Cloying humidity and a parched pitch will add to the sense of danger when England and Italy launch their World Cup campaigns in the steamy Amazon jungle city of Manaus tomorrow.
     With South American champions Uruguay also lurking in Group D, along with Costa Rica, both Roy Hodgson's England and Cesare Prandelli's Italy approach the game knowing they can scarcely afford to lose if they are to reach the last 16.
     The rainforest humidity, which hovers at around 80 percent, is likely to weigh heavily on the tempo of the game and the two sides must also get to grips with a desiccated playing surface at the purpose-built Amazonia Arena.
     Head groundsman Carlos Botella has admitted that the pitch is in "bad shape" and emergency work was required on Thursday to cover up its dry brown patches with green dye.
     The teams last met in the quarter-finals of the 2012 European Championship in Kiev, when Italy prevailed on penalties after a 0-0 draw that they largely dominated.
     ...

England, Italy braced for rumble in jungle

PTI Automatic

Twenty people were injured when a Hong Kong ferry crashed into a seawall off the coast of the gambling enclave of Macau today, officials said, the latest accident to hit the cities' busy waterways.
	The crash happened when the Macau-bound ferry -- reported to be a jetfoil boat -- was approaching the port at around 9.30 am (0130 GMT) and hit a concrete breakwater, a spokesman for Macau's marine department said.
	"Twenty people were injured as the ferry was arriving from Hong Kong and rescue boats were used to carry them back to shore for treatment," the spokesman said.
	"The extent of the injuries will be determined later. But for now, we can say most of them were slightly injured. Some of them were hospitalised because they were bleeding."
	Passenger ferries regularly cover the hour-long distance between Hong Kong and Macau.
	Local broadcaster RTHK said the ferry involved was a jetfoil and the cause of accident was yet to be determined.
	It is the third accident on the Hong Kong to ...

Twenty injured in Hong Kong ferry crash

Uruguay will give star striker Luis Suarez every chance to prove his fitness less than a month after having knee surgery ahead of their World Cup opener with Costa Rica in Fortaleza tomorrow.
     The Premier League Player of the Year had an operation to repair damage to the meniscus in his left knee on May 22, but has remained steadfast in his determination to feature in Brazil.
     "I want to tell everyone that the recovery is going very well and that the knee feels good. Everything depends on how things go day-by-day, but it is going well," Suarez said via his official Twitter account.
     "I want to thank you all for the messages of support I have received throughout the week and my mind is now focused on the World Cup."
     However, with tougher tests on paper in England and Italy to come for the 2010 semi-finalists later in Group D, coach Oscar Tabarez may be tempted to give his star man a few extra days to recover.
     "If it was down to me then Suarez would play," said ...

Suarez doubt dominates Uruguay preparation

Japan's technicians must try to outfox a powerful Ivory Coast as the Asian and African powerhouses meet in a clash of styles here tomorrow.
     The Blue Samurai have established themselves as the leading force on the Asian continent largely thanks to the technical quality of their nimble midfield, while the Ivorians' rely on the power and driving runs of African Player of the Year Yaya Toure and exciting young full-back Serge Aurier.
     Whether it is Japan's guile or the Elephants' physical force, whoever comes out on top in the Pernambuco Arena on Brazil's north-east coast will put themselves in a fine position from which to go on and qualify for the last 16.
     A group that also contains Greece and a Colombia side deprived of the injured Radamel Falcao could be one of the most open of this World Cup, but Ivory Coast coach Sabri Lamouchi is hopeful his side can progress.
     "Our ambition is to go beyond the first phase as it is something the Ivory Coast have never managed ...

Clash of styles as Japan meet Ivory Coast

Crude prices today extended the previous day's rally to sit at nine-month highs after militants closed in on Iraq's capital Baghdad, fuelling fears over supplies from the major crude producer.
	US benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, advanced 73 cents to USD 107.26 in late-morning trade after surging USD 2.13 in New York yesterday to reach its highest level since September.
	Brent North Sea crude gained 57 cents to USD 113.59 per barrel after shooting up USD 3.07 in London.
	Iraq is the second biggest producer in the OPEC oil cartel after Saudi Arabia and any escalation of the violence there could hit supplies, sending prices higher, analysts said.
	"Any disruption at OPEC's second largest producer risks tearing apart the global rebound we had seen this year," Desmond Chua, market analyst at CMC Markets in Singapore, said in a note.
	Phillip Futures warned that "higher energy prices will apply brakes on a global recovery and may even cause the world to re-enter recession".
	US ...

Crude prices up as militants close in on Baghdad

Furious Croatia coach Niko Kovac said the Japanese referee in his side's 3-1 defeat to Brazil was "out of his depth" after a bitterly disputed penalty changed the course of the World Cup opener.
     The unfancied European team took a shock lead when Marcelo scored an own goal in the 11th minute before Neymar levelled.
     But Croatia, ranked 18th in the world, were holding their own in the second half until referee Yuichi Nishimura pointed to the spot after Fred backed into Croatian defender Dejean Lovren and fell.
     "If anybody saw that was a penalty, let them raise their hand. I cannot raise my hand. I didn't see it," said Kovac.
     "If you continue in this vein then there will be 100 penalties during this World Cup."
     Kovac branded the spot kick award "ridiculous", saying he blamed himself for not saying during Wednesday's press conference that he would be "keeping a beady eye on the referee".
     The disappointed coach said he felt his team had deserved at least a ...

Furious Croatia coach rails against ref over penalty

Brazil rode a wave of national fervour to launch the World Cup with a 3-1 victory over Croatia on Thursday as an opening day which began with violent clashes gave way to an outpouring of joy.
     Barcelona superstar Neymar scored in each half as Brazil recovered from conceding an early Marcelo own goal to set up a win before hordes of golden-shirted fans at the 61,600 Corinthians Arena in Sao Paulo.
     Chelsea midfielder Oscar put the seal on the win with a late strike from distance to trigger delirium.
     The host nation's Group A victory was greeted by an explosion of fireworks across Sao Paulo, a sharp contrast to several hours earlier when riot police fired tear gas and stun grenades to disperse angry protests.
     But a largely free-flowing tournament-opener was shrouded in controversy, with Brazil's winner coming courtesy of a dubious penalty when Croatia defender Dejan Lovren was harshly adjudged to have shoved Fred over.
     The hosts, chasing a record sixth World Cup, .

Brazil joy as World Cup opens with a bang

Croatian fans were saddened and disappointed after their national team, known as the 'Fiery Ones' (Vatreni), was defeated 3-1 in the World Cup openning match by hosts Brazil late Thursday.
     Thousands of fans watched the match on cafe terraces in towns and cities across Croatia. A thunderstorm that hit the Croatian capital just before the match chased away many fans, but thousands of supporters still gathered at the Zagreb's main square.
     Nearly all were dressed in Croatia's distinctive red and white squared shirts as they watched the match on a 52-square-meter screen above an improvised stage.
     "It's a pity, the referee ruined us!" said a bitter Goran Vlahic, 28, as he was leaving the square with his girlfriend.
     He was referring to Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura's highly dubious decision to award a penalty in the second half after Fred backed into Croatian defender Dejan Lovren and fell over.
     Vlahic echoed the view of many fans, and national team coach Niko ...

Croatia fans saddened after World Cup Brazil match

Police were hunting today a gunman or gunmen who killed one priest and injured another at a Catholic church in Arizona.
	The priest who survived was able to give the last rites to his fatally-hit colleague before he died, police told reporters after the mystery attack Tuesday night in Phoenix.
	An intruder or intruders broke into the Mother of Mercy church around 9:30 pm yesterday. A 911 emergency call for burglary was made by Father Joseph Terra, as he comforted his dying colleague, Father Kenneth Walker.
	"How can a person break into a church? How can a person assault a man of the cloth? How can a person take a person's life, especially a priest? It's sad," said local councillor Mike Nowakowski.
	Phoenix police chief Daniel Garcia said investigators had some "strong physical evidence," but no eyewitness accounts and no knowledge of how many intruders were involved.
	"At this point, we have no information as to whether it's a suspect or suspects," he told reporters, adding: "It was ..

Priest killed, another injured in US shooting

Militants seized two strategic areas of Diyala province northeast of Baghdad, late today after security forces withdrew, officers said, bringing a militant offensive closer to the provincial capital Baquba.
	Jalawla and Saadiyah are the latest areas to fall to a lightning three-day militant offensive that has swept down from northern Iraq, overrunning all of one province and significant parts of three others.

Militants seize two areas of Iraq's Diyala: officers

The UN Security Council today demanded urgent inclusive dialogue in Iraq and condemned "terrorist" activities, but stopped short of mulling action against militants advancing on Baghdad.
	The Council met for two hours behind closed doors as Kurds captured the contested oil city of Kirkuk and the United States contemplated air strikes to bolster Iraq's collapsing army.
	The 15 members expressed unanimous support for the government and people of Iraq in their fight against terrorism and called for broad-based dialogue, said rotating president Russia.
	"This is a great opportunity for a fresh start in having an all-inclusive political dialogue and also in resolving the multitude of issues," Russian ambassador Vitaly Churkin said.
	"There must be a strong and intensified effort to start this dialogue," he added, after Iraqi MPs failed to show up to authorize the prime minister's request for a state of emergency.
	Security Council members urged the Iraqi government and the international ...

UN Security Council calls for urgent dialogue in Iraq

French banking giant BNP Paribas shed a top executive today in its fight against massive impending US penalties for sanctions busting, and more heads look set to roll.
	The bank insisted that chief operating officer Georges Chodron de Courcel was taking retirement.
	But the sudden decision signals a concession to ward off a massive fine, reported possibly to exceed USD 10 billion (7.4 billion euros).
	The announcement is a crucial development, since France has said that the possibility of what it sees as "disproportionate" penalties could upset talks on a vast free-trade pact between the 28-member European Union and United States.
	At the beginning of June, various sources told AFP that the bank would sack Chodron de Courcel to placate US authorities.
	The New York state banking regulator Benjamin Lawsky called several months ago for him to be dismissed, AFP has learnt.
	The US authorities are believed to have claimed the head of another senior executive, a source close to the matter .

BNP Paribas sheds top exec in fight against US fine

The US Senate confirmed President Barack Obama's two nominees to the Federal Reserve board today, and named Stanley Fischer vice chair after confirming him to the board last month.
	The move brings to five the number of people serving on the seven-member board of governors. All five were picked by Obama.
	The lawmakers voted 61-31 to confirm Lael Brainard, the former Treasury Department undersecretary for international affairs.
	Board member Jerome Powell, a financial policy expert and scholar, was confirmed 67-24 for a second term.
	Governors normally serve a 14-year term, unless they are serving the remainder of another's term, as Powell was doing.
	Fischer, a dual US-Israeli national, was nominated by Obama to fill the deputy seat vacated by Janet Yellen, who succeeded Ben Bernanke as chair in early February.
	Until last year Fischer served as governor of Israel's central bank. He will participate in the next monetary policy meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee on June 17 ..

Two more confirmed to Fed Reserve, Fischer vice chair

The Canadian government said today it will choose one of four fighter jets in competition to replace its aging fleet of CF-18s "in the coming weeks."
	Critics, however, contend the procurement process -- which was reset in 2012 amid complaints of several manufacturers being shut out of it -- is rigged in favor of the American Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighter jet.
	Over the past 14 months, an independent review panel compiled the costs, capabilities and weaknesses of Boeing's F-18 Super Hornet, the Eurofighter Typhoon, Dassault's Rafale and the F-35.
	Prime Minister Stephen Harper said this week his cabinet would now review the panel's report, which has not been made public. However, reporters were briefed today on the methodology to calculate the pros and cons of the jets in the running.
	"Ministers... Will make a decision on the path forward to replace the CF-18 fleet in the coming weeks," the government said in a notice.
	Opposition leader Tom Mulcair, however, claimed "the ...

Canada to choose new fighter jets in coming weeks

Boko Haram's abduction of hundreds of schoolgirls is a "heinous example of the scourge of sexual violence", Nigeria and its neighbours said today as they reaffirmed their commitment to defeating the militant group.
	Representatives from Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, Niger and Benin gathered in London to discuss progress on an action plan agreed last month in Paris, when their countries pledged to "declare war" on the Islamic insurgency.
	They met on the sidelines of a global summit on combating sexual violence in conflict, co-hosted by British Foreign Secretary Hague and Hollywood star Angelina Jolie, which they said was directly related to the schoolgirls' plight.
	"The abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls was a heinous example of the scourge of sexual violence, which we are determined to eliminate around the world," they said in a communique.
	They were joined by representatives of the European Union, United Nations, African Union, France, Canada, Britain and the United States, which are .

Nigerian schoolgirls 'a heinous example of sexual violence'

A car belonging to Donetsk rebel leader Denis Pushilin was blown up in the restive eastern Ukrainian city today, wounding three bodyguards, a spokeswoman for the separatist government said.
	Pushilin, who was not in the car when the explosion hit, is one of the leaders of the self-proclaimed "Donetsk People's Republic".
	The separatist rebel movement has its headquarters in the former regional government building in the heart of the coal mining city.
	"Pushilin's car was blown up. Three bodyguards were injured. He was not in the vehicle," spokeswoman Klavdiya Kulbatskaya told AFP.

Ukraine rebel leader's car blown up in Donetsk: spokeswoman

A news photographer was killed while covering fighting between Kurdish security forces and jihadists in northern Iraq today, medical and security sources said.
	Kamran Najm Ibrahim died and 14 Kurdish security personnel were wounded in the clashes west of the oil city of Kirkuk, where the militants have seized a string of mainly Sunni Arab towns in the ethnically divided province.
	Ibrahim, a well-known freelance photographer, was the first journalist to lose his life covering a major offensive spearheaded by jihadist group the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, which began late on Monday.
	The militants have overrun a large swathe of northern and north-central Iraq, including second city Mosul.
	Iraq is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists, and comes in for frequent criticism from media watchdogs.
	Kurdish security forces, known as peshmerga, took control of Kirkuk city today after soldiers of the Iraqi army quit their posts, officials said.
	Kurdish ...

Photographer killed covering north Iraq clashes

US President Barack Obama said today that he envisioned greater defense cooperation with Australia in a tension-filled Asia, welcoming Prime Minister Tony Abbott despite differences on climate change.
	In the conservative leader's first White House summit since his election in September, Abbott said that Australia "will be an utterly indispensable ally" of the United States and welcomed Obama's efforts to shift more US attention on Asia.
	Obama praised Abbott for increasing Australia's defense budget in tough economic times, calling the move a recognition that "we all have to make sure that we're doing our fair share to help maintain global order and security."
	"We don't have a better friend in the world, as well as the Asia-Pacific region, than Australia," Obama told reporters after the Oval Office meeting, saying he and Abbott "see a whole range of opportunities out there for increased cooperation."
	Obama agreed with Australia's previous government to send some 2,500 US Marines by 

US, Australia leaders eye more defense cooperation

Nigeria's military indicated today that it could follow the example of Sri Lanka in fighting terror, to bring an end to an increasingly deadly insurgency by Boko Haram militants.
	A high-ranking military delegation from the South Asian island nation, led by Chief of Defence Staff General Jagath Jayasuriya, was in the capital, Abuja, to meet their Nigerian counterparts to share experience and expertise.
	The visit came after Pakistan's President Mamnoon Hussain held talks with his opposite number, Goodluck Jonathan, on Tuesday and the leaders pledged greater co-operation in defence and counter-terrorism.
	Sri Lanka, with Jayasuriya as army chief, brought its decades-long civil war with ethnic Tamil Tiger rebels to an end in May 2009 after a devastating military onslaught.
	But the country's military has been dogged ever since by allegations that it killed 40,000 Tamil civilians in the terrifying final days of the conflict and claims, which it denies, that it committed war ...

Nigeria mulling Sri Lankan example to fight terror: military

The European Union hopes the United States will be "fair" in its treatment of BNP Paribas over the French bank's alleged US sanctions violations, a senior EU official said today.
	The EU's internal market and services commissioner, Michel Barnier, said that Brussels was following developments in the US case against France's largest bank, which reportedly might have to pay at least USD 10 billion in fines to resolve the accusations.
	"Given the importance of this case and the importance of this bank... We are closely following the situation and we simply wish that this affair be handled in a proportionate, fair and objective manner," Barnier said at a news conference in Washington.
	The bank is accused of breaking sanctions against Iran, Sudan and Cuba between 2002 and 2009 by carrying out dollar transactions with them, but such cases are usually the subject of negotiations with US judicial officials.
	In addition to the huge fines, BNP may have to suspend dollar transactions in the ...

EU hopes for 'fair' US action in French bank case

Joe Root's second hundred in as many Lord's Tests was the cornerstone of England's recovery on the first day of their series opener with Sri Lanka today.
     Root's 102 not out helped take England to 344 for five at stumps on the first day of the first Test after they'd been struggling at 74 for three when the 23-year-old Yorkshireman walked out to bat.
     Root, who made a Test-best 180 against Australia at Lord's last year, was well supported by Matt Prior (76 not out) in a so-far unbroken sixth-wicket stand of 135.
     However, recalled wicketkeeper Prior was fortunate not be out for a second-ball duck before completing just his second 50 in 21 Test innings.
     Moeen Ali (48), one of three debutants in a new-look England side following their 5-0 Ashes drubbing in Australia, had previously helped Root steady the ship during a fifth-wicket stand of 89.
     "It's a very slow wicket and hard to time when the ball goes softer," Root told Sky Sports.
     "It was a day when you had 

AFP

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