The boycotting Bangladeshi players made new demands on Wednesday including a share of the board's revenue as a crisis surrounding cricket in the country deepened.
Supreme Court lawyer Mustafizur Rahman Khan read out a list of 13 demands on behalf of the Bangladeshi cricketers at a news conference, which also included a "feasible" wage for female players.
"Arrangements will have to be made where professional cricketers are given a fair share of the revenue generated by BCB (Bangladesh Cricket Board), which, after all, is made possible through the toil and performance of professional cricketers," said Rahman, citing the example of Australia.
Bangladesh national and first-class players on Monday announced a strike calling for better pay and benefits, casting doubt on the country's tour of India due to start in early November.
National Test and Twenty20 captain Shakib Al Hasan, also one of the world's finest all-rounders, led the revolt, with all the star players joining the unprecedented 

Striking Bangladeshi cricketers want slice of revenue

PTI Automatic

Boeing cut its production plan for the 787 jet after receiving fewer orders than expected from China, which has been locked in a trade battle with Washington since last year, the company's chief executive said Wednesday.
The US-China trade situation "has presented challenges for our wide-body production plans," Chief Executive Dennis Muilenburg said during a conference call with analysts.
The company announced Wednesday it would pare back production of the "Dreamliner" planes from 14 per month to 12 in late 2020.
"The lack of orders from China in the past couple of years has put pressure on the production rate," Muilenburg said.
The move came after the United States announced on October 11 that it had reached "phase one" of a trade pact with Beijing, a de-escalation of a trade fight that has brewed for more than a year.
Muilenburg said the latest trade developments have been "productive" but that "we don't have firm orders from China at this point."
"We're going to continue to monitor 

Boeing cites US-China trade fight as it trims 787 output

The head of South Africa's opposition Democratic Alliance (DA), Mmusi Maimane, announced his resignation on Wednesday, in the latest in a string of blows to the party.
"It is with great sadness that in order to continue this fight for the vision I strongly believe and the country I so dearly love, I will today step down as leader of the DA," Maimane, the party's first black leader, told journalists in Johannesburg.
In 2015, Maimane, then aged just 35, became the first black leader of the DA, a party long viewed as the party for middle-class whites.
Raised in Soweto -- the heartland of the anti-apartheid struggle -- Maimane had only joined the DA in 2009 and was fast-tracked through its ranks.
His rapid promotion led to accusations that he was being used by the party's senior white activists to cover up a lack of reform within the party.
On Wednesday, he said his leadership had suffered several months of "coordinated attacks".
The DA, he added, was perhaps "not the best vehicle which ..

First black leader of S Africa's main opposition party quits

Protesters in Ethiopia blocked roads, burned tyres and chanted slogans denouncing Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Wednesday after a high-profile activist accused security forces of trying to orchestrate an attack against him.
Demonstrations occurred mainly in towns in Oromia, one of nine regions in the ethnically diverse country, and in the capital Addis, after Oromo activist Jawar Mohammed made the claim, sources said.
"Everything is shut down. Businesses are shut and all the roads leading to other parts of Ethiopia are barricaded with tyres, tree trunks and stones," said Berhanu Kebede, a resident of Shashamane, a town south of Addis.
He said some members of the crowd were shouting "Down, down, Abiy!"
The unrest highlights divisions within the ethnic Oromo support base that swept Abiy to power last year -- divisions that could undermine the Nobel Peace Prize laureate's position ahead of elections planned for May 2020.
It began Wednesday morning with a standoff in the capital, Addis ...

Protests in Ethiopia after activist says he was threatened

Judy Murray has hailed son Andy's stunning comeback from hip surgery to win his first title in more than two years in Antwerp as "a rebirth" for the former world number one.
"If he is well, Andy is capable of anything," Judy Murray said of his return in an interview with Italian daily newspaper Gazzetta Dello Sport on Wednesday.
"In a few days Andy and Kim's third child should arrive," she continued.  "We'll all go to London, great-grandmother included, to celebrate all the events at once.
After all, it's also a rebirth for Andy." Three-time Grand Slam winner Murray has been selected for Britain's Davis Cup squad after beating Stan Wawrinka to win his first tournament since 2017 at the European Open.
It was only the sixth singles event the 32-year-old has competed in since returning from a hip resurfacing operation in January.
"Seeing him suffer has broken my heart," she said.
"The victory on the court is really a great joy but the greatest triumph was seeing him play without pain and 

