Bangladesh pace bowler Al-Amin Hossain will be sent home from the World Cup after breaking a team curfew in Brisbane, media reports claimed today.
     Team manager Khaled Mahmud told www.Cricinfo.Com that Al-Amin had failed to return to the team hotel before the 10:00pm local deadline on February 19.
     "Normally if a player has to stay outside after 10pm, he has to take the management's permission," Mahmud was quoted as saying. "He will be sent home as soon as possible."
     Bangladesh were in Brisbane for a World Cup match against Australia but Saturday's scheduled game was abandoned without a ball being bowled because of torrential rain.
     Al-Amin, 25, has played 11 one-day internationals for Bangladesh, but did not feature in the Tigers' opening World Cup win over Afghanistan in Canberra last Wednesday.

Bangladesh's Hossain sent home for curfew breach - report

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Japan urged South Korea again today to return disputed islets, one of the issues which have soured ties between the two US allies.
	Seoul controls the islands in the Sea of Japan (East Sea) which it calls Dokdo. They are known in Japan as Takeshima.
	The Shimane prefectural government in southwest Japan held its annual convention Sunday, after enacting a local ordinance in 2005 which designated February 22 as "Takeshima Day".
	Yohei Matsumoto, parliamentary vice minister in the Cabinet Office, attended Sunday's ceremony and said the government was working to achieve a peaceful resolution of the problem.
	But he reiterated Tokyo's position that the islets are part of Japan's sovereign territory, according to local media.
	South Korea, which stations coastguard officers on the tiny islands, has called the Japanese claim "ludicrous".
	The row over the islands intensified after then-South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak made a surprise visit to them in 2012.
	Relations between the two ...

Japan calls for return of isles from S.Korea

Sensors at the Fukushima nuclear plant have detected a fresh leak of highly radioactive water to the sea, the plant's operator announced today, highlighting difficulties in decommissioning the crippled plant.
	Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) said the sensors, which were rigged to a gutter that pours rain and ground water at the Fukushima Daiichi plant to a nearby bay, detected contamination levels up to 70 times greater than the already-high radioactive status seen at the plant campus.
	TEPCO said its emergency inspections of tanks storing nuclear waste water did not find any additional abnormalities, but the firm said it shut the gutter to prevent radioactive water from going into the Pacific Ocean.
	The higher-than-normal levels of contamination were detected at around 10 am (local time), with sensors showing radiation levels 50 to 70 times greater than usual, TEPCO said.
	Though contamination levels have steadily fallen throughout the day, the same sensors were still showing ...

Fresh nuclear leak detected at Fukushima plant

Pentagon chief Ashton Carter headed to southern Afghanistan today to review plans to withdraw US forces in a volatile area that has long preoccupied American commanders.
	In his first visit abroad days after he took over as US defence secretary, Carter met senior officers and troops at Kandahar airfield, a key base that hosts US special forces and advisers as well as helicopters and other aircraft.
	After talks in Kabul with  President Ashraf Ghani on Saturday, Carter made clear that President Barack Obama's administration was considering slowing down a planned timetable for a troop pullout.
	The current plan would reduce the existing force of more than 10,000 to about 5,500 by the end of the year, and then pull out all troops in two years' time -- when Obama's term ends.
	Under that blueprint, US forces would have to withdraw from Kandahar airfield this year, but Carter suggested the timing of base closures and troop withdrawals could be reviewed.
	Kandahar base serves as a jumping ..

Pentagon chief reviews plans to shut Kandahar base

Both sides in Ukraine's conflict have agreed to pull back their heavy weapons from the frontline in accordance with a UN-backed truce, a Ukrainian military official today said.
	"The papers have been signed to begin withdrawing heavy weapons all along the frontline," General Olexander Rozmaznin said.
	The pro-Russian rebels confirmed separately through their own news agency that they had also signed the agreement.
	Rozmaznin told AFP that it was too early to say when the arms pullback would start. Some Ukrainian media suggested it could begin later today.
	Under the terms of the truce, mediated by Germany and France and put into effect a week ago, the withdrawal of the weapons was meant to have started on Tuesday and be completed by March 3.
	But up to now, that truce has been repeatedly violated. The rebels notably ignored it to overrun Ukrainian troops in the strategic eastern town of Debaltseve.
	However in another sign that both sides in the conflict might now be willing to apply .

