Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged action against "the tyrants of Tehran" in a Holocaust memorial speech Thursday, comparing what he considers the Iranian threat to that once posed by Nazi Germany.
"There will not be another Holocaust," Netanyahu told world leaders in Jerusalem.
He lamented that "we have yet to see a unified and resolute stance against the most anti-Semitic regime on the planet, a regime that openly seeks to develop nuclear weapons and annihilate the one and only Jewish state.
"I call on all governments to join the vital effort of confronting Iran."
Israel fiercely opposed a 2015 deal between Iran and world powers that offered Tehran sanctions relief in return for curbs to prevent it from acquiring nuclear weapons.
Netanyahu applauded when US President Donald Trump in 2018 pulled out of the accord and has pushed European powers to follow Washington's lead.
He said Thursday that Israel "salutes President Trump and Vice President (Mike) Pence for ...

Netanyahu condemns 'tyrants of Tehran' in Holocaust speech

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Suranga Lakmal took four for 27 to set up Sri Lanka for a 10-wicket win over Zimbabwe in the first Test in Harare on Thursday.
Resuming on 30 without loss and needing 157 to make Sri Lanka bat again, Zimbabwe recovered from the loss of three early wickets to Lakmal to reach lunch at 120 for three.
The tall pace bowler struck again immediately after, removing Brendan Taylor for 38, and Zimbabwe slumped to 170 all out.
Sri Lanka needed just 14 to win and the openers Oshada Fernando and Dimuth Karunaratne knocked off the runs in three overs.

Lakmal sets up Sri Lanka win in first Test against Zimbabwe

US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Thursday pledged a new round of tax cuts that he said would benefit ordinary Americans.
President Donald Trump, who faces a tough reelection bid in nine months, raised the possibility of tax cuts earlier this week, saying a proposal could be rolled out within three months.
Any new stimulus would add to 2017's budget-busting USD 1.5 trillion round of tax cuts, mostly aimed at corporations and the wealthiest taypayers.
"The president has asked us to start working on what we call tax 2.0," Mnuchin said told CNBC from the global economic forum Davos, Switzerland.
"They'll be tax cuts for the middle class and also be looking at other incentives to stimulate economic growth."
Trump needs a strong economy to boost his chances for a second term in the White House.
Mnuchin said the 2017 tax cuts had not caused runaway budget deficits and rejected claims that they would not pay for themselves ultimately, as he and other proponents claimed.
But to get ...

US Treasury Secretary pledges tax cuts for 'middle class'

Singapore on Thursday confirmed its first case the new SARS-like virus which has killed 17 people in China and spread to multiple countries including the United States.
The Ministry of Health (MOH) said the patient was a 66-year-old man from Wuhan who arrived in Singapore with his family on Monday.
He was immediately isolated after arriving at a hospital with a fever and cough, and test results later confirmed he was infected with the coronavirus.
One of his travelling companions, a 37-year-old man from Wuhan, has also been admitted to hospital as a suspect case.
Prior to admission, they had stayed at a hotel on the resort island of Sentosa, the ministry said.
It added that Singapore was expecting more cases and alarms "given the high volume of international travel".
Singapore's Changi Airport started screening flights from Wuhan at the beginning of the month, and on Wednesday extended the checks to all flights from China.
The travel hub receives over 430 flights from China every ...

Singapore confirms first case of Wuhan virus

Two Chinese nationals in Vietnam have tested positive for the SARS-like coronavirus and are being treated in hospital, officials said on Thursday.
A Chinese man living in Ho Chi Minh City was infected by his father who travelled to Vietnam on January 13 from the Chinese city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the virus.
The father was hospitalised on January 17 with a high fever, days before his son showed symptoms, health officials said.
Both were quarantined and tested positive for coronavirus, a new infection that has already killed 17 people in China and infected more than 570.
"The patients have shown signs of good recovery, (their) fever has reduced and they can eat now," Doctor Nguyen Ngoc Sang said Thursday at a meeting at Ho Chi Minh City's Cho Ray hospital.
Vietnam's deputy health minister urged all precautions to avoid any further spread.
"We should immediately test any suspected cases so that we can detect (the disease) quicker. We don't want it to spread to the public," Nguyen ...

