Taiwan's parliament has voted to tighten a law governing links with China, effectively barring many of its former top ministers and retired generals from attending Chinese government ceremonies.
Ties between China and Taiwan are frosty, with the mainland cutting off communications with the island's government after the election of Beijing-sceptic President Tsai Ing-wen three years ago.
"We should sternly forbid any actions (from our retired military generals) such as saluting the Chinese flag, singing the Chinese anthem or any actions which could damage Taiwan's national interest and dignity," the island's premier Su Tseng-chang said in a statement on social media.
The amended law -- passed on Wednesday -- prohibits former generals, the heads and their deputies of certain ministries like defence and foreign affairs from attending events hosted by or affiliated with the Chinese government.
Violators risk losing their monthly pension or a maximum fine of TW$10 million ...

Taiwan bars former top officials from Chinese political events

PTI Automatic

A Dutch court jailed the country's most notorious gangster for life on Thursday for ordering the "liquidation" of five people, including his accomplice in the 1980s kidnapping of a Heineken beer tycoon.
Willem Holleeder's "life was determined by greed, lust for power and violence", judges said as they convicted the 61-year-old at a hearing in a secure court in Amsterdam dubbed "De Bunker." Holleeder, nicknamed "The Nose" because of his prominent facial feature, became a minor celebrity following the abduction of beer heir Freddy Heineken and his driver in 1983.
The burly ganglord appeared on television and was even known as the "huggable criminal" for posing for selfies with fans on Amsterdam's beer terraces.
But the public image masked the brutal reality of a gangland enforcer who ruthlessly wiped out anyone who threatened his position as king of the Amsterdam underworld.
In scenes reminiscent of Hollywood mob movies the Godfather and Goodfellas, he ordered the murder of Cor van ...

Dutch Heineken kidnapper jailed for life for gangland murders

US tariffs against China must be lifted for the two sides to reach a deal to end the trade war, the Chinese commerce ministry said Thursday.
Trade teams from the world's top two economies "have maintained communication", ministry spokesman Gao Feng said, days after presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping announced a truce.
"The United States' unilateral tariff increase on China's exports to the United States is the starting point for the Sino-US economic and trade frictions," Gao said at a weekly press briefing.
"If the two sides can reach an agreement, the tariffs imposed must be completely eliminated. China's attitude toward this is clear and consistent," Gao said.
The countries have exchanged tariffs on $360 billion in two-way trade and negotiations broke down in May after the United States accused China of reneging on its commitments.
Trump and Xi agreed at the G20 in Japan on Saturday to revive negotiations.
The US leader said he would not slap new tariffs on Chinese exports and ..

China says US tariffs must be lifted for a trade deal

The US is seeking the extradition of a North Korean man from Malaysia for alleged involvement in money-laundering in breach of sanctions against Pyongyang, a Kuala Lumpur court heard Thursday.
Mun Chol Myong, who has lived in the Southeast Asian country for a decade with his wife and two daughters, was arrested in May.
The 54-year-old is facing five counts of money-laundering in the US. Prosecutors said the charges relate to the trade in luxury goods, including liquor, to the North.
North Korea has been hit with repeated rounds of crippling sanctions -- imposed by the United Nations and countries such as the US -- over its nuclear-weapons programme.
These include trying to halt the trade in luxury goods as a way of targeting the country's elite.
Mun has been in custody since his arrest and last month a judge rejected a bail application, saying he was a flight risk.
At a procedural hearing Thursday, lawyer Jagjit Singh again argued Mun should be released on bail and complained ...

US seeks extradition of North Korean from Malaysia

Kosovo has banned Serbian officials from its territory over their "constant propaganda and false news", a foreign ministry official said Thursday, heating up the latest diplomatic battle between the former war foes.
Serbia and its former province Kosovo, which is mainly ethnic Albanian, still have a bitter and frequently tense relationship two decades after Kosovo broke away and went on to declare independence.
Belgrade has never accepted that move and the neighbours frequently clash on the diplomatic stage.
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will not allow any Belgrade official to visit Kosovo and all requests will be rejected as long as this behaviour continues," Jetlir Zyberaj, advisor to the foreign minister, wrote in Facebook post on Thursday.
He said the move was a response to "constant propaganda and false news about the country and our citizens".
He also accused Belgrade of trying to create a "so-called humanitarian crisis in the north of Kosovo, threatening the Serb population .