Judy Murray hails 'rebirth' of son Andy

England cricket chief Tom Harrison says the controversial Hundred competition will help protect other formats of the game despite fears over its potential impact.
The Hundred, starting in 2020, is a new tournament consisting of eight city-based franchise sides, breaking away from the traditional county system.
Teams will bat for 100 balls each with overs, normally consisting of six deliveries, lasting for 10 balls with bowlers either bowling five or 10 balls consecutively.
The players' draft was held at the weekend but opposition to the tournament remains.
#StopThe100 trended on Twitter while the draft was taking place and several people were asked to remove "Oppose the 100" T-shirts during an evidence session held by British lawmakers involving England and Wales Cricket Board chairman Harrison and other ECB officials.
"The 100 is a really good way of protecting everything that we are serious about," Harrison said on Wednesday.
"It's about protecting Test match cricket, it's about ...

The Hundred is not a threat to county cricket, says ECB chief

Yemen's government and Huthi rebels have set up joint observation posts as part of de-escalation moves in the flashpoint city of Hodeida, a move the United Nations welcomed on Wednesday.
The world body's envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths wrote on Twitter that the establishment of the four positions along frontlines in the key port city, and the deployment of liason officers, were positive moves.
"This step forward will enhance de-escalation in flashpoint areas and save lives," he wrote on Twitter.
The Saudi-backed government and the Iran-aligned Huthi rebels have been embroiled in a devastating conflict since 2014.
Last year, loyalists backed by a Saudi-led military coalition launched an offensive to retake the Red Sea port city, which serves as a crucial entry point for imports and humanitarian aid.
UN-brokered December talks between the warring parties in Sweden yielded a series of breakthroughs including a ceasefire in Hodeida, where combat largely ceased.
In May 2019, the UN ...

Yemen rebels, government set up joint positions in key port city

More than 100 prisoners of the Islamic State extremist movement have escaped in Syria in the chaos since Turkey's incursion, a senior US official said Wednesday.
"We would say the number is now over 100. We do not know where they are," James Jeffrey, the State Department pointman on Syria, told the House Foreign Affairs Committee when asked about the detainees.
Turkey launched a military operation in Syria after President Donald Trump agreed to pull US troops who were allied with the Syrian Democratic Forces, the Kurdish-led group that bore the brunt of the fight against the Islamic State group.
Jeffrey said the Kurdish fighters were still guarding prisoners from the extremist group, despite their warnings that they will need to devote resources to fighting Turkey instead.
"Almost all of the prisons that the SDF were guarding are still secured. The SDF still has people there," Jeffrey said.
"We are monitoring that as best we can. We still have people in Syria working with the SDF and .

More than 100 Islamic State prisoners have escaped in Syria: US envoy

Facebook is set to make a "big announcement" this week aimed at supporting news and journalism, chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said Wednesday.
Zuckerberg, appearing at a congressional hearing on its digital coin Libra, said during questioning that the leading social network is moving forward on a project "supporting high-quality journalism."
The comments appeared to refer to Facebook's planned "News Tab" which will be a separate section that includes articles from professional news organisations.
"Later in this week we have a big announcement coming up on news and journalism," he told lawmakers, describing this as "a  new product that is supporting high quality journalism."
This will feature "high quality news, not just social content," according to Zuckerberg.
Facebook last week confirmed that it would include content from News Corp, publisher of The Wall Street Journal.
While the hearing was focusing on the digital currency plan, Zuckerberg faced an array of questions on other ...

Facebook 'big' project on journalism set for this week

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that a "small number" of US troops will remain at Syria's oil fields despite a broader American withdrawal from the country.
"We have secured the oil and, therefore, a small number of US troops will remain in the area where they have the oil," he said.

Trump: 'small number' of US troops to remain in Syria oil area

Albanian police said Wednesday they had thwarted a planned attack by a Tehran-backed "terrorist cell" against opponents of the Tehran regime in the Balkan country last year.
In a statement, police said the group belonged to the elite Quds force which runs foreign operations for the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
This cell "had planned, among other things, a terrorist act foiled in March 2018" targeting a religious celebration of the Bektashi, a Sufi group, in Tirana, the statement said.
The ceremony was attended by members of the exiled Iranian opposition group the People's Mujahedeen of Iran (MEK), according to police.
In 2013 Albania agreed to take in some 3,000 members of the MEK at the request of Washington and the United Nations.
They currently live in a compound in the northwest of the country.
On Wednesday police published photos of three Iranians and one Turkish national allegedly involved in the "terrorist cell".
The leader "resides in Turkey" and another "has an Austrian ...

