Kosovo MPs voted on Thursday to dissolve parliament and trigger early elections, a move that could shake up the political scene at a time when negotiations with former foe Serbia are deadlocked.
The vote comes after outgoing premier Ramush Haradinaj, a former commander of ethnic Albanian rebels who battled Serbia in the late 1990s, stepped down in July to face a summons from a special court in The Hague that is investigating crimes from that era.
Since his resignation, parties have agitated for a snap poll, with some already involved in unofficial campaigning and talking about possible alliances.
After 89 lawmakers in the 120-member assembly voted in favour of the motion, Haradinaj hailed it as proof of Kosovo's "political maturity" and "stable democracy".
He also stressed that the dialogue with Serbia "is one of the important topics".
"I think we should discuss this topic after the elections," he told reporters.
President Hashim Thaci, who is now required to call an election within ..

Kosovo heads to snap poll after MPs dissolve parliament

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Japan's foreign minister said Thursday that Tokyo "strongly" protested against South Korea's decision to scrap a military intelligence-sharing pact, calling the move "extremely regrettable".
"I have to say the decision to end the pact by the South Korean government is a complete misjudgement of the current regional security environment and it is extremely regrettable," Taro Kono said in a statement.
"We cannot accept the claims by the South Korean side and we will strongly protest against the South Korean government," Kono said, adding that Tokyo had summoned the South Korean ambassador.
Earlier, Seoul had announced it was "not in the national interest to maintain the agreement that was signed for the purpose of exchanging sensitive military intelligence".
The end of the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) marks a fresh low point in relations between the two democracies and US allies and is likely to be seen with dismay in Washington.
It was the latest in a ...

Japan 'strongly' protests South Korea defence pact move: FM

Britain on Thursday said it was trying to contact an employee of its Hong Kong consulate being held in China while "urgently" seeking further information from Beijing and local authorities.
The Foreign Office in London said both British officials and relatives had been unable to speak to the missing staffer, Simon Cheng, who disappeared after visiting mainland China on August 8.
A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman confirmed Wednesday he had been "placed in administrative detention for 15 days as punishment" by police in Shenzhen, a city on the China-Hong Kong border, for breaking a public security law.
The spokesman also said because Cheng is from Hong Kong, the issue is an internal matter.
"We continue to urgently seek further information about Simon's case," a spokesperson for the British Foreign Office said in a statement.
"Neither we nor Simon's family have been able to speak to him since his detention.
"That is our priority and we continue to raise Simon's case repeatedly in ...

UK seeking contact with HK consulate staffer held in China

A 24-year-old Syrian man was sentenced to nine and a half years in jail Thursday for a knife killing that sparked racist street violence and far-right protests in the eastern German city of Chemnitz.
The court found that Alaa Sheikhi, together with an Iraqi man still at large, stabbed to death 35-year-old German Daniel Hillig in the early hours of August 26 last year.
The manslaughter conviction comes at a sensitive time, one year after thousands of neo-Nazis and enraged citizens marched through Chemnitz, and 10 days before state elections in the ex-communist region.
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which has railed against immigrants and Islam, is forecast to poll strongly in the state of Saxony and neighbouring Brandenburg on September 1.
The court heard that the fugitive Iraqi, a 22-year-old identified only as Farhad A., was first to confront Hillig, a carpenter with German-Cuban roots.
Both he and Sheikhi then stabbed Hillig, who died of heart and lung wounds, as 

Syrian jailed for Germany knife killing that sparked far-right protests

Two Israeli Arabs were charged Thursday over their alleged support for the Islamic State group, including downloading guides to prepare terror attacks, Israel's domestic security agency said.
Amin Yasin, a 22-year-old studying medicine in Slovakia, and Ali Armush, 28, were arrested in July, the Shin Bet security agency said.
The two men from Tamra, a town in northern Israel, are accused of being "active in advancing... the ideology of the Islamic State" group.
"The suspects downloaded to their computers data and information that had Islamic State material, materials showing ways of preparing weapons and devices to be used in terror attacks.
"This was done to prepare for terror attacks," Shin Bet said.
Yasin and Armush appeared in court Thursday in the coastal city of Haifa, where they were charged over their alleged involvement with IS.
Shin Bet did not detail the charges or say when the suspects' trial would begin.
Around a dozen Israeli Arabs are fighting for IS in Syria and Iraq, ..

Two Israeli Arabs charged over alleged IS support

Ryanair flew an almost full service on Thursday, the Irish no-frills airline said despite strikes by pilots and cabin crew based in Britain and Portugal triggered by pay disputes.
"All first wave flights to and from UK airports departed as scheduled this morning, with 97 percent punctuality," Ryanair said in a statement, adding that the minimal disruption was due to air traffic control delays.
"We do not expect any disruptions to our flights to/from our UK airports today," it added.
Meanwhile in Portugal, the only delay was to a flight from Porto to Milan, which was put back until the afternoon.
Pilots in Britain were striking Thursday and Friday, while cabin crew in Portugal were on their second day of a five-day walkout.
Ryanair's Britain-based pilots won permission late Wednesday to strike following a ruling by London's High Court after the Irish carrier demanded it be blocked.
However the High Court in Dublin has prevented Ireland-based pilots from joining the walkout.
In ...

Ryanair planes take to skies despite European strikes

A senior Australian Archbishop said Thursday be still believed disgraced Cardinal George Pell was innocent despite a court rejecting his appeal against child sex abuse convictions.
Melbourne Archbishop Peter Comensoli said while he accepted the testimony of the victim that convicted Pell, he believed his colleague was the victim of mistaken identity.
"I believe in what he said to me on many occasions -- that he's innocent" Comensoli told 3AW radio, stressing that he accepted the witness was indeed abused, but by someone else.
He did not offer any evidence to support the claim.
Pell and his supporters look set to fight on after the former Vatican treasurer on Wednesday lost his appeal against five convictions for sexually assaulting two 13-year-old choirboys at a Melbourne cathedral in the 1990s.
University of Melbourne law professor Jeremy Gans said it was highly likely that Pell would now take his case to the country's final court of appeal.
"He's got absolutely nothing to lose, and .

Archbishop stands by disgraced Pell after sex-case appeal lost

Damascus said Thursday it is opening a corridor for civilians to leave the rebel-held northwestern region of Idlib, where government bombardment has killed hundreds since late April.
The announcement came a day after government forces recaptured the strategic Idlib province town of Khan Sheikhun from jihadists and allied rebels.
Damascus has opened such corridors out of other rebel bastions in the past as a prelude to retaking them either by force or through negotiated surrenders.
The Idlib region, which sits on the Turkish border, is now the last major stronghold of opposition to the Russia-backed government of President Bashar al-Assad.
Since January, it has been ruled by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham alliance, which is led by jihadists from Syria's former Al-Qaeda affiliate.
"The Syrian government announces the opening of a humanitarian corridor in Souran in the northern countryside of Hama province," state news agency SANA quoted a foreign ministry source as saying.
The corridor will ..

Damascus to let civilians flee rebel-held Idlib

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Thursday that technical solutions were "readily available" to avoid the return of checks on the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland, an issue that has bedevilled negotiations on Brexit.
"The technical solutions are readily available and they have been discussed at great length," Johnson said as he met French leader Emmanuel Macron in Paris.
"You can have trusted trader schemes, you can have electronic pre-clearing.

Brexit: Johnson sees 'readily available' solutions for Irish border

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told French leader Emmanuel Macron on Thursday that he wanted a deal on Brexit, saying he had been "powerfully encouraged" by talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
"I want to make it absolutely clear... I want a deal," Johnson said. "I think we can get a deal and a good deal.

Johnson says 'wants deal' on Brexit, 'encouraged' by Merkel talks

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday called for a "useful" month of talks with Britain to find a solution to its EU exit, adding that any plan should be within the framework of the existing withdrawal agreement.
"We need to try to have a useful month," Macron said alongside British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, adding it was possible to "find something intelligent" in the next 30 days.
But he added that such a solution should not be "far from the fundamentals" that have already been negotiated.

