The head of Libya's UN-backed government Fayez al-Sarraj on Saturday accused his rival Khalifa Haftar of betraying him over a military offensive against the capital Tripoli which risks plunging the country into civil war.
Forces loyal to the Libyan commander have pressed on with their assault despite international calls to halt hostilities.
In a televised address, Sarraj warned of a "war without a winner".
"We have extended our hands towards peace but after the aggression that has taken place on the part of forces belonging to Haftar... he will find nothing but strength and firmness," he said.
Po-Haftar fighters have been slowed in their advance by forces loyal to Sarraj's Government of National Accord (GNA), which is based in the capital.
For the first time, forces backing the GNA launched air strikes earlier Saturday on Haftar's self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA) -- which vowed to retaliate -- around 50 kilometres south of Tripoli.
Pro-government forces in Tripoli confirmed .

Libya PM accuses rival of betrayal over Tripoli offensive

PTI Automatic

Egypt is on track to end subsidies on most fuels by June 15 as part of a reform programme led by the International Monetary Fund, the Washington-based body said Saturday.
The economy of the Arab world's most populous country has suffered from political instability and security threats since the 2011 uprising that ousted long-time leader Hosni Mubarak.
Cairo secured a USD 12 billion, three-year loan package from the IMF in 2016.  Egyptian authorities "remain committed" to ending subsidies granted to limit prices at the pump, the IMF said in a new report.
The prices of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and fuels used in bakeries and for electricity generation would not be affected, it added.
Bread is a staple in Egypt and a price hike could spark further discontent in the face of continued economic woes.
The IMF said cutting the subsidies is "critical to encourage more efficient energy use" and to "create fiscal space for high-priority spending on health and education".
The IMF in February .

Egypt on track to end fuel subsidies: IMF

Senegal's prime minister on Saturday announced that President Macky Sall had instructed him to launch reforms that will include the scrapping of his own job.
The reforms would include "the suppression of the intermediary level of prime minister", said Mahammed Boun Abdallah Dionne, who Sall had just reappointed to the post.
The aim is to bring the administration closer to the administrated and to speed up reforms so they had more impact, said Dionne, speaking from the presidential palace.
Dionne was also named as secretary general of the Republic, according to a presidential decree read out on national television.
Once the prime minister's post has disappeared, he will continue in this second role, Dionne said.
Sall took office this week for his second term as president after comfortably winning re-election.
Sall garnered 58 per cent of the vote, well clear of former prime minister Idrissa Seck on 20 per cent with the rest of the pack left trailing, to win easily in a single round of .

Senegal President Sall tells PM to scrap his own post

Opposition supporters thronged the streets of Caracas and other cities on Saturday in protest against the regime of President Nicolas Maduro, as massive blackouts and the collapse of water supplies further exacerbated a growing political crisis.
The United States meanwhile stiffened its economic sanctions against the government, and one top US official on Saturday warned Venezuela's military that it must protect the rights of peaceful protesters.
Late Friday, opposition leader Juan Guaido -- who is supported in his claim to be the legitimate interim leader by around 50 nations -- called for a huge turnout in Caracas, announcing in a phone message to supporters the start of "the greatest escalation of pressure we have seen in our history."
Two opposition deputies were detained in an anti-government protest in the western city of Maracaibo, fellow legislator Adriana Pichardo said, denouncing the arrests as a violation of parliamentary immunity.
Deputy Elimar Diaz, who joined the ...

Venezuelans protest as Guaido declares history's 'greatest escalation'

Forces loyal to Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar on Saturday pressed on with an offensive on Tripoli, defying international calls to halt hostilities which risk plunging the country into civil war.
Pro-Haftar fighters have been slowed in their advance by forces loyal to Libya's internationally-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA), which sits in the capital.
For the first time, forces backing the GNA launched air strikes on Haftar's self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA) -- which vowed to retaliate -- around 50 kilometres (30 miles) south of Tripoli.
Pro-government forces in Tripoli confirmed they had targeted Haftar's men with "intensive strikes".
The air strikes came as fresh fighting flared Saturday south of Tripoli between the pro-government forces and Haftar's troops despite calls from the international community to halt the military offensive.
Several European foreign ministers warned Haftar not to countenance any further military action, with France's Jean-Yves Le Drian 

