Hong Kong riot cops fired tear gas and baton-charged protesters who retaliated with a barrage of stones, bottles and bamboo poles on Saturday, as a standoff in a working-class neighbourhood descended into violence, breaking an uneasy peace that had lasted several days.
Earlier thousands of demonstrators, many wearing hard hats and gas masks, marched through the industrial Kwun Tong area, where they were blocked by dozens of riot police with shields and batons outside a police station.
Frontline protesters -- known as "braves" -- pulled together a barricade of traffic barriers and bamboo construction poles. As the afternoon wore on some fired stones from slingshots, prompting a charge from police, wielding batons and pepper spray.
Tears gas swept across the road as protesters retreated, leaving a trail of broken bottles and at least one small fire in their wake.
Several of the black-clad protesters were detained as officers swept through.
Hong Kong's police force have become the target 

Tear gas fired as Hong Kong police, protesters clash

PTI Automatic

Batsman Dhananjaya de Silva struck a defiant 109 to lift Sri Lanka to 244 against New Zealand on day three of the rain-hit second Test in Colombo on Saturday.
De Silva moved from his overnight 32 to complete his fifth Test century after Sri Lanka resumed the day on 144 for six at Colombo's P. Sara Oval.
New Zealand fast bowlers Tim Southee and Trent Boult shared seven wickets between them to help bowl out the hosts in 90.2 overs with numerous rain interruptions.
Southee returned figures of 4-63 while Boult took three wickets including De Silva who was the last man out, bowled off an inside edge.
The Kiwi openers stood guard in the two overs before lunch with Tom Latham, scoring one, and Jeet Raval, on nought, batting at the break.
De Silva, who was dropped on nine by paceman Boult off his own bowling on day two, put on crucial partnerships including a 43-run stand for the eight wicket with Suranga Lakmal.
The middle-order batsman reached the hundred with a boundary to thirdman off ...

De Silva ton lifts Sri Lanka to 244 against New Zealand

The US and 10 Southeast Asian states will hold their first-ever joint maritime exercises in September, aimed at preventing "wrongdoing" as Washington and Beijing jostle for influence in the region.
Washington has traditionally been the dominant naval power in Southeast Asia and its re-engagement with the area comes as a deteriorating trade war with China threatens to engulf the global economy.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo attended a regional summit earlier this month with the 10-country Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in a bid to promote the Trump administration's so-called "Indo-Pacific" strategy.
Also a source of friction is China's expansive claims to the South China Sea, as the resource-rich waters contain some of the world's most vital commercial shipping lanes.
Despite having conflicting interests with four rival claimants in ASEAN, China last year held a joint maritime drill with the regional bloc.
The navies of the US and ASEAN will do the same on September 

US, SE Asia to hold first ever joint maritime drill

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer expects Manchester United fans to rally around Paul Pogba after he suffered racist abuse on social media in the wake of his penalty miss against Wolves.
United supporters have promised to show their backing for Pogba when the France midfielder returns to Old Trafford for the Premier League meeting with Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Pogba took over penalty duties from Marcus Rashford at Molineux, but his kick was saved by Rui Patricio, forcing United to settle for a 1-1 draw.
Solskjaer added his voice to the clamour for social media companies to clamp down on racist outbursts but the United manager knows, despite some controversial moments off the field in his time with the club, Pogba is beloved by his own supporters.
"I expect it to happen, we can all see Paul was disappointed when he missed the penalty. He doesn't deserve this," Solskjaer told reporters.
"When you sign for Man United you become a Manc. Once a Manc, always a Manc. He gives his absolute everything ..

United fans will back Pogba after racist abuse: Solskjaer

World number one Brooks Koepka birdied the 18th hole, capping a three-under-par 67 to take a one-shot lead over Justin Thomas and Rory McIlroy in the US PGA Tour Championship.
Koepka posted his second straight 67 at East Lake in Atlanta, Georgia.
Under the "staggered start" format by which players were spotted strokes based on their position in the playoff standings, that put him on 13-under par -- one stroke in front of American  Thomas and Northern Ireland star McIlroy.
McIlroy capped his 67 with back-to-back birdies, including a bravura finish at 18 where he was in the trees off the tee.
Thomas -- who went into the tournament as the top seed, awarded a two-stroke edge after his win in the BMW Championship -- was alone atop the leaderboard at 13- under through 16 holes but slipped back with a bogey at 17 and finished with a two-under 68.
Koepka who started the week three shots off the lead, couldn't get his eight-foot eagle putt to drop at the last, but he tapped in for his fourth ..