Kosovo bans Serbian officials in latest diplomatic row

Two people were killed and over 30 vehicles burnt on Thursday after thieves breached a fuel pipeline in Lagos, Nigeria's commercial hub, causing an explosion, emergency services said.
The incident, which happened in the early hours in the Ijegun area, is the latest in a long string of such accidents.
"We have recovered two burnt bodies and rescued eight others with severe burns," Lagos State Emergency Mangement Agency (LASEMA) head Femi Osanyintolu told AFP.  He said more than 30 vehicles caught fire.
The inferno was caused by vandals who broke open a state-run pipeline in order to steal petrol, he said.
Security agents intercepted the thieves as they were transferring the petrol to their trucks, Osanyintolu said.
"In a bid to escape arrest, the vandals spilled some of the petrol into drainages and set it on fire," he said.
"The fire then spread back to the point where the vandals had siphoned the fuel and exploded," he said.
Osanyintolu said firefighters were battling to put out the .

Two dead in Nigeria petrol pipeline fire

Residents of Indonesia's capital on Thursday filed a lawsuit against the government over the toxic levels of air pollution that regularly blanket the city.
Jakarta has been shrouded in hazardous smog for much of the past month, with air quality readings recording high concentrations of harmful microscopic particles known as PM2.5.
Fed up with what they say is worsening air pollution, a group of 31 concerned residents has sued President Joko Widodo, as well as the ministry of environment and forestry, ministry of health, and Jakarta's governor.
The plaintiffs -- which include activists, office workers and motorcycle taxi drivers -- want to raise awareness about the issue and force the government to act.
"(The government) has neglected people's rights to breathe healthy air," lawyer Nelson Nikodemus Simamora told reporters after filing the lawsuit.
"They have not maintained air quality at a level that is healthy enough for the 10 million people living here." Toxic smog saw Jakarta ...

Jakarta residents sue Indonesia government over air pollution

Thousands of Malaysian children took part in a practice run Thursday of the Muslim hajj pilgrimage, marching around a model of the holy Kaaba, Islam's most sacred site.
Dressed in white robes, the youngsters circled the black cuboid in the compound of a convention centre just outside Kuala Lumpur.
The Kaaba sits inside the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, and Muslims around the world turn towards it to pray. Part of the hajj involves walking around the Kaaba.
"We are learning how to do the hajj," six-year-old Aqra Izz told AFP, as nearly 6,000 boys and girls took a break after marching under the tropical sun.
"I want to do this when I get older... like my mother and father." The hajj pilgrimage is one of the five pillars of Islam. Muslims must perform the hajj at least once in their lives, if able, and it marks the spiritual peak of their lives.
Millions of devotees from around the world travel to Saudi Arabia annually for the pilgrimage.
For Thursday's event, called the "Little ..

Malaysian children in practice run for Muslim hajj

A 29-year-old Australian student detained in North Korea surfaced in Beijing on Thursday, saying he felt "great" after being released.
Alek Sigley -- one of a handful of Westerners living and studying in North Korea -- disappeared without a trace around June 23, prompting a week of deep concern and frantic speculation about his fate.
For days Sigley's family received no word about his whereabouts or wellbeing, stoking fears he may have been the latest in a long line of foreigners to become entangled in North Korea's police state.
"I'm ok, I'm ok, yeah, yeah, I'm good. I'm very good," Sigley said at Beijing's international airport. Asked how he felt, he responded: "Great."
He went to the Australian embassy and was later seen again at the airport, where he smiled again and waved at reporters. He was expected to travel to Japan, where his wife still lives.
Earlier, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison told lawmakers that Sigley had "been released from detention in the Democratic ...

Australian student detained in North Korea 'released, safe'

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said a solution could be found to help Muslims interned in Chinese camps "taking into account the sensitivities" of both sides, in comments published Thursday.
Turkey is one of the only Muslim-majority countries to have criticised China over the detention of an estimated one million ethnic Uighurs and other mostly Muslim minorities in  restive Xinjiang province.
But Erdogan struck a softer tone after meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday in Beijing.
"I believe we can find a solution to the issue taking into account the sensitivities of both sides," Erdogan told Turkish journalists in Beijing before flying back to Turkey, according to Hurriyet daily.
Chinese state media claimed Erdogan said ethnic minorities live happily in Xinjiang, but he made no such comments to Turkish reporters.
He warned against those who sought to "abuse" the Xinjiang issue to create tensions with China, a key investor and trading partner.
"This abuse is having a .

