Sixteen people have been found sealed inside a trailer on a ferry bound for the Irish port of Rosslare, shipping operator Stena Line said on Thursday.
The discovery draws renewed attention to the issue of illegal immigration and human trafficking in western Europe, after 39 Vietnamese were found dead in a trailer in Britain last month.
And on Tuesday, the crew of a cargo ferry run by DFDS Seaways found 25 migrants in a refrigerated container on a boat sailing to Britain and forced the vessel to return to port.
The 16 individuals in the latest discovery were found aboard a Wednesday night sailing of the Stena Horizon ship from Cherbourg in northern France.
"One of our employees during a routine inspection discovered 16 people in a sealed trailer on the vehicle deck," Stena Line chief communications officer Ian Hampton said in a statement.
"All the individuals are reported to be in good health and have been moved to a private passenger lounge on the ship." The ship was due to arrive in .

16 found sealed in trailer on ferry bound for Ireland

PTI Automatic

Donald Trump said Thursday he would publish information about his finances before next year's presidential election, as Democrats and prosecutors try to get his tax returns against his will.
Trump, 73, did not specify which financial documents he would release or exactly when the long-awaited publication would happen.  "The Witch Hunt continues with local New York Democrat prosecutors going over every financial deal I have ever done. This has never happened to a President before," he tweeted.
"What they are doing is not legal. But I'm clean, and when I release my financial statement (my decision) sometime prior to Election, it will only show one thing -- that I am much richer than people even thought," he added.
Trump broke with a presidential norm during the 2016 contest by refusing to release his tax returns as most presidents have done since the 1970s even though it is not required by law.  He claims that his tax returns are under audit by the Internal Revenue Service.
His lawyers .

Trump says he will release finances before election

A Turkish court sentenced three men to prison on Thursday for shooting at the US embassy in Ankara last year.
They got sentences ranging from just over three years to more than 10 years for "membership in a terrorist organisation" and "actions aimed at sabotaging relations with a foreign country", according to state news agency Anadolu.
The US embassy was fired upon from a car on August 20, 2018, without any casualties.
One of the men told the court he carried out "this stupid action" due to "patriotism" and alcohol.
"Whatever decision you take, long live the state," he said, according to Anadolu.
At the time, the government described the shooting as an attempt to "sow chaos" at a moment when relations between Turkey and the United States were deeply strained.
Washington had recently imposed sanctions against Turkey in response to its detention of an American pastor, who was later freed.
Anti-American sentiment was already widespread in Turkish media and influential political circles .

Turkey sentences 3 over US embassy shooting

A Turkish court confirmed the convictions against former journalists from Turkey's oldest newspaper on Thursday, despite their sentences being overturned by a higher court.
The judgement against 12 ex-staffers from Cumhuriyet was described as "scandalous" by rights groups, and further evidence of the sweeping crackdown on media freedom under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The 12 were convicted last year of supporting, through their news coverage, three organisations that Turkey views as terrorist groups: the Kurdistan Workers' Party, the ultra-left Revolutionary People's Liberation Party-Front, and the Gulen movement blamed for a failed coup in 2016.
They were sentenced to jail terms ranging from two-and-a-half years to more than eight years.
In September, the Supreme Court overturned the sentences and freed the former journalists pending Thursday's retrial.
But the lower court ignored that decision, and reconfirmed the original sentences, with the exception of one journalist -- ...

Turkey re-convicts journalists despite higher court ruling

Israel's justice ministry said Thursday it charged a border policewoman with shooting a Palestinian in the back with a sponge-tipped bullet "just for amusement".
The charge sheet, sent with a ministry statement to AFP, said that the woman, since dismissed from the force, was charged in the Jerusalem magistrates court with assault and reckless use of a firearm.
Along with two other officers she was also charged with perverting the course of justice by destroying evidence and lying to investigators.
The ministry's police investigation unit launched a probe after a video, apparently showing the woman firing at the unidentified Palestinian as he walked away, was shown on Israel's private Channel 13 TV.
The incident occurred in May 2018.
It showed border police  -- part of the Israeli police -- telling a Palestinian to turn back at a West Bank checkpoint on the edge of Jerusalem.
As the man walks away, his arms raised, one of the officers fires a sponge-tipped bullet, ammunition generally .

