Disgraced Paralympian Oscar Pistorius could return to jail on Wednesday, when a judge is set to sentence him for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp three years ago.
	Pistorius was freed from prison in the South African capital Pretoria last October after serving one year of a five-year term for culpable homicide -- the equivalent of manslaughter.
	But an appeals court upgraded the conviction to murder, which has a minimum standard sentence of 15 years. Due to his time already spent in jail and mitigating factors such as his disability, he may be given a lesser term.
	Pistorius, 29, shot Steenkamp to death in the early hours of Valentine's Day in 2013, claiming he mistook her for a burglar when he fired four times through the door of his bedroom toilet.
	Judge Thokozile Masipa, who heard the original trial, will deliver the sentence three weeks after a court hearing that marked another episode of high drama in the long-running case.
	Pistorius, sobbing heavily, hobbled on his ...

Jail looms as Pistorius to be sentenced for murder

PTI Automatic

A senior Hong Kong delegation will head to Beijing for talks following explosive revelations by a bookseller who said he was detained for eight months on the mainland, the city's leader said today.
	Lam Wing-kee, 61, has said he was seized after crossing the border into the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, taken away blindfolded and then kept in a cell without access to a lawyer for alleged involvement in bringing banned books into the mainland.
	The case has laid bare growing anxiety that the semi-autonomous city's freedoms are disappearing.
	Lam was one of five employees of a Hong Kong firm which published gossipy books about leading Chinese politicians to go mysteriously missing last year. All later emerged in mainland China.
	Hong Kong's Beijing-backed chief executive Leung Chun-ying said a team of senior officials would visit Beijing to discuss Lam's case and review the "existing notification mechanism between the two places".
	Under that mechanism, authorities on the mainland .

Hong Kong officials to visit Beijing for talks over bookseller

Israeli forces demolished the West Bank homes of two Palestinian knifemen whose December attack led to the death of two Israelis, including one by friendly fire, the army said today.
	The overnight demolitions took place in the Qalandia refugee camp, between Jerusalem and Ramallah, with four Palestinians wounded in ensuing clashes, an AFP reporter said.
	A military spokeswoman said the forces had razed the homes of Issa Assaf and Annan Hammed, who were shot dead during a December 23 attack near Jerusalem's Old City.
	"Armed with knives, the two assailants stabbed pedestrians at the scene, brutally killing rabbi Reuven Birmajer and wounding a civilian," the spokeswoman said. "In addition, Ofer Ben Ari was killed" by security forces who shot Assaf and Hammed dead.
	"During the demolition, multiple violent riots erupted," with Palestinians throwing rocks and opening fire, the spokeswoman said. Israeli forces eventually opened fire at "main instigators," she said.
	Four Palestinians were .

Israel razes homes of 2 Palestinian assailants

Death toll mounts to over 200 in the IS-claimed Baghdad

A Russian couple from Fiji are thought to have been murdered and dismembered after human body parts washed up on a beach in the Pacific island nation.
	The Fiji Sun said two pairs of feet wrapped in netting and weighed down with stones were found on June 24 at Natadola beach, a popular tourist destination.
	Further searches uncovered more remains, with speculation connecting the grisly find to the disappearance a week earlier of Russian couple Yuri and Natalia Shipulin.
	Lead investigator Luke Navela said DNA tests with the Shipulins' relatives back in Russia had confirmed the link, and police now believed they had been murdered and dismembered, the Sun reported.
	Citing police sources, the newspaper said detectives had information a chainsaw was missing from the couple's farm on the main island of Viti Levu.
	The Fiji Times reported that the couple moved to Fiji in 2011 and were leasing the farm and operating a photography business.
	A friend, fellow Russian Alla Mallerich, described 

Russian couple murdered, dismembered in Fiji

Wales manager Chris Coleman would "never, ever" consider taking charge of beleaguered rivals England but as he plots the downfall of Portugal in Wednesday's Euro 2016 semi-final he said a move abroad is possible.
	Having guided Wales to a first ever major tournament semi-final by masterminding a stirring 3-1 win over Belgium last Friday, Coleman's star is firmly in the ascendant.
	England are seeking a new manager after Roy Hodgson quit following their last 16 humiliation by Iceland. Coleman is not expecting a call from the Football Association and said he has no interest in the job.
	"I'm a Welshman through and through. At international football, it was only Wales, it would only ever be Wales. My next job after Wales, whenever that is, will be somewhere, maybe abroad.
	"To manage another country? No, I wouldn't. That's not something I would consider."
	Welsh fans have been revelling in the failure of England at the European Championship finals. But Coleman expressed sympathy for ...

