Eight people were killed and dozens injured when a series of earthquakes struck islands in the far northern Philippines early Saturday, toppling historic buildings and sending terrified locals fleeing their homes.
The tremors hit the province of Batanes, a group of sparsely populated islets north of the nation's largest Luzon island, tearing deep cracks in roads and forcing the evacuation of a hospital.
Authorities said some of the dead, including two babies under a year old, were crushed by the walls of their own homes.
"We saw houses shaking. Some of the walls of the houses collapsed and fell on the victims," Police sergeant Uzi Villa told AFP.
"Some people died because they were sleeping soundly since it was still early," he added.
Many people were still asleep when the first tremor struck around 4:15 am (2015 GMT Friday), followed just under four hours later by a second, stronger jolt.
The biggest of the quakes -- of magnitude 5.4 and 5.9 -- struck within hours of each other, ...

Eight killed as quakes hit far northern Philippines

PTI Automatic

Soaring to new musical heights, a German-born innovator has crafted what is believed to be the world's largest grand piano.
It is without question one of a kind: attached high on the wall of a concert hall in Latvia, the steel-framed vertical grand piano hangs as if in mid-air some three storeys above the audience.
To play it, pianists must climb a steep flight of steel stairs to a balcony.
Although the Guinness Book of World Records has not yet measured the new instrument, it was made by David Klavins whose Model 370 piano unveiled in 1987 is currently regarded as being among the world's largest.
Klavins' standard new model, the 450i Vertical Concert Grand piano, is 4.5 metres high, making it one metre taller than its predecessor.
The custom-built 450i piano installed at a new concert hall in the Baltic seaside port and resort town of Ventspils is even larger; its imposing navy blue-painted steel frame is six metres high.
With some strings measuring almost five metres, the instrument 

World's largest concert piano strikes chord in Latvia

Australia on Saturday warned foreign officials in the country against undermining the right to free speech, following a confrontation between students backing Beijing and pro-Hong Kong democracy activists at a university rally.
The warning comes after a Chinese consul-general in Australia reportedly praised the pro-Beijing students for their "patriotic behaviour".
Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said Canberra expected all foreign diplomats to respect the protected right to free speech and lawful protest, "even on contentious and sensitive issues".
"The Government would be particularly concerned if any foreign diplomatic mission were to act in ways that could undermine such rights, including by encouraging disruptive or potentially violent behaviour," she said in a statement.
The clashes took place on Wednesday at a pro-Hong Kong democracy rally at the University of Queensland after a group of Beijing-supporting students arrived.
Video of the event shows a tense standoff ...

Australia says diplomats must respect free speech after HK protest

Thousands rallied across Colombia Friday to protest the killing of hundreds of human rights activists since the signing of a historic peace deal with FARC guerrillas.
Demonstrators gathered in major cities under the slogan "defending the peace" to denounce the deaths. 462 campaigners have been killed since 2016, according to the country's ombudsman.
"They are killing us but seeds of life and dignity are being born," Luis Acosta said as he walked toward Bolivar square in the capital Bogota, which was packed with protesters.
Colombian president Ivan Duque joined a rally in the port city of Cartagena but was jeered by parts of the crowd, videos posted on social networks showed.
"Today we are united in a fight against violence and drug trafficking, which has fueled the organized armed groups that have attacked social leaders in the country," Duque said earlier.
The rallies were called after the killing of activist Maria del Pilar Hurtado last month, in northern Colombia. A video of her ...

Thousands protest in Colombia against killings of activists

A young American tourist confessed overnight to the murder of an Italian policeman probing a theft at a tony neighbourhood near the Vatican, Italian media said Saturday.
Hardline Interior Minister Matteo Salvini called for "hard labour for life ... for these bastards" amid first reports the suspects were North African.
"The suspects were filmed by surveillance cameras, they will not evade us," he added Friday.
On the night of Thursday to Friday, Mario Rega Cerciello, a 35-year-old policeman who had just returned from his honeymoon, was stabbed to death while investigating the theft of a rucksack.
One of the two suspects had confessed to the stabbing, local media said, quoting police.
The duo were American, both aged 19, and had stolen the rucksack from a drug dealer who had sold them aspirin which he passed off as cocaine.
The dealer had called the police to report the theft and Cerciello was knifed when he went to investigate.
The two Americans have been placed in custody for ...

Young American suspected of killing Rome policeman: media

Two people died and 16 were injured, including eight athletes taking part in swimming's world championship, after a balcony collapsed under the weight of party-goers at a South Korean nightclub, local police said Saturday.
The balcony at the Coyote Ugly club close to the athletes' village was a mangled wreck after it gave way and plummeted around five metres (16 feet) onto people below, sending terrified clubbers running to the exit screaming.
"An internal balcony collapsed at a club in Gwangju, killing two," said Song Gi-ju, a detective with the Gwangju Metropolitan Police Agency.
"We have a total of 16 injured and among them 10 are foreigners. Of the 10, eight are athletes participating in the championships." Song said the two dead were locals and not involved in the swimming championships, adding that police were investigating the possibility the balcony may have been illegally constructed.
The eight injured athletes include three Americans, two New Zealanders, one Dutch, one ...

Two dead in Korean nightclub balcony collapse at world swim meet

The chief of police has been sacked in Romania after the murder of a 15-year-old girl who telephoned three times to report her own kidnapping.
"I called for the sacking of the police chief ... because drastic measures are required," said Interior Minister Nicolae Moga late Friday.
The girl, identified as Alexandra, was snatched Wednesday as she tried to hitch-hike home to Dobrosloveni in southern Romania, police said.
On Thursday morning she managed to ring the emergency number 112 three times and provide clues to police about the place she was being held by a car driver who picked her up.
Police chief Ioan Buda had told journalists she shouted down the phone, "He's coming, he's coming" before the phone call was cut off.
Relatives of Alexandra alleged the police failed to take the alert seriously and finally reacted too late.
Three buildings were searched by officers before they finally found the house where she had been held, more than 12 hours after her phone calls.
Police then ...

Romania police chief sacked after girl's murder

Bahrain executed two Shiite citizens on terror charges on Saturday, officials said, despite appeals for clemency from international human rights groups.
The pair, identified by rights groups as Ali al-Arab, 25, and Ahmad al-Malali, 24, were put to death by firing squad, the prosecutor said.
Both defendants were Shiite, judicial sources said, without confirming their names.
The small Gulf state, a key US ally located between regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran, has been gripped by bouts of unrest since 2011, when authorities cracked down on Shiite-led protests demanding political reform.
The two men, arrested separately in February 2017, were both sentenced to death in January last year after a mass trial with 58 other defendants that was marred by allegations of torture.
The pair were convicted of "forming a terror group" which went on to carry out a series of armed attacks in the kingdom.
They included the storming of the kingdom's Jaw prison in January 2017 that killed a guard and 

Bahrain executes two Shiites on terror charges

A no-deal Brexit could lead to a united Ireland as more people in Northern Ireland would "come to question the union" with Britain, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar has said.
His comments came after new British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the current Brexit deal was unacceptable and set preparations for leaving the EU without an agreement as a "top priority" for his right-wing government.
Tension around the withdrawal deal centres on the so-called Irish backstop -- a mechanism designed to preserve the bloc's single market and prevent a hard border between Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland.
Varadkar warned a no-deal Brexit could see more people in the North question the union with England, Scotland and Wales.
"People who you might describe as moderate nationalists or moderate Catholics who were more or less happy with the status quo will look more towards a united Ireland," Varadkar said Friday at a summer school in county Donegal, the Irish Independent newspaper and other .

Irish PM says no-deal Brexit could lead to united Ireland

Protesters vowed to defy a police ban Saturday and rally against suspected triad gangs who beat up pro-democracy demonstrators last weekend.
Public anger has been raging since last Sunday when a gang of men in white T-shirts, armed with poles and batons, set upon anti-government protesters and bystanders in a station and on a train, leaving at least 45 people needing hospital treatment.
The brazen assault was the latest escalation in seven weeks of unprecedented political violence that shows little sign of abating as the city's pro-Beijing leaders refuse to budge.
Hong Kong has been plunged into its worst crisis in recent history after millions of demonstrators took to the streets -- and sporadic violent confrontations erupted between police and pockets of hardcore protesters.
The demonstrations were triggered by a controversial bill which would have allowed extraditions to mainland China but have evolved into a call for wider democratic reforms and a halt to sliding ...