Erdogan says solution possible for China's Muslims

Frank Lampard was appointed Chelsea head coach on Thursday, confirming a dramatic return for one of the club's greatest ever players.
Lampard has signed a three-year contract with Chelsea, where he spent 13 years and became the team's all-time leading scorer with 211 goals.
The former England midfielder succeeds Maurizio Sarri after just one season in management, having led Derby County to the Championship play-off final in May, when they were beaten by Aston Villa.
"I am immensely proud to be returning to Chelsea as head coach," Lampard said in a club statement.
"Everyone knows my love for this club and the history we have shared, however, my sole focus is on the job in hand and preparing for the season ahead.
"I am here to work hard, bring further success to the club and I cannot wait to get started." Chelsea said Lampard has a "fantastic relationship" with the club's supporters and he will certainly lift the mood after a fractious season under Sarri.
Despite finishing third in the .

Lampard returns to Chelsea as head coach

Former British finance minister George Osborne is lining up a bid to replace Christine Lagarde as head of the International Monetary Fund, UK newspapers reported Thursday.
Making his interest known to friends, Osborne said the job required a "skilled political communicator and operator... not a technocrat", the Financial Times reported.  Lagarde, a former French finance minister, is set to lead the European Central Bank, replacing Mario Draghi.
An opponent of Brexit, Osborne is currently editor of London's Evening Standard newspaper after quitting politics in the wake of Britain voting in a referendum three years ago to quit the European Union.
Media on Thursday said Osborne would need the support of Britain's new prime minister to stand a chance of succeeding Lagarde.
The former Conservative MP is backing favourite Boris Johnson to replace Theresa May as British prime minister.
Draghi is meanwhile seen as a strong candidate to become IMF chief, with the global-crisis lender having ...

Ex-British finance chief Osborne eyes IMF role: media

Torrential rains killed one woman and caused flooding and landslides in southern Japan on Thursday, authorities said, as they began lifting evacuation orders that had been in place for over one million people.
The woman's death, confirmed after she was reported missing earlier Thursday, means two people died in the heavy rains that started over the weekend and inundated parts of southern Japan.
As the worst of the rains moved north, authorities began lifting evacuation orders -- but nearly 800,000 people in the Kagoshima were still affected.
Despite that, just 2,300 people were in shelters in the Kagoshima region on Thursday afternoon, an official tally showed.
The rains come a year after torrential downpours in western Japan killed over 200 people in flooding and landslides.
Both deaths in the latest rains came when landslides buried the homes of the victims. Several injuries have also been reported along with small landslides that have buried cars.
About 793,000 people in Kagoshima .

Another death as heavy rains prompt evacuations in Japan

A man has been detained for five days by Beijing police after he poured water over the head of Baidu CEO Robin Li as he delivered a speech at a conference, authorities said Thursday.
Li was speaking about Baidu's autonomous car development at an event on Artificial Intelligence on Wednesday when the man stormed onto the stage and emptied a water bottle over his head.
The tech billionaire, who co-founded the internet giant, stood stunned for a moment as the water poured down his face.
"What's your problem?" he said in English as his assailant walked off the stage.  "Everyone can see that the path of advancing AI will still encounter all types of things we don't expect," Li then added, calmly resuming his presentation to applause despite his drenched white shirt.
Police carried out an investigation after Baidu employees reported that "a man had disturbed the order at a company activity." A suspect surnamed Cheng was given five days of administrative detention for "picking quarrels and ..

Man detained for pouring water over Baidu chief's head

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said it would be "robbery" for the United States to deny Turkey the F-35 fighter jets it has bought, according to comments published on Thursday.
Turkey-US ties are under serious strain over Ankara's purchase of the Russian S-400 air defence system, which is due for delivery in the coming days.
In response, Washington has threatened to cancel Turkey's order of 116 F-35 fighter jets and kick it off the training and production programme, as well as wider economic sanctions.
"If you seek a customer, and a customer comes forward and makes payments like clockwork, how can you not give that customer their goods? This would be robbery," Erdogan was quoted as saying by Hurriyet daily.
He said Turkey had already paid USD1.4 billion, while its defence industry has ploughed significant sums into the warplanes' production.
The acting US defence secretary, Patrick Shanahan, wrote a letter to Ankara last month, warning that Turkish pilots would be expelled from the US 

Erdogan says US refusal to deliver F-35 jets would be 'robbery'

Google was accused of "giving the middle finger" by New Zealand's Justice Minister Thursday, after the US tech giant refused to tighten publication standards after breaching court suppression orders in a high-profile murder case.
A Google news email that went out to the general public named the accused killer of Briton Grace Millane in December, despite a court order suppressing his identity while he was on trial.
The tech firm initially appeared contrite, holding meetings with Justice Minister Andrew Little and assuring Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern earlier this year that the issue was being looked at.
Little said a follow-up inquiry in March yielded no results, before he finally received a one-paragraph email from Google this week indicating the company saw no need to change its policy as the case had been "extensively reported by overseas media".
A furious Little described the response, which included a link to Google's legal support page, as "contemptible" and "extraordinarily ...