Vietnam confirms two cases of SARS-like coronavirus

Russian lawmakers on Thursday unanimously approved a sweeping constitutional reform bill put forward by President Vladimir Putin in its first reading, after less than two hours of debate.
All 432 lawmakers present in the lower house State Duma voted in favour of the bill, just three days after the amendments were presented to Parliament.
"This was a powerful show of unity," Duma speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said after the vote, adding that the key second reading was expected on February 11.
The bill will then face a third reading, but with parliament dominated by Kremlin-loyal lawmakers it is unlikely to face much pushback.
Putin made the call for reforms last Wednesday and it was quickly followed by the resignation of the government and the appointment of a new premier and cabinet.
The breakneck speed of the changes has fuelled speculation about Putin's plans, with some saying he is laying the groundwork to hold on to power after his current term expires in 2024.
The Russian leader has 

Russian MPS give quick first approval to Putin reforms

China is halting public transport and closing highway toll stations in two more cities in Hubei province, the epicentre of a deadly virus outbreak, authorities said on Thursday.
Authorities in Xiantao, a city of 1.5 million, said 30 toll station entrances were closed on the Hubei Expressway, prohibiting vehicles from entering the roadway.
Chibi city, which has a population of about 500,000, said it would be suspending its public, rural, provincial and county passenger transport from midnight.

China shuts roads, public transport in two more cities near virus epicentre

Dubai Airport, one of the world's biggest aviation hubs, said Thursday it would carry out thermal screening of all passengers arriving from China amid an outbreak of a deadly virus.
The move goes further than other major transport hubs in Europe and the United States, which have limited their screening to passengers coming from Wuhan, the city at the centre of the scare.
"Dubai Airports confirms... that all passengers arriving on direct flights from the People's Republic of China must receive thermal screening at the gate upon arrival," a statement said.
China has locked down two major cities including Wuhan to fight the coronavirus that has already claimed 17 lives and spread to a number of other countries.
Dubai's government said on Thursday that some 989,000 Chinese tourists visited the glitzy emirate last year and that the number was expected to cross the one-million mark in 2020. Some 3.6 million Chinese transited through the airport in 2019.
"The screening will be conducted on ..

Dubai screens passengers from China amid virus outbreak

European Central Bank chiefs left easy-money policy settings in place Thursday, leaving president Christine Lagarde to detail a rethink of its aims and methods and update her assessment of risks facing the eurozone.
At their meeting in Frankfurt, governors left interest rates at historic lows and maintained "quantitative easing" (QE) bond-buying purchases, a spokesman said.
What's more "the governing council also decided to launch a review of the ECB's monetary policy strategy," he added, promising more details later Thursday.
At her first press conference as ECB chief last month, Lagarde vowed to "turn each and every stone" in the planned probe.
Slated to finish this year, the rethink is slated to look above all at the ECB's just-below-two-percent inflation goal and the tools the bank should use to achieve it.
The institution's last stock-taking in 2003 took place several years before it intervened massively in inter-bank markets amid the global financial and economic crisis.
At ...

ECB's Lagarde on the spot over economic risks and strategy rethink

China will close Beijing's Forbidden City -- one of the country's most revered cultural sites -- due to rising fears over a new SARS-like virus that has infected hundreds, the palace museum said on Thursday.
The sprawling imperial palace will close on Saturday until further notice "in order to avoid cross-infection caused by the gathering of people". it said through its official Twitter-like Weibo account.

Beijing's Forbidden City to close over virus fears: official

Rafael Nadal and Nick Kyrgios reached the Australian Open third round on Thursday after the weather-disrupted tournament faced a new challenge: dirty rain which left courts muddy and unplayable.
After a day of clean-up operations and delays, Australia's Kyrgios fought his way past Frenchman Gilles Simon in four sets and Wimbledon champion Simona Halep stamped her class with a win over Britain's Harriet Dart.
Nadal, a 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 6-1 winner over Argentina's Federico Delbonis, miscued a shot that hit a ballgirl in the head, but he melted hearts when he apologised and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"I was so scared for her, honestly," the 19-time Grand Slam winner said.
"The ball was quick and straight on the head. She's a very brave girl."
Kyrgios, increasingly popular with home fans after his fundraising efforts for Australia's bushfire crisis, was cruising at two sets up when he dropped the third set and with it, his composure.
But just when it looked like he would suffer one of ...

