Thirty six people aboard an evacuation flight from China that landed in France on Sunday showed symptoms of the coronavirus, which has killed more than 360 people, Health Minister Agnes Buzyn said.
In all, 254 people arrived in France from the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the deadly virus was first detected, on the second such flight.
"About 20 people who presented symptoms have stayed on the tarmac" at Istres airport in the south of France to undergo further testing, Buzyn told journalists. They included French and non-European nationals.
Tests were carried out to establish whether they had the coronavirus and the results will be known on Monday, the health ministry told AFP.  A further 16 foreign nationals displaying symptoms were flown back to their respective countries.
The second evacuation flight was carrying people of 30 different nationalities, most of them European. Sixty five of the returnees were French.
A total of 124 non-French evacuees swiftly travelled on to their home .

36 evacuated from China to France show virus symptoms: minister

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Democratic candidates made their frantic, final campaign pitches Sunday in Iowa, on a mission to persuade undecided voters one day before the state's nominating contest officially starts the US presidential election season.
Iowa, a largely rural state of three million people, has traditionally served as a vital launching point -- or burial ground -- for presidential hopefuls.
Even as all eyes turn to the debut vote, Donald Trump's US Senate impeachment trial weighs over the Democratic kick-off, with the president expected to be acquitted just days after the Iowa contest.
"This is the most consequential election, certainly in the modern history of this country... and it all begins tomorrow night," Senator Bernie Sanders, the leading progressive in the race, told invigorated supporters at a meet-and-greet event in Iowa City.
Similar scenes played out across the state this weekend as most of the 11 remaining candidates made their final push to convince undecided voters that they are best 

Democrats make final pitch in Iowa hours before first US vote

The first batch of patients arrived on Monday at a specialised hospital built in just 10 days as part of China's intensive efforts to fight a new virus.
Huoshenshan Hospital and a second facility with 1,500 beds that's due to open this week were built by construction crews who are working around the clock in Wuhan, the city in central China where the outbreak was first detected in December. Most of the city's 11 million people are barred from leaving the area.
The Wuhan treatment centres mark the second time Chinese leaders have responded to a new disease by building specialised hospitals almost overnight. As severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, spread in 2003, a facility in Beijing for patients with that viral disease was constructed in a week.
The first batch of patients arrived at the Huoshenshan Hospital at 10 am on Monday, according to state media. The reports gave no details of the patients' identities or conditions.
The ruling Communist Party's military wing, the ...

Built in 10 days, China's virus hospital takes 1st batch of patients

Pep Guardiola doesn't forget.
After Manchester City failed to cut into Liverpool's 22-point lead by losing 2-0 at Tottenham on Sunday, Guardiola's mind turned back to 2018 and irritation at comments from the Premier League leadership.
Guardiola's team winning the league by 19 points prompted Richard Scudamore to express a desire for "someