Barcelona and star player Lionel Messi triumphed at the seventh edition of the Globe Soccer Awards in Dubai, taking home the prizes for best team and best player.
     Messi had travelled from Argentina to attend the ceremony on Sunday.
     "It's very nice to receive these awards, but I always say that the team makes it possible," said Messi. "It's been an extraordinary year."
     Barcelona won five titles in 2015 -- the Spanish league title, the Copa del Rey, Champions League, European Super Cup and the World Club Cup.
     Only the Spanish Super Cup eluded them with a loss to Athletic Bilbao.
     Belgian coach Marc Wilmots was named best manager while Benfica took the award for best club academy.
     Italy's Andrea Pirlo and England's Frank Lampard were lauded for their long careers.

Messi, Barcelona win big at Globe Soccer Awards

PTI Automatic

Australia dismissed the West Indies for 271 at tea to take a first innings lead of 280 runs in the second Test in Melbourne on Monday.
     The tourists' tail resisted for two sessions on the third day led by Darren Bravo top-scoring with 81 and debutant all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite with 59.
     But James Pattinson finally ended the West Indian resistance in the final over before tea, getting Bravo caught in the gully to finish with four for 72.
     Off-spinner Nathan Lyon collected four for 66 and now has 179 career Test wickets.
     Skipper Steve Smith did not enforce the follow on, preferring to give his bowlers a spell ahead of the back-to-back third Test, starting in Sydney on Sunday.
     It was the Windies' highest innings score in a Test at the MCG since 1988, and they kept the dominant Australians in the field for 100.3 overs.
     Bravo was in sight of his second century of the series after his 108 in the first innings in Hobart, before he sliced Pattinson to Smith in ...

Aussies dismiss Windies for 271 to lead by 280 in Test

A suicide car bomb struck near Kabul airport today in an apparent attack on a foreign forces convoy, killing at least one civilian and wounding four others, Afghan officials said.
	No group immediately claimed responsibility for the blast, which comes as Taliban insurgents step up attacks on government and foreign targets.
	"The bombing occurred near Kabul airport... We are finding out more details," Gul Agha Rohani, Kabul deputy police chief, told AFP.
	Interior ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqqi said on Twitter: "One civilian killed and (four) civilians wounded in today's car bomb explosion."
	The attack comes a day after Pakistan's powerful army chief General Raheel Sharif visited Kabul in a bid to prepare the ground for fresh peace talks with the Taliban.
	Pakistan -- the Taliban's historic backers -- hosted a milestone first round of talks in July but the negotiations stalled when the insurgents belatedly confirmed the death of longtime leader Mullah Omar.
	Afghan forces are ...

Suicide car bomb strikes near Kabul airport: officials

Former Test opening batsman Justin Langer will fill in for Darren Lehmann as Australia's coach during next year's ODI tri-series in the Caribbean, Cricket Australia said today.
     Lehmann's stated succession plan to install his former Test team-mate Langer as Australia's next coach will move a step closer to fruition when Langer takes charge of the touring team to the Caribbean next year.
     Lehmann told CA's official website that he plans to enjoy his first extended break since taking on the role of national coach in 2013 by sitting out the ODI tri-series in June featuring the West Indies and South Africa.
     Langer, currently coaching Western Australia in the Sheffield Shield and the Perth Scorchers in the Twenty20 Big Bash League, will fill the job at international level for the first time.
     Prior to his Western Australia appointment Langer worked as a specialist batting coach with the Australian team following his retirement after 105 Tests and more than 7,500 runs for ..

Langer to coach Australia in Caribbean tri-series

Car bomb explodes near Kabul airport: officials. (AFP)

Scoreboard after the Sri Lanka innings in the second ODI against New Zealand in Christchurch on Monday:
     Sri Lanka
     D. Gunathilaka c Santner b Henry 17
     T. Dilshan c Taylor b Henry 7
     L. Thirimanne c Henry b McClenaghan 1
     D. Chandimal lbw Bracewell 9
     A. Mathews c Ronchi b McClenaghan 17
     M. Siriwardana c Nicholls b McClenaghan 12
     C. Kapugedera run out (Guptill/Nicholls/sub(Worker)) 12
     N. Kulasekera c Latham b Henry 19
     S. Senanayake b Henry 0
     D. Chameera c Ronchi b Sodhi 9
     J. Vandersay not out 7
     Extras (lb4, w2, nb1) 7
     Total (10 wickets, 27.4 overs) 117
     Fall of wickets: 1-20, 2-29, 3-31, 4-54, 5-56, 6-81, 7-81, 8-81, 9-94, 10-117
     Bowling: Bracewell 6-2-31-1, Henry 9.4-2-33-4, McClenaghan 8-0-32-3, Santner 1-0-5-0, Sodhi 3-0-12-1.

New Zealand v Sri Lanka 2nd ODI scoreboard

Martin Guptill's 93 off 30 balls smashed Sri Lanka into submission as New Zealand took just 8.2 overs to claim the second one-day international by 10 wickets in Christchurch on Monday.
     Guptill went within a whisker of breaking the world record for the fastest ODI 50 and was close to scoring one of the fastest centuries when New Zealand wrapped up the game.
     New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum said Guptill was "superb" while Sri Lanka skipper Angelo Mathews described his side's performance as "embarrassing" and "pathetic".
     After being dropped off the first ball he faced, Guptill went on the warpath with a brutal assault that included nine fours and eight sixes.
     For Sri Lanka, it was a humiliating performance after they expressed a desire to gain some pride from being thrashed in the first ODI by seven wickets when New Zealand knocked off the 189-run target with 29 overs to spare.
     Instead of getting better they went backwards, being dismissed for 117 in 27.4 ...

Boundary-hunter Guptill smacks Sri Lanka into submission

Nathan Lyon struck in the final over before lunch to break a stubborn West Indies partnership as Australia chased wickets in the second Test in Melbourne on Monday.
     Debutant Carlos Brathwaite's luck ran out when he spooned a high return catch back to Lyon to be out for 59 and end a dogged 90-run stand with Darren Bravo three balls before the break.
     At lunch on the third day, the tourists were 173 for seven, still trailing Australia's massive first innings declaration of 551 for three by 378 runs.
     Bravo, who scored 108 in the West Indies' first innings of their heavy innings defeat to Australia in the Hobart Test, was unbeaten on 35 off 130 balls.
     Brathwaite was earlier given out twice only to be recalled both times for a front-foot no-ball by paceman James Pattinson.
     Brathwaite swung lustily on 13 and had his stumps cleaned up by Pattinson only for an umpire's check to detect a no-ball.
     The Barbados all-rounder again was recalled on 50 when he hooked and .

Brathwaite's luck runs out just before lunch in Test

Scores at lunch on the third day of the second Test between Australia and the West Indies at the Melbourne Cricket Ground today:
     Australia 1st innings 551-3 declared (U. Khawaja 144, S. Smith 134 not out, J. Burns 128, A. Voges 106 not out)
     West Indies 1st innings (91-6 overnight)
     K. Brathwaite c Burns b Lyon 17
     R. Chandrika lbw b Pattinson 25
     D. Bravo not out 35
     M. Samuels lbw b Pattinson 0
     J. Blackwood c and b Lyon 28
     D. Ramdin c Burns b Siddle 0
     J. Holder b Siddle 0
     C. Brathwaite c and b Lyon 59
     Extras (b2, lb2, nb5) 9
     Total (7 wickets; 71.3 overs) 173
     Fall of wickets: 1-35, 2-50, 3-50, 4-82, 5-83, 6-83, 7-173
     Bowling: Hazlewood 15-5-28-0, Pattinson 17-1-51-2, Lyon 18.3-5-40-3, Siddle 12-2-22-2, Marsh 7-4-15-0, Smith 2-0-13-0.

Australia v West Indies 2nd Test scoreboard

Star Wars

'The Force Awakens' earns $545 m in ticket sales in North America and $546 m internationally

New 'Star Wars' film hits $1 b at box office in 12 days: Disney

Press Trust of India

Mudslides have killed at least four people in Brazil, one of several South American countries where torrential rains and flooding now have claimed at least 10 lives, officials have said.
	The epic rainfall also has driven 160,000 people from their homes in Paraguay, Argentina and Uruguay, the officials said yesterday.
	Authorities said fatalities from the current violent weather include two deaths in Argentina and four in Paraguay.
	The director of Paraguay's weather service, Julian Baez, said his nation has been deluged by the precipitation, which so far shows no signs of letting up.
	"The Paraguay River has swollen almost to eight meters. Not even the most dramatic forecasts called for that in December," Baez told a briefing.
	If rains continue to the north as forecasters expect, the flood levels could tie or pass their record nine meters in 1983, when the capital's busy port area was under water, Baez warned.
	This mostly rural nation of 6.8 million is by far the hardest hit by the 

Torrential rains, flooding kill at least 10 in South America

Spain has deployed three water-dropping planes to battle wildfires raging in remote regions in northern and central Spain amid unseasonably warm weather, the government has said.
	The agriculture ministry said yesterday that two amphibious water-scooping aircraft were sent to help dowse fires in the northern region of Cantabria and another plane was dispatched to the central region of Castile and Leon.
	The head of the regional government of Cantabria, Miguel Angel Revilla said winds of 80 kilometres (50 miles) an hour were fuelling 70 wildfires in the region.
	He called the situation an "absolute emergency" in a Twitter message and said his government had appealed for help from the army to put out the fires.
	The government in the neighbouring region of Asturias in northwestern Spain said 20 wildfires were burning within its boundaries, including eight which firefighters had under control.
	A helicopter battling a fire in Asturias crashed on Wednesday, killing the pilot and sole ...

Spain deploys aircraft to battle wildfires

The Oscar-winning cinematographer Haskell Wexler, whose film credits include "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" and "American Graffiti", died at an age of 93, his family has said.
	In a Hollywood career spanning half a century, Wexler worked with some of the biggest names in movie history, from Elia Kazan to George Lucas, Mike Nichols and Milos Forman.
	Jeff Wexler, his eldest child, said his father had died of old age, at a hospital yesterday in Santa Monica, California.
	"My father has died, peacefully in his sleep," Wexler told AFP in an email. He is survived by his wife Rita Taggart, and his three children.
	Wexler's personal blog confirmed his passing by posting a simple photograph, captioned with the dates: February 6, 1922 - December 27, 2015.
	A native of Chicago, Wexler served as a merchant seaman in World War II, before returning home to strike out in the world of cinema, according to a biography on his website.
	After a failed attempt to set up a film studio in a refurbished 

'Cuckoo's Nest' cameraman Wexler dies at 93

A three-month-old baby and her grandfather were killed when they became caught in the crossfire between Turkish security forces and Kurdish rebels in a flashpoint town, medics said today.
	Three soldiers were also killed today in a roadside bombing by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in the town of Cizre in the Kurdish majority southeast, the army said.
	The baby, named Miray, was hit in the head when the family's house in Cizre was shelled on Friday night during street battles between Turkish forces and PKK rebels.
	Her 73-year-old grandfather Ramazan Ince was then shot while he was carrying Miray to the ambulance, witnesses told AFP.
	The baby died at the scene and her grandfather died later in hospital, medics said.
	The family claims that the fire came from the direction of the state hospital in Cizre, which is controlled by Turkish security forces.
	Tensions are running high throughout Turkey's restive southeast as security forces impose curfews in several towns ...

Baby killed in clashes between Turkish forces,rebels: medics

Scores at close on the second day of
the first Test between South Africa and England at Kingsmead on Sunday:
     England, first innings
     (overnight 179-4)
     A. Cook c Elgar b Steyn             0
     A. Hales c De Villiers b Steyn     10
     N. Compton c De Villiers b Morkel  85
     J. Root lbw b Piedt                24
     J. Taylor c De Villiers b Steyn    70
     B. Stokes c Duminy b Morkel        21
     J. Bairstow c Elgar b Abbott       41
     M. Ali c De Villiers b Morkel       0
     C. Woakes lbw b Morkel              0
     S. Broad not out                   32
     S. Finn lbw b Steyn                12
     Extras (b1, lb3, nb3, w1)           8
     Total (101.1 overs)               303
     Fall of wickets: 1-3 (Cook), 2-12 (Hales), 3-49 (Root), 4-174 (Taylor), 5-196 (Stokes), 6-247 (Compton), 7-253 (Ali), 8-253 (Woakes), 9-267 (Bairstow)
     Bowling: Steyn 25.1-5-70-4, Abbott 24-4-66-1 (1nb), Morkel 26-5-76-4 (2nb, 1w), Piedt 16-2-63-1, Van Zyl 2-1-2-0, Elgar 

Durban, Dec 27 (AFP) Scores at close on the second day of

Stuart Broad bowled two fiery spells and took three wickets to give England a slight advantage at the end of the second day of the first Test against South Africa at Kingsmead on Sunday.
     South Africa were 137 for four at the close, still 166 runs behind England's first innings total of 303.
     Broad dismissed opener Stiaan van Zyl as well as South Africa's two key batsmen, captain Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers, to finish the day with three for 16 from ten overs.
     Opening batsman Dean Elgar withstood the Broad barrage and was unbeaten on 67, although he could have been out for 58 if England had sought a review after an appeal for leg before wicket by Ben Stokes had been turned down.
     Off-spinner Moeen Ali took the fourth wicket when he bowled Faf du Plessis.
     Fast bowlers Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn finished with four wickets each as England lost six English wickets in an extended morning's play.
     Morkel took all of his wickets on Sunday, including a burst of ...