Israel charges policewoman for shooting Palestinian in back

Congolese troops killed seven members of a militia who attacked its positions in two villages in the country's conflict-ridden east, the army said on Thursday.
Dozens of rival militias operate in DR Congo's North and South-Kivu provinces, including the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), an Islamist-rooted group blamed for killing hundreds.
The area has been torn for more than two decades by armed conflicts fed by ethnic and land disputes, competition for control of a wealth of mineral resources and regional rivalries.
"A (Mai-Mai) militia group on Tuesday, November 19, attacked the army's positions in Rusankuku and Kananda villages (in South-Kivu's Fizi region)," local military spokesman Captain Dieudonne Kasereka told AFP.
Mai-Mai refers to a community-based militia in the DRC, which defends its territory against other armed groups.
Kasereka said the attackers were pushed out of the villages and "seven militia bodies were identified". He said a soldier was also wounded in the ...

DR Congo army kills 7 militia after attacks

Diego Costa is facing three months out after Atletico Madrid confirmed the striker underwent surgery on a cervical disc on Thursday.
Costa felt discomfort in his neck last week in training and the club decided the injury required surgery.
"Diego Costa underwent surgery on his cervical disc herniation in Madrid on Thursday," Atletico confirmed in a statement.
"According to the information provided by the club's medical services, the operation has gone as planned."
Costa is expected to be out for around three months, meaning he will miss Atletico's La Liga game against Barcelona on December 1.
He is also unlikely to play in either of their last two Champions League group games against Juventus and Lokomotiv Moscow but could return in time for the round of 16 matches at the end of February.

Costa set for three months out after operation

Jose Mourinho is not planning on wholesale changes as he tries to turn Tottenham's season around and believes he is humble enough to have learned lessons from his failed spell in charge of Manchester United.
Mourinho replaced Mauricio Pochettino as Spurs boss on Wednesday after the Argentine's five-and-a-year spell ended in the sack with Tottenham 14th in the Premier League.
The Portuguese has won 25 trophies in a storied managerial career at Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and United.
However, his time in charge at Old Trafford ended in the sack 11 months ago having failed to win the league at a club for the first time since he left Portuguese minnows Leiria to join Porto in 2002.
"I am humble enough to try to analyse my career. Not just the last year, my career, the evolution, the problems, the solutions," said Mourinho in his first press conference as Tottenham boss on Thursday.
"I was humble enough to do that. The principle of the analysis was not to blame anyone ...

'Humble' Mourinho not planning on big changes at Spurs

Novak Djokovic booked Serbia's place in the quarter-finals of the Davis Cup on Thursday as he eased past Benoit Paire to send France crashing out.
Djokovic beat Paire 6-3 6-3 in Madrid after Filip Krajinovic won a close encounter 7-5 7-6 (7/5) against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to give Serbia a 2-0 advantage with only the doubles rubber to play.
It means France cannot advance as one of the best two runners-up by virtue of their record on sets, even if they win the doubles.
France's early exit is a major surprise given they were the top seeds in the competition, which they have won on 10 previous occasions and were only denied an 11th success by Croatia in last year's final.
Serbia will now meet Russia on Friday and were joined in the last eight by Germany, who secured the one rubber they needed against Chile as Philipp Kohlschreiber defeated Nicolas Jarry 6-4, 6-3 in the singles.
Germany await the winner of Group E, where Britain were due to play a dramatic doubles clash against Kazakhstan, ..

Djokovic sends Serbia through as France knocked out of Davis Cup

Three soldiers were killed on Thursday in two simultaneous attacks in northern Burkina Faso, where the armed forces are struggling to contain an Islamist insurgency, security sources said.
The attacks are part of increasing jihadist violence in the West African country, where 700 people have been killed in the nearly five years since fighting spilled across the border from Mali, according to an AFP count.
"Early this morning, an armed group attacked a military unit in Kelbo. Two soldiers were killed during this attack," a security source told AFP.
"Almost at the same time, a separate armed group attacked a unit in Namissiguima. Another soldier was killed there." Militants took away motorbikes and a pickup truck during the attacks, another security source said confirming the two incidents.
Attacks in Burkina Faso, which borders Mali and Niger, have targeted mostly the north and east of the country, though the capital Ouagadougou has been hit three times.
Most of the violence is ...

