Ecuador's foreign minister voiced suspicion today that British intelligence was perpetually spying on his country's embassy in London, where Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is camped out.
	"There are cameras everywhere. It is one of the most spied on embassies in the world," Ecuador's top diplomat Guillaume Long told reporters in Geneva, on the sidelines of a Human Rights Council session.
	"You are very fortunate if you can even make a phone call from inside the embassy. Internet collapses all the time. Everything is hacked. It is a pretty hostile context for Mr. Assange, every day," Long said.
	Asked if he believed British intelligence was responsible for the espionage, Long said: "I have my suspicions."
	Assange, 44, is wanted for questioning over a 2010 rape allegation in Sweden but has been inside Ecuador's UK mission for more than four years in a bid to avoid extradition.
	The anti-secrecy campaigner, who denies the allegation, walked into the embassy of his own free will on ...

Ecuador denounces spying on Assange at London embassy

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A photographer used a drone to capture spectacular images of cascades of water gushing from a dam in central China, an annual event attracting thousands of tourists.
	Water thundered from channels built into the Xiaolangdi Dam on the Yellow River in the central province of Henan, producing huge waterfalls, waves and steam.
	The release is part of efforts to flush silt from the bottom of a reservoir behind the dam.
	The Yellow River is famously silty -- hence its name.
	The huge cascades pull in photographers each year, but a bird's eye view of the plumes of water was made possible Tuesday by a drone which revealed the huge scale of the event -- and the giant plumes of mud entering the river below the barrage.
	In an attempt to attract tourists, the nearby city of Luoyang puts on a "wave festival" each year.
	This year the event will run for a week, with water released at set times each day and air-conditioned buses laid on for viewers.
	The Xiaolangdi Project was completed in 2000 at .

China dam water release captured by drone

Turkey pointed the finger of blame at Islamic State jihadists today after suicide bombers armed with automatic rifles attacked Istanbul's main international airport, killing 41 people, including foreigners.
	Witnesses described scenes of terror and panic last evening as the attackers began shooting indiscriminately and then blew themselves up at the entrance to Ataturk airport, one of Europe's busiest hubs.
	The assault, which comes at the start of Turkey's crucial tourist season, was the latest in a wave of attacks in Istanbul and the capital Ankara blamed either on Islamic State (IS) jihadists or Kurdish rebels.
	There was no immediate claim of responsibility but Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said "the evidence points to Daesh", using another name for IS.
	The city's governor said 41 people were killed, including 13 foreigners, and 239 wounded.
	The dead include several Saudis, a Chinese national, a Tunisian and a Ukrainian.
	The carnage sparked global condemnation, with US ...

41 dead as Turkey blames IS for Istanbul airport carnage

President Barack Obama today offered US security assistance to Turkey after 41 people were killed in a suicide assault on Istanbul airport, the latest in a string of attacks to rock the US ally.
	Obama telephoned President Recep Tayyip Erdogan "to express his deep condolences on behalf of the American people," White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters traveling with the US leader to a summit in Ottawa.
	"In the context of that call, he will offer any support that the Turks can benefit from as they conduct this investigation and take steps to further strengthen the security situation in their country."
	"Any information that we obtain that could be useful to the Turkish investigation, we will certainly share that information," he added.
	Earnest did not indicate whether Turkey had officially sought US assistance following the latest attack.
	The United States earlier condemned as "heinous" Tuesday's bombing and gun assault on Istanbul's Ataturk Airport and pledged steadfast ...

Obama offers US help after Istanbul attacks: White House

Britain's car sector today said its growth depended on the country keeping "unrestricted access" to the European single market -- a situation thrown into doubt by Brexit.
	"Our growth depends on certainty and continued open and reciprocal access to the 100-plus markets with which the UK automotive industry so successfully trades," Mike Hawes, chief executive of industry body SMMT, said in a statement ahead of an annual conference in London on Wednesday featuring car bosses from across Europe.
	"This is not just finished cars but components, technologies and the wider automotive value chain. Any risks and uncertainty to these fundamental benefits need to be addressed head on by UK government," he added.
	Britain last week voted in a referendum to quit the European Union, causing Prime Minister David Cameron to announce that he planned to step down later this year.
	Ahead of the vote, major carmakers, including Nissan and Toyota, voiced fierce opposition to Brexit -- pointing to the ...

