A top Spanish court on Monday said it had denied a US request to extradite Venezuela's former military intelligence chief on drug trafficking charges, instead ordering his release.
"The Audiencia National has denied the extradition of General Hugo Armando Carvajal," said Spain's top criminal court, which handles such requests.
The judges decided to release Carvajal, who served as head of military intelligence under the late Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez and has been held in provisional detention since his arrest in Madrid in mid-April.
Details of the full judgement will not be published until Tuesday, said the court which examined the case last week.
"We are very satisfied but out of prudence, we are not going to comment on the decision until we have the full judgement," Carvajal's lawyer Maria Dolores de Arguelles told AFP by telephone.
"We only have the judgement on his release and I am personally going to the Estremera prison to tell him," she said, indicating that he would be ...

Spain rejects US bid to extradite Venezuela ex-intel chief

PTI Automatic

Oil prices saw their biggest daily gain since the 1991 Gulf War on Monday after drone attacks on two Saudi oil facilities halved output in the world's top crude exporter, fuelling fresh geopolitical and growth fears.
Europe's benchmark Brent crude surged by 20 percent and US counterpart WTI by 15 percent as commodities trading got underway after President Donald Trump warned that the US was "locked and loaded" to respond to the attacks that Washington blamed on Iran.
Both contracts later came off their peaks, but were still up around 12 percent at the close of European trading.
The price surges weighed across world stock markets on fears that a sustained higher cost of crude could impact already weakening global economic growth.
"Growing tensions in the Middle East are another headwind for the global economy in already uncertain times and a full-blown conflict could trigger another leg in the global downturn," said Jennifer McKeown, head of Global Economics at Capital ...

Oil prices rocket as drone attack slashes Saudi output

Tens of thousands of people have been displaced across Myanmar's Rakhine and Chin states this year, as the military battles ethnic Rakhine Buddhist rebels, a UN rights expert said Monday.
"Up to 65,000 people have been displaced by the conflict across northern Rakhine and southern Chin States since January," Yanghee Lee, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights situation in Myanmar, told the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.

65,000 flee Myanmar's Rakhine, Chin states since January: UN expert

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson failed to convince EU leaders on Monday he has a serious plan for a Brexit deal, then ducked out of a planned news conference under a chorus of abuse from protesters.
Before setting off for talks in Luxembourg, Johnson had compared himself to comic book giant Hulk, but when anti-Brexit protesters gathered he left Prime Minister Xavier Bettel to field questions solo.
A visibly angry Bettel pointed in bitter amusement at the empty podium in front of the British flag beside him as he warned that Britain had failed to come up with any credible way to revive the Brexit withdrawal deal, telling the absent Johnson it was time to "stop speaking and act".
"For me I have just one withdrawal agreement on the table and it's the one from last year," Bettel said. "There are no changes, there are no concrete proposals for the moment on the table and I won't give an agreement to ideas."
After the brief talks with Johnson, Bettel was due to head to Paris for talks .

No breakthrough in Brexit talks as Johnson dodges reporters

World oil markets can still draw on sizeable reserves despite the weekend's devastating attack on Saudi Arabian production facilities, US Energy Secretary Rick Perry said Monday.
The attack sent oil prices rocketing higher on Monday, stoking fears that costlier energy could dampen global economic growth and weigh down global equities markets.
"The market... has a fairly substantial amount of oil out there available," Perry told CNBC.
Perry also said it was "premature" to discuss drawing on US strategic reserves while damage to Saudi output was still being assessed.
US and Saudi officials have blamed Iran for the attacks but Tehran has dismissed the accusations, suggesting that Washington was seeking a pretext to attack the Islamic republic.
Meanwhile, Saudi authorities are considering whether to delay an IPO for oil giant Aramco after this weekend's attack on its oil facilities shut down a major chunk of global production, people with knowledge of the matter said.
Huthi rebels backed .

