A fire triggered by an explosion tore through a factory in the Sudanese capital on Tuesday, killing 16 people and injuring dozens, doctors and witnesses said.
Thick plumes of black smoke billowed into the sky after the blaze broke out at a tile manufacturing unit in an industrial zone in north Khartoum.
Police cordoned off the entire area, an AFP correspondent reported from the scene.
A doctors committee linked to the country's protest movement said at least 16 people were killed and more than 90 injured.
The casualties were taken to several hospitals in the capital, it said, urging off-duty doctors to help out.
State television reported "heavy losses of life and property".
"The explosion was loud. Several cars that were parked in the compound of the factory also caught fire," an employee of an adjacent factory told AFP.
It was not immediately clear what caused the explosion.

16 killed as fire hits Sudan factory: doctors

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Austria on Tuesday reiterated its "critical view" of sanctions after the US said it might retaliate against countries that introduce a tax on internet giants such as Google and Facebook.
The United States on Monday threatened to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on $2.4 billion in French goods in retaliation for a digital services tax that Washington says is discriminatory.
US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer also warned that the US was considering widening the investigation to look into similar taxes in Austria, Italy and Turkey.
In September, the Austrian parliament approved taxing internet giants five percent of their digital advertising revenue starting next year.
The digital tax targets businesses with an annual worldwide revenue of at least 750 million euros ($830 million), of which at least 25 million euros is earned in Austria.
A spokesman for Austria's Ministry of Digital and Economic Affairs said Vienna took the latest announcement from the US government ...

Austria says 'critical' of sanctions in digital tax row

Police have arrested eight men suspected of being part of a sex ring who drugged underaged girls before gang raping them at a car workshop in southern Netherlands.
The arrestes were made in the city of Den Bosch and surrounds after separate rape charges were filed by three girls aged 15-16, police said on Tuesday.
"The girls, who were believed to have been drugged, were then abused in their helpless condition by several men in the group. Sometimes violence was used," a police statement said.
"The girls met the men via social media," it added.
An investigation started early this year and forensic detectives combed the workshop for clues in April.
The suspects were aged between 18 and 26 and were from Den Bosch and the nearby town of Rosmalen, police said.
"Detectives also believe that more girls were victims of the gang, but have been too afraid to come forward," the statement said.
"Now that the men are behind bars, it may be a bit easier.

Dutch police arrest rape gang targeting teen girls

Jose Mourinho says his time at Manchester United is "a closed chapter" and he is only interested in beating them when he takes his in-form Tottenham side to Old Trafford on Wednesday.
It is the new Tottenham manager's first return to the touchline at United's home ground since his sacking by the club last December.
"This is a closed chapter for me," said Mourinho, who has won all three of his matches in charge of Spurs.
"I left the club, I took my time to process everything that happened, I took my time to prepare myself for the next challenge.
"Honestly, United for me is in my book of experiences, it's in my history book."
United are struggling under Mourinho's successor, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, but go into the game just two points behind fifth-placed Spurs.
"It is not for me to analyse United now," Mourinho said at his pre-match press conference.
"I analyse them as an opponent, how they play. How can we beat them? How can they beat us? For me that is the important thing."
Mourinho is .

Man Utd 'a closed chapter', says Mourinho ahead of Old Trafford return

In a filmy-style act, an Indian Sikh woman visiting the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan's Kartarpur tried to go to Faisalabad city of Punjab province without a visa to meet a Pakistani man she befriended on Facebook, officials said on Tuesday.
Manjit Kaur, in her early 20s, visited the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib via the Kartarpur corridor, some 125kms from Lahore, in last week of November, sources said.
Kaur, who was in touch with the man through Facebook, met him at the gurdwara and attempted to go along with him to Faisalabad by showing a Pakistani woman's permit.
Indian pilgrims can visit the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib through the recently-opened Kartarpur corridor without visa but cannot go to the other parts of Pakistan.
"This is the first incident in which an Indian Sikh woman attempted to leave the restricted area of the Kartarpur corridor since its opening on November 9," a senior official of the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) told PTI.
He said the woman wanted to go along with ..

Indian Sikh woman tries to flee with her Facebook friend from Pakistan via Kartarpur corridor

Spain's new parliament met for its opening session Tuesday, with the far-right Vox as the third-largest party following a divisive election that failed to resolve years of political deadlock.
Just over three weeks after the vote, lawmakers were on Tuesday taking the oath of office, although there was little indication of when a government would be formed.
The legislature has been gridlocked since an inconclusive April election which the Socialists won but without a majority -- in an outcome repeated on November 10, leaving Pedro Sanchez a winner but weakened.
And this time, Vox more than doubled its showing, snaring 52 of the parliament's 350 seats.
Just days after the election, Sanchez and the radical leftwing Podemos agreed in principle to form a coalition government in what would be the first such power-sharing deal in the country's modern history.
Such a government would only have 155 seats, leaving it dependent on support from other factions to pass an investiture vote for which .

Spain MPs sworn in with far-right Vox as third largest party

Videos showing harrowing scenes of bleeding protesters, burning roadblocks and snipers on rooftops have emerged after Iran lifted a near-total internet blackout, opening a window onto what analysts say was one of Tehran's bloodiest crackdowns.
This repression "was harsher" than during previous protests in Iran, Kamran Matin, senior lecturer in International Relations at Sussex University in Britain, told AFP in Nicosia.
"All the videos I have seen from before the internet was shut down show that from the moment of the gathering of people to 'shoot to kill' was very short."
The protests that broke out across the country from November 15 were ignited by a price hike on fuel -- a heavily subsidised commodity in one of OPEC's largest producers -- as part of an effort to ease pressure on the sanctions-hit economy.
But global insight into the protests and most Iranians' access to those outside the country was quickly cut off when authorities clamped down on internet access, according to ...

Iran videos hit internet revealing scope of crackdown

Finnish Prime Minister Antti Rinne resigned on Tuesday after losing the support of a coalition partner, casting doubt on the future of the governing alliance.
The Centre Party is now considering whether to pull its support for the five-party coalition, a move that could lead to a snap election.
The party was angered after the prime minister was accused of lying by the head of Finland Post -- the culmination of a long-running dispute over reforms to the pay and conditions for some postal workers.
Rinne, a Social Democrat who has headed the centre-left government since June, handed his resignation to President Sauli Niinisto, the presidency said.
The Social Democrats will now appoint a successor to try to form a new government.
Sanna Marin, the party's number two behind Rinne and the current minister of transport, has already said she would be willing to take over.
Political analyst Sini Korpinen said the coalition parties would in all likelihood agree to carry on together, as it was ...

Finland PM resigns plunging coalition into doubt

The European Union will answer tariff threats by the United States against France "as one" and urged Washington to engage in dialogue, an EU spokesman said on Tuesday.
"As in all other trade-related matters the EU will act and react as one and it will remain united," said EU Commission spokesman Daniel Rosario after the US threatened tariffs on French goods on Monday.
The threat was in response to a French digital services tax that Washington says is discriminatory, claiming that it singles out US tech giants such as Google and Facebook.
The EU Commission, which handles trade matters for the EU's 28 member states, was "coordinating closely with the French authorities on next steps", Rosario said.
He also encouraged dialogue, noting that Washington had left several options open including taking the fight to the World Trade Organization in Geneva.
"We remain of the view that the WTO is the place to address any trade dispute (so) the EU will therefore seek immediate discussion with the ..

EU to respond 'as one' to US tariff threat to France

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday denounced Iran's crackdown on anti-government protesters, as rights groups said the death toll had soared.
Protests erupted in Iran on November 15 after an announcement that petrol prices were going up by as much as 200 percent with immediate effect.
"Iran is killing perhaps thousands and thousands of people right now as we speak," Trump told reporters in London ahead of a NATO summit.
"That's why they cut off the internet. They cut off the internet so people can't see what's going on.
"And frankly, I don't know how you get in there, I don't know how you do your business but the press ought to get in there and see what's going on." Trump added: "The word is that thousands of people are being killed in Iran that are protesting.
"Not just small numbers, which are bad; big numbers, which are really bad -- and really big numbers." Asked if there was more that the United States could do, he replied: "I'd rather not say right now.
"It's a terrible thing .

Trump defends Iranians 'killed for protesting'

Climate activist Greta Thunberg arrived Tuesday by catamaran in the port of Lisbon after a three-week voyage across the Atlantic Ocean from the United States.
The Swedish teen sailed to the Portuguese capital before heading to neighboring Spain to attend the U.N. Climate Change Conference taking place in Madrid.
Her arrival coincided with a new scientific report saying there is mounting evidence that the world is getting ever hotter.
Thunberg hitched a renewable-energy ride from the United States, joining an Australian family on their 48-foot (15-meter) yacht.
The white catamaran carrying Thunberg sailed slowly up the River Tagus under blue skies and a stiff breeze. Thunberg's father, Svante, was also on the boat as it approached the Lisbon quayside.
Chile's Environment Minister Carolina Schmidt, saluted Thunberg's role speaking out about the threat of climate change.
"She has been a leader that has been able to move and open hearts for many young people and many people all over the ..

Greta Thunberg arrives by sail in Europe for climate talks

Indian shooters swept all the medals on offer in the women's 10m air rifle event in the 13th South Asian Games here on Tuesday, with Mehuli Ghosh winning the gold with a score better than the world record.
Mehuli's effort will, however, not be considered as a world record, as the South Asian Games' results are not recognised by the international body (ISSF) for the purpose of records.
India also won the team gold in the 10m air rifle event.
The 19-year-old Mehuli clinched the gold with a score of 253.3 in the final, which is 0.4 more than the current world record of 252.9 which is in the name of another Indian, Apurvu Chandela.
Shriyanka Sadangi took the silver with a score of 250.8, while Shreya Agrawal (227.2) clinched the bronze in a 1-2-3 podium finish by the Indians at the Satdobato Shooting Range.
"As far as I understand, SAG results will not be recognised for record purposes. Only the results of World Cups, World Championships and quota events are considered for record purposes 

Mehuli shoots 10m air rifle gold in SAG as India sweeps all medals

US President Donald Trump refrained from giving his view on British politics but did endorse Prime Minister Boris Johnson indirectly as he arrived in the UK for a three-day visit to mark 70 years of the NATO amid the ongoing general election campaign.
I have no thoughts on it. It's going to be a very important election for this great country, but I have no thoughts on it. I could work with anybody, he told reporters at a briefing at the US ambassador's residence in London on Wednesday.
Pressed further on why he was choosing to stay off the election topic, he said: Because I don't want to complicate it. I'll stay out of the election."
You know that I was a fan of Brexit. I called it the day before. I think Boris is very capable and I think he'll do a good job.
Trump is in the UK for the NATO summit to be held in Watford, south-east England, on Wednesday and is also due to hold separate talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron and NATO Secretary ...

Trump in UK for NATO summit, endorses Boris indirectly

A small molecule can induce the self-destruction of pancreatic cancer cells, according to a study in mice that may lead to new treatment strategies for treating the disease in humans.
The researchers, including those from American Friends of Tel Aviv University (TAU) in the US, said pancreatic cancer is resistant to all current treatments with patients facing extremely poor chances of surviving for five years after being diagnosed.
The study, published in the journal Oncotarget, was conducted with xenografts -- transplantations of human pancreatic cancer into mice whose immune systems were weakened.
According to the researchers, treatment with the small molecule called PJ34 reduced the number of cancer cells by 90 per cent in the developed tumours a month after administration.
"The mice were treated with a molecule called PJ34, which is permeable in the cell membrane but affects human cancer cells exclusively. This molecule causes an anomaly during the duplication of human cancer ...

Molecule induces self-destruction of pancreatic cancer: Study

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says he does not fear for his future as Manchester United manager despite a spate of Premier League sackings as he prepares to face his predecessor Jose Mourinho.
Spurs turned to Mourinho after dismissing Mauricio Pochettino last month, while Arsenal and Watford have subsequently sacked Unai Emery and Quique Sanchez Flores.
Solskjaer is under increasing pressure, with United ninth in the Premier League, 22 points behind leaders Liverpool and eight off a top-four spot as they prepare for Wednesday's match against Tottenham.
"No, it doesn't make me more concerned," Solskjaer said at his pre-match press conference on Tuesday.
"I'm just focusing on my job and that's just doing as well as I can, and look forward to the next game, and look long-term, plan things with board.
"It's that time of year. It's never nice to see your colleagues lose your jobs -- three in a very short space of time.
"It's a game of margins," he added. "Sometimes you have luck, sometimes you ...

Solskjaer does not fear for his future at Man Utd despite sackings

Liverpool midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain says the Premier League leaders are going into every game believing they can win after racking up 13 victories in 14 games.
Jurgen Klopp's unbeaten side have dropped just two points this season and established an eight-point advantage over second-placed Leicester.
But even the pressure of maintaining their winning run, which appears to grow with every game for a club searching for their first league title since 1990, has not affected the mentality within the club, according to Oxlade-Chamberlain.
"I'm going into it (a game) with the mindset that we're going to win. I think that's how we all feel," the England international told the PA news agency.
"We're going into the games expecting ourselves to win and anything else we're disappointed with."
He added: "I think that's the mentality you need to be successful, to have those high standards that nothing else is acceptable. Then you've got to let history take its course."
Liverpool are firm ...

Liverpool belief is sky-high, says Oxlade-Chamberlain

US President Donald Trump launched a two-day NATO meeting Tuesday with a blistering attack on France's criticism of the alliance and on "delinquent" members that don't pay their way.
At a news conference held to celebrate NATO's success in cajoling European allies to boost their defence spending, Trump could not resist lashing out at President Emmanuel Macron.
Macron had tried to shake up the agenda for the London summit by branding the 70-year-old Western alliance "brain dead", but Trump slapped him down and warned that he could see Paris "breaking away" from NATO.
"NATO serves a great purpose," Trump said, at a joint press appearance with alliance Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
"I think that's very insulting," he said of Macron's comment, branding it a "very, very nasty statement essentially to 28 countries.
"Nobody needs NATO more than France," he said. "It's a very dangerous statement for them to make.
Asked whether the US alliance with NATO was shaky, Trump denied it, but ...

Trump launches NATO meet with attack on "nasty" France

Brad Pitt recently sat down to interview his "Meet Joe Black" co-star Anthony Hopkins, he ended up talking about his struggle with alcohol, learning to own up his mistakes and finding meaning in creativity.
The philosophical chat for the Interview magazine began with Pitt asking Hopkins whether the great actor believed that "things are fated."
Hopkins said, "My impression is that I sat on this big beast, whatever it islife. At some point, I made an unconscious choice to sit on this beautiful, powerful thing. And I just go where it takes me. I think that what happens to people like you and myself. We don't even know why. Maybe it's a desire to escape from something. But what I believe now is that we can't take credit or blame."
Pitt agreed with Hopkins, saying while he believes he can't take credit, he still wrestles with the blame.
"I'm realising, as a real act of forgiveness for myself for all the choices that I've made that I'm not proud of, that I value those missteps, because they 

Brad Pitt, Anthony Hopkins open up about mistakes in philosophical interview

US President Donald Trump warned Tuesday that efforts to resolve a trade dispute could wait until after next November's US election.
"I have no deadline," Trump told reporters in London. "In some ways I like the idea of waiting until after the election for the China deal." Trump's trade war with China and on-again off-again attempts to reach a deal have de-stabilised markets and stoked geo-political tensions.
As late as last week Trump boasted the he was in the "final throes" of negotiating "one of the most important deals in trade ever".
But Washington has since courted Chinese anger by expressing support for Hong Kong protesters, calling progress into doubt.
"I'm doing very well in a deal with China, if I want to make it," Trump said at a press conference ahead of the NATO summit.
"I don't think it's 'if they want to make it', it's 'if I want to make it'. And we'll see what happens.
"I don't know if I want to make it but you're going to find out pretty soon, it's going to surprise ..

Trump warns China trade deal could take years

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he would meet British Prime Minister Boris Johnson but promised to "stay out" of Britain's election campaign during his two-day visit.
Downing Street was braced for fireworks with Trump arriving for a meeting of the NATO military alliance just days before the December 12 vote.
Answering questions from reporters at a meeting with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, Trump said he would "stay out of the election", adding: "I don't want to complicate it." But he confirmed he would be meeting Johnson during his trip, adding: "I think Boris is very capable and I think he will do a good job." There were no immediate details of a one-to-one meeting.
Opinion polls suggest Johnson's Conservative party is heading for a comfortable win next week but his team is nervous about any incendiary remarks from the unpredictable Trump.
The US leader has been outspoken in his support for Britain's looming exit from the European Union, which Johnson has promised to deliver 

Trump will 'stay out' of UK election during NATO visit

This decade is set to be the hottest in history, the United Nations said Tuesday in an annual assessment outlining the ways in which climate change is outpacing humanity's ability to adapt to it.
The World Meterological Organization said global temperatures so far this year were 1.1 degrees Celsius (two degrees Farenheit) above the pre-industrial average between 1850-1900.
That puts 2019 on course to be in the top three warmest years ever recorded, and possibly the hottest non-El Nino year yet.
Man-made emissions from burning fossil fuels, building infrastructure, growing crops and transporting goods mean 2019 is set to break the record for atmospheric carbon concentrations, locking in further warming, the WMO said.
Oceans, which absorb 90 percent of the excess heat produced by greenhouse gases, are now at their highest recorded temperatures.
The world's seas are now a quarter more acidic than 150 years ago, threatening vital marine ecosystems upon which billions of people rely for ...

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