Haftar's forces defy calls for Libya calm, press Tripoli offensive

Tunisia's 92-year-old president said Saturday he did not plan to stand for re-election in the November polls, in order to make way for someone younger.
"In all honesty, I don't think I will put myself forward," President Beji Caid Essebsi told the Nidaa Tounes party which he founded in 2012, adding it was time "to open the door to the youth".
His speech before thousands of members at the party's congress came several days after Abdelaziz Bouteflika, the 82-year-old ailing leader of neighbouring Algeria, resigned in the face of huge protests ending two decades in power.
Essebsi, Tunisia's first democratically elected president, urged his party however to overcome bitter internal divisions and to bring Prime Minister Youssef Chahed back into the fold.
Tensions have flared between Chahed and Essebsi's son, Hafedh Caid Essebsi, leading to the premier being sidelined from Nidaa Tounes and forming his own rival party, Tahia Tounes.
Essebsi's secularist Nidaa Tounes won the 2014 elections ...

Tunisia president, 92, says doesn't plan to run for re-election

Foreign ministers from the world's seven most developed nations on Saturday urged a greater role for women in solving conflicts, saying that peace settlements with female involvement were more likely to endure.
The Group of Seven (G7) ministers, at their meeting in the northern French resort of Dinard to prepare a summit meeting under French presidency in August, also called on greater mobilisation worldwide to "prevent sexual and gender-based violence in conflict".
"Women rarely sit at the negotiating table," the final statement of the meeting said, adding that only rarely do peace agreements include provisions that protect women's human rights.
"At the same time, we know that when women are meaningfully included and play an influential role in peace processes, peace agreements are more likely to last," it said.
According to the UN Women's agency, between 1990 and 2017, women constituted only two percent of mediators, eight percent of negotiators, and five percent of witnesses and ...

G7 urges greater role for women in peace processes

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's ruling AKP will accept the results of local election recounts in Ankara and Istanbul no matter which party is declared the winner, a party spokesman said on Saturday.
The AKP won most votes nationwide in last Sunday's election, but results showed the ruling party lost Ankara and was also narrowly defeated in Istanbul in what would be one of their worst setbacks in a decade and a half in power.
Electoral authorities are conducting a recount in scores of districts in Ankara and in Istanbul where tallies showed the opposition CHP candidate Ekrem Imamoglu with a very slim lead over the AKP.
"At the end of the day, we will accept the final result regardless of whether it is to our advantage or disadvantage," AKP spokesman Omer Celik told a briefing for the foreign press in Istanbul.
Voters may have punished the AKP at the ballot box, with Turkey's economy in recession after a currency crisis last year that hit Turkish households hard when the lira ..

Erdogan's ruling AKP ready to accept election recount results

A coalition of Polish opposition parties on Saturday launched its campaign for May's European elections by warning that the governing eurosceptic PiS party could drive the country out of the European Union.
The PiS government has stoked tensions with the EU by introducing a string of controversial judicial reforms that Brussels says pose a threat to judicial independence, the rule of law and ultimately to democracy.
Warsaw has since backed out of some of the controversial legislation, but the opposition is still concerned that the PiS government's clash with Brussels could pave the way to a "Polexit".
"Either (we have) a strong, prosperous, democratic Poland in a strong Europe or what we have today - a party state - on the way to leaving the European Union," said Grzegorz Schetyna, leader of the liberal Civic Platform (PO), the largest of five opposition parties in the European Coalition (KE).
"Either a Poland that is one of the leaders of the West, or Poland a drifting to the East," .

Polish opposition warns of 'Polexit' ahead of European vote

Chinese superstar Lin Dan put on a sensational display of badminton to power into the Malaysia Open final, beating compatriot Shi Yuqi, 21-19, 16-21, 21-12 on Saturday.
His victory, which took 65 minutes, sets up a final against another Chinese player, Chen Long.
Five-time world champion Lin allowed Shi to dictate the pace at the start of the opening game before seizing back the initiative, and winning 21-19.
A couple of unforced errors paved the way for Shi to level with a 16-21 win in the second game, but Lin came to life in the decider and clinched the match.  It is the second final that Lin has reached this year but the two-time Olympic gold medallist conceded it was tough to battle past Shi.
"Now a days the competition within the Chinese men's singles team is as strong as against others. But I am used to the pressure, and the most important thing is to be consistent," Lin said Lin will play Chen in a repeat of the 2015 final, which was won by Chen.
Chen was equally impressive in .