World oil supplies still 'fairly substantial' after Saudi attacks: US official

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson skipped a joint media conference with his Luxembourg counterpart Monday after holding Brexit talks with the European Commission chief that offered no breakthrough.
Luxembourg's premier, Xavier Bettel, went ahead with the briefing in front of flags from his country and the UK and an empty podium where Johnson was meant to have stood, telling the absent prime minister: "The time is ticking. So stop speaking and act."
Bettel, who had a meeting with Johnson following the British leader's working lunch with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker in Luxembourg, was scathing about Johnson's efforts to rewrite a withdrawal agreement the UK had struck with the EU under his predecessor Theresa May.
He echoed the EU's message that the UK had offered up no viable alternative to the safeguards in that agreement to protect peace in Northern Ireland while respecting London's intent to break free of EU institutions.
"For me I have just one withdrawal ...

UK PM Johnson snubs news conference with Luxembourg counterpart

Russia on Monday started massive military exercises involving 128,000 troops and the militaries of several allies, including India and China.
The Center-2019 drills will last through Saturday in the Urals, Siberia and the Caspian Sea.
They will also include over 20,000 pieces of military equipment and 15 ships, the Russian defense ministry said.
Russia regularly holds massive exercises, rotating in different regions of the country. Last year, the East-2018 exercises involved over 300,000 troops, making them the largest in the post-Soviet era.
The purpose of these latest drills is to "work on using groups of armed forces in solving issues of fighting international terrorism and ensure military security in the strategic direction of Central Asia", the ministry said.
The first stage of the two-part drills will focus on issues of fighting terrorism and thwarting an attack from the air. During the second stage, forces will be go on an offensive against a supposed enemy.
Troops from India, .

Russia starts massive military drills

Frenchwoman Jeanne Calment, who died aged 122 two decades ago, should keep the title of the oldest person on record, researchers said Monday, rejecting claims of fraud.
Ageing specialists Jean-Marie Robine and Michel Allard -- who declared her the longest-lived person in the 1990s -- said a review of old and new data confirmed that she "remains the oldest human whose age is well-documented." "Recently the claim that families Calment and Billot (her in-laws) organised a conspiracy concerning tax fraud based on identity fraud between mother and daughter gained international media attention," Robine, Allard and two other researchers wrote in The Journals of Gerontology.
"Here, we reference the original components of the validation as well as additional documentation to address various claims of the conspiracy theory and provide evidence for why these claims are based on inaccurate facts," they wrote.
Calment died in 1997, setting a record that is still unsurpassed.
She used to joke that .

No cheating: Frenchwoman was world's oldest person, researchers say

Edward Snowden, the National Security Agency contractor living in Russia after leaking information about the US government's mass surveillance programme, has said he would like to return home if he can get a fair trial.
Snowden, who faces espionage charges that could send him to prison for decades, stated his desire to return to the United States in an interview with "CBS This Morning" broadcast on Monday.
"I would like to return to the United States," said Snowden, whose memoir, "Permanent Record," is to go on sale on Tuesday.
"That is the ultimate goal. But if I'm gonna spend the rest of my life in prison, the one bottom line demand that we have to agree to is that at least I get a fair trial," he said.
"And that is the one thing the government has refused to guarantee because they won't provide access to what's called a public interest defense," he said.
Snowden, who once worked for the CIA in addition to the NSA, has been living in Russia since leaking thousands of classified ...

Snowden says he would return to US if he can get a fair trial

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday said there was a "good chance" of striking a Brexit divorce deal with the EU, following talks with EU chief Jean-Claude Juncker and Luxembourg's premier Xavier Bettel.
Speaking after skipping a joint press conference with Bettel because of a noisy anti-Brexit demonstration nearby, Johnson said that any deal would "require movement" on the EU side.

UK PM says 'good chance' of Brexit deal but EU 'movement' needed

David de Gea has signed a new long-term contract with Manchester United, the Premier League club announced on Monday, ending months of speculation over his future.
The Spaniard, 28, who had been linked with a return to Spain with Real Madrid for several seasons, has put pen to paper on a new four-year deal.
"David de Gea has signed a new long-term contract with Manchester United, keeping him at the club until at least June 2023," United said on their official website.
"There is an option to extend for a further year."
De Gea joined United from Atletico Madrid in 2011 and has made 367 appearances for the club.
"It has been a privilege to spend eight years at this great club and the opportunity to continue my career at Manchester United is a genuine honour," said the goalkeeper.
"Since I arrived here, I could never have imagined I would play over 350 games for this club. Now my future is fixed, all I want is to help this team achieve what I believe we can and win trophies again, ...