Both sides agree to start heavy weapons pullback in Ukraine

Eighteen calls were made to an Australian national security hotline about a self-styled cleric in the days before he carried out a deadly Sydney siege but none suggested an imminent attack, a review said today.
	Armed with a pump-action shotgun, Iranian-born Man Haron Monis took 17 people hostage in Sydney's Lindt chocolate cafe hostage on December 15.
	Some 17 hours later he shot dead cafe manager Tori Johnson, 34, prompting police to storm the building and kill him. Another hostage died in the crossfire.
	The first official government review into the incident released today said a national security hotline had received 18 calls about Monis between December 9 and 12, all concerned about offensive material on his Facebook page.
	"None of the calls related to any intentions or statements regarding a pending attack - imminent or otherwise," the review said, adding that all were all considered by intelligence and police authorities.
	"On the basis of the information available at the ...

No major intelligence failure in Sydney cafe siege: inquiry

Korean Air and European aerospace giant Airbus have signed an agreement to jointly bid for an USD 8 billion jet fighter project, an airline spokesman said today, pitting them against a team comprised of Lockheed Martin and Korea Aerospace Industries.
	The project is designed to develop and produce 120 fighter jets to replace the country's ageing fleet of F-4s and F-5s.
	"We've signed a memorandum of understanding with Airbus," a Korean Air spokesman told AFP.
	One of the conditions of the bid is that local enterprises should tie up with foreign companies to secure technological assistance, according to Seoul's Yonhap news agency.
	The pair will compete with Korea Aerospace Industries, which has teamed up with America's Lockheed Martin.
	South Korea's Defence Acquisition Programme Administration plans to announce the final winner in July.
	The country's military has overwhelmingly chosen US suppliers in the past, especially where the air force is concerned, reflecting their close ...

Korean Air, Airbus sign accord for jet fighter bid

A group of Turkish soldiers entered Syria in a successful operation to repatriate troops guarding a Turkish enclave surrounded by Islamic State (IS) militants, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said today.
	Turkish media reports said some 700 elite Turkish troops entered Syria overnight to repatriate the soldiers guarding the pocket of Turkish territory that contains an Ottoman-era tomb deep inside northern Syria.
	One soldier was killed in an accident during the operation to relieve the guards at the tomb, the Turkish army said in a separate statement.
	Around 40 soldiers were said to be guarding the final resting place of Suleyman Shah, grandfather of the Ottoman empire's founder, Osman I.
	Davutoglu said in a statement that the mission had resulted in the successful repatriation of the soldiers who had guarded the tomb, as well as the remains of Suleyman Shah himself.
	"The remains of (Suleyman Shah) have been temporarily repatriated and will be reburied inside Syria at a later date", 

Turkey evacuates troops guarding tomb inside Syria: PM

Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews admitted his side must raise their game if they are to win a second World Cup after surviving a scare against Afghanistan at University Oval in Dunedin today.
     Mahela Jayawardene's 19th one-day century rescued the 1996 champions from a perilous 51 for four in pursuit of a 233-run target after openers Lahiru Thirimanne and Tillakaratne Dilshan both fell for golden ducks.
     Jayawardene (100) and Mathews (44) put on a crucial 126 for the fifth wicket to steady the ship before Thisara Perera smashed a quickfire 47 not out to see them home.
     It was 1996 champions Sri Lanka's first win of this tournament after an opening 98-run loss to New Zealand, while debutants Afghanistan have now been defeated twice following a first-up 105-run drubbing by Bangladesh.
     "We really need to raise our standards to compete against the top teams," said Mathews, whose side next face Bangladesh on Thursday, with further Pool A fixtures to come against Australia, .

Sri Lanka must improve standards, says Mathews

Australian officials today said all efforts were being made to help those affected by tropical Cyclone Marcia which smashed through Queensland state leaving 1,500 homes damaged and thousands without electricity.
	Marcia was one of two fierce cyclones which hit northern Australia within hours on Friday, with the first Tropical Cyclone Lam which hit remote communities in the Northern Territory near Elcho Island, some 500 kilometres (about 300 miles) east of Darwin.
	Marcia, a maximum category five storm, tore through eastern Queensland, badly affecting Yeppoon, about 670 kilometres north of the capital Brisbane, before heading south to Rockhampton.
	"We've had assessments of over 1,500 houses that have had some kind of structural damage," Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.
	"In Yeppoon and Rockhampton around 100 are severely impacted... People can't go back into their homes. Our fundamental priority now is on those families who have been the most severely impacted."
	As the .

1,500 homes damaged by Cyclone Marcia in Australia

US Secretary of State John Kerry arrives in Geneva today for renewed talks with his Iranian counterpart on Tehran's nuclear programme, after warning "significant gaps" remain as a key deadline approaches.
	World powers are trying to strike a deal with Iran that would prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear bomb in return for an easing of punishing international economic sanctions.
	Kerry is set to sit down for two days of talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, whose country denies its nuclear programme has military objectives.
	The US top diplomat yesterday warned that major differences remained between the two sides.
	"There are still significant gaps, there is still a distance to travel," Kerry told a press conference at the US embassy in London.
	There is a heightened sense of urgency to move forward as the clock ticks down towards a March 31 deadline to agree on a political framework for the deal.
	"President (Barack) Obama has no inclination whatsoever to ...