Late birdie lifts Koepka to Tour Championship lead

A Japanese dream duo of Naomi Osaka and Kei Nishikori could come together for mixed doubles at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
World number one Osaka, the reigning US and Australian Open champion, and Nishikori, the 2014 US Open runner-up ranked seventh in the world, could be a formidable combination in the fight for gold next year.
But Nishikori, who addressed the idea Friday as he prepared for the start of the US Open, worried that adding the event to singles and men's doubles might be too much in the Tokyo summer heat.
"I will play men's doubles, for sure. With that condition -- very hot, very humid -- playing singles and two doubles, I don't know if I can," Nishikori said.
"I haven't (had to) think too much yet honestly. I don't know. I will talk to Naomi later."
Nishikori, 29, said it was understandable that 21-year-old Osaka has said this has been a tough year for her. She followed her US Open triumph with an Australian Open win, attained number one then lost and regained -- enduring ..

Nishikori ponders mixed doubles with Osaka at Tokyo Olympics

Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova will meet in Monday night's first feature match at the US Open with 20-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer following them on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Schedules for the first two days of the year's final Grand Slam were released Friday by the US Tennis Association following the completion of qualifying matches.
Eighth-seeded American Williams, trying to capture her 24th Grand Slam singles title to match the all-time record held by Margaret Court, has a 19-2 record against the Russian, a five-time Grand Slam winner.
Following the dramatic night opener will be third-seeded Federer against India's Sumit Nagal.
Monday's day session begins with reigning French Open champion Ashleigh Barty, the second seed from Australia, facing Zarina Diyas of Kazakhstan.
Top-ranked defending champion Novak Djokovic launches his bid for his fifth title in six Grand Slam events after that against Spaniard Roberto Carbella Baena.
Monday's schedule at Louis Armstrong Stadium .

Serena-Sharapova and Federer play Monday night at US Open

A Soyuz spacecraft carrying Russia's first humanoid robot on Saturday failed to dock automatically with the international space station, Moscow news agencies reported.
The craft launched a repeat of the docking manoeuvres after the failure of the first attempt, which had been scheduled for 0530 GMT, the agencies said.
Live broadcast of the event on the Russian space agency Roskomos was interrupted with the Soyuz spacecraft about 100 metres (109 yards) off the ISS.
The life-size robot, named Fedor, was to spend 10 days learning to assist astronauts in the space station.
Short for Final Experimental Demonstration Object Research, Fedor is the first ever sent up by Russia.
Fedor blasted off Thursday in a Soyuz MS-14 spacecraft from Russia's Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan and was to stay on the ISS until September 7.
Soyuz ships are normally manned on such trips, but this time no humans were travelling in order to test a new emergency rescue system.
Instead of cosmonauts, Fedor, also ..

Soyuz spacecraft carrying humanoid robot fails to dock with space station

Serena Williams has the US Open spotlight as she chases tennis history, but a host of Grand Slam winners and high-ranked rivals are also taking aim at the title.
The 37-year-old American will be the focus of attention when the Flushing Meadows fortnight begins Monday with her first-round night match against Russian Maria Sharapova the most anticipated of the women's openers.
"Of course I'm going to watch it," said top-seeded defending champion Naomi Osaka, who beat Williams in last year's US Open final.
"I think everyone in New York is going to watch it.
"I'm not that surprised that that happened, because at every Grand Slam there's always some sort of drama. Like a first round. Like, Oh my God. So this match just happens to be that for this tournament."
Williams will try to capture her 24th Grand Slam singles title to match the all-time record set by Margaret Court.
Eighth-seeded Williams, who could meet second-seeded French Open champion Ashleigh Barty of Australia in the ...

