The European Parliament's chief called today for British Prime Minister David Cameron to begin formal proceedings to leave the EU at a summit this week.
	Martin Schulz told German newspaper Bild am Sonntag that a period of limbo over Brexit would "lead to even more insecurity and thus endanger jobs".
	"Hesitating simply to accommodate the party tactics of the British conservatives hurts everyone," he said.
	"That is why we expect the British government to now deliver. The summit on Tuesday is the right time."
	The four biggest groups in the European Parliament have also drawn up a draft resolution calling for Cameron to set the Brexit ball rolling on Tuesday, Germany's Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung reported.
	This was crucial, the groups wrote, "to avoid damaging uncertainty for all and to preserve the integrity of the union".
	They added that "no new relationship of whatever kind between the United Kingdom and the EU can be agreed before (Britain's) exit accord has been ...

European Parliament urges Britain to begin EU exit Tuesday

PTI Automatic

A giant Chinese-chartered freighter is to nudge its way through the Panama Canal today to mark the completion of nearly a decade of expansion work forecast to boost global trade.
	The vessel, especially renamed COSCO Shipping Panama, will inaugurate the widened canal in an hours-long voyage from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean via a new shipping lane and gigantic locks that have been fitted to the century-old waterway.
	"It is a historic day for the country," Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela said yesterday.
	Several heads of state and foreign dignitaries have been invited to a ceremony marking the occasion.
	The United States -- which built the original canal opened in 1914 that is still in operation alongside the additions -- will be represented by the wife of US Vice President Jose Biden, Jill Biden, and the US ambassador to Panama.
	The United States and China are the two most frequent canal users. Its expansion is expected to greatly benefit commercial traffic between ...

Chinese ship inaugurates wider Panama Canal

Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards said it killed five armed rebels in recent clashes along its border with Iraqi Kurdistan, state media reported.
	A statement from the Guards, published late Saturday by official news agency IRNA, said "five armed rebels linked to counter-revolutionary groups" were killed on Friday night.
	It did not give the name of the rebel group, though a number of separatist Kurdish insurgencies are known to be active in the region.
	There have been increasing reports of clashes in the northwest after a period of relative calm over the past year or more.
	The Revolutionary Guards said on June 16 that similar clashes had led to the death of 12 "terrorists" and three Iranian soldiers in the city of Oshnavieh.
	That followed reports that five Kurdish rebels were killed in the region a few days earlier.

Iran says five rebels killed in Kurdish region

One man was killed and several buildings torched in violence at a university in Papua New Guinea, its vice-chancellor said today, some two weeks after police opened fire on students in the capital.
	Students have been protesting against Prime Minister Peter O'Neill, who is being investigated for corruption.
	The undergraduate killed at the campus in Lae, the country's second-largest city, was reportedly targeted amid clashes over class boycotts called as part of the protests.
	"We believe it is the same group (that killed the student and burnt the buildings)," said Albert Schram, vice-chancellor of Papua New Guinea University of Technology.
	He said several dozen men carrying stones, sticks and bush knives mounted the attack on Saturday night, "and they moved about very fast, so it was very difficult for our security forces to follow them or arrest them".
	Schram said the student, believed to be in his early 20s, was at a dormitory on campus when he was hurt in the "apparent targeted .

Student killed in attack at Papua New Guinea university

At least 82 people including 58 civilians were killed in Russian and regime air strikes on an Islamic State group-held area of eastern Syria, a monitor said today in a new toll.
	"Three Russian and Syrian regime air raids on the region of Al-Quriyah, southeast of Deir Ezzor city, killed 58 civilians," the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
	It added that 24 other people were killed, without specifying wether they were civilians or IS fighters.
	The Britain-based Observatory, which has a network of sources in Syria, initially reported that 47 people including 31 civilians died in the raids around Al-Quriyah.
	Russian warplanes have been carrying out an air war in support of President Bashar al-Assad since September 2015.
	IS holds around 60 percent of Deir Ezzor city, the capital of the province of the same name, which is next to the jihadist-held Raqa province.
	More than 280,000 people have been killed since Syria's conflict erupted in March 2011, after a widespread protest ...