Albanian police say they foiled Iranian 'terrorist' plot

Two lawmakers from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's party were set to take a lie detector test late Wednesday after the president called for a group of MPs to be tested over corruption allegations.
"Today we ... will go on a lie detector," Davyd Arakhamia, leader of the parliamentary faction of the president's Servant of the People party, told reporters.
His colleague Oleksandr Dubinsky also said he would take the test. They promised to livestream the proceedings.
Dubinsky sits on a committee that examines draft legislation.
Journalists have reported that MPs on the committee have taken bribes to block an anti-corruption law aimed at regulating the property market.
The bill has not yet gone before parliament.
Zelensky on Wednesday called for the ten or so MPs involved in examining the bill to be tested on a lie detector.
So far, the lawmakers are not facing any charges but investigators have launched a probe after journalists and bloggers reported a possible crime.
If these ...

Ukrainian MPs to take lie detector test over corruption claims

President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday the United States would be lifting sanctions on Turkey, hailing the success of a ceasefire along its border with Syria.
"Earlier this morning, the government of Turkey informed my administration that they would be stopping combat and their offensive in Syria and making the ceasefire permanent," he said in a televised address from the White House.
"I have, therefore, instructed the Secretary of the Treasury to lift all sanctions imposed October 14th in response to Turkey's original offensive moves against the Kurds in Syria's northeast border region," he added.

Trump announces Turkey sanctions 'will be lifted'

Central African President Faustin-Archange Touadera on Wednesday asked his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to extend military aid and work to overturn an international arms embargo.
The request came at a major summit in the Russian resort city of Sochi, as the Kremlin seeks to revive its influence in Africa.
"Heavy weapons are necessary for us to create effective forces," Touadera said in a face-to-face meeting with Putin, in which he thanked the Russian leader for earlier military support and training.
"Armed groups get heavy weapons by circumventing the (international arms) embargo and that is why we cannot control the territory of the whole country," he said.
Touadera asked Russia to "intervene" on the embargo.
In the Central African Republic, a struggling population faces brutal violence from armed groups despite a peace pact signed this year and promises of security from the Kremlin.
Putin called the CAR a "promising partner" for Russia.
Putin last year surprised the West by a 

C Africa asks Russia for more arms help at summit

A week of unprecedented Lebanese street protests against the political class showed no signs of abating Wednesday, despite the army moving to reopen key roads.
Demonstrations sparked on October 17 by a proposed tax on WhatsApp and other messaging apps have morphed into an unprecedented cross-sectarian street mobilisation against the political class.
Prime Minister Saad Hariri has presented a series of reforms including cutting ministerial salaries, but the rallies have continued -- crippling the capital Beirut and other major cities.
On Wednesday morning protesters set up fresh blockades to close down key highways into Beirut, AFP correspondents said.
There was a noticeable increase in the number of security forces near these blockades and a senior military official said a decision had been made to push back.
"There is a clear decision to reopen main roads and facilitate the movement of the citizens," the official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
A demonstration was forcibly ...

Lebanese protesters unbowed as army vows to open roads

A Syrian Kurdish man set himself on fire Wednesday outside the headquarters of the United Nations refugee agency and was receiving treatment for his injuries, police told AFP.
The 31-year-old German resident did not provide any explanation for his actions, Geneva police spokesman Silvain Guillaume-Gentil said.
"We can imagine his reasons, but we do not have anything concrete," Guillaume-Gentil said.
"He had a hard time expressing himself when help arrived."
Kurds have organised a series of demonstrations to protest the assault that Turkey launched on October 9 against Kurdish fighters in northeastern Syria.
The incident occurred shortly before 8:00 am (0600 GMT) outside UNHCR, which is across the street from the Palais des Nations, the UN's European headquarters.
Responders arrived quickly and the injured man was transported by helicopter to a hospital in Lausanne, where he was being treated for his injuries, police said.