Hong Kong braces for 'anti-triad' rally despite police ban

Sweden's Sarah Sjostrom limbered up for a world sprint double with the fastest 50 metres freestyle heat Saturday as a fatal nightclub accident shook the world swimming championships.
Eight athletes were among the injured after a balcony at a South Korean nightclub collapsed in the early hours Saturday, sending party-goers plummeting over five metres onto people below.
Two locals were confirmed dead by Gwangju police, while 16 more people hurt. Athletes among those who sustained injury were from the United States, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Brazil and Italy.
In the pool, Sjostrom clocked 24.26 seconds to top the women's 50m free prelims ahead of Australia's Cate Campbell (24.40) and American Simone Manuel (24.41) as the trio resumed battle after Friday's 100m final.
"It is what it is," shrugged Campbell the morning after claiming silver behind the defending champion and Olympic gold medallist Manuel in the 100m.
"It is a little bittersweet. I've managed to get on the podium every ...

Sjostrom sets pace as nightclub deaths stun world swim

China's Olympic swimming champion Sun Yang has hit back at sniping rivals accusing him of doping violations, telling them: "I'm standing up for all of you!" \
Athletes have vilified Sun at the world swimming championships in South Korea this week following a leaked FINA doping panel report that alleged the Chinese giant allowed blood vials to be smashed with a hammer after being visited by testers last year.
FINA cleared Sun to compete after agreeing that the testers had failed to produce adequate identification or follow correct protocol, prompting World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to appeal that decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
After reclaiming his 400 and 200 metres freestyle world titles earlier this week, both Australia's Mack Horton and Briton Duncan Scott staged dramatic podium protests, refusing to shake Sun's hand, provoking a furious reaction from triple Olympic champion.
"I shouldn't have to put up with these kinds of insults," growled Sun after closing ..

'I'm just protecting athletes', insists China swim star Sun

Diego Costa scored four goals as Atletico Madrid embarrassed La Liga rivals Real Madrid 7-3 Friday in a pre-season friendly at MetLife Stadium.
Costa had a hat-trick by halftime and added one more goal before he was sent off in the 63rd, when both teams were reduced to 10 men after a testy shoving match.
The first meeting outside of Europe between the Madrid rivals proved a dismal night for Zinedine Zidane's Real Madrid, who saw Serbian starlet Luka Jovic hobble off after an awkward collision with Atletico keeper Jan Oblak in the 24th minute.
Zidane can only hope the news on his injury will be better than that on Marco Asensio, who could miss most if not all of the La Liga season after rupturing a knee ligament against Arsenal on Tuesday.
Portuguese 19-year-old Joao Felix, signed from Benfica this month for 126 million euros ($142 million), scored his first goal for Atletico, and helped set up two more.  Angel Correa also scored for Atletico, who had run the score to 5-0 at halftime ..

Atletico humble Real Madrid 7-3 in friendly

Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale was Friday on the verge of signing a "1 million pounds a week" deal with Chinese Super League outfit Jiangsu Suning, reports claimed.
The 30-year-old Welshman has already been told by Real coach Zinedine Zidane that he does not form part of his future plans at the Spanish giants.
Spanish daily Marca claimed that Bale, who has been at Real since 2013 since signing from Tottenham, will earn 22 million euros per season in China and that the deal is almost finalised.
However, later reports by Sky Sports in England suggested the player's representatives were negotiating a mind-boggling 1 million pounds a week contract before the Chinese transfer window shuts on Wednesday.
Real boss Zidane said last weekend he thought it would be "best for everyone" if Bale's departure could be arranged quickly -- comments Bale's agent branded "disrespectful" of a player who helped the side to a Spanish league title and four
Champions Leagues since arriving from Tottenham six 

Bale set for '1 million pounds a week' Jiangsu Suning move - reports

US President Donald Trump issued an executive order Friday laying the groundwork for sanctions against those who have exacerbated the "deteriorating situation in Mali," the White House said.
The decree will freeze assets and suspend travel for "individuals or entities that seek to undermine the peace, security or stability of Mali," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement.
Mali is struggling to quell unrest that began in 2012 in the north and spread to other parts of the country, despite aid from French and UN forces.
"Extremist groups are exploiting ethnic tensions and expanding their networks well outside Mali's borders," Pompeo added, without specifying who might be targeted by the sanctions.
A US senior administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that anyone sanctioned "can no longer access the United States financial system." Last week Washington imposed sanctions on an Al-Qaeda-linked Islamist group in Mali that carried out deadly attacks on the .

