A television station run by Yemen's Shiite rebels says Houthi fighters and their allies have seized an air base where US troops and Europeans advised the country in its fight against al-Qaida.
	The satellite Al-Masirah news channel reported today that the fighters had "secured" the al-Annad air base. It claimed the base had been looted by both al-Qaida fighters and troops loyal to embattled President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.
	Officials loyal to Hadi had no immediate comment.
	The US recently evacuated some 100 soldiers, including Special Forces commandos, from the base after al-Qaida seized a nearby town. Britain also evacuated soldiers.
	The base was crucial in the US drone campaign against al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, which America considers to be the most dangerous branch of the terror group.

Rebels seize Yemen air base used in al-Qaida fight: Report

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Counterterrorism squads have prevented 230 suspected jihadis from departing Australian airports for the Middle East this month, including at least three teenage boys, officials said today.
	Officials had previously announced that two Sydney-born brothers, aged 16 and 17, were intercepted at Sydney International Airport on March 8 attempting to board a flight for Turkey without their parents' knowledge.
	The siblings were returned to their families and were to be charged.
	Within a week, a 17-year-old boy was intercepted at the same airport on suspicion that he was headed for a Middle Eastern battle, Border Protection Minister Peter Dutton said today.
	The boy was also returned to his family, but remains under investigation, Dutton said.
	Since counterterrorism units were attached to eight Australian airports in August, 86,000 travelers have been questioned and 230 people prevented from flying on suspicion that they were headed for the battlefields of Iraq and Syria to fight with ...

230 suspected jihadis prevented from leaving Australia

A woman who tested positive for Ebola in Liberia last week is dating a survivor of the disease, a health official has said, offering a possible explanation for how she became the country's first confirmed case in weeks.
	Ebola is typically transmitted through contact with the blood, vomit or feces of people who are sick. Survivors of Ebola are not generally considered contagious, but the virus lingers in semen, and so scientists urge survivors not to have sex for three months after recovering. Even though sexual transmission of Ebola has not yet been documented, it may be possible.
	Samples have been taken from the boyfriend for testing, said Dr Francis Kateh, acting head of Liberia's Ebola Case Management Team. The woman tested positive for Ebola on Friday, and her case has caused concern because she didn't seem to be linked to any of the people on an Ebola contacts list and said she did not travel to an infected country.
	The patient is now being treated at the Monrovia Medical ...

Official: Ebola survivor may have infected new Liberia case

Yemen's embattled president asked the UN Security Council to authorize a military intervention in support of his government to oust Houthi Shiite rebels who control much of the disintegrating country's north and are advancing south.
	President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi said in a letter to the council obtained yesterday by The Associated Press that he had also asked members of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council and the Arab League to immediately provide "all means necessary, including military intervention to protect Yemen and its people from the continuing Houthi aggression."
	Hadi, the country's internationally recognized leader and a key US ally, asked the Security Council to approve a resolution that can be militarily enforced under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter.
	The Houthis seized the capital Sanaa in September and have been advancing south alongside forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who stepped down in 2011 as part of a US-backed, Gulf-brokered deal after ...

Yemen leader asks UN to back military action against rebels

Pakistan needs short-range "tactical" nuclear weapons to deter arch-rival India, a top adviser to its government has said, dismissing concerns it could increase the risk of a nuclear war.
	Khalid Kidwai also rejected concerns over the security of Pakistan's nuclear arsenal, insisting that adequate safeguards are in place to protect what analysts have described as the world's fastest-growing atomic arsenal.
	Pakistan's development of smaller warheads built for use on battlefields, in addition to longer-range weapons, has increased international concerns that they could get into rogue hands because of the pervasive threat of Islamic militants in the country.
	Pakistan and its larger neighbor India have fought three wars. They have held on-off peace talks over the years but are involved in a nuclear and missile arms race that shows no sign of abating.
	Neither side discloses the size of its arsenal. But a recent report by the Council on Foreign Relations think tank estimated that ...