Russian, regime raids killed 82 in IS-held east Syria

One of the biggest shake-ups in cricket history could take place when the sport's global governing body convenes in Edinburgh tomorrow.
     Radical plans for the creation of two divisions in Test cricket and a one-day international league will be on the agenda of the International Cricket Council's week-long annual meeting in the Scottish capital.
     Since Australia and England played the first Test in 1877, international matches have largely been matters for the two countries concerned and the same has generally been true of ODIs outside of tournaments such as the World Cup.
     The ICC has introduced weighted Test rankings but the complicated formula has failed to capture the imagination of cricket fans and the wider sporting public.
     With many top players increasingly tempted by offers to play in domestic Twenty20 events such as the Indian Premier League, where they can earn more money in less time than by playing Tests, officials are keen to give the long-format game ...

Two-division Tests and One-Day League on ICC agenda

AC Milan striker Carlos Bacca scored the only goal as Colombia defeated the United States 1-0 to clinch third place in the Copa America Centenario here.
     Bacca, 29, bundled home the winner on 31 minutes, nudging in from close range to settle a hard-fought contest yesterday.
     The US, beaten 4-0 by Argentina in the semi-finals on Tuesday, rallied desperately to get back into the game but ultimately were frustrated by some superb goalkeeping from David Ospina.
     It was the second time the US had been beaten by Colombia in this tournament. The Colombians also defeated them 2-0 in the tournament's opening match.
     US coach Jurgen Klinsmann had blamed his side for being "too nice" against Argentina in the semi-finals, when they failed to register a single shot either on or off target.
     However they were unlucky not to score during an entertaining game in Arizona.
     Colombia had gone closest to scoring first, Real Madrid star James Rodriguez being denied by a fine Tim ...

Colombia down US to grab Copa third spot

Serena Williams finds herself under siege from revitalised rivals and an army of doubters as the defending champion starts her bid for a seventh Wimbledon title and a record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam crown.
     Since she walked off Wimbledon's Centre Court cradling the Venus Rosewater Dish awarded to the women's champion nearly 12 months ago, Williams has found herself engaged in a losing battle with the history books.
     That Wimbledon final victory over Garbine Muguruza meant Williams had won all three of the year's major titles, putting her within touching distance of becoming the first woman to secure a calendar Grand Slam since Steffi Graf in 1988.
     But her historic bid came to stunning end in the US Open semi-finals when she was beaten by 300-1 outsider Roberta Vinci.
     In the aftermath of that chastening September day in New York, Williams has appeared a more vulnerable figure.
     For so long, Williams' power game and competitive instincts intimidated opponents into 

Serena battles rivals, self-doubt at Wimbledon

Having finally rid himself of his French Open curse, Novak Djokovic is chasing a third successive Wimbledon title to move one step closer to the first calendar Grand Slam in 47 years.
     The 29-year-old world number one, champion at Wimbledon in 2011, 2014 and 2015, has become the unstoppable Slam machine.
     His victory over Andy Murray in Paris gave him a 12th major, taking him to within two of Rafael Nadal's mark and five behind the record 17 of Roger Federer.
     But Nadal is missing from this year's Wimbledon, nursing a wrist injury, while seven-time All England Club champion Federer is without a major in four years and a shadow of the player he once was.
     World number two Murray, the Wimbledon champion in 2013, remains Djokovic's only serious rival but the British star has a 10-24 career record against the Serb.
     Djokovic has won 13 of their last 15 meetings and hasn't been defeated by Murray at a Slam since the Wimbledon final three years ago.
     Djokovic ...

Unstoppable Slam machine Djokovic eyes fourth Wimbledon title

Influential conservative columnist George Will says he is leaving the Republican Party over Donald Trump's polarising presidential campaign and urged others to follow suit, even if it means rival Democrats take the White House.
	Will, a Washington Post columnist, told a luncheon Friday: "This is not my party," according to the conservative PJ Media news website.
	The Pulitzer Prize winner told the media outlet Republicans should "make sure" Trump loses, after giving a speech at the conservative Federalist Society luncheon.
	Will said he had changed his voter registration from Republican to "unaffiliated" this month.
	During the event, Will said it would be worse for Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, to be president with "no opposition" from a Republican-led Congress than for Hillary Clinton to be president with a Republican-led Congress.
	Will did not indicate whether he would vote for Libertarian Party nominee Gary Johnson, a former governor of New Mexico, noting that it was 