China's Lin Dan storms into Malaysia final

Britain has begun issuing passports with the words "European Union" removed from the front cover -- despite Brexit being delayed and its political leaders deadlocked over how to extricate the country from the bloc.
The interior ministry said Saturday that a longstanding decision to start introducing passports without reference to the EU had gone ahead from March 30, the day after the original date for Brexit.
Prime Minister Theresa May has delayed leaving the bloc after 46 years of membership amid stubborn opposition in parliament to the divorce deal she finalised with European leaders in November.
MPs have comprehensively rejected the agreement three times.
Ahead of an EU summit on Wednesday, she was forced to ask them for another extension, until June 30, to prevent Britain departing with no deal at the end of next week.
But the other 27 members must give unanimous backing to any further postponement and are increasingly impatient at the paralysis in Westminster. They could offer ...

UK issues passports without 'European Union' on cover

Striking blows for gender equality with every swing, women players competed for a trophy for the first time Saturday at former men-only enclave Augusta National Golf Club, home of the Masters.
At a club that opened in 1933 but didn't admit its first women members until 2012, LPGA legends Pak Se Ri, Annika Sorenstam, Lorena Ochoa and Nancy Lopez hit ceremonial shots off the first tee to launch the historic final round of the inaugural Augusta National Women's Amateur.
"It's just exciting to be a part of history," Lopez said. "A day of history for us, for the amateurs that are here and for Augusta National." A field of 72 played the first 36 holes at nearby Champions Retreat before the event moved to the famed Masters layout, with the top 30 advancing to the last 18 holes at Augusta National.
"It's a dream come true. I'm so happy for them," Sorenstam said. "This has huge potential to not just inspire young girls but golfers, other women in sports and women in business." American Anna ...

Women play historic round at once all-male Augusta

EU foreign ministers on Saturday upped pressure on Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar to halt his offensive on Tripoli, urging the strongman to commit to a political solution.
Khalifa's dramatic bid to take Tripoli came as a meeting of Group of Seven (G7) foreign ministers was being held in northern France with the club issuing a statement on Friday urging an immediate halt to "all military activity and movements toward Tripoli".
Several European ministers on Saturday warned Haftar not to countenance any further military action, saying that this could destroy a UN-backed peace process.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian described the Tripoli operations as "untimely initiatives" that could further destabilise Libya.
"There is a fundamental principle in Libya. There will be no military victory. The solution can only be a political solution," he added.
He said that France and Italy, the two European powers with the most influence in north Africa, were "on the same wavelength".
"It ..

EU ministers pile pressure on Haftar to halt Libya offensive

France's foreign minister on Saturday urged Tokyo to ensure consular protection and the presumption of innocence in talks with his Japanese counterpart over the case of Carlos Ghosn, after the re-arrest of the former Nissan and Renault boss in Japan.
Jean-Yves Le Drian said he had talked about the Ghosn case with Taro Kono on the sidelines of the meeting of Group of Seven (G7) foreign ministers in the French resort of Dinard.
Their talks came a day after a Japanese court ruled Ghosn must remain in custody until at least April 14 following his re-arrest in Tokyo.
"I of course spoke about the the Ghosn case with my colleague," Le Drian told reporters after the end of the G7 meeting.
"I told him two things: That France respects completely the sovereignty and independence of the Japanese judiciary. And I also reminded him of our attachment to the presumption of innocence and the full rights of consular protection."
Ghosn spent 108 days in detention in northern Tokyo before being ...

France urges Japan to respect Ghosn's legal rights

The EU on Saturday declared its support for the International Criminal Court, voicing "serious concern" after the US revoked the chief prosecutor's visa over a possible investigation into American soldiers' actions in Afghanistan.
Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda's office confirmed Friday that Washington had revoked her visa for entry into the US -- a move that came after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced restrictions on ICC staff who probe US or allied personnel.
A spokesperson for the EU's diplomatic service said the bloc "fully supports the ICC and its independence" and said Brussels expects the US to comply with its "international obligations" towards the court.
"The European Union reiterates its serious concern about the US policy towards the ICC," the spokesperson said in a statement.
"The ICC plays a key role in the fight against impunity. The EU emphasises that protecting the neutrality and judicial independence of the ICC is paramount to its effectiveness and proper ...

EU backs ICC after US revokes prosecutor's visa

Forces loyal to Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar said Saturday they had been targeted by an air strike, as fresh fighting flared south of Tripoli.
"We strongly condemn the air raid... in the Al-Aziziya region" by a plane, which had taken off from western Misrata, said the media office of Haftar's self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA).
Forces in Misrata are mostly loyal to Libya's internationally-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA), which has been battling Haftar for control of the war-torn north African country.
Pro-government forces in the capital Tripoli confirmed they had targeted Haftar's men with "intensive strikes".
The air strikes came as fresh fighting flared Saturday south of Tripoli between the pro-government forces and Haftar's troops despite calls from the international community to halt the military offensive.
Haftar's forces are battling for control of an area some 30 kilometres (18 miles) south of the capital near Tripoli's international airport, which was ...