Trump paves way for sanctions in Mali conflict

The warnings were unambiguous, and now so is the retreat: after threatening to hit Turkey with sanctions for buying a Russian missile defense system, the Trump administration is looking for a way to avoid doing so.
Theoretically the sanctions were to be automatic, mandated by Congress, if NATO member Turkey opted to buy the S-400 system from NATO's main adversary Russia.
But since Ankara began taking delivery of the system, designed to protect the country from air attacks, on July 12, President Donald Trump has signaled he is loath to punish the US ally economically over the deal.
Legislators from both parties want the US leader to show firmness, after having pressed Turkey hard for two years not to follow through.
But after meeting with Trump this week, Republican senators were not optimistic.
"It was certainly clear that the president is not in a place right now where he wants to impose sanctions on Turkey," said an assistant to one of the legislators in the White House meeting, ...

Trump seeks to avoid slapping Turkey with sanctions over missile deal

Eight people were killed and dozens injured when twin earthquakes struck islands in the northern Philippines early Saturday while many were still asleep, local officials said.
Both tremors hit the province of Batanes, a group of sparsely populated islets north of the nation's largest Luzon island.
Terrified residents fled their homes and images in the Philippine media showed collapsed masonry homes as well as deep cracks in paved roads.
The quakes -- of magnitude 5.4 and 5.9 -- struck within hours of each other, according to the US Geological Survey. No tsunami alerts were issued.
Many people were still asleep when the first tremor struck around 4:15 am (2015 GMT Friday), followed just under four hours later by the second stronger jolt.
Mayor Raul de Sagon told AFP that eight people had been killed and around 60 others were hurt. The extent of their injuries was not immediately clear.
Police sergeant Uzi Villa added that the timing of the quake meant many people were at home when the .

Eight killed as twin quakes strike Philippines

The Moroccan navy has picked up 242 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa, who were trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Spain in flimsy boats, the official MAP press agency reported late on Friday.
It said the migrants, including 50 women and 12 children, were rescued from several inflatable boats which had got into difficulty.
"The migrants, some of whom were unwell, were taken safely to port," the news agency said.
So far this year, more than 15,000 such migrants have made it to Spain, 12,000 by the sea route, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) estimates.
More than 200 have died in the attempt.
Aiming to halt the migrant influx, the European Union last year gave Morocco 140 million euros to support efforts to curb human traffickers.

Morocco navy picks up 242 migrants in Mediterranean

New British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will set out his domestic agenda in a speech in Manchester on Saturday, after trying to dampen speculation he could call an early election.
Johnson will focus on health, education and infrastructure, after European Union (EU) leaders rebuffed his calls to renegotiate the Brexit deal struck by his predecessor Theresa May last year.
The former mayor of London, who only took charge on Wednesday, has promised to take Britain out of the EU by the latest deadline of October 31 -- deal or no deal.
But he has focussed on domestic priorities in his first few days in office, including a pledge on Friday to reverse the drastic cuts to the police force made under May.
Commentators have speculated that he could be preparing to call a general election, hoping to regain the Conservative majority that May lost at the polls in 2017.
Johnson on Friday "absolutely" ruled out initiating such a poll before Britain leaves the bloc.
"The British people voted in 2015, 

UK PM to set out domestic agenda amid election talk

France will go ahead with a digital tax, Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire said Friday, shortly after US President Donald Trump threatened "substantial" retaliation over Paris targeting top US tech companies.
"Universal taxation of digital activities is a challenge for us all. We want to reach an agreement within the G7 and the OECD. In the meantime, France will implement its national decisions," Le Maire said in response to Trump's warning.

France will implement digital tax: economy minister

Libya's Red Crescent said Friday its rescue workers had recovered the bodies of 62 migrants a day after one of the deadliest shipwrecks this year in the Mediterranean.
"Our Red Crescent teams have pulled 62 migrants" from the water since Thursday evening, the head of the unit Abdelmoneim Abu Sbeih said.  Aid agencies on Thursday said more than 100 migrants were missing after an overloaded boat sank off the Libyan coast east of the capital near the port city of Khoms.
About 145 migrants were rescued by the Libyan coastguard, and fishermen said the waters were full of floating bodies.
"The bodies are still floating onto the shore continuously, it's not possible to give a total number," Abu Sbeih added.
Local authorities were gathering and storing the bodies until burial places could be found, a municipal source in Khoms said.
The migrants had apparently been headed out to sea on three boats lashed together, according to the charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF).  Survivors had reported .

AFP

AFP

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