Manage England - 'never', says Wales' Coleman

A suicide bomber blew himself up near the United States consulate in Saudi Arabia's Red Sea city of Jeddah today, reported the Sabq online newspaper, which is close to authorities.
	It said two security officers were hurt "as a result of the failed bombing" on July 4, the day when Americans celebrate their independence.
	Security officers sealed off the area after "a person blew himself up in a car in front of the US consulate in Jeddah," the report said.
	There was no immediate word on who was responsible, but since late 2014 Saudi Arabian security officers and minority Shiites have been hit by deadly violence claimed by the Islamic State group.
	The incident happened just before the dawn prayers after which Muslims begin their daily fast during the holy month of Ramadan.
	American embassy officers could not be reached immediately, but the Saudi interior ministry said it would issue a statement.
	In March last year the US embassy closed its main office, as well as consulates in ...

Suicide bombing near US consulate in Saudi: report

Rio might be one month from hosting the Olympics, but for residents like Elizabeth Ferreira, who faces a daily nightmare on public transport, the road to a successful Games looks far from clear.
	In the final run-up to the August 5 opening ceremony, organisers say that stadiums are all but ready.
	However, transport in a city with difficult geography and horrendous traffic jams remains a headache.
	There are also fears over the Zika virus, rising crime and political instability ahead of a vote on whether to strip Dilma Rousseff of the presidency. A brutal recession has driven the state of Rio into near bankruptcy, with police, doctors and teachers protesting that they have not been fully paid for months.
	"The Olympic Games could be a failure," warned interim governor Francisco Dornelles recently.
	Rio residents seem guardedly optimistic. A poll published Sunday by O Globo found that 61 per cent think the Games will be a success.
	However, 85 percent see crime and 39 percent see ...

Transport problems risk snarling Rio Olympic dream

Olivier Giroud scored twice to take man-of-the-match honours as France marched into the Euro 2016 semi-finals but even after a 5-2 hammering, Iceland departed with pride having struck new underdog blows.
	France now play Germany aiming to settle old scores from past World Cups and Euros. And having home advantage and an attack led by Giroud and Antoine Griezmann that is starting to fire gives the French growing confidence.
	The semi-finals will start on Wednesday however with Gareth Bale's Wales taking on Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal.
	Giroud hit a goal in each half of the comprehensive victory at a rain-drenched Stade de France. He was joined on the scoresheet by Paul Pogba, Dimitri Payet and Griezmann. Atletico Madrid striker Griezman hit a brilliant chip on the stroke of half-time and now leads the tournament rankings with four goals.
	French coach Didier Deschamps may have been worried however by the way Kolbeinn Sigthorsson and Birkir Bjarnason exposed France's defensive ...

France into Euro 2016 semis, Iceland finish with a bite

A Malaysian is among eight men charged over a seizure of the drug "ice" worth some Australian dollars 275 million (USD 206 million) in Australia, authorities said today.
	Some 275 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine were found under the floorboards of shipping containers after a tip-off, the Department of Immigration and Border Protection said.
	As part of a controlled operation, the containers were delivered to an industrial estate in Melbourne and seven Australians and one Malaysian, all aged between 24 and 34, arrested.
	"Three were charged with commercial drug importation offences and the five others were charged with attempting to possess and trafficking a large commercial quantity of methylamphetamine," the department said, with the maximum penalty life imprisonment.
	Australian police said they worked with Chinese authorities on the case, as they cooperate to fight criminal syndicates trafficking ice to Australia and internationally.
	The arrests come after 14 suspected ...