Serena chases record 24th Slam as Osaka, Halep eye US Open

While a host of young rivals hope to disrupt the dominance of the "Big Three" in men's tennis, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer remain the US Open favorites.
The year's final Grand Slam showdown starts Monday on the Flushing Meadows hardcourts with top-ranked Djokovic, 20-time Grand Slam champion Federer and Spanish superstar Nadal having combined to win the past 11 Grand Slam titles.
Federer, 38, doesn't see a problem with the dominance by the sport's elder statesmen, who together own 54 of the past 65 Slam titles.
"I don't think it's a problem, per se," Federer said.
"Now that Novak, Rafa and me are healthy again, Andy (Murray) also slowly coming back again, has made it much harder for young guys to come through.
"They are definitely knocking on the door big-time now. I think that's very encouraging for those who want to see somebody else win. I think also Novak's domination, Rafa's domination is also not normal for the game of tennis.
"I think there's going to be ...

Nadal, Federer, Djokovic remain ones to beat at US Open

The thousands of fires burning in the Amazon don't look like the major forest fires of Europe or North America -- instead, they are fuelled mainly by branches, vegetation and other byproducts of deforestation in cleared areas, experts say.
The dramatic scale of this year's fires is the result of a significant acceleration of deforestation for the lumber industry, for agriculture or for other human activities.
"In the tropics, fire is used extensively in a land-use environment," said Jeffrey Chambers, a scientist at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and a specialist in rainforests.
"It's how you get rid of your agricultural waste products... And part of the reason why that works is because those fires don't generally move into the forest," he explained.
"A tropical rainforest is generally not flammable" because it's so humid.
California has the opposite problem: burning waste is prohibited because the forests are so dry, they could go up in flames at the smallest spark.
But in .

Why is part of the Amazon burning?

President Donald Trump heaped praise on Denmark's prime minister Friday, two days after he cancelled his state visit to the country and slammed her for dismissing his idea of buying Greenland as absurd.
The US leader said he got a call from Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, who he had previously called "nasty" when she rejected his idea of buying Greenland in the latest spat involving Trump and a traditional US ally.
But on Friday he appeared to reverse course, calling her "a wonderful woman."
"We had a great conversation," Trump told reporters as he prepared to leave for the G7 summit in France.
"We have a very good relationship with Denmark, and we agreed to speak later. But she was very nice. She put a call in, and I appreciated it very much," Trump said.
The row had earlier prompted Trump to call off plans to visit Copenhagen next month after Frederiksen said Greenland, an autonomous region of Denmark, was not for sale.
Frederiksen said she was both annoyed and surprised that ...

Trump praises Danish PM he called 'nasty' over Greenland row

Josh Hazlewood said Australia were beginning to reopen some old Ashes wounds after they bowled England out for a woeful 67 in the third Test at Headingley.
Fast bowler Hazlewood led the way with 5-30 as England were dismissed inside 28 overs, with only Joe Denly (12) reaching double figures.
Australia then ended Friday's second day on 171-6 in their second innings, a commanding lead of 283 runs.
Marnus Labuschagne was 53 not out, his third successive fifty after replacing the concussed Steve Smith in the drawn second Test at Lord's, with his first-innings 74 in this match seven more than England managed between them.
Victory in this match would see Australia retain the Ashes at 2-0 up with two to play in a five-Test series and Hazlewood said: "I guess we might be starting a few scars there.
"I don't think many teams are winning if one of their innings is 60 or 70 runs," he added with England having skittled Australia out for 60 on the way to an Ashes-clinching win in Nottingham four ..

Australia reopening 'scars' with England collapse, says Hazlewood

US President Donald Trump threatened to slap heavy tariffs on French wine in response to taxes on American tech companies just before heading to France for a summit of G7 leaders.
"Those are great American companies, and frankly, I don't want France going out and taxing our companies. Very unfair," he told reporters outside the White House shortly before boarding his helicopter.
"And if they do that, we'll be taxing their wine or doing something else. We'll be taxing their wine like they've never seen before. That's for us to tax them, not for France to tax them.