Pakistan: Short-range nukes needed to deter India

The president of the Asian Development Bank says a proposed Chinese-led regional bank is a potential partner rather than a rival and the ADB is talking with Beijing to share its experience.
	Takehiko Nakao's comments came after Washington softened its opposition to the Chinese-proposed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and suggested it work together with existing entities such the World Bank.
	The Manila-based ADB is ready to collaborate with the AIIB if it meets environmental, social and other standards for lending, Nakao said in an interview ahead of today's release of his bank's regional economic outlook.
	US officials worry the bank might become an instrument of Chinese foreign policy and undermine the World Bank or other institutions by offering credit with few conditions.
	"I think we can complement each other," Nakao said.
	China proposed the bank in 2013 to finance construction of roads, ports and other infrastructure. It has pledged to put up most of its initial USD 50 ...

ADB president: China-led bank potential partner, not rival

Accusing it of practicing "modern slavery," a French campaign group has filed a legal complaint against construction giant Vinci for grave mistreatment of migrant workers in Qatar, the host country of the 2022 World Cup.
	Vinci says it "totally refutes" the charge and will file a counter-suit against the group, Sherpa, for libel.
	Sherpa's complaint, if acted upon by French prosecutors, could pressure Qatar and companies engaged there to improve conditions for guest workers.
	Sherpa says the suit, lodged Monday, targets Vinci's construction wing and French managers of its Qatari subsidiary and accuses them of driving workers into forced labor and bondage.
	Vinci responded with a statement denying the charges and inviting Sherpa to visit its construction sites.

Construction giant accused of 'modern slavery' in Qatar

Shiite rebels fired bullets and tear gas to disperse thousands of protesters demanding they withdraw from a southern province, killing six demonstrators, wounding scores more and escalating tensions in a country on the verge of civil war.
	The rebels, known as Houthis, seized the capital Sanaa in September and have been advancing south alongside forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh. In recent days they have closed in on the southern port city of Aden, where the internationally recognised President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi is now based.
	Massive protests were held in the third largest city of Taiz -- which the rebels largely seized over the weekend -- and in Torba, some 60 miles (100 kilometres) away, where witnesses said the streets were filled with thick black smoke from burning tires and where protesters torched three armoured vehicles.
	"Torba turned into a ball of fire," said Khaled al-Asswadi, a resident. He said the protesters managed to prevent the Houthis from ...

Shiite rebels fire on protesters in south Yemen, killing 6

A Christian pastor who questioned authorities in eastern China about the forced removal of crosses from the roofs of churches was sentenced today to one year in prison, his lawyer said.
	Huang Yizi is the first person to be jailed for opposing Zhejiang province's intense campaign to remove crosses from churches.
	Authorities in the province tore down about 400 rooftop crosses last year, saying they violated the building code.
	Churchgoers and religious rights advocates say the Christian faith is being targeted because its rapid growth unnerves the ruling Communist Party.
	After a six-hour trial, a court in the city of Pingyang found Huang guilty of gathering crowds to disrupt social order, lawyer Zhang Kai said by telephone.
	A woman who answered the court's phone and gave only her family name, Li, confirmed that Huang's trial took place this afternoon. The phone rang unanswered in the evening, when the trial ended.
	Huang, an outspoken pastor, was taken away by police last summer ...

Pastor jailed 1 year for questioning cross removals in China

The Maldives government today invited the United Nations and other international organisations to observe the former president's appeal of his 13-year jail sentence for ordering a judge's arrest while in office.
	The United States, European Union and others have raised concerns about the court process that found Mohamed Nasheed guilty of ordering the arrest of a senior judge when he was in office three years ago. The court said the arrest was akin to abduction under the country's terrorism law.
	The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it has invited the United Nations and the Commonwealth to send representatives to observe the appeal hearing. The invitation did not elaborate, but it comes after UN human rights chief Zeid Raad al-Hussein said last week there were "flagrant irregularities" in the case against Nasheed and urged the Maldives government to allow international jurists to observe the appeal.
	Nasheed's lawyers have said the hearing had many flaws. They said the judges .

Maldives invites UN to observe ex-president's court appeal

Fossil remains of a previously unknown species of a crocodile-like "super salamander" that grew as long as a small car and was a top predator more than 200 million years ago have been found in southern Portugal, researchers announced today.
	The species grew up to two meters (six feet) in length and lived in lakes and rivers, University of Edinburgh researchers said.
	The team said the species, given the name Metoposaurus algarvensis, was part of a wider group of primitive amphibians that were widespread at the time but became extinct. They are the ancestors of modern amphibians such as frogs, and are believed by paleontologists to have lived at the same time the dinosaurs began their dominance.
	Steve Brusatte of the University of Edinburgh's School of GeoSciences, who led the study, said the new species, which had hundreds of sharp teeth, is "weird compared to anything today."
	It was at the top of the food chain, feeding mainly on fish, but it was also a danger for newly appeared ..