New Zealand slams Google over murder case gaffe

A 29-year-old Australian student detained in North Korea surfaced in Beijing airport on Thursday, saying he was in "very good" spirits after being released.
Alek Sigley -- one of a handful of Westerners living and studying in North Korea -- disappeared without a trace around June 23, prompting a week of deep concern and frantic speculation about his fate.
For days Sigley's family received no word about his whereabouts or wellbeing, stoking fears he may be the latest in a long line of foreigners to become entangled in North Korea's police state.
Then, with little warning, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday told lawmakers that Sigley had "been released from detention in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea" and that "he is safe and well".
Sigley's father Gary told media in Australia that the family was "extremely pleased he is safe and sound".
The father admitted he had missed a call from his son because he had been busy "shopping" but hoped to give him a "big hug 

Australian student detained in N Korea 'released, safe'

Shares related to a Chinese property tycoon plunged for a second day on Thursday after his arrest for suspected child molestation, in a case that sparked anger over an apparently botched attempt to censor the affair.
Police in Shanghai announced Wednesday that a man had been arrested on suspicion of sexually abusing a nine-year-old girl.
Chinese media reports subsequently confirmed that the man was Wang Zhenhua, 57-year-old billionaire chairman of Seazen Holdings.
Hong Kong-listed shares in a pair of companies linked to Wang -- Future Land Holdings and Xinchengyue -- have since plunged around 30 per cent.
The news appeared not to have affected Shanghai-listed Seazen Holdings on Wednesday, but the stock fell the maximum allowable 10 percent on Thursday, triggering an automatic suspension.
Police said a man surnamed Wang was arrested on suspicion of child sex abuse, along with a woman surnamed Zhou.
Chinese media reports have said that Zhou delivered the nine-year-old girl to Wang after 

China firm's stock tanks on tycoon's child sex assault arrest

At least 27 people died and nine were missing Wednesday when their fishing boat sank off the Caribbean coast of Honduras, the country's military said.
Armed forces spokesman Jose Meza said that 55 people survived when the vessel sank off the remote coastal Mosquitia region.
Ninety-one people were aboard the boat, the 70-tonne "Wallie," when it set sail from Cabo Gracias a Dios -- on the country's easternmost point bordering Nicaragua -- after a seasonal ban on lobster fishing was lifted.
The boat sank near Cayo Gorda, a tiny island just northeast of their point of departure. The cause of the disaster was not immediately clear.
Meza added that the bodies and the survivors would be taken to Puerto Lempira, the main city in eastern Honduras.
Hours before the "Wallie" sank, an overloaded fishing boat in the same area went under.
Meza said that 49 people were rescued from that boat, the "Miss Francely," which had a capacity to carry 31 people.
The head of the Honduran Merchant Marine, Juan 

27 dead as fishing boat sinks off Honduras

More than 30 employees at a Canadian potash mine have been rescued after being trapped underground for 24 hours, a company spokesman said.
The workers were carrying out maintenance duties when a service shaft broke down on Tuesday afternoon at Saskatoon-based fertilizer firm Nutrien.
"We can confirm that all 34 employees have been safely brought to the surface at our Cory Potash site," Nutrien spokesman Will Tigley said Wednesday evening.
The miners had been stuck at the bottom of the mine approximately one kilometer (half a mile) underground, but had water and food supplies with them.
The incident occurred at the company's Cory mine, located southwest of Saskatoon, the largest city in the province of Saskatchewan, in the Canada's central grassland region.

34 staff freed after Canadian potash mine ordeal

A 29-year-old Australian student detained in North Korea has been released and is "safe and well" Prime Minister Scott Morrison told parliament on Thursday.
News of Alek Sigley's release comes more than a week after he went missing in Pyongyang, prompting a flurry of back-channel contacts and talks between North Korean authorities and a visiting Swedish envoy.
"We were advised that the DPRK have released him from detention and he has safely left the country" Morrison said, referring to the North by its official name.
"I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to the Swedish authorities for their invaluable assistance.

AFP

AFP

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