Trump threatens tariffs on French wine as heads to G7

North Korea Saturday fired what appeared to be two short-range ballistic missiles  into the sea after vowing to remain the biggest "threat" to the United States and branding Secretary of State Mike Pompeo as "toxin."
It was the latest in a series of short-range missile tests the nuclear-armed nation has carried out in recent weeks in protest against US-South Korean military exercises, which it sees as a rehearsal for invasion. The latest joint drill wrapped up on Tuesday.
"The military detected two unidentified projectiles presumed to be short-range ballistic missiles," South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff in a statement Saturday after the latest  launch.
The missiles flew about 380 kilometres (240 miles) and reached an altitude of 97 kilometres at a top speed of Mach 6.5 before landing in the East Sea, also known as Sea of Japan, it said.
"Our military is tracking the movement in the North in case of additional launches, with firm readiness," it added.
South Korea's presidential Blue .

North Korea fires 'short-range ballistic missiles' into sea: Seoul

A surge in muggings and burglaries in Barcelona, mainly targeting tourists, has sparked alarm in Spain's second-largest city, leading local residents to form their own crime-fighting patrols.
The US consulate in Barcelona on Wednesday warned its nationals of "an increase in violent crime in the city" and urged them not to "display signs of wealth such as wearing expensive jewelry or watches".
The alert came just days after Afghanistan's ambassador to Spain was lightly injured in a group mugging to steal his watch in the city centre, and a 91-year-old French woman was hospitalised after thieves yanked her necklace, causing her to fall.
Barcelona, a European tourist hotspot, has recorded eight murders since July, an unusually high number for the Mediterranean seaside city, and in June a visiting South Korean public servant died from injuries she suffered during a mugging.
The city's hotel association has warned that Barcelona's reputation could be "seriously harmed".
Albert Batlle, ...

Tourism hotspot Barcelona alarmed by crime surge

A British consulate employee detained in China has returned to Hong Kong, his family said on Saturday.
Simon Cheng disappeared after visiting the neighbouring city of Shenzhen on August 8 and was placed in administrative detention by police.
"Simon has returned to Hong Kong," his family said in a Facebook post, adding he would take "some time to rest and recover".

UK consulate staffer returns to Hong Kong after China detention: Family

Brazil's legendary indigenous chief Raoni on Friday accused President Jair Bolsonaro of wanting to destroy the Amazon rainforest and called for international help to put out fires raging in the region.
The elderly Kayapo chief, internationally recognizable through his traditional lip plate and feather headdress, called for Bolsonaro's removal from power, as a global outcry over the blazes ignites protests around the world.
"He wants to finish with the forest, with us. It's really terrible what he does," Raoni Metuktire told AFP by telephone from Germany, accusing Bolsonaro of emboldening farmers, loggers and miners.
"We have to get him out soon."
Raoni, who is famous for his work campaigning in defense of Brazil's rainforest alongside personalities like pop star Sting, pleaded for international help to extinguish the fires.
The latest official figures show 76,720 forest fires were recorded in Brazil so far this year -- the highest number for any year since 2013 -- which experts blame .

Brazil tribal chief Raoni slams Bolsonaro over Amazon fires

North Korea Saturday fired two "unidentified projectiles" into the sea off its eastern coast, South Korea's military said, the latest in a series of launches by Pyongyang.
"Our military is tracking the movement in the North in case of additional launches," the Joint Chiefs of Staff in a statement.
South Korea's presidential Blue House said it will hold a National Security Council meeting following the North's latest weapons test.
The launch comes after Pyongyang made a scathing attack Friday on US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, calling him a "diehard toxin" following the US diplomat's comment that the US would continue the "toughest" sanctions on the North until the reclusive state denuclearises.
The nuclear-armed state has carried out several short-range missile tests in recent weeks in protest against the US-South Korean military exercises, which it sees as a rehearsal for invasion.
The latest joint drill wrapped up on Tuesday.
Nuclear talks between Pyongyang and Washington have ...

NKorea fires 'unidentified projectiles' into sea: Seoul

President Donald Trump said Friday he had offered to help Brazil as it grapples with thousands of wildfires burning in the Amazon.
Trump said he had spoken with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and stated that the countries' prospects for trade are "perhaps stronger than ever."
"I told him if the United States can help with the Amazon Rainforest fires, we stand ready to assist!" Trump tweeted.

AFP

AFP

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