Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today criticised the deputy head of Israel's armed forces for remarks appearing to compare contemporary Israeli society to Nazi Germany.
	"The comparison drawn in the words of the deputy chief of staff regarding events which characterised Nazi Germany 80 years ago is outrageous," said Netanyahu.
	"They do injustice to Israeli society and cause a belittling of the Holocaust," the Israeli leader added.
	"The deputy chief of staff is an outstanding officer, but his remarks on this issue were utterly mistaken and unacceptable to me."
	In an address delivered Wednesday on the eve of Israel's Holocaust Remembrance Day, Major General Yair Golan said the commemoration "must bring us to reflect deeply on the nature of man, even when that man is ourselves".
	"If there is something that frightens me with the memory of the Holocaust, it is identifying horrifying processes that happened in Europe, and specifically in Germany, 70, 80 and 90 years ago, and finding ..

Netanyahu criticises general over Holocaust remarks

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Saudi Arabia's new energy minister today pledged to maintain the kingdom's oil policy, after being named in a major government overhaul.
	"Saudi Arabia will maintain its stable petroleum policies," Khalid al-Falih said in a statement a day after King Salman named him to replace longtime former oil minister Ali al-Naimi.
	"We remain committed to maintaining our role in international energy markets and strengthening our position as the world's most reliable supplier of energy," Falih added.

Saudi to maintain 'stable' oil policies: energy minister

At least 73 people were killed today when two buses and an oil tanker burst into flames in a head-on collision in eastern Afghanistan, health officials said, in one of the worst road accidents in the war-battered country.
	Many of the dead, including women and children, were burned beyond recognition and dozens of others were left wounded in the accident in Ghazni province, near the Afghan capital, one of the areas worst affected by the Taliban insurgency.
	"The death toll has soared to 73, most of them severely burned," ministry spokesman Ismail Kawoosi told AFP, warning that the toll was expected to rise still further.
	"Many of the wounded have been rushed to hospitals in (southern) Kandahar city and Ghazni."
	Kawoosi gave a sharply higher toll than other officials. Ghazni's governor Mohammad Aman Hamimi earlier reported seven fatalities but his own spokesman gave a death toll of 50.
	Afghanistan has some of the world's most dangerous roads and deadly accidents are common.
	At ...

Afghan road crash inferno leaves at least 73 dead

Turkish forces launched a salvo of artillery strikes on northern Syria that killed 55 members of the Islamic State group, Turkish news agencies reported on today.
	   Artillery units stationed near the border struck IS group targets near Aleppo last evening, destroying three missile launchers and three vehicles according to the state-run Anatolia news agency and the Dogan news service.
	   The reports could not immediately be independently verified.
	   Since the start of the year, the Turkish border town of Kilis has come under frequent attack from rockets fired across the border from Syria that have killed at least 21 people, prompting the army to respond with howitzer fire.
	   Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said this week that Turkey is ready to send troops into Syria "if necessary". Turkey has previously discussed a land invasion but ruled out intervening alone.
	   Turkey, which has been hit by attacks blamed on jihadists including two deadly suicide bombings in Istanbul 

Turkish army kills 55 IS members in Syria: reports

A group of Indonesian "cyber warriors" sit glued to screens, as they send out messages promoting a moderate form of Islam in the world's most populous Muslim-majority country.
	Armed with laptops and smartphones, some 500 members of the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) - one of the world's biggest Muslim organisations - are seeking to counter the Islamic State group's extremist messages.
	"We'll never let Islam be hijacked by fools who embrace hate in their heart," tweeted Syafi' Ali, a prominent member of the NU's online army, a typical message to his tens of thousands of followers.
	They are trying to hit back at IS's sophisticated Internet operations, which have been credited with attracting huge numbers from around the world to their cause.
	Internet propaganda is believed to have played a key role in drawing some 500 Indonesians to the Middle East to join IS, particularly among those living in cities where it is easier to get online.
	The dangers of the growing IS influence in Indonesia were 

Indonesia's Muslim cyber warriors take on IS

Israeli Arab Muslim leader Raed Salah started a nine-month prison sentence today for fomenting riots at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque.
	Salah was accompanied by about 100 well-wishers, including Israeli Arab lawmakers, as he arrived at the prison in the city of Beersheba in southern Israel's Negev desert, an AFP journalist said.
	At a farewell rally earlier in his home town of Umm al-Faham, in the north of the country, he exchanged hugs with supporters, local news agency Q-Press, considered close to the Islamic Movement, reported.
	"It is an honour for me to enter prison to defend and protect Al-Aqsa and Jerusalem," it quoted him as saying.
	"I enter prison by the will of God, not the will of Netanyahu."
	Salah leads the radical northern wing of the Islamic Movement in Israel, which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered banned last year after accusing it of encouraging violent protest that contributed to the October outbreak of a wave of unrest that has so far killed 203 ...