Nadal, Kyrgios through as freak weather hits Australian Open

England captain Joe Root on Thursday was looking forward to the prospect of two of the world's fastest bowlers operating on a pace-friendly pitch in the fourth and final Test against South Africa, starting at the Wanderers on Friday.
Root said Jofra Archer had bowled with "good pace" in practice on Wednesday after recovering from an elbow injury which kept him out of the second and third Tests -- both of which England won to take an unbeatable 2-1 series lead to Johannesburg.
He said that if Archer had no lingering signs of injury or soreness, England would have a "really good selection headache".
Mark Wood startled several of the South African batsmen in the third Test in Port Elizabeth, bowling bouncers at around 150kmh.
Archer is also among the world's small club of 150kmh bowlers.
"It would be nice to see how they go together," said Root.
"I think they would be a relentless barrage of pace which is exciting, especially on a surface such as you typically get here at the ...

Root facing 'really good selection headache' as Archer nears return

Rafael Nadal melted hearts at the Australian Open on Thursday, rushing to console a ballgirl and kissing her on the cheek after one of his fearsome shots ricocheted off her.
The Spanish world number one was in the throes of wrapping up his second round clash on Rod Laver Arena against Argentine Federico Delbonis when the unfortunate girl found herself in his firing line.
Nadal went over to check how she was and gave her a quick peck on the cheek for good measure, leaving the youngster blushing.
"For her it was not a good moment, I was so scared for her, the ball was quick and straight on her," Nadal said after the match, giving her his headband as a momento.
"She's a super brave girl. It has been one of the more scary moments of my career. I'm very happy she is good. She is brave. Well done.

Nadal shows caring side with kiss for blushing ballgirl

CiCi Bellis was terrified. Surgeons told her that to save her highly promising tennis career they had to break her arm in half.
Then, just three months ago, the 20-year-old American was told her career was over because of a new injury.
But on Thursday the world number 600, once a teenage prodigy, shocked the 20th-seeded Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic to reach the Australian Open third round.
Wearing a bandage on her right wrist and with a significant scar running up the lower part of her arm, the San Francisco native was the focus of intense media interest following her surprise victory.
"A year ago this time I did not even know if I'd play again so just being here is so special to me, let alone winning," said Bellis, who was touted as a rising star of tennis when at 15 she defeated 12th seed Dominika Cibulkova at the 2014 US Open.
Bellis, who hit a career-high 35 in the world in August 2017, has been through injury hell with tears in her right wrist and fractures to her ...

Doctors broke my arm in half: Bellis back from injury hell at Australian Open

A rebel missile attack on the home of a Yemeni lawmaker killed two of his relatives, authorities said Thursday, drawing condemnation from the UN after a recent strike in the area left 116 dead.
Yemen's internationally recognised government -- backed by a Saudi-led military coalition -- has been battling the Iran-allied rebels since 2014, when they overran the capital Sanaa.
The attack on Wednesday night targeted the home of parliamentarian Mossad Hussein al-Sawadi in Marib province, east of the capital, killing his daughter-in-law and 16-year-old granddaughter, according to the official Saba news agency.
"Sawadi was seriously injured along with three other members (of his family)," said Hussein al-Huleissi, director of the criminal investigation department in Marib.
"The strike destroyed the home completely and caused panic in the residential neighbourhood."
United Nations envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths condemned the attack and called for a halt to the recent military escalation in ..

Missile attack on Yemen MP home kills two including child

Suranga Lakmal struck four times for Sri Lanka as Zimbabwe struggled to save the first Test in Harare on Thursday.
Zimbabwe added just 32 runs in 29 overs in the afternoon session and by tea on the final day had crawled to 152 for six in their second innings, still needing five more runs to make Sri Lanka bat again.
Lakmal picked up all three wickets in the morning session as Zimbabwe suffered a mini-collapse and then broke a stubborn fourth wicket partnership of 79 when he removed Brendan Taylor, caught at mid-on for 38, in the second over after lunch.
Zimbabwe had come out after lunch in a relatively secure position trailing by just 37 with seven wickets in hand and the fourth wicket pair of Sean Williams and Taylor well set.
Both, however, were dismissed in the first eight balls after lunch with Kasun Rajitha prompting Williams to feather a catch to Niroshan Dickwella behind the stumps.
The keeper then produced a smart stumping to remove Sikander Raza off some probing left-arm spin 