David de Gea signs new deal at Man Utd

Frank Lampard said he "believed and trusted" in striker Tammy Abraham as he prepared to unleash his young players against Valencia in Chelsea's Champions League opener on Tuesday.
Abraham, 21, scored a hat-trick in a 5-2 win at Wolves on Saturday but his form has come as no surprise to Lampard.
"I never had clear expectations for him apart from the fact that I believed in him and trusted him," he said at a press conference on Monday at Chelsea's training base.
"I know a lot was made of the (transfer) ban giving opportunities for young players. But I thought now was his time."
As for the possibility of England missing out on Abraham should he opt to play for Nigeria, Lampard said: "That's not a question for me.
"He has put himself in a bracket by being a top-scorer in England. It is one for (England boss) Gareth (Southgate) but it is clear Tammy will be wanted."
Abraham who is the Premier League's joint leading scorer alongside Manchester City's Sergio Aguero with seven goals, has two .

Lampard trusts young guns for Chelsea Champions League bid

World 1,500m champion Elijah Manangoi of Kenya said Monday he has pulled out of this month's world athletics championships in Doha after sustaining an ankle injury in training.
Manangoi did not take part in the Kenyan national trials in Nairobi last week but was named in a four-man 1,500m team to defend his title in Doha.
But Manangoi, who had just returned to training after an earlier hamstring injury wrote on Facebook Monday that he had once again hurt himself.
"Sad that I am not able to defend my 1,500m title in Doha World champions due an ankle injury I picked (up) in training last week. I have no choice," said the 26-year-old.
His coach Bernard Ouma told AFP the injury would take a while to heal.
"It's a tough decision," said Ouma.
"Manangoi has accepted it and we have also accepted that it is better for him to opt out of the championships and prepare for next year's Olympic Games in Tokyo."
Kenya will be represented in the 1,500m at Doha by the 2019 Diamond League winner Timothy 

Injured Elijah Manangoi pulls out of Doha Worlds

The European Commission's incoming chief, Ursula von der Leyen, on Monday defended a controversial "Protecting our European Way of Life" title for her new migration commissioner, rejecting calls to change it.
The monicker is under fire from European lawmakers, rights groups and some member states for echoing the xenophobic rhetoric of the
far-right.
But, in a statement run by various European newspapers, she said it was grounded in the "tolerance" and "non-discrimination" expressed in the European Union treaty.
Von der Leyen, a former German defence minister, acknowledged that the wording "triggered a debate" and that "for some, the European way of life is a loaded, politicised term".
But she called the polemic "a good thing" that promoted transparency.
"We cannot and we must not let ourselves have our linguistic expressions taken away -- they are also part of who we are," she said, warning against "adversaries of Europe" trying to undermine "this European way of life".
While von der .

New EU chief doubles down on 'European way of life' tag

Brent crude surged by 20 per cent Monday -- the biggest gain since the 1991 Gulf War -- after weekend drone attacks on two Saudi oil facilities halved output in the world's top crude exporter, fuelling fresh geopolitical and growth fears.
WTI oil meanwhile soared 15 percent, also after President Donald Trump warned that the US was "locked and loaded" to respond to the attacks that Washington blamed on Iran.
Both key oil contracts pared gains but were still up by more than eight per cent around 1030 GMT.
The price surges weighed across world stock markets on fears that a sustained higher cost of crude could further impact weak global economic growth.
But share prices of energy majors jumped, with traders seeing higher profits down the line for the likes of BP and Shell, whose stock won between 3-4 per cent Monday.
In foreign exchange, the dollar was down against the euro and yen, while the pound slid as Prime Minister Boris Johnson was holding Brexit deal talks with EU chief ...