Syrian man sets himself on fire outside UN building: police

One man has died and four people are missing following torrential rains that caused flash floods in northeastern Spain and disrupted road and air travel, officials said Wednesday.
The body of a man was found late on Tuesday in a beach in the town of Caldes d'Estrac some 40 kilometres (25 miles) north of Barcelona after he had been reported missing, regional police said on Twitter.
Emergency services said firefighters backed by a helicopter were looking for two people -- reportedly a mother and her adult son -- whose prefab home was swept away by flood waters in Vilaverd, 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the port of Tarragona.
Rescuers were also looking for two people whose car was found in a river near the village of l'Espluga de Francoli in the same area.
Authorities said heavy overnight rainfall in the northeastern region of Catalonia caused power cuts that affected nearly 25,000 people while floods and landslides forced the closure of over 40 roads.
Spain's airport authority Aena said 

One dead, four missing in flash floods in Spain

Turkey is in talks to buy more S-400 missile defence systems from Moscow, Russia's state arms exporter said, despite Washington's repeated warnings against such a purchase.
Alexander Mikheyev, head of state arms exporter Rosoboronexport, told Interfax news agency that the two countries were discussing financing and "a delivery schedule". He did not provide further details on the ongoing talks.
In July, NATO member Turkey received the first batch of Russia's S-400 missile defence systems in a move that raised tensions with the United States.
In response, Washington kicked Turkey off its F-35 fighter jet programme.
The US says Russia will be able to glean sensitive technical knowledge about the new fighter if it is operated alongside the S-400.
Moscow and Ankara have made much of their defence and political cooperation.
This week, Russia and Turkey agreed to ensure Kurdish forces withdraw from areas close to Syria's border with Turkey and to launch joint patrols.
The agreement cemented .

Turkey, Russia discuss new S-400 supplies: report

Fourteen people will go on trial in Paris next May over the January 2015 attacks on the Charlie Hebdo newspaper and other targets that heralded a wave of jihadist strikes on France, judicial sources said Wednesday.
The trial will take place from May 4 to July 10, lawyers and a judicial source told AFP.
Seventeen people were killed over three days in and around Paris in January 2015 in the attacks.
Cherif Kouachi and his brother Said killed 12 people on January 7 at the Charlie Hebdo offices in Paris, including some of France's best known cartoonists.
Over the following two days, a third gunman, Amedy Coulibaly, shot dead a young policewoman and killed four people at a Jewish supermarket.
All three gunmen, who had claimed allegiance to jihadist groups, were killed by police.
The 14 accused are suspected of having provided logistical aid to the attackers.
The case will be heard by a special court seated, for logistical reasons, in a new, bigger building in the extreme northwest of Paris 

Trial date finalised for Charlie Hebdo attacks

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday hailed a deal struck between Russia and Turkey to remove Kurdish fighters from the Syria-Turkey border, calling the agreement a "big success."
Trump has been under fire for abruptly withdrawing US troops from northern Syria, paving the way for Turkey to launch the offensive against the Kurds, US allies against the Islamic State group.
Under the deal struck Tuesday in Sochi, Russian military police and Syrian border guards will "facilitate the removal" of Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) fighters and their weapons from within 30 kilometers (18 miles) of the border.
It will also see Turkey preserve a "safe zone" inside Syria about 75 miles long and 20 miles deep. Russia and Turkey will eventually launch joint patrols along the zone.
"Big success on the Turkey/Syria Border. Safe Zone created! Ceasefire has held and combat missions have ended," the president tweeted.
"Kurds are safe and have worked very nicely with us. Captured ISIS prisoners .

Trump hails 'big success' with safe zone at Turkey-Syria border

Fancy learning about ancient Greece amid the temples? For the first time, a top Greek university is offering an English-language degree to capitalise on interest from the United States and China.
The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens on Wednesday unveiled a four-year undergraduate course for up to 100 students starting in September 2020.
"We want to empower the new generation to study Greek culture at its birthplace," said university rector Meletios-Athanassios Dimopoulos.
Students will be able to take part in archaeological excavations alongside learning about ancient Greek history, philosophy and literature.
Topics will include the Minoan and Mycenaean civilisations, ancient Greek art and the world of Alexander the Great and his Hellenistic successors.
Students will also have access to the university's famous library of some 500,000 books, manuscripts and scrolls, some dating to the 16th century.
"Our universities and academic staff are ideal for teaching ancient Greek .

AFP

AFP

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