Lakmal turns screw as Zimbabwe battle to save Test

Dozens of flights were cancelled Thursday after a snowstorm hit Kazakhstan's capital Nur-Sultan amid unseasonably warm temperatures.
Strong winds began battering the city of one million on Wednesday evening, leading to flights to Frankfurt, Moscow and Tashkent being cancelled Thursday.
Other flights were delayed by up to 12 hours.
The national meteorological agency said it expected snowfall, hail and winds reaching 30 metres per second to continue for the next three days in the northern region where Nur-Sultan is located.
The agency said that temperatures hovering just below zero in the region are 8 to 13 degrees celsius warmer than usual at this time of year.
City authorities on Thursday cancelled school classes -- a regular occurrence during winters in the world's second coldest capital after Mongolia's Ulaanbaatar.
Steppe city Nur-Sultan became Kazakhstan's capital in 1997, replacing Almaty which lies 1,000 kilometres to the south.

Dozens of flights cancelled after Kazakh capital snowstorm

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido on Thursday issued an emotional plea to political and business leaders at Davos, saying he needed their international help as he could not achieve change alone.
Guaido is recognised as Venezuela's interim president by the United States and 50 other countries but has so far failed to shift President Nicolas Maduro from power despite months of struggle and ongoing economic crisis.
"We are facing an international criminal conglomerate and we need your help," he told the World Economic Forum (WEF), adding that Venezuela was experiencing an "unprecedented tragedy".
"Alone, we are not going to get there," he added.
Guaido has defied a travel ban issued by Maduro's administration to go on an international charm offensive aimed at ensuring continued diplomatic support for his bid to oust Maduro.
The parliament speaker first headed to his chief ally and arch Maduro foe Colombia, then Britain and EU headquarters in Brussels, before travelling to ...

'We need your help': Venezuela's Guaido in plea to Davos

Russian air strikes in Syria's northwestern region of Idlib on Thursday killed eight civilians, including five children, a war monitor said.
Most of Idlib and parts of Aleppo province are still controlled by factions opposed to President Bashar al-Assad's Russian-backed regime, including a group that includes onetime members of Al-Qaeda's former Syria franchise.
Five civilians from the same family were killed in Saraqeb and three others in the town of Arnaba, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
"The region is witnessing very intense bombardment by Russian warplanes," Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the Britain-based monitoring group, said.
Idlib province is a dead end for people displaced from other formerly rebel-held parts of the country that government forces have retaken.
The violence in northern Syria is escalating an already dire humanitarian situation, with aid groups warning of displacement on an unprecedented scale.
According to the UN humanitarian coordination ...

Russian strikes kill 8 civilians in Syria's Idlib: Monitor

US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Thursday said a post-Brexit trade deal between the United States and Britain was a top priority and he expected such an agreement by the end of the year.
The top US economic official made his comments before heading to London to lay out ways the two countries could reach a quick accord after the UK leaves the EU on January 31.
Responding to Mnuchin's remarks, the spokesman for British Prime Minister Boris Johnson declined to offer a timetable.
"Both sides have been clear in public that they want to agree an ambitious free trade agreement as quickly as possible," the spokesman said.
"Once we have left the EU in just over a week's time we'll be free to start having discussions with countries around the world including the US," he added.
Mnuchin's UK counterpart, Sajid Javid, will embark on trade talks with both the EU and the US, in the hope of sparing the British economy any short or medium-term shocks of Brexit.
Javid told the US "they wanted to 

US expects UK trade deal 'this year': Mnuchin

Top seed Rafael Nadal laboured past dogged fellow left-hander Federico Delbonis Thursday to take another step towards only a second Australian Open crown.
The Spanish world number one created 20 break point chances but was constantly denied by the Argentine before he wrapped up a 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 6-1 win on Rod Laver Arena.
The victory set up a third round clash with countryman Pablo Carreno Busta, his doubles partner at this month's ATP Cup.
"It was a tough match. I lost a lot of opportunities on break point but found a way to finally win the second set," he said.
"In the third I was more relaxed, more aggressive and found better play in that set."
Nadal had dropped only 10 games in three previous emphatic wins over 76th-ranked Delbonis, and defeat was never on the cards at Melbourne Park.
But the Argentine, whose best Grand Slam result was the third round in Melbourne in 2016, made life hard for the 19-time Grand Slam winner, fending off 16 break point chances.
Nadal looked on track .

AFP

AFP

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