Malaysian charged in Australia over $206 mln meth haul

Suicide bombing near US consulate in Saudi: reports (AFP)

Israel today barred the Hebron governor from entering its territory after he visited the family of a Palestinian who killed a US-Israeli teenage girl in her sleep, officials said.
	On Thursday, 19-year-old Mohammed Nasser Tarayra broke into the Jewish settlement of Kiryat Arba in the West Bank on the outskirts of Hebron and killed 13-year-old Israeli-American Hallel Yaffa Ariel before being shot dead by a security guard.
	The murder sparked outrage and prompted Israel to lock down Hebron, a flashpoint city in the occupied Palestinian territory.
	The decision to bar mayor Kamal Humeid from Israel was taken by COGAT, the Israeli defence ministry unit which manages civilian affairs for Palestinians in the West Bank and liaises with Gaza.
	A statement said Humeid had paid a condolence visit to Tarayra's family and was therefore "barred from entering Israel" and that he had been stripped of "his privileges", without elaborating.
	Humeid said on Facebook he does not enjoy any special ...

Israel bars Hebron mayor over condolence visit

Egypt's human rights council said today that the authorities' human rights record had not improved, noting a string of enforced disappearances by the police and abuse of prisoners.
	The National Council for Human Rights, the country's official rights watchdog, made the remarks in an annual report.
	"The human rights situation in the country has not changed in spite of the adoption of the new constitution two years ago," the report said.
	It added that the council had raised 266 cases of enforced disappearances with the interior ministry, of whom 27 were since revealed to have been released while 143 remained in pretrial detention.
	The ministry responded that 44 of the missing people had not been arrested, and may have disappeared for other reasons, including to join jihadist groups, the council's report said.
	The cases were documented between April 2015 and the end of March this year.
	"Human rights causes have not yet become a priority for the state," it said.
	Rights groups had ...

Egypt rights watchdog criticises disappearances, torture

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, said today he believes British politicians will honour their nation's vote to quit the bloc.
	"We cannot imagine this could stop somehow," Fico, the head of a centre-left coalition cabinet, said in a moderated discussion with his Czech counterpart on the public Czech Television channel.
	"It is theoretically possible, but I really can't imagine British politicians standing up against the outcome of the referendum," he added.
	In the chaotic wake of Britain's shock June 23 vote to leave the European Union there has been speculation about whether the country's leaders could effectively annul the referendum's results.
	Slovakia, an EU and eurozone member of 5.4 million people, took the EU helm on Friday, a week after the Brexit vote, whose outcome will shape the agenda of its six-month presidency of the bloc.
	MPs in the 150-member Slovak parliament started petitioning for a similar referendum in ...

Slovak PM believes Britain will respect Brexit vote

Most Rio de Janeiro residents think the Olympics next month will be a success, but an overwhelming number worry that violence could ruin the Games, according to a poll today.
	The poll published by O Globo newspaper a month before the opening ceremony on August 5 found that 85 percent of city residents see violent crime as a threat to the success of the first Olympics held in South America.
	The next biggest threat cited, at 39 percent, was inadequate transport.
	Health fears such as the mosquito-carried Zika virus came at the bottom of the list, with only 17 percent thinking this poses a serious threat to the Games.
	International health organizations, Brazil and numerous foreign governments warn that Zika, which is believed to have the potential for causing birth defects if pregnant women are infected, should be taken seriously during the Olympics.
	Some athletes, notably golf players, have cancelled participation in the Olympics because of Zika fears.
	Despite a rise in crime in ...

Crime, transport top Rio Olympic concerns: poll

Israel today condemned a request from British police to interview ex-foreign minister Tzipi Livni, reportedly over suspicions of war crimes in the 2008-2009 Gaza conflict.
	Israel's foreign ministry said in a statement that it viewed the request "with great concern".
	"We would have expected different behaviour from a close ally such as the UK," it said in a statement.
	The reaction came after Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that Livni had received a request last week for an interview from Scotland Yard's war crimes unit ahead of her visit to London for a conference.
	The interview was said to be related to Israel's 2008-2009 war against Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip at a time when Livni was foreign minister.
	The request was cancelled after diplomatic contacts between Israel and Britain, Haaretz reported.
	Livni, currently an opposition member of parliament, has also been granted special diplomatic immunity in response, it said.
	The interview was to be on a voluntary ...