Libyan strongman's forces say targeted by air strike

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Saturday that it was time for the Brexit crisis to end, saying that it couldn't continue to dominate EU discussions.
"It's time that this situation ended," he told reporters on the sidelines of a G7 meeting in Dinard, northern France.
"We can't live constantly with Brexit. At some point, there needs to be a departure.
"The British authorities and the British parliament need to understand that the European Union is not going to be able to constantly exhaust itself with the ups and downs of domestic British politics. The British need to tell us very quickly how they are going to get out of this crisis," he added.
France has sought to ramp up pressure on British Prime Minister Theresa May ahead of an emergency summit meeting of European leaders in Brussels from Wednesday.
French President Emmanuel Macron has said her request for an extension of the deadline for Brexit would not automatically be accepted, meaning Britain could crash out of ..

France on Brexit: 'Time for this situation to end'

Chinese investors led the so-called Golden Visa boom in Greece, where residence permits issued to non-E.U countries citizens grew 46 per cent last year.
Other crisis-hit countries like Portugal and Spain have used the scheme for years to lure investors in a bid to stoke an economic recovery. Spending a minimum of 250,000 euros on a home in Greece secures a five-year renewable visa.
According to the latest data from the migration policy ministry published by the Kathimerini newspaper on Saturday, Chinese investors account for 58 per cent of the residence permits issued from 2013.
Since the launch of the programme until the end of the first trimester of 2019, a total of 4,154 permits were issued.
Of these 1,399 were handed out last year, up from 961 in 2017.
Chinese investors have acquired 2,416 out of the 4,154 permits issued so far. Russian citizens came second with 428, followed by Turks.
The European Commission published a report earlier this year, urging members to curb the ...

Chinese investors snap up Greek 'Golden Visas'

A conference between Libya's warring parties set to start on April 14 is to go ahead despite renewed fighting around Tripoli, the United Nations' envoy said Saturday.
"We are determined" to hold the talks "as scheduled" unless prevented by serious obstacles, Ghassan Salame said at a press conference in the capital, target of a new offensive this week by military strongman Khalifa Haftar.
Haftar, commander of the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA), launched an offensive on Thursday to take the capital, held by a UN-backed unity government and an array of militias.
His forces clashed south of the capital Friday and Saturday with forces that back the country's unity government.
The UN's conference of key players is set to draw up a "roadmap" to lead Libya towards legislative and presidential elections.
Libya's rival leaders agreed in Paris last year to hold elections before the end of the year, but that vote never materialised as the two rival administrations and numerous ...

Libya talks to go ahead despite new fighting: UN envoy

A fugitive Polish "multi-millionaire" at the heart of an eavesdropping scandal that contributed to the ruling Civic Platform liberals losing elections in 2015 has been arrested in Spain, police said Saturday.
Marek Falenta was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison in Poland in December 2016 for setting up an eavesdropping system in swanky restaurants in Warsaw that saw waiters record conversations between businesspeople and politicians.
That led to a major scandal that erupted in 2014 with media publishing extracts of incriminating conversations including Poland's then foreign minister who allegedly slammed Warsaw's alliance with the United States as "worthless".
The scandal contributed to then prime minister Donald Tusk's Civic Platform losing in 2015 to the conservative opposition Law and Justice party now in power.
While not identifying him by name, Spanish police said in a statement they and some of their Polish counterparts had arrested a "multi-millionaire" wanted by ...

Spain arrests Polish millionaire at heart of eavesdropping scandal

Nineteen people were killed when a truck veered off of the road in northern Nigeria's Katsina state, a road safety official said on Saturday.
"The accident happened around 7:00 am (local time) on Friday when the driver lost control due to fatigue and overloading," Ibrahim Abdullahi of the Federal Roads Safety Commission told AFP.
"We evacuated 19 dead bodies and 38 injured passengers," he said.
The accident happened at Daudawa village, 130 kilometres south of the state capital.  The truck was travelling from nearby Zamfara state where kidnapping and cattle rustling is rampant.
Accidents are common on Nigerian poorly-maintained roads due to speeding, reckless driving and disregard for traffic rules.
Last week, 13 people were killed on a road in northern Bauchi state.

AFP

AFP

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