Macron calls for 'useful month' of talks to find Brexit solution

A French charity said Thursday it has received 10 witness statements after launching an appeal for testimony about sex crimes committed against minors in France linked to the late convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Innocence en Danger (Innocence in Danger), which defends the rights of minors against violence and sexual abuse, said it would pass on the witness statements to the judicial authorities.
US billionaire Epstein committed suicide in jail earlier this month while facing charges of sexually trafficking minors.
He was linked to a string of sordid abuses involving underage girls at both his Palm Beach home and on his private island in the Caribbean.
But there have also been calls for a French enquiry into any violence committed in France since Epstein was known to entertain guests at a sumptuous apartment on Avenue Foch near the Champs-Elysees.
"We received 10 witness statements," the head of Innocence en Danger, Homayra Sellier, told AFP, adding that they came from people ...

French NGO says has 10 witnesses of Epstein-linked abuse

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson heads to Paris on Thursday for talks with French President Emmanuel Macron who is expected to rebuff his last-ditch efforts to renegotiate the UK's withdrawal from the European Union.
Macron, who has said previously he is happy to be the "bad guy" on Brexit, roundly rejected Johnson's calls to scrap a key plank of a deal negotiated between the EU and former British premier Theresa May.
"Renegotiation on the terms currently proposed by the British is not an option that exists, and that has always been made clear by (EU) President Tusk," Macron told reporters on Wednesday evening.
At stake is the so-called "backstop", an arrangement guaranteeing that border checks will not return between EU member Ireland and Northern Ireland which is part of Britain.
Johnson considers the backstop to be "anti-democratic" and an affront to British sovereignty because it will require London to keep its regulations aligned with the EU during a transition exit ...

Macron, Johnson set for bruising Brexit talks in Paris

Britain and South Korea on Thursday signed a deal that will allow the two countries to keep trading freely after Brexit.
The deal rolls over existing provisions under an EU trade deal and protects annual bilateral trade flows worth 14.6 billion pounds (16 billion euros, USD 17.7 billion) in 2018.
The move was hailed by two major exporters to South Korea -- luxury carmaker Bentley and the Denby Pottery Company.
"My priority is to make sure that British businesses are fully prepared for Brexit," International Trade Secretary Liz Truss said in a statement.
Truss signed the agreement with South Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-Hee.
"Today's signing of the FTA (Free Trade Agreement) will remove much Brexit uncertainty out of our long, valuable economic partnership," Yoo said.
It is Britain's first post-Brexit trade deal in Asia and follows similar agreements with nations including Chile, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland.
Britain is scheduled to leave the bloc on October 31.

Britain, South Korea sign Brexit trade deal

Notifications for the "War Room" WhatsApp group ping relentlessly as an organiser of Hong Kong's biggest political rallies in decades explains the challenge of keeping an exhausted, battle-weary protest movement on the streets.
The semi-autonomous city is in its third month of pro-democracy demonstrations, as Chinese rhetoric against them hardens.
"We're mentally and physically strained, (but) we're still here," said Bonnie Leung, 32, one of the few public faces of the avowedly leaderless movement.
"We're talking about saving our home. The campaign is too important for us."
Armed with smartphones and imagination, Leung and a handful of fellow volunteers from the Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF) have repeatedly organised huge protests.
Their planning is thrashed out over WhatsApp -- an encrypted messaging app -- with the most important decisions taken in the "War Room" group.
Hundreds of thousands attended the June 9 rally they organised as a kickback to a bill that would have allowed ..

As protests ebb and flow, Hong Kong activists bank on creativity

A woman died and several people were injured after a huge fire broke out inside a renowned hospital complex on the outskirts of Paris, French officials said Thursday.
The blaze erupted late Wednesday inside a flat of a residential block by the Henri-Mondor hospital in the southeastern suburb of Creteil, said Guillaume Fresse, the Paris fire department spokesman.
The flames rapidly spread to the rest of the 10-storey building which houses some of the hospital staff, engulfing the facade and a staircase, he added.
However, the blaze did not affect the hospital itself, which shot to international fame after carrying out the world's first full face transplant in 2010.
Around 100 firefighters battled the blaze for more than two hours and saved 10 people trapped inside the building before extinguishing the flames around 1:30 am (2330 GMT).
One woman was killed and several people were injured including two firefighters who sustained serious injuries during the "complex operation", Fresse ...