Israeli Islamic cleric starts nine-month prison term

Three Spanish journalists who were kidnapped some 10 months ago in Syria returned home to Spain today, a day after their release, the government said.
	"The Spanish journalists Jose Manuel Lopez, Angel Sastre and Antonio Pampliega who were kidnapped in Aleppo in northern Syria almost 10 months ago have arrived at Torrejon air base" near Madrid, the government said in a statement.
	The trio, who had been working for various Spanish media as freelancers around the time of their disappearance, were last seen in July 2015 in Aleppo where they had been reporting on fighting.
	Their release had been "possible thanks to the collaboration of allies and friends especially in the final phase from Turkey and Qatar", the Spanish government said yesterday in a statement.
	Some Spanish media, including top-selling daily newspaper El Pais, said the three had been abducted by Al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, the Al-Nusra Front.
	After they disappeared, Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo 

3 Spanish journos return home after Syria kidnapping ordeal

Six Afghan Taliban inmates on death row were hanged today, government sources said, in the first set of executions endorsed by President Ashraf Ghani since he came to power in 2014.
	"In accordance with the Afghan constitution... Ghani approved the execution of six terrorists who perpetrated grave crimes against civilians and public security," the presidential palace said in a statement.
	A government source told AFP that all six were Taliban inmates.
	Ghani last month vowed a tough military response against the Taliban and pledged to enforce legal punishments, including executions of convicted militants.
	His unusually strong remarks were in response to a Taliban assault on a security services office in the heart of Kabul, which left 64 people dead in what appeared to be the deadliest attack on the Afghan capital since 2001.
	The carnage on April 19 cast a pall over international efforts in recent months to jumpstart Pakistan-brokered peace talks, which stalled last summer after the .

Six Taliban inmates executed: Afghan government

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un told a rare ruling party congress that his country was a "responsible" nuclear weapons state, with a no first-use policy and a commitment to non-proliferation, state media reported today.
	Speaking to thousands of delegates gathered for the first Workers' Party congress in more than 35 years, Kim also announced a new five-year plan to boost the impoverished country's moribund economy and "revitalise" people's lifestyles.
	His remarks yesterday, the second day of the congress, came amid growing concerns that the North might be on the verge of conducting a fifth nuclear test.
	Kim had opened the congress with a defiant defence of the nuclear weapons programme, praising the "magnificent... And thrilling" test of what Pyongyang claimed was a powerful hydrogen bomb on January 6.
	But his report to the conclave yesterday stressed that North Korea was also a "responsible nuclear weapons state" with an arsenal built for deterrence.
	"Our republic will not use a 

N Korean leader says will only use nuclear weapons if attacked

Tens of thousands of security forces fanned out across the Philippines today on the eve of national polls, following a bitter and deadly election campaign plagued by rampant vote-buying and intimidation.
	Elections are a traditionally volatile time in a nation infamous for lax gun laws and a violent political culture, and they have been inflamed again this year by allegations of massive corruption from the local village to presidential level.
	"Vote-buying is everywhere," Commission on Elections (Comelec) commissioner Luie Guia told reporters.
	"We are receiving reports that everything is being used to buy votes, not only money. It could be (plastic) basins, groceries."
	Such small gifts are an effective, if illegal, way for politicians to win support in a nation where roughly one quarter of its 100 million people live below the poverty line.
	To try to check vote buying, the election commission has banned mobile phones in polling places. This is so people cannot photograph their ...