Burkina Faso attacks kill three soldiers in north: security sources

A US aircraft carrier's passage through the Gulf is the latest demonstration of the superpower's enduring military presence in the Middle East aimed at reassuring allies, experts and officials say.
In a potent symbol of military might, the Abraham Lincoln carrier and its attendant warships cruised through the Strait of Hormuz this week.
The voyage came after United States President Donald Trump wrote in a tweet last month that "going into the Middle East is the worst decision ever".
But since then, the US military has taken action to emphasise its long-standing presence in a region where the US has deep strategic interests.
It conducted massive trainings, announced the deployment of more troops and created a maritime coalition headquartered in Bahrain to protect shipping in the troubled Gulf waters.
The Abraham Lincoln's transit through the strait, which earlier this year was rocked by a string of attacks that Washington and its allies blame on Iran -- accusations Tehran firmly denies 

US flexes muscles in Gulf to reassure allies

The European Union has more than doubled its emergency aid for Afghanistan to 77 million euros this year because of "the worsening humanitarian situation," a European Commission spokeswoman said Thursday.
The extra 40 million euros (USD 44 million) allocated will go to emergency healthcare, shelter, water and protection for children and women, a Commission statement said.
Around 80 per cent of the total aid goes directly to Afghanistan, with the rest split between neighbouring Iran and Pakistan, which together host six million Afghan refugees.
"Not only has the conflict between the government and non-state armed groups intensified since the beginning of the year, but devastating floods have also hit this war-torn country," said the EU's commissioner for humanitarian aid, Christos Stylianides.

EU doubles emergency aid for Afghanistan

Cyprus authorities have rescued 120 Syrian migrants from a boat adrift off the island's southeastern coast, police said on Thursday.
They brought the Syrians ashore in the Cape Greco region after their vessel was sighted six nautical miles (11 km) off the east Mediterranean island.
The boat was spotted on Wednesday and the migrants -- including 20 children, 14 of them unaccompanied minors, and three women -- were taken to a reception centre outside the capital Nicosia.
The migrants told police they had crossed the Syria-Turkey border and the boat sailed from Mersin in Turkey, a route previously used by people smugglers.
Those on board said they had paid USD 4,000 each for the journey to the smugglers, who managed to get away.
In August, Cyprus requested that fellow European Union member states take in 5,000 of its migrants to alleviate the "disproportionate pressures" it faced.
The small EU member says it is on the front line of the Mediterranean migration route.
Available data shows .

Cyprus rescues 120 Syrian migrants

Scotland's former first minister  Alex Salmond appeared in court on Thursday to face a string of sexual assault allegations, including an attempted rape at his official residence in 2014.
A total of 10 women have made complaints against the 64-year-old, who led the Scottish National Party for more than 20 years.
The 14 allegations, which date from June 2008 to November 2014, concern various degrees of sexual assault.
His legal team told a preliminary hearing at the High Court in Edinburgh that he would be denying all the charges.
The former politician told reporters outside the court he would defend himself "vigorously".
"I'm not permitted to say too much today save that we've lodged our defence statement with the court," said Salmond, who was first minister between 2007 and 2014.
"It pleads not guilty to all charges and explains some of the circumstances in which they've come about."
Among the charges he faces is an allegation that he tried to rape a woman in June 2014 at the first ..

Scotland's ex-leader Salmond in court on sex charges

Ride-hailing pioneer Uber, rather than being part of the solution to urban transport may be adding to related problems, especially pollution from diesel cars, a study showed Thursday.
Transport & Environment, which groups NGOs in Europe to promote sustainable transport solutions, said Uber revolutionised the once heavily regulated taxi sector, attracting thousands of new Private Hire Vehicle (PHV) drivers.
But this "stellar increase in Uber drivers has not been offset by a similar reduction in taxi licences... and Uber's appearance did not accelerate the reduction of car trips in London and Paris."
Instead, "the convenience of door-to-door, app-based trip booking makes travelling by (hired) cars in cities more and more popular, risking a reversal of a 15 year trend of reducing car trips in cities," the Brussels-based TE said in a summary of the study's findings.
By the same token, "the uptake of ride-hailing services across EU cities also poses a risk to the fight against ...

Uber may contribute more transport pollution than solution: study

Germany's competition watchdog said Thursday it would fine carmakers BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen a total of 100 million euros (USD 111 million) for "anticompetitive practices" in buying so-called "long steel".
Representatives from the car companies and steel producers met twice a year "between 2004 and the end of 2013" and "discussed" prices for the vital raw material, used for building items like crank shafts, piston rods and cogs, the Bundeskartellamt said in a statement.
"Where there was no further individual negotiation with the suppliers following these conversations, competition was prevented" on some elements of the price, the authority said.
The companies had acknowledged their participation in the talks and accepted the fine, it added.
Thursday's fine is separate from a competition probe by the European Commission into BMW, Mercedes-Benz parent Daimler and VW, who are suspected of agreeing not to compete on emissions reduction technologies.
And still another investigation by .