Top conservative columnist leaving Republican Party over Trump

It was "ugly", "unfair" and "cruel" but Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Robert Lewandowski got through to the Euro 2016 quarter-finals and that is all that Portugal, Wales and Poland care about.
     Ricardo Quaresma's header after skipper Ronaldo's shot was deflected with extra time running out saw Portugal defeat Croatia 1-0 and set up a last eight clash against Poland.
     Bayern Munich star Lewandowski again failed to score but Poland beat Switzerland 5-4 in a penalty shootout after they were deadlocked 1-1 at 120 minutes.
     Wales's Bale hit the 75th-minute pinpoint cross that Northern Ireland's Gareth McAuley turned into his own net in the only goal of their game Saturday. Wales now play the winner of Sunday's game between Hungary and Belgium.
     Bale, the tournament's joint leading scorer with Alvaro Morata of Spain on three goals, was brutally honest after the Parc des Princes game in Paris. It does not matter how you win.
     Northern Ireland closed down Bale for so .

Ronaldo, Bale, Lewandowski go through on 'cruel' Euro day

US Secretary of State John Kerry left Washington to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of the publication of an international report expected to criticize Israeli settlement building.
	Kerry was flying yesterday to Rome to meet the Israeli leader on today and tomorrow. Some reports have suggested he will use the meeting to assess the possibility of reviving the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
	But US officials have been careful not to predict any breakthroughs and the meeting is likely to touch on the imminent release of a report by the Quartet, which is seeking to foster a "two-state" solution to the conflict.
	This diplomatic group - the United Nations, the European Union, the United States and Russia - is concerned that Palestinian violence and Israel's building on occupied land is pushing the prospect of peace further away.
	This week, ahead of Kerry's trip, his spokesman John Kirby said: "There are plenty of issues coming up that merit Israel and the United States's .

Kerry flies to Rome for Netanyahu meeting

Political newcomer and history professor Gudni Johannesson claimed victory in presidential election in Iceland, after early results showed him garnering 37.8 per cent of votes.
	"All the votes have not been counted, but I think we have won," Johannesson told supporters yesterday after 32 per cent of ballots had been counted.

Johannesson claims victory in Iceland presidential vote

Panama is preparing to officially open its canal this weekend to far bigger cargo ships after nearly a decade of expansion work aimed at boosting transit revenues and global trade.
	Tomorrow, a VIP ceremony will be held on the banks of the canal to inaugurate the completion of the works.
	President Juan Carlos Varela will unveil the new locks and third shipping lane built into the 102-year-old canal. Foreign dignitaries, including the presidents of Taiwan, Chile and other Central American nations, will be present at the ceremony.
	A Chinese-owned Neopanamax-class cargo ship will be the first vessel to officially test the new infrastructure, entering from the Atlantic and exiting into the Pacific a few hours later.
	The Neopanamax vessels are much bigger than the Panamax-class ships that previously were the largest able to pass through the 80-kilometer long canal. Each is able to haul three times as much cargo as the smaller predecessors.
	The expansion work began in 2007 and was meant 

Newly expanded Panama Canal opens for bigger business

Britain's bestselling novelist and two of its rock idols have mourned the country's "disastrous" vote to leave the EU, claiming it will lead to the break up of the country.
	Harry Potter author JK Rowling, an outspoken campaigner to remain in Europe, tweeted "I don't think I've ever wanted magic more" as it became clear early yesterday that the Leave camp had won.
	She later predicted that the United Kingdom would break up because of the vote. "Scotland will seek independence now. (Prime Minister David) Cameron's legacy will be breaking up two unions."
	Former Blur singer Damon Albarn wore a black armband as he played at the Glastonbury festival today, telling tens of thousands of fans that "democracy has failed us because it was ill-formed".
	Sixties legend Marianne Faithfull said she hoped "the situation can be saved and that parliament can still do something.
	"It is a disaster, " she told AFP. "I feel sick and very sad. We are back to where it used to be, the right-wing racist ...