Security forces on alert ahead of tense Philippine elections

Six Taliban inmates on death row hanged: Afghan govt

"No one would choose this, it's obvious," said Anders who has unwanted sexual thoughts about children.
	He is at the forefront of a unique scientific study underway in Sweden to see if drugs can prevent paedophiles from acting on their urges.
	Anders, who agreed to be interviewed using a pseudonym, says he has never abused children but sought help because he knew his sexual fantasies were "not normal". He hopes the ground-breaking trial will halt his "improper" urges.
	At Stockholm's Karolinska Institute, patients like Anders who have sought help for paedophile fantasies, but have not acted on them, are being given a drug normally used to treat advanced prostate cancer to determine if it reduces the risk of them sexually abusing a child.
	"The goal is to establish a preventive treatment programme for men with paedophiliac disorder that is both effective and tolerable so that we can prevent child sexual abuse from happening in the first place," psychiatrist and lead researcher ...

Unique Swedish study tests drugs to prevent child sex abuse

Canelo Alvarez defended his World Boxing Council middleweight belt by knocking out Amir Khan with a vicious right hand late in the sixth round of their Las Vegas title fight.
     The 25-year-old hard-hitting Mexican dropped Khan with a straight right over a passive left jab that sent the Briton crumpling to the canvas with just 23 seconds left in the round yesterday.
     The back of Khan's head bounced off the deck, prompting his corner to rush to his aid as he lay motionless for a couple of minutes.
     Khan eventually got up and went to his corner.
	"Many people talk about my power but I have many more qualities in the ring and people saw that," Alvarez said. "I like to surprise everyone."
     The savage end to what was supposed to be the biggest fight of Khan's career will undoubtedly strengthen the notion that he has a soft chin.
	It was a shocking end to what had been a close fight up to that point.
	The 29-year-old Khan, who moved up two weight classes to face the bigger ...

Alvarez KOs Khan to retain WBC middleweight title

Honda Motor will recall an additional 20 million Takata-made airbags globally, a newspaper said today, in a widening scandal that has led to the biggest auto recall in US history.
	Tokyo-based auto parts giant Takata is struggling to deal with a defect that can send metal and plastic shrapnel from the inflator canister hurtling toward drivers and passengers when an airbag is deployed.
	The defect has been blamed for grisly injuries that have in some cases proved fatal.
	Honda, along with other automakers, has already been ordered by US authorities to recall all units that do not contain a desiccant that keeps explosives in airbags from deteriorating.
	The Japanese automaker now plans to widen areas for the recall to Asia, Oceania, Latin America and Europe, which will force the firm to recall another 20 million airbags or more globally, bringing the total number to more than 50 million, the Nikkei daily said.
	The additional cost is estimated at 200 billion yen (USD 1.87 billion), the .

Honda to recall 20 million more Takata airbags: report

There may be much Republican hand-wringing over Donald Trump's presumptive nomination to face the Democratic candidate for the White House, but the boastful billionaire says he doesn't care, and it doesn't matter.
	A growing chorus of senior Republican leaders have joined the "anyone but Trump movement," including 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney and the last two Republican presidents, George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush.
	"Does it have to be unified?" Trump asked about the Republican Party.
	"I'm very different than everybody else, perhaps, that's ever run for office. I actually don't think so," he told ABC's "This Week" in excerpts provided ahead today's broadcast.
	"I think it would be better if it were unified, I think it would be -- there would be something good about it. But I don't think it actually has to be unified in the traditional sense."
	A group of conservatives opposed to Trump's candidacy meanwhile announced it had launched a "formal effort" for an ...

Trump says no need for Republican unity

World number one Novak Djokovic set-up a mouthwatering Madrid Masters final showdown against defending champion Andy Murray by seeing off Japan's Kei Nishikori 6-3 7-6 (7/4).
     Murray, the second seed, earlier registered just his second ever win over Rafael Nadal on clay to make the final with a 7-5 6-4 victory.
     Djokovic has yet to drop a set in the Spanish capital this week but he was nearly caught cold by the windy conditions as he had to battle back from 0-40 down in the first game with some fine serving yesterday.
     The Serb slowly began to find his rhythm and broke through in the eighth game as Nishikori pulled a forehand wide before serving out for the set.
	Djokovic looked set to seal victory comfortably as he led 40-0 at 5-4 in the second set, but the Japanese star dug deep, saving the three match points and then a fourth as he broke back before forcing the tiebreak.
	However, the top seed bounced back to take the breaker 7-4 and set up his first meeting with Murray 