Researchers find fossil of 'Super Salamander' species

At a news conference after his team's Cricket World Cup loss to New Zealand, as the emotions of the defeated captain were almost painfully raw, AB de Villiers' most revealing answer was of only one word.
     De Villiers' voice cracked as he fielded questions, and he paused at times to wipe his eyes. At other moments, his answers tailed off and he looked almost vacantly into the middle distance.
     He was being asked to articulate the emotions of defeat, a defeat by the slightest of margins, at a time when it was still too recent and too bitter. He did his best, but he likely conveyed with his demeanour more than he could with his words the deep sorrow he felt at the end of another, ill-fated South African World Cup campaign.
     Finally, he was asked whether this was the worst he had felt on a cricket field, and he answered, simply, frankly, "Yes."
     That single syllable spoke more eloquently than any of his deeper and more reasoned answers. This was the nadir of de Villiers' ..

De Villiers shows raw emotions after SAfrica falls again

The curator of the Tunisian museum targeted by a terrorist attack announced today it is postponing its reopening, for logistical and security reasons.
	The National Bardo Museum in Tunis was scheduled to reopen today for the first time since gunmen opened fire on tourists March 18. The attack killed 21 people, and two gunmen were killed by police.
	Curator Moncef Ben Moussa told The Associated Press that there will be a "symbolic" ceremony today for select guests, but the museum will not open to the public until Sunday. He blamed the delay on "organizational" problems.
	Museum spokeswoman Hanane Srarfi said the problems were primarily logistical, but added, "There is obviously also the security aspect being taken into account." She said there have been no threats against the museum, but "we should be vigilant."
	Authorities have arrested several people in the attack, the worst in Tunisia in 13 years, and are still hunting for the suspected mastermind. Five leading security officials ..

Tunisia: Museum hit by terrorist attack delays reopening

Japanese government auditors say the operator of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant has wasted more than a third of the 190 billion yen (USD 1.6 billion) in taxpayer money allocated for cleaning up the plant after it was destroyed by a March 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
	A Board of Audit report describes various expensive machines and untested measures that ended in failure.
	It also says the cleanup work has been dominated by one group of Japanese utility, construction and electronics giants despite repeated calls for more transparency and greater access for international bidders.
	Tokyo Electric Power Co. Spokesman Teruaki Kobayashi said all of the equipment contributed to stabilizing the plant, even though some operated only briefly.
	Among the costliest failures was a 32 billion yen (USD 270 million) machine made by French nuclear giant Areva SA to remove radioactive cesium from water leaking from the three wrecked reactors.
	The trouble-plagued machine lasted just three months .

Millions of dollars wasted in Fukushima cleanup: Japan audit

Russia officials say they will resume space tourism in 2018 after years of sending into space only professional cosmonauts and astronauts.
	Russia had sent seven paying guests to the International Space Station since 2001 before curtailing the program in 2009.
	Sending a tourist has been all but impossible since 2011 when the United States shut down its Space Shuttle program and had to rely on Russian Soyuz rockets in order to get into orbit.
	Russia, however, has made an exception for British soprano Sarah Brightman who is due to blast off on September 1.
	RKK Energia, a state-controlled rocket manufacturer, said in a quarterly report released today that it plans to make up for an expected drop in demand for manned flights by resuming space tourism in 2018.

Russia to resume space tourism in 2018

Thousands marched through the Afghan capital today, demanding justice for a woman who was beaten to death by a mob after being falsely accused of blasphemy.
	Men and women of all ages carried banners bearing the bloodied face of Farkhunda, a 27-year-old religious scholar killed last week by the mob.
	Farkhunda, who went by one name like many Afghans, was beaten, run over with a car and burned before her body was thrown into the Kabul River.
	Organisers of today's march estimated 3,000 people took part, calling it one of the biggest demonstrations in Kabul's history.
	Marchers chanted "Justice for Farkhunda!" and "Death to the killers!"
	Police say 18 people have been arrested and 13 police officers have been suspended, though many suspect that figure will rise as the investigation continues.
	The demonstrators also called for action against officials and religious leaders who had initially supported the attack on Farkhunda by saying her killing was justifiable if she had offended ...

