hawaii midweek, US weather forecasters said today, threatening dangerous flooding and disruptions to a planned visit by President Barack Obama and other dignitaries.
	Currently a Category Three hurricane, Madeline is expected to pass "dangerously close" to Hawaii's Big Island tomorrow, carrying heavy rain and strong winds, the US National Weather Service said.
	The hurricane was some 575 miles (925 kilometers) east of Hilo, Hawaii at 0300 GMT today.
	The storm has maximum sustained winds of 125 miles per hour, and was moving toward west-northwest at around 10 miles per hour.
	Madeline was expected to begin turning gradually to the west, then move west-southwest.
	It is expected to dump five to 10 inches (12.7 to 25.4 centimetres) of rain on Hawaii, with some areas receiving up to 15 inches.
	"This rainfall may lead to dangerous flash floods and mudslides," the NWS Central Pacific Hurricane Center said.
	Madeline's current path in the central 

Hurricane Madeline threatens Hawaii

Oil prices edged up in Asia today, a day after retreating on a stronger dollar, but worries about a global supply glut are keeping gains in check ahead of a key producers' meeting next month.
	Both main contracts tumbled yesterday after Federal Reserve boss Janet Yellen indicated a possible US rate hike this year, sending the greenback rallying and making crude more expensive to holders of other currencies.
	Investors moved in to pick up bargains Tuesday and at about 0400 GMT, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate rose 21 cents, or 0.45 per cent, to USD 47.19 while Brent was 13 cents, or 0.26 per cent, up at USD 49.39.
	Attention is now on the release of US jobs data Friday -- which should give an idea about the Fed's plans for rates -- before Russia and OPEC hold talks in Algeria to discuss the oversupply crisis that has dented prices for years.
	"It's probably natural to see some bounce after yesterday's per cent fall," said Bernard Aw, market strategist at IG Markets in ...

Oil edges back in Asia after sharp losses

A car today exploded after ramming a gate at the Chinese embassy in the capital of ex-Soviet Kyrgyzstan, police said.
	Local medics said the driver of the car was killed while two Kyrgyz embassy staff and a woman were lightly wounded in the blast.

Car explodes at Chinese embassy in Kyrgyzstan: police

A woman has been killed after a truck carrying airbag parts made by Japan's troubled Takata exploded in a massive fireball on a US highway, the firm confirmed today.
	Four others were injured when the vehicle, which was on its way to a company factory, erupted "like a big bomb", local police said.
	The damage was so extensive that the dead woman had to be identified through dental records, they said.
	"It created a big crater," said Tom Schmerber, the sheriff of Maverick County, Texas, where the August 22 accident occurred.
	"It burned and killed a woman in a house 30 feet (nine metres) away. Her body was completely disintegrated, but they did manage to find two teeth so they could identify her."
	However, Tokyo-based Takata -- hammered by a defect in its airbag inflators linked to at least 15 deaths and scores of injuries globally -- denied the accident was related to the problem part.
	"We don't think the accident has anything to do with the defect," a company spokeswoman said, ...

Truck with Takata airbag parts explodes, kills US woman

Car explodes at Chinese embassy in ex-Soviet Kyrgyzstan:

Design flaws and a series of problems over six years led to the collapse of a mine dam and the loss of 19 lives in Brazil's worst environmental disaster, mining giant BHP Billiton said today.
	A technical report commissioned by the world's biggest miner and Brazil's Vale -- the co-owners of the mine's operator Samarco -- found a chain of events from 2009 to 2015 caused the November 5 catastrophe, which unleashed a tsunami of toxic waste and buried a nearby village.
	Samarco is facing billions of dollars in legal claims for clean-up costs and damages.
	The 76-page report by an expert panel led by Canadian geotechnical engineer Norbert Morgenstern did not assign blame.
	"It is a very detailed, technical report 10 months in the making," BHP's chief commercial officer Dean Dalla Valle said in a media teleconference.
	"Given the legal proceedings, it wasn't appropriate that we actually try to use this process to attribute blame," he said, adding that "we have no reason to believe that ...

Design flaws led to deadly Brazil mine disaster: report

Rafael Nadal and Angelique Kerber shrugged off sweltering temperatures to reach the US Open second round Monday as French Open champion Garbine Muguruza survived a worrying health scare.
     Nadal, the 2010 and 2013 champion, took his perfect first round record in New York to 12-0 with a 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 win over Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan.
     The Spaniard's reward for a fifth win in five meetings against the Russian-born player is a match-up with Italian veteran Andreas Seppi.
     A wrist injury forced Nadal into an early retirement at the French Open and sidelined him from Wimbledon before a gold medal run in the doubles at the Olympics helped ease his misery.
     "The most important thing is that I am here in New York. Injuries are part of the career. I had a hard time this year," said the fourth seed.
     Kerber needed just over 30 minutes to get her pursuit of a first US Open title off to a winning start.
     The second seed and Australian Open champion was leading Polona ...

Nadal, Kerber breeze at US Open, Muguruza survives

A strong typhoon was on course today for a direct hit on northeastern Japan, with authorities warning of heavy rain and high waves along the Pacific coast.
	Typhoon Lionrock was 170 kilometres east of the city of Choshi, as of 9 am (local time). Choshi lies straight east of Tokyo.
	Packing wind gusts up to 180 kilometres per hour, the storm was moving north at 30 kilometres per hour and expected to make landfall in the northeast later in the day.
	That would make it the first typhoon to directly land in the region from the Pacific Ocean since the country's present weather observation system was introduced in 1951, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
	Typhoons usually approach Japan from the south and southwest before moving northward across the archipelago.
	Lionrock, which formed more than 10 days ago, has become the longest-lasting typhoon of those that have developed north of the 30th parallel north, breaking a 46-year-old record, according to the private Weathernews ...