One dead, several injured in fire by Paris hospital

Neymar remains no closer to getting his desired move away from Paris Saint-Germain amid reports Thursday the French club have rejected an offer from Real Madrid of 100 million euros ($111 million) plus players.
French sports daily L'Equipe said Real had offered cash plus Gareth Bale, James Rodriguez and goalkeeper Keylor Navas, but PSG turned it down because "the overall value of the offer did not match their expectations".
Paris paid 222 million euros to sign Neymar from Barcelona two years ago and their sporting director Leonardo is understood to be determined to only sell the forward for a deal considered to be of the same value.
Real have spent the summer trying to offload Bale, while James is unwanted after returning from a loan at Bayern Munich and Navas is no longer the club's first-choice goalkeeper.
Meanwhile, Barcelona remain hopeful of bringing Neymar back to the Camp Nou, but Catalan daily Sport claims an attempt to sign the player on loan with an obligation to buy for 160 

Neymar future remains up in air as PSG reject Madrid offer - reports

A group of masked men attacked a Serb-owned bar in Croatia where patrons were watching Red Star Belgrade in a Champions League match, the owner said Thursday, with a Serb MP slamming the incident as a "hate crime".
Five people were injured in the assault on Wednesday night in Uzdolje, a village in Croatia's Knin region which is home to a large Serb minority population, police said in a statement.
"They broke in masked, only their eyes could be seen. They had sticks and batons. They screamed 'damn you, you are watching Red Star! And then the chaos began," the ethnic Serb owner of the bar, Boris Petko, told local channel TV Nova.
"Everything was flying around, kids were jumping and screaming... It was horrible," he said.
"It happened just because I am Serb." Police said they have detained several people and are investigating the incident, as well as a similar attack in another nearby village during the Champions League playoff between Red Star and Swiss team Young Boys.
In both ...

Serb bar in Croatia attacked during football match

Skipper Dimuth Karunaratne helped Sri Lanka reach 71 for one at tea after rain delayed the start of the second Test against New Zealand in Colombo on Thursday.
The left-hander was batting on 37 in overcast conditions after the hosts, who lead the two-match series 1-0, elected to bat first. The first session was washed out.
Opener Lahiru Thirimanne batted for about an hour before being dismissed by off-spinner William Somerville, for two.
Wicketkeeper B.J. Watling had dropped Thirimanne in the previous over but his struggles ended when he drove one straight to skipper Kane Williamson at short extra cover.
Thirimanne never looked comfortable out in the middle as he faced 35 balls for his two runs.
Kusal Mendis, batting on 30, joined Karunaratne to put on an unbeaten 42-run stand as the duo thwarted the Kiwi bowling at the P. Sara Oval.
Karunaratne, fresh from a match-winning century in the opening encounter at Galle last week that boosted him into the top 10 in Test batsman rankings, ...

Karunaratne holds fort against N. Zealand in overcast Colombo

Hong Kong student leaders on Thursday announced a two-week boycott of lectures from the upcoming start of term, as they seek to keep protesters on the streets and pressure on the government.
The financial hub has been rocked by three months of unrest, with students making up a large number of the pro-democracy protesters taking to the streets almost daily.
Student leaders representing most of the city's major universities said students will miss lectures between September 2 -- the planned start of the new term -- and September 13.
They threatened further action if the government does not adequately respond to the protesters' five demands, which include spiking a controversial extradition bill, universal suffrage and an independent inquiry into alleged police abuses during the protests.
"Two weeks should be enough for the government to really think through how to respond," said Davin Wong, acting president of the Hong Kong University Students' Union.
"As the situation has gotten more ..

Hong Kong students to boycott new term as protests continue

German industrial giant ThyssenKrupp said Thursday it has filed a complaint at an EU court against the European Commission for blocking its plan to merge with Indian group Tata Steel.
"We regret the European Commission's decision and regard it as too far-reaching and wrong. That is why we are filing a complaint," said Donatus Kaufmann, member of ThyssenKrupp's board.
The European Union's powerful anti-trust authority had in June vetoed the deal, finding that it would have "reduced competition and increased prices for different types of steel".
It also found that proposed solutions would not adequately mitigate the problem.  But ThyssenKrupp has now turned to the General Court of the European Union, as it argued that the Commission has "set out a restrictive market definition that unduly extends the scope of the existing competition law".
The German company also claimed the European Commission had failed to take into "adequate account the structural importance of imports into ...

AFP

AFP

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