British car industry drives home EU benefits

Over a third of South Sudanese face starvation as the war-torn nation runs the risk of a full-blown famine, the UN and government said today.
	Despite a peace deal to end civil war, nearly five million people - more than ever before in the world's youngest nation - need food aid to survive.
	"The risk of famine cannot be ruled out," Minster for Agriculture Lam Akol said, a warning backed by the UN.
	Civil war erupted in South Sudan in December 2013 but rebel chief Riek Machar returned to the capital in April as part of a peace deal which saw him become vice president, forging a unity government with President Salva Kiir.
	Aid workers have been able to access some of the hardest hit areas since then, but violence continues between multiple militia forces who now pay no heed to either Kiir or Machar.
	"The level of food insecurity this year is unprecedented," the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), UN children's agency UNICEF and the World Food Programme (WFP) said in a joint ...

'Unprecedented' hunger in war-torn South Sudan: UN

Britain will not renege on its climate change commitments, energy and climate secretary Amber Rudd told investors today, just days after her country voted to quit the European Union.
	"While I think the UK's role in dealing with a warming planet may have been made harder..., our commitment to dealing with it has not gone away," she told finance and business leaders at the 2016 Climate and Business Summit in London.
	Yesterday, the UN's outgoing climate chief Christiana Figueres, told delegates "there is going to be quite a bit of uncertainty, transition and volatility for at least two years," following the Brexit vote.
	Rudd -- who campaigned for the "remain" camp -- urged "leave" figurehead Boris Johnson, a fellow Conservative and likely contender for the post of prime minister, to affirm that he is not a climate sceptic.
	The position of any candidate on this issue "will be absolutely central to who I support," she said, prompting a burst of applause from summit ...

Britain's commitment firm on climate: secretary

Iraq secured a deal today for a USD 2.7 billion US loan to finance the buying of ammunition and maintenance of tanks and fighters used in the fight against the Islamic State group.
	A US embassy statement said the declaration of intent was signed by Ambassador Stuart Jones and Iraqi Finance Minister Hoshyar Zebari.
	The US Foreign Military Finance credit facility will help Iraq "defer payment for the purchase of ammunition and maintenance of its F-16s (jets) and M1A1 (Abrams) tanks," Jones said.
	The deal gives Iraq eight-and-a-half years to pay for its military purchases, in what the statement said was part of Washington's efforts to ensure Baghdad's economic difficulties do not affect the fight against IS.
	Iraq, whose economy is overwhelmingly reliant on oil, is facing a bruising budget crunch caused by the drop in crude prices and the ongoing cost of the war on IS.
	The United States, which occupied Iraq for eight years, is the lead nation in a coalition providing Iraq with ...

Iraq inks deal for $2.7 billion US military loan

An international tribunal will hand down a ruling on July 12 in a highly-watched case brought by the Philippines challenging China's claims to most of the South China Sea.
	The Permanent Court of Arbitration has "informed the parties" that "the tribunal will issue its award on Tuesday, 12 July 2016 at approximately 11 am (local time)," the institution based in The Hague said in a statement.
	The verdict could further inflame tensions in the strategic waterway.

Hague court to rule July 12 in South China Seas case

EU leaders agreed today that Britain cannot have access to the single market after leaving the union without accepting the bloc's rules on free movement, president Donald Tusk said.
	"There will be no single market a la carte," Tusk told a news conference in Brussels after the 27 leaders met without British Prime Minister David Cameron.
	"Leaders made it crystal clear today that access to the single market requires acceptance of all four freedoms including freedom of movement," Tusk added.
	The 27 EU leaders will also hold a summit -- without Britain -- in Bratislava on September 16 to discuss further the fallout from Britain's decision to leave the bloc, Tusk said.
	The summit will come just days after Britain's ruling Conservative party is due to choose a successor to Cameron, who resigned on Friday after his country voted in a referendum to leave the EU by 52 percent to 48.
	"This was a first exchange so it is too early to draw conclusions. This is why we started a political ...

EU 27 agree 'no single market a la carte' for UK: Tusk

Israeli cabinet ministers today approved a deal reached with Turkey at the weekend on normalising relations after years of acrimony over a deadly 2010 raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla.
	The security cabinet approved the deal seven to three after four and a half hours of debate, giving it final Israeli government approval, a spokesman said.
	Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others have promoted its economic benefits, with talk of building a pipeline to Turkey to export Israeli gas, and the need to find allies in the turbulent Middle East.
	But there have been objections over Israel agreeing to pay USD 20 million in compensation to families of the Turkish activists killed in the raid.
	There were also allegations that the agreement does not do enough to push for the return of four Israelis missing in Gaza, two of them soldiers who have been declared dead and two of them civilians believed held alive by Hamas.
	Turkey will be allowed to deliver aid to Palestinians in Gaza as part ..