Strong typhoon Lionrock aims for Japan's northeast

A Swiss army fighter jet went missing over the Alps yesterday and is believed to have crashed, the defence ministry said, adding that a large-scale search and rescue operation had been launched.
	The F/A-18 C single-seater had been taking part in a training exercise with a second plane when all radio contact with the pilot was suddenly cut at 4:05 PM , the ministry said in a statement yesterday.
	"Since then, he has been declared missing," it said.
	The suspected crash site is in the area around the Susten Pass in the centre of the mountainous country, and is very difficult to access, the ministry said.
	Two helicopters had initially taken part in the search, but as night fell and weather conditions worsened they were forced to land.
	The ministry said they would resume their flights as soon as the weather permitted, and that in the meantime, two ground crews of rescue workers and mountaineering experts were continuing the search.
	"The military command's thoughts are with the pilot's 

Swiss fighter jet missing, believed crashed: ministry

Portugal's former prime minister Antonio Guterres is still the frontrunner to become the next secretary-general of the United Nations following a third straw poll, diplomats said.
	Guterres, who served as UN refugee chief for 10 years, received 11 votes of encouragement, three "discourage" votes and one "no opinion" during the informal vote held yesterday by the 15-member Security Council.
	It is the third time that the 67-year-old has taken the number one spot in the contest to succeed Ban Ki-moon, who steps down on December 31 after 10 years as the world's top diplomat.
	During the first round, Guterres took the lead with 12 "encourage" votes and three "no opinion," but he picked up two "discourage" votes in the second straw poll, along with 11 encouragements and two "no opinion."
	While Guterres's ranking dropped slightly in the third straw poll, diplomats said he still held a strong lead in the race to take the helm of the world body.
	"He remains well ahead of the pack," a ...

Portugal's Guterres still leads race to be UN chief: diplomats

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto's alma mater has said he had plagiarized parts of his law school thesis, confirming an investigative news site's report last week.
	Mexico's Panamerican University said yesterday it had reviewed the president's 25-year-old thesis and found five types of "treatment of the ideas of others."
	They included "textual reproductions of citations without footnotes or mention in the bibliography," it said in a statement.
	In other cases, Pena Nieto reproduced passages from works referenced in his bibliography without indicating they were citations, or "ambiguously or imprecisely" credited the author, it said.
	The assessment came after the website Aristegui Noticias concluded that 197 of the 682 paragraphs in Pena Nieto's thesis were plagiarized, based on analysis and speaking with professors.
	The university said there is nothing it can do as the plagiarism happened years ago and its code of conduct does not apply to former students.
	However, it has ...

Mexican president plagiarized in thesis: university

Hollywood star Gene Wilder, who delighted audiences with his comic turns in "Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory" and several Mel Brooks classics including "Blazing Saddles" and "The Producers," died Monday at age 83, Variety magazine reported.
	The weekly trade journal quoted his nephew Jordan Walker-Pearlman as saying the actor died of complications from Alzheimer's disease at his home in Connecticut.
	His agent told AFP he could not immediately confirm the report.

'Willy Wonka' star Gene Wilder dead at 83: Variety

A warming planet might not dry out Earth as much as previously believed, because plants will become less thirsty as carbon dioxide in the atmosphere rises, researchers said today.
	Previous studies have projected that more than 70 per cent of the planet will experience more drought as carbon-dioxide levels quadruple from pre-industrial levels over about the next 100 years, said the report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
	But many of these models fail to account for how plant behaviour will change in a warming world.
	Plants take in CO2 through openings called stomata, which also release moisture. But when CO2 is abundant, these stomata stay open for shorter periods, lose less water, and therefore need less water from the soil.
	"A number of studies assume that plant water needs are staying constant, when what we know about plants growing in lots of carbon dioxide suggests the opposite," said lead author Abigail Swann, a University of Washington assistant ...

Plants less thirsty as climate warms: study

US President Barack Obama will meet his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday in China on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit, with Syria high on the agenda, top aide Ben Rhodes announced today.
	The Turkish operation inside Syria against Islamic State (IS) jihadists and the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) has put Washington in a difficult position between its Kurdish partners and Ankara.

Obama, Erdogan to meet Sunday in China on G20 sidelines:WHouse

A lawsuit filed in Silicon Valley federal court over the weekend accuses Apple of knowingly selling defective iPhone 6 models with screens that stop responding to touch.
	Attorneys representing the three Apple smartphone owners named as plaintiffs in the litigation asked that the case be granted class-action status to represent anyone in the United States who has bought an iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus.
	"This action arises from Apple's concealment of a material design defect that causes the touchscreens on the iPhones to become unresponsive and fail for their essential purpose as smartphones," the civil complaint contended.
	The lawsuit accused Apple of refusing to repair iPhones free of charge despite knowing that a design flaw was a fault.
	Apple did not respond to an AFP request for comment.
	According to the lawsuit, chips that handle touchscreen input were not properly secured to logic boards and failed under normal wear-and-tear.
	"The internet is replete with examples of blogs and 

AFP

AFP

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