Broad strikes put England on top

The Islamic State group's fighters have all left the flashpoint former government compound in the Iraqi city of Ramadi, the spokesman of the elite counter-terrorism service said today.
	"All Daesh (IS) fighters have left. There is no resistance," Sabah al-Numan told AFP, adding that the entire perimeter had to be cleared of mines and booby traps before troops could move in.
	"Our forces have surrounded the government complex. They are checking all entrances and surrounding buildings before moving in," he said.
	"The operation is almost wrapped up. Our forces will enter in the coming hours," Numan said.
	Iraqi forces backed by US-led coalition air strikes had punched into the city centre on Tuesday, in a final push to retake the city they lost in May.
	The fighting over the past two days had been concentrated around the former government complex, which IS fighters defended with snipers, suicide car bomb attacks and hundreds of roadside bombs and booby traps.

All IS fighters have left Ramadi compound: force spokesman

Two Palestinians in the West Bank stabbed and wounded an Israeli soldier today and were shot dead by troops, the army said, the latest in a three-month wave of attacks.
	The Palestinian health ministry said that the assailants were Mohammed Sabaaneh, aged 17, and Nur Eddine Sabaaneh, 23, from Qabatia near Jenin in the north of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
	The incident, in Huwara in the northern West Bank, was the second of the day. Earlier a Palestinian stabbed and moderately wounded a soldier in Jerusalem before he was arrested.
	A wave of violence since the start of October has claimed the lives of 135 people on the Palestinian side, 19 Israelis, an American and an Eritrean.
	Many of the Palestinians killed have been attackers while others have been shot dead by Israeli security forces during clashes.
	In today's Huwara incident, the army said a second soldier may have been hit by fire from his own side but it was still investigating.
	The Israeli rescue service said it took two 

2 Palestinians stab soldier, killed by troops: Israel army

Iran postponed two premier league football matches today, state media said, as air pollution more than twice the acceptable level persisted in the capital.
	The games -- between Tehran teams and clubs visiting from Mashhad and Tabriz -- were rescheduled for Tuesday after Tehran's environment authority recommended "refraining from all sport activities," the Fars news agency said.
	Severe air pollution earlier this week had already led authorities to close schools for three days in and around the capital, where an estimated 14 million people live.
	The Air Quality Index in Tehran on Sunday stood at 132, an official told state television, well above the World Health Organisation's advised level of between zero and 50.
	Mohammad Rastegari advised the elderly, children and sick people -- including those suffering heart problems -- to stay indoors.
	Exhaust fumes from the five million cars and almost as many motorcycles that ply Tehran's roads account for 80 percent of its pollution, which .

Iran cancels two football games over pollution

US online retail giant Amazon said today it plans to produce 16 feature films a year, throwing down the gauntlet to Netflix, whose African war drama "Beasts of No Nation" may be headed for Oscar glory in February.
	"We want to win an Oscar," Amazon boss Jeff Bezos told Sunday's edition of the German daily Die Welt.
	With its Prime subscription service, Amazon has invested heavily in boosting its video content, and like Netflix has gone into original production, both in TV series and now in cinema.
	Amazon won five Emmys for the TV comedy series "Transparent" this year.
	The feature films will hit the big screen and be quickly available on Amazon's online service.
	Netflix for its part is targeting 10 feature releases while roughly doubling its production of TV series to 31 next year.
	Bezos said he is also mulling acquiring the rights to rebroadcast world football championships such as the English Premier League and Germany's Bundesliga.
	The Amazon boss also said he was awaiting the .

Amazon 'wants to win Oscar' as it boosts film biz

Scores at tea on the second day of the first Test between South Africa and England at Kingsmead today:
     England, first innings
     (overnight 179-4)
     A. Cook c Elgar b Steyn 0
     A. Hales c De Villiers b Steyn 10
     N. Compton c De Villiers b Morkel 85
     J. Root lbw b Piedt 24
     J. Taylor c De Villiers b Steyn 70
     B. Stokes c Duminy b Morkel 21
     J. Bairstow c Elgar b Abbott 41
     M. Ali c De Villiers b Morkel 0
     C. Woakes lbw b Morkel 0
     S. Broad not out 32
     Extras (b1, lb3, nb3, w1) 8
     Total (101.1 overs) 303
     Fall of wickets: 1-3, 2-12, 3-49, 4-174, 5-196, 6-247, 7-253, 8-253, 9-267, 10-303
     Bowling: Steyn 25.1-5-70-4, Abbott 24-4-66-1, Morkel 26-5-76-4, Piedt 16-2-63-1, Van Zyl 2-1-2-0, Elgar 7-2-22-0
     South Africa, first innings
     S. Van Zyl b Broad 0
     D. Elgar not out 22
     H. Amla c Bairstow b Broad 7
     A. De Villiers not out 26
     Extras 0
     Total (2 wkts, 19 overs) 55
     Bowling: Broad 5-3-8-2, Woakes .

AFP

AFP

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