Rock stars and celebrities react with dismay to Brexit

Protesters bearing Mexican flags invaded a Scottish golf course owned by Donald Trump today as the presidential hopeful visited the estate, which is hugely controversial locally.
	Holding home-made signs reading "Love Trumps hate" and "Stop the hating", the protesters rushed onto a hill overlooking the Trump International Golf Links clubhouse in northeastern Scotland.
	Trump employees ushered journalists away as the chanting protesters appeared, waving a gay rights rainbow flag and the red, white and green Mexican tricolours.
	Neighbours whose properties border the estate have raised the flag in a symbol of opposition and solidarity due to Trump's disparaging remarks about Mexican people and promise to build a wall on Mexico's border with the US.
	A Mexican flag waved in the breeze close by as Trump touched down on a golf course green in a helicopter emblazoned with his name.
	"I want the American journalists in particular to see it," said David Milne, whose house looks down on the ...

Protesters storm Trump golf course in Scotland

An Italian consumer group said today it suspected artist Christo's popular floating walkway on a lake had involved an unreasonable waste of public money.
	The organisation Codacons said it would be filing a complaint to the Lombardy region's spending watchdog on Monday.
	"The Floating Piers" has been a smash hit with the public with visitors flocking to experience the three-kilometre-long walkway of 200,000 floating cubes on Lake Iseo since it opened on June 18.
	But according to Codacons, the huge cost of cleaning up after tens of thousands of visitors and ensuring their safety made it questionable whether the art installation should have been authorised.
	"We want to know how much taxpayers' money has been spent on a project which, until now, seems to have generated enormous publicity for the artist without bringing direct benefits to local entities and citizens," the organisation said in a statement.
	Organisers of the installation this week announced they would have to close the ..

Christo artwork a 'waste of public money': watchdog

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin promised ever-closer cooperation and oversaw a series of deals today, as the two countries deepen ties in the face of growing tensions with the West.
	In what was Putin's fourth trip to China since Xi became President in 2013, the two men stressed their shared outlook which mirrors the countries' converging trade, investment and geopolitical interests.
	"Russia and China stick to points of view which are very close to each other or are almost the same in the international arena," Putin said.
	The Russian leader added that the two had discussed "strengthening together the fight against international terrorism", the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula, Syria, and stability in the South China Sea.
	Russia and China have been brought together by mutual geopolitical concerns, among them wariness of the United States.
	The two countries often vote as a pair on the UN Security Council, where both hold a veto, sometimes 

China, Russia eye closer friendship amid tensions with West

At least five people were killed in an attack today on a hotel in the Somali capital Mogadishu that was swiftly claimed by Al-Qaeda-affiliated Shabaab militants, police said.
	"What we know is that there were at least five victims, including three security guards, and that six others were injured," police official Ibrahim Mohamed said.
	The Shabaab group claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement distributed through social networks online.

Five dead in Mogadishu hotel attack claimed by Shabaab

The EU said today it had appointed Belgian Didier Seeuws, a longtime aide to former EU president Herman Van Rompuy, to head the union's special task force to negotiate Britain's exit.
	"I can confirm that... There is a task force which will handle all negotiations," Preben Aamann, a spokesman for current EU president Donald Tusk, told AFP, confirming Seeuws had been appointed to lead it.
	Aamann said Seeuws was currently doing preparatory work, with the negotiations yet to get underway pending a British decision to formally inform the council that it wanted to leave the European Union.
	Tusk and his EU peers said yesterday the talks, however difficult they might be, should begin as soon as possible to end the uncertainty caused by Britain's vote on Thursday to quit the 28-nation bloc.
	British Prime Minister David Cameron, announcing his resignation after the vote, said he would leave the negotiations to his successor, expected to take office in October.
	European Parliament President 

Belgian to head EU Brexit task force

Russian and regime air strikes killed 47 people, most of them civilians, and wounded dozens more today in a jihadist-held town in eastern Syria, a monitor said.
	The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the raids hit the town of Al-Quriyah, controlled by the Islamic State group in Syria's oil-rich Deir Ezzor province.
	Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said 31 civilians were identified among those killed, but that it was not immediately clear whether the 16 others were civilians or IS fighters.
	"IS fighters have now set up a security perimeter around the residential area, where the town's mosque is located," said Abdel Rahman.
	The Britain-based monitor -- which relies on a network of sources inside Syria for its information -- says it determines what planes carried out raids according to their type, location, flight patterns and the munitions involved.
	Russian warplanes have been carrying out an air war in support of President Bashar al-Assad since September 2015.
	More than ..

AFP

AFP

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