Kerry, Zarif to meet for nuclear talks as deadline looms

Australia's Steve Smith has firmly backed national coach Darren Lehmann following some harsh criticism from leg-spinning great Shane Warne.
     Warne attacked former teammate Lehmann on Sydney radio on Saturday, saying the Australian coach had too much say over onfield matters.
     He even suggested Lehmann had decided when Australia declared against India in the Boxing Day Test, when Smith was standing in for injured skipper Michael Clarke.
     "He's got to be a little bit careful -- he's got to stop walking out on the MCG and declaring," Warne said on radio station 2GB.
     "He's got to remember that that's the captain's job and not the coach's job."
     But Smith denied that Lehmann had too much influence and insisted he had decided when to declare, not the coach.
     "I think Boof (Lehmann) was sitting on the sideline where he tends to sit to watch the match," Smith said.
     "I was up the top trying to call the guys in but they couldn't see me. I think he said 'look up ...

Smith backs Aussie coach Lehmann in Warne row

West Indies cricket chief Dave Cameron was blasted today for apparently retweeting a demand for outspoken opener Chris Gayle to be given "a retirement package".
     In the latest controversy to hit the World Cup team, West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) president Cameron's behaviour was condemned as "unacceptable" by players' representatives.
     The drama unfolded during the Windies' match against Pakistan at Christchurch on Saturday when Gayle was out for four, stretching his run without a century in ODI cricket to 20 matches.
     One fan tweeted: "Gayle goes... Can't buy a run. Let's give him a retirement package ... Can't fail repeatedly and still front up based on reputation".
     Cameron then apparently retweeted the post even as the match was ongoing.
     The West Indies Players Association (WIPA), often at loggerheads with the WICB in a long-standing battle over contracts and payments, immediately denounced Cameron.
     "WIPA is extremely disturbed by the unacceptable ...

Windies chief blasted for Gayle 'retirement' retweet

Pakistan great Wasim Akram told his compatriots on Sunday they had to win the next game in their World Cup campaign or get ready for an early flight home.
     Pakistan have had a miserable start to the tournament, being well beaten in their opening two group matches.
     Their 76-run defeat by arch-rivals and defending champions India was followed by an even heavier 150-run loss to the West Indies in Christchurch on Saturday.
     Pakistan next face Zimbabwe in a must-win Pool B game on March 1, which Wasim warned will be a "make or break" for them.
     "I am very optimistic that they can win but if they don't they have to go back home early," Wasim told AFP.
     "They must feel for the people who come to the ground in numbers and millions are watching back home," added Wasim a key member of the Pakistan side that won the World Cup when the tournament was last staged in Australia and New Zealand in 1992.
     The top four in each of the two pools of seven will qualify for the ...

Wasim warns Pakistan to win or go home

Rockets were fired at an eastern Libyan airfield used by an anti-Islamist general but fell short, the facility's manager has said, adding that there were no casualties or damage.
	Unknown assailants fired four rockets at the international airport just outside Labraq, from which General Khalifa Haftar's forces launch raids against Islamist positions in the east.
	The airport, which has civilian and military terminals, has been targeted repeatedly in recent months.
	Labraq is some 65 kilometres west of the Islamist stronghold of Derna, which was hit on Monday by Egyptian and Libyan warplanes.
	The raids were in retaliation for the beheading of 21 Coptic Christians by local jihadists affiliated with the Islamic State group.
	The town also lies roughly half that distance west of Al-Qobah, where IS launched suicide bombings on Friday in response to the Derna attacks, killing 44 people and wounding 37, the Libyan health ministry said yesterday.
	A previous toll had put the number of dead at 

Rockets target Libya airfield used by anti-Islamist general

The families of two British schoolgirls among a trio feared to be travelling to join the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria issued emotional appeals for them to come home.
	Close friends Kadiza Sultana, 17, Shamima Begum, 15, and a third 15-year-old who is not being named at her family's request left their east London homes on Tuesday and flew to Istanbul.
	Turkey is a key entry point for those seeking to travel to Syria.
	Sultana's family said they were feeling "completely distressed" at her departure in a statement issued by police yesterday.
	"We all love you dearly and the last four days have been a complete nightmare," they added.
	"We miss you terribly, especially Mum, and things have not been the same without you."
	Begum's family added that they were "extremely worried" about her.
	"Syria is a dangerous place and we don't want you to go there," they said.
	"We understand that you have strong feelings and want to help those you believe are suffering in Syria. You can help from ..