Thousands protest woman's mob killing in Afghan capital

A threat against President Barack Obama's niece, a player on Princeton's women's basketball team, prompted increased security at the Tigers' NCAA Tournament game at Maryland.
	Hours after Maryland beat Princeton 85-70 in the second round of the women's college basketball championship tournament, the University of Maryland police department released a statement: "On March 23, 2015 at approximately 3pm UMPD received a call stating that the caller had received a text from a third party indicating that a male that she knew had a gun and mentioned president Obama's niece.
	"UMPD officers began an immediate investigation into this call and notified the United States Secret Service. As a precautionary measure, security at tonight's Maryland vs. Princeton game was increased. Our investigation reveals at this time that these details that were passed on from this third party are unsubstantiated."
	On Saturday, President Obama attended Princeton's 80-70 victory over Wisconsin-Green Bay in the ...

Threat against Obama niece prompts security hike

Canada's prime minister will announce a one-year extension of its military mission against the Islamic State group and expand it to include air strikes on targets in Syria, a senior government official said.
	The official confirmed the details and said Prime Minister Stephen Harper will make the announcement in Parliament today morning.
	The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly. Harper had said he'll provide details about extending and expanding the mission this week. It's due to expire in April.
	Canada has 69 special forces soldiers training Kurdish peshmerga fighters in northern Iraq. They were sent last September on a mission that was billed as noncombat with the troops supposed to be working far behind the front lines.
	But the Canadian soldiers have been helping the Kurdish forces by directing coalition airstrikes against Islamic State fighters, a role generally considered risky because it means they are close to the battle ...

Canada to extend anti-IS mission, strike targets in Syria

At least 37 people were killed and more than 84 injured when three buses and a truck collided early Monday on Peru's main coastal highway.
	Police chief Gen. Jorge Flores said the most seriously injured were helicoptered to Lima from the scene in Huarmey some 200 miles north of the capital.
	Police say a bus owned by the company Murga Serrano strayed into the oncoming lane and slammed head-on into the first of the other two buses. The truck then plowed into the wreckage.
	Survivors said it took emergency crews about three hours to reach the scene, according to local media. The government sent five medical specialists to Huarmey to help the small clinic there care for the injured.
	It was Peru's deadliest road accident since October 2013, when 51 people were killed near Cuzco when an overloaded truck fell into a ravine.

At least 37 killed on Peru's main highway

With 500 days to go until the 2016 Olympics begin, Rio de Janeiro's mayor acknowledged yesterday that the much-touted goal of cleaning up the city's blighted waterways for the games would likely not be met.
     In an interview with SporTV, Eduardo Paes said that cleaning up Guanabara Bay, the sewage and trash-filled waterway where the Olympic sailing events are to be held, "is something that we should have been able to achieve."
     "It is indeed a wasted opportunity," Paes said, adding, "as a Rio resident, I think it's a shame."
     Without a well-developed sewage collection and treatment system or reliable garbage collection in the sprawling urban area that rings the bay, tons of garbage and raw sewage flow into the bay, as well as other area waterways - including Rio's world famous beaches.
     While the first government programs to clean up the bay date back more than 20 years, little progress was made, and in Rio's Olympic bid authorities promised a massive cleanup effort ...

Rio mayor: Olympics 'wasted' chance for water cleanup

A posthumous memoir by Nelson Mandela, recounting his time as South Africa's first democratically elected president, is scheduled to be published around the world next year.
	Pan Macmillan today said that it will publish the sequel to Mandela's best-selling autobiography "Long Walk to Freedom" in Britain, South Africa, India and Australasia in 2016. US and Canadian rights have not yet been sold.
	The publisher said the Nelson Mandela Foundation has "a substantial but incomplete personally written draft" of the book, written before the statesman died in December 2013 at the age of 95. On the wishes of his widow, Graca Machel, it will be completed by a group of Mandela's former advisers.
	Machel said Mandela began work on the book in 1998, near the end of his five-year presidential term. She said Mandela saw it as "a natural progression" from "Long Walk," which covered his early years, his political struggle against South Africa's apartheid regime and the 27 years he spent in ...

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