Djokovic downs Nishikori to set-up Murray Madrid final

French international Alexandre Lacazette hit a hat-trick as Lyon sealed a place in next season's Champions League by thrashing 10-man Monaco 6-1 at Parc OL.
     Second-placed Lyon went into yesterday's game ahead of Monaco in the Ligue 1 table on goal difference, and they pulled clear quickly with goals from Rachid Ghezzal and Lacazette inside the first eight minutes.
     Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa headed in a third after visiting striker Lacina Traore was sent off, and Lacazette dinked in before Ricardo Carvalho pulled one back before half-time.
	Centre-back Yanga-Mbiwa piled yet more misery onto Monaco just before the hour mark before Lacazette completed a hat-trick.
	Lyon are all but assured of a place in the Champions League group stages, and of being runners-up behind Paris Saint-Germain for the second straight season, thanks to their far superior goal difference to Monaco with just a game to go.
	The principality side though will be looking nervously over their shoulders as they look ..

Lacazette hat-trick as Lyon thrash Monaco to book CL spot

Carlos Bacca's first-half penalty secured a precious 1-0 win at Bologna as struggling Serie A giants AC Milan continue their bid to qualify for next season's Europa League.
     Seven-time European champions Milan have failed to hit the heights for the past few seasons and owner Silvio Berlusconi said last week he is ready to sell the club to "the right buyer, preferably an Italian".
	In the meantime, the Rossoneri are battling to beat Sassuolo to finish in sixth place -- which will be bestowed a Europa League spot if champions Juventus beat Milan in the Italian Cup final.
	Bologna have secured top flight football for next season under Roberto Donadoni, who was parachuted in last October as the club plummeted under the guidance of Delio Rossi.
	But their bid to win their final home game of the season suffered a blow when Guinean midfielder Amadou Diawara saw red for a second bookable offence after just 12 minutes at the Stadio Dall'Ara.
	Having been cautioned for an altercation with ..

Bacca winner gives Milan Europa League hope

Belgium has suffered a mighty Euro 2016 blow when inspirational skipper Vincent Kompany was ruled out of the tournament after failing to recover from injury.
     "I'll miss the Euros. To me that's very sad news," the 30-year-old Manchester City captain wrote on his Facebook page last night.
     "So I could be standing here, feeling sorry for myself. I could fear for my career, as others may do. I could give up...That is not me."
     Kompany has been dogged by a series of injuries for most of the season and the defender limped out of the Champions League semi-final defeat to Real Madrid on Wednesday after just 10 minutes with a groin problem.
     In Kompany's absence, it is expected that Chelsea's Eden Hazard will captain Belgium at Euro 2016 which starts in France on June 10.
     Belgium coach Marc Wilmots will have a further defensive headache for the tournament as Barcelona centre-back Thomas Vermaelen is also injury prone and features little for the Spanish giants.
     ...

Injured Belgium captain Kompany out of Euro 2016

Airbus completed a test flight Saturday of a glider set to eventually travel to the edge of space, in a pioneering step into the stratosphere.
	The Perlan 2's flight, from an airstrip in the western US state of Nevada, took place two hours after the planned 1:45 (local time) start time due to heavy rain.
	It lasted just a few minutes -- instead of 30 minutes to two hours as scheduled -- because the aircraft is considered more efficient in dry weather, according to chief pilot Jim Payne.
	"It was short," said chief executive Tom Enders, who served as co-pilot, said after exiting the plane. "Because of the clouds, we couldn't see any more otherwise we would still be up there."
	The flight, part of a series in recent months from the mountainous area just east of the Lake Tahoe resort, aims to test how well an aircraft and its crew can fare in conditions similar to those on Mars, with extremely thin atmosphere and bitterly cold temperatures.
	Airbus, supporting the Mission Perlan 2 group .

Airbus sets sights on the stratosphere with glider flight

Thousands of people gathered in the Mauritanian capital Nouakchott to protest against a move by President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz to abolish the senate.
	The president, who seized power in a coup in 2008, announced on Tuesday that he would hold a constitutional referendum that would remove the senate and replace it with a "regional council".
	The protesters massed under the banner of a coalition of 10 opposition parties, which promised further protests if the president continued to "provoke", and chanted slogans including "Get out", "No to the gang of predators" and "No to the extension of mandates".
	"Our protest today it to tell Ould Abdel Aziz that the constitution is a red line," said Saleh Ould Henenna, president of the opposition's Forum for Unity and Democracy (FNDU), addressing the rally in the centre of Nouakchott yesterday.
	"The opposition will not accept entering into a dialogue when Ould Abdel Aziz has already defined the themes, but only to a process of consultation that 

AFP

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