Germany fines carmakers over steel buying cartel

Israel's President Reuven Rivlin tasked parliament Thursday with finding a new prime minister, as he sought to avoid new elections after incumbent Benjamin Netanyahu and rival Benny Gantz each failed to form a government.
"Starting today and for 21 days the decision of who to task with forming the government is in the hands of the members of the Knesset (parliament)," Rivlin said, a day after Gantz admitted he would be unable to build a governing coalition.
Parliament will now have until December 11 to find a candidate who can command the support of the majority of the country's 120 MPs or a new general election will be called for early 2020.
It would be the third such poll within 12 months.
Rivlin, who has been urging a compromise to break the political deadlock, met with Knesset speaker Yuli Edelstein Thursday and formally handed over the mandate.
It was the first time in Israeli history the president had been forced to ask parliament to find a government.
"The disruptive politics ..

Bidding to avoid elections, Israel president asks parliament to find PM

Pope Francis led an impassioned mass for tens of thousands of emotional worshippers at a packed Bangkok stadium Thursday, urging respect for prostitutes and trafficking victims in a part of the world where sex work is rampant.
The remarks came at the end of a whirlwind day of meetings for Pope Francis, who is on his first trip to Buddhist-majority Thailand where he is carrying a message of religious harmony and peace.
He heads to Japan next, visiting the twin atomic bombs sites of Nagasaki and Hiroshima where he will seek a ban on "immoral" nuclear weapons.
The 82-year-old arrived at the stadium in a golden robe woven for him from Thai silk, greeting crowds of flag-waving faithful, some wiping tears from their faces at the sight of the leader of the world's 1.3 billion Catholics.
An estimated 60,000 worshippers gathered for the mass, some pouring into a nearby stadium to watch the hymn-filled service on large screens.
Known for his down-to-earth style, the Pope did not shy away from ..

Pope urges respect for prostitutes at crowded Bangkok mass

Stock markets extended recent losses Thursday after US lawmakers passed a bill supporting civil rights in embattled Hong Kong, jeopardising delicate Chinese-American trade talks as Beijing threatened to fight back.
Investors, already nervous about slow progress of the talks, were sent running for the hills after both houses of Congress overwhelmingly agreed to the bill and sent it to be signed by US President Donald Trump.
"A third day in the red for equity markets as the US-China trade deal, or lack of, continues to dictate market sentiment," said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda trading group.
China on Thursday accused the United States of seeking to "destroy" Hong Kong and threatened retaliation after Congress passed legislation supporting the pro-democracy movement that has thrown the city into nearly six months of turmoil.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the passage of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act "indulges violent criminals" that China blames for the ...

Stocks extend losses as Hong Kong bill fuels trade fears

A British-Iranian anthropologist held in Iran for three months has been released on bail, his wife told state news agency IRNA on Wednesday.
"Kameel Ahmady was released on Sunday evening on a 500 million (toman, USD 42,000) bail after three months of temporary detention," IRNA quoted Shafagh Rahmani as saying.
Iran confirmed Ahmady's arrest in October, less than three months after the detention of Franco-Iranian academic Fariba Adelkhah was publicised.
French anthropologist Christian Bromberger wrote in August that Ahmady was "recently arrested", in an article published on the French edition of The Conversation website.
Author of a book in English titled "In the Name of Tradition: Female Genital Mutilation in Iran", Ahmady holds dual British and Iranian citizenship, according to Bromberger, himself an Iran specialist.
IRNA said Ahmady had researched and published books on "child marriage, white marriage (unmarried cohabitation), child labour in Tehran as well as identity and ethnicity 

Iran releases British-Iranian academic on bail

Belgrade was on Thursday investigating a video that purports to show a Russian agent providing cash to an unidentified man in Serbia, triggering alarm in the Balkan state.
A Serbian intelligence official confirmed late Wednesday that the video is authentic and identified the Russian agent as Georgy Kleban.
The clip, whose origins are still unconfirmed, shows the Russian meeting in a car park with a man who local media have portrayed as a Serbian intelligence officer.
During the encounter the Russian hands the man a plastic bag. Later the Serb, whose face is blurred, is seen inside his car counting money from an envelope that was in the bag.
"Our services, both civilian and military, are intensely engaged in establishing all the circumstances related to this event," Relja Zeljski, the chief of Serbian intelligence's analytical section, told state-run RTS.
On Thursday President Aleksandar Vucic convened a meeting with the National Security Council over the affair. He is due to visit ...

AFP

AFP

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