Come home, families beg Syria-bound UK schoolgirls

Nigeria's military today claimed to have recaptured the town of Baga from Boko Haram, more than a month after it was overrun in what is feared to be the worst massacre of its six-year insurgency.
	Defence spokesman Chris Olukolade claimed that "a large number of terrorists" drowned in Lake Chad as they tried to flee bombardment from air force jets.
	The town, a fishing hub on the shore of Lake Chad in the far north of Borno state, northeast Nigeria, was recaptured today morning after the assault began the previous day, he added.
	There was no independent corroboration of the claim, as thousands of Baga residents had fled the town after Boko Haram attacked on January 3 and hundreds, if not more, were killed in the following days.
	Much of the town and 12 surrounding settlements were burnt to the ground.
	Boko Haram's capture of Baga -- and a military base used by a multi-national force in nearby Doron Baga -- was seen as a strategic coup for the group, giving them control of Borno's ...

Nigerian military claims recapture of Baga from Boko Haram

Three Italian skiers were killed and one remained in critical condition after they were hit by an avalanche in the Swiss Alps today, police said, adding that a fifth skier had been slightly injured.
	The five Italians had been cross-country skiing when they were swept away by an avalanche around 1:40 pm (1240 GMT) near the Grand Saint-Bernard peak, not far from the Italian border, police said.
	All five had been dug out alive, and four had been taken by helicopter to nearby hospitals in serious condition, while a fifth was only slightly injured.
	"Unfortunately, we have received word from the hospitals that ... Of the four heliported, three have died," Jean-Marie Bornet, a spokesman for regional police in the canton of Valais, told AFP.
	"The fourth is undergoing resuscitation, so it's quite serious," he said, adding that police could not yet provide details on the age and gender of the victims.
	Bornet said harsh weather conditions, heavy winds and thick fog had complicated the ...

Three Italians killed, two hurt in Swiss Alps avalanche:police

Rebels took Syria's civil war to the ruling Assad clan's hometown for the first time today, killing four people in a car bomb attack on a hospital, state television and a monitor said.
	The attack came as the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that troops had executed 48 people earlier this week in a northern village, among them 10 children.
	"A terrorist car bomb attack in the parking of Qardaha hospital killed four citizens and wounded several others," the television said in a news flash, using the regime term for rebels.
	Earlier, the Britain-based Observatory had reported the blast, saying it was not immediately clear if it was from a car bomb or rocket fire.
	The blast, the first to hit the heart of the western town since the outbreak of Syria's civil war in 2011, killed a nurse, a hospital employee and two soldiers, said Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman.
	The outskirts of Qardaha have previously come under rocket fire, while Latakia province -- where the town is .

Car bomb kills 4 in Assad clan's hometown

Members of the P5+1 group are united in attempts to broker a deal with Iran over its nuclear programme, US Secretary of State John Kerry said today.
	"There is absolutely no divergence whatsoever in what we believe is necessary for Iran to prove that its nuclear program is going to be peaceful," Kerry said before talks with British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond in London.
	"The P5+1 remains united on the subject of Iran."
	Kerry will fly to Geneva on Sunday for talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.
	Iran and the P5+1 group of Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States and Germany are trying to strike a deal that would prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear bomb, a goal it denies having, in return for an easing of punishing economic sanctions.
	Zarif and Kerry will hold two days of discussions from tomorrow after their diplomats begin bilateral talks yesterday, Iran's deputy foreign minister Abbas Araqchi said.
	The talks aim to "continue to make ...

P5+1 nuclear group 'united' over Iran: Kerry

A bomb exploded near a church in the Chilean capital today, the latest in series of blasts sparking panic in the Latin American nation, though officials said no one was injured.
	The explosion rocked the upscale Las Condes neighbourhood of Santiago at 8:50 am (1150 GMT) close to a church.
	Police said there were few people present and no injuries or deaths were reported, though they were investigating who may have planted the bomb.
	"This incident should be investigated and punished. Nothing justifies such a violent act," prosecutor Raul Guzman said.
	The bombing is the latest in a spate of explosions that have left Chile on edge, in the worst violence to hit the nation in a quarter century.
	In September, a homemade bomb ripped through the Santiago subway system wounding 14 people, in what the government dubbed a "terrorist act."
	The subway attack was the most destructive of some 200 unsolved bombings that have targeted banks, gyms, embassies and restaurants in the South American ...

AFP

AFP

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