Oil prices rocket on slashed Saudi output

Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels, who claimed responsibility for devastating weekend attacks on Saudi oil facilities, threatened Monday to carry out more strikes and urged foreigners to stay away.
"We assure the Saudi regime that our long hand can reach any place we want at any time we choose," Huthi military spokesman Brigadier Yahya Saree said in a statement.
Strikes on two Saudi facilities Saturday halted half the kingdom's oil production and sent shock waves through energy markets.
The US however has blamed Iran for the attacks, saying there was no evidence they were launched from Yemen.
The Huthis, who captured the Yemeni capital Sanaa in 2014, have been fighting against a Saudi-led coalition that intervened the following year in support of the internationally recognised government.
The rebels have repeatedly targeted key Saudi infrastructure in the past several months with explosives-laden drones.
Saree said the weekend attacks were carried out with a new type of drone.
"We warn 

Yemen rebels threaten new attacks on Saudi oil sites

Saudi authorities are considering whether to delay an IPO for oil giant Aramco after this weekend's attack on its oil facilities shut down a major chunk of global production, people with knowledge of the matter said.
"They're in the process of assessing the damage. It's a possibility but it's still very early," said one of the persons who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Aramco had planned to debut in November on a local stock market before listing on an international one next year, sources had told AFP last week.

Saudi oil firm Aramco could delay IPO after attacks: sources

Wall Street sank into the red on Monday, after weekend drone attacks knocked out much of Saudi Arabia's oil production and sent crude prices shooting higher.
The lower open threatened to break an eight-day winning streak for the benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average, with the major US stock indices just below fresh record highs.
Markets were also digesting a batch of poor economic data out of China and awaiting Wednesday's Federal Reserve announcement on monetary policy.
Ten minutes into the day's trading, the Dow and broader S&P 500 were both down 0.4 per cent at 27,112.32 and 2,996.52 respectively.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq was 0.5 per cent lower at 8,139.64.
While the spike in oil prices -- WTI benchmark crude was up a towering USD 5.32 at USD 60.17 per barrel -- sent oil stocks higher, investors may fear more expensive oil could further slow an already waning global economy.
Oil supermajors Exxon Mobil and Chevron were up 2.6 per cent and 2.7 per cent respectively.
Fresh economic ...

Saudi oil attack sends Wall Street into the red

The weapons used to strike two Saudi oil plants were provided by the kingdom's arch-foe Iran, the Riyadh-led coalition fighting in Yemen said on Monday.
"The investigation is continuing and all indications are that weapons used in both attacks came from Iran," coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki told reporters in Riyadh, adding they were now probing "from where they were fired".

Weapons used in Saudi attacks 'came from Iran': Coalition

Britain has not proposed any workable alternatives to its Brexit withdrawal agreement, the EU said Monday after talks with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson ended without a breakthrough.
It said the meeting between Johnson and EU Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker failed to yield any alternative to proposals on the Northern Ireland border that the British leader has rejected.
Johnson has vowed to take Britain out of the bloc by the scheduled date of October 31, though parliament has ordered him not to do so without striking a deal with Brussels first.
Businesses and opponents of Brexit say leaving without a deal will cause economic chaos as Britain ends its open trade ties to the European Union after 46 years.
After a weekend in which he compared himself to comic book super-smasher Hulk, the British leader enjoyed a genteel working lunch of chicken and pollock with Juncker in Luxembourg.
Downing Street billed the Luxembourg visit as part of efforts to negotiate an orderly divorce .

EU downbeat after Johnson-Juncker Brexit talks

Iran has seized a boat suspected of being used to smuggle fuel and arrested its 11 crew members near a vital oil shipping lane, state television reported on Monday.
A naval patrol of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps intercepted the vessel carrying 250,000 litres of fuel near the Strait of Hormuz, state TV's website said, citing a commander of the force.
"This boat was sailing from Bandar Lengeh towards United Arab Emirates waters before it was seized 20 miles (32 kilometres) east of Greater Tunb island," Brigadier General Ali Ozmayi was quoted as saying.
"The boat's 11 crew members have been arrested," he added, without saying when it happened or giving their nationality.
State television broadcast footage from the deck of a trawler-sized vessel with open hatches showing tanks full of what appeared to be fuel.
It is the second such seizure this month, after a boat suspected of smuggling fuel was detained and its 12 Filipino crew members arrested in the Strait of Hormuz on ...

AFP

AFP

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