Israel condemns British request for Livni's interview

Senior European political figures appealed today for the EU to set aside lofty debate as it struggles with Brexit-style populism, and instead to focus on measures which clearly benefit citizens.
	Leading the charge, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble -- a linchpin of the Berlin coalition government -- scorned "political sermons," institutional reform and changes to EU treaties as proposed fixes for Europe's faultlines.
	"This is not a time for grand visions," the 73-year-old veteran minister, long a passionate supporter of the European project, told Welt am Sonntag weekly.
	"The situation is so serious that we have to stop playing the usual European and Brussels games," Schaeuble said.
	"The EU is facing an acid test, perhaps the greatest in its history."
	Schaeuble, a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU), said the EU had to work "with speed and pragmatism" to unlock growth and thus create jobs.
	He sketched initiatives from a common energy ...

Pleas for pragmatism as EU charts post-Brexit future

Officials say more than two dozen people were taken to hospitals and several others were arrested in and around the Kenny Chesney concert in Pittsburgh.
	Public safety spokeswoman Sonya Toler said 57 emergency medical transports were requested by 9 PM yesterday and 25 people were taken to hospitals, mainly for intoxication or intoxication-related injuries.
	Police reported a handful of arrests on charges including trespassing, ticket robbery, simple assault and public intoxication. Several dozen people were also cited for underage drinking. Toler said one officer injured his thumb while breaking up a fight.
	A 2013 concert by the country artist in the city drew national headlines after 73 people were arrested and patrons left behind more than 30 tons of trash.

25 people taken to hospitals during Kenny Chesney concert

Rival leaders of Libya's National Oil Corporation have agreed to unify their ranks, in a move expected to strengthen the country's vital oil industry ravaged by years of conflict, the NOC said.
	Oil is Libya's main natural resource with reserves estimated at 48 billion barrels, the largest in Africa.
	But production slumped in the aftermath of the 2011 revolt that ousted dictator Moamer Kadhafi as rival militias battled for control of oil terminals and two rival governments emerged.
	The Tripoli-based NOC was also split up by the conflict, with its legitimacy challenged by a rival oil corporation based in the east of the country and key installations coming under attack.
	But the two administrations have decided to bury the hatchet and "unify the National Oil Corporation", the NOC said in a statement late yesterday.
	It said NOC chairman Mustafa Sanalla would retain his post while Nagi el-Maghrabi, his counterpart appointed by the Libyan unity government's rivals in eastern Libya ...

Libya's oil authorities agree to unify ranks

US-backed rebels today accused Al-Qaeda-linked fighters of storming their headquarters in northwestern Syria and kidnapping their commander and dozens of other combattants.
	In an online statement, Jaish al-Tahrir (Liberation Army) said its commander, Mohammad al-Ghabi, was abducted from his father's home in the town of Kafranbel by Al-Nusra Front jihadists yesterday evening.
	It said Al-Nusra fighters also "kidnapped more than 40 members of Jaish al-Tahrir" and stole weapons from other bases and checkpoints set up in northwestern Syria.
	"We call on Al-Nusra Front to immediately release our commander and all the others who were kidnapped," the statement said, urging other Islamist groups to put pressure on the jihadists.
	The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed the incident and said the US had supported Jaish al-Tahrir with weapons and even salaries in the past.
	Al-Nusra has attacked several US-backed groups in northwestern Idlib province -- most recently raiding the ...

Qaeda fighters kidnap US-backed rebel chief in Syria

At least two people were killed and seven wounded in a nighttime car bomb attack targeting a security chief in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, a news agency and medical sources said today.
	LANA news agency, based in the country's east, said a vehicle exploded at around 2:00 AM (0530 IST) in a western suburb of Benghazi as a convoy of cars drove up carrying the chief of a forensic police unit.
	The two dead were in the convoy, it said, while civilians were among the wounded.
	A military source said the official, Hamada al-Ramli, escaped unhurt.
	"We have received seven wounded in the explosion, some in serious condition," Khalil Goueder, a spokesman for the Benghazi Medical Centre, told AFP.
	Benghazi, the country's second city, located 1,000 kilometres (600 miles) from Tripoli, has for the past two years been the scene of clashes between Islamists and forces loyal to a government based in eastern Libya.
	The Mediterranean city is plagued by frequent car bombings.
	Jihadists such 

AFP

AFP

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