Israel cabinet approves reconciliation deal with Turkey

Dubai's transport authority announced today it had awarded a French-led consortium a USD 2.88 billion contract to extend its metro network to the site of the Expo 2020 world trade fair.
	The consortium, led by France's Alstom Conglomerate and also including Spain's Acciona and Turkey's Gulermak, will construct a 15 kilometre (nine mile) extension to the site of the fair, a statement said.
	Alstom will supply 50 trains, 15 of them for the new extension and 35 to upgrade existing services, the statement said.
	Ten international consortiums bid for the project, it said.
	"Negotiations were made with two of them in the final stage," it added.
	Road and Transport Authority chairman Mattar al-Tayer told AFP that a Japanese-led consortium including "capable" Mitsubishi was the runner-up but Alstom's offer was cheaper.
	"Both of them are competent but financially we find it cheaper for us to go with Alstom," he said.
	The government has already provided USD 409 million for the first six ...

Dubai awards Alstom-led consortium USD 2.88 bn metro extension

President Vladimir Putin today lifted Moscow's travel restrictions to Turkey and ordered trade ties normalised after his first phone call with counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan since Ankara downed a Russian jet last year.
	In the wake of the November incident Moscow slapped a range of sanctions on Ankara, including an embargo on some Turkish food products, as well as a ban on charter flights and sales of package tours to the country and the reintroduction of visas for Turkish visitors.
	"I want to start with the question of tourism...We are lifting the administrative restrictions in this area," Putin told government ministers in televised comments.
	"I ask that the Russian government begins the process of normalising general trade and economic ties with Turkey," he said.
	The breakthrough phone call by Putin to Erdogan came after the Turkish strongman on Monday sent a letter to the Kremlin leader that Moscow said contained an apology.
	In a statement, the Kremlin said that Putin ...

Putin lifts Turkey travel restrictions,orders trade normalised

British telecoms giant Vodafone warned today that the future of its London-based headquarters is in doubt after voters chose to quit the European Union.
	EU membership has been important to Vodafone's growth, the group said in a statement, with most of its 462 million customers and 108,000 employees based outside of Britain.
	The bloc offered free movement of people, money and goods, as well as access to an emerging European digital market, it said.
	"It remains unclear at this point how many of those positive attributes will remain in place once the process of the UK's exit from the European Union has been completed," Vodafone said.
	"It is therefore not yet possible to draw any firm conclusions regarding the long-term location for the headquarters of the group."
	Britons voted 52 per cent to 48 per cent in favour of leaving the 28-nation bloc in a June 23 referendum that has toppled Prime Minister David Cameron of the ruling Conservative Party and left the opposition Labour Party in 

Vodafone says UK headquarters in doubt after Brexit

An award-winning Tibetan film director was detained by police in China and ended up in hospital, officials and fellow cinematographers said today.
	Pema Tseden, whose most recent film "Tharlo" was shown at film festivals around the world, was taken away by police on Saturday at Xining airport in his home province of Qinghai, the Film Directors Guild of China and online reports said.
	He was detained over a "minor incident with local police about luggage", according to Robert Barnett, head of the Modern Tibetan Studies Program at Columbia University.
	Tseden, who is diabetic, was ordered to be detained for five days and suffered dizzy spells after being held in stress positions, Barnett said on Twitter, adding he was released to hospital on Monday.
	Tseden's 2005 movie "The Silent Holy Stones" was the first full-length film made in China to be shot entirely in Tibetan.
	His work often reflects the clash of traditional Tibetan life in the modern world, reflecting his personal ...

Award-winning Tibetan film director held by police

European leaders met today without Britain for the first time in 40 years to prepare for life after the Brexit bombshell, as the race began to succeed Prime Minister David Cameron.
	Highlighting the seismic shock from last week's referendum, one person who was in Brussels however was Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, "utterly determined" to see Scotland remain in the EU.
	Britain "made the decision that it did. And this morning it looks like they aren't sitting at the table any more," European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said as he arrived Wednesday.
	At a summit described as "sad" yesterday, Cameron won some breathing space from the remaining 27 leaders of the bloc five days after Britain rocked financial markets by voting 52 to 48 percent to leave the bloc.
	EU President Donald Tusk said he understood that time was needed "for the dust to settle" before the next steps can be taken.
	However, Juncker warned Britain did not have "months to meditate" before ...

EU leaves Britain out in the cold as PM race begins

A triple suicide bombing at Istanbul's international airport left 41 people dead, 13 of them foreign nationals, and 239 wounded, the city governor said in a statement.
	The governor's office said 109 of the 239 wounded were discharged from hospital.
	It said 13 of the dead were foreigners.
	A Turkish official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said five of the dead were from Saudi Arabia, two were from Iraq, and one from Tunisia, Uzbekistan, China, Iran, Ukraine and Jordan.
	No one has claimed today's attack yet but Turkish authorities said they suspect Islamic State (IS) jihadists.
	Turkey remains on high security alert after a series of attacks on its soil blamed not only on the IS group but also Kurdish militants.
	IS has never claimed an attack in Turkey. But authorities have blamed the grouo for several attacks, including a blast in Ankara in October 2015 that left over 100 people dead and an attack on Istanbul's busy tourist district Istiklal Street which killed three Israelis 

41 dead, 239 wounded in Istanbul attack: governor

Mongolians travelled to the polls today to elect a new national government as the country struggles to monetise its vast natural resources amid slumping demand for commodities from its largest trade partner China.
	The contest largely comes down to a choice between the ruling Democratic Party and the opposition Mongolian People's Party.
	On both sides campaigns have been heavy on bromides about economic development but light on concrete proposals for tackling voter concerns, including improving the country's educational and health care systems.
	In the lead up to the election, voters expressed their frustration with the country's poor governance and weakened economy, and many said they feared a repeat of 2008 riots that followed claims of election tampering.
	"(Politicians) have to fulfil all their promises. There are so many things to demand," said Ganbaatareen Jargal, a 25-year old construction worker, as he watched a campaign rally Saturday in a slum district bordering the capital .

Mongolian voters head to the polls amid economic uncertainty

Oil prices extended gains in Asia today, tracking a recovery in equity markets as leaders look to temper fears over the effects of Britain's shock EU exit, while traders bet on measures to negate any turmoil.
	Asian stocks and currencies have recovered this week after Friday's global sell-off, as speculation swirls that authorities will inject fresh stimulus into financial markets.
	Seoul yesterday unveiled a USD 17 billion plan to support South Korea's already fragile economy, while news emerged Wednesday that Japan's leaders were holding talks on how to contain any tailwind from the Brexit crisis.
	Also yesterday European Central Bank boss Mario Draghi said central banks should aim to align monetary policies to mitigate "destabilising spillovers".
	European leaders who gathered in Brussels for a two-day meeting urged Britain to act quickly to resolve the political and economic mayhem unleashed by the vote.
	At about 0630 GMT, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate rose 37 cents, or ...

Oil prices rise with recovering global markets

A triple suicide bombing and gun attack at Istanbul's Ataturk airport has killed at least 36 people, including foreigners, with Turkey's prime minister saying early signs pointed to an assault by the Islamic State group.
	The attackers began spraying bullets at the international terminal entrance before blowing themselves up at around 10:00 pm (1900 GMT) Tuesday, Turkish authorities said.
	It is the deadliest of four attacks to rock Turkey's biggest city this year, with two others blamed on IS and another claimed by a militant Kurdish group.
	Though there was no immediate claim of responsibility for Tuesday's carnage, "the evidence points to Daesh", Prime Minister Binali Yildirim told journalists at the scene, using another name for the jihadists.
	He said the dead included foreigners, but gave no further details. Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag put the number of wounded at 147.
	The attack prompted the suspension of all flights at the airport -- one of Europe's busiest hubs.
	Turkish ..

36 killed in Istanbul airport bombings as PM blames IS

Michael Phelps took another step toward a last Olympic hurrah as 2012 gold medalists Missy Franklin and Matt Grevers failed to qualify at the US Olympic swimming trials for the Rio Games.
     Seeking to add to his tally of 18 golds, Phelps topped the 200m butterfly semi-final times, winning his semi in 1min 55.17sec.
     Pace Clark was second-fastest, winning the other semi-final in 1:56.27.
     Phelps will have his first chance to secure his Rio berth in Wednesday's 200m fly final.
     The 30-year-old superstar can become the first US man to make a fifth Olympic swimming team.
     The disappointments for Franklin and Grevers underscored the difficulty of performing at such a high level for so long.
     Franklin, whose four gold medals in London included the 100m and 200m backstroke, could manage only seventh place in the 100m back won by Olivia Smoliga in 59.02sec.
     Kathleen Baker finished second in 59.29 to put herself on the road to Rio.
     Franklin faced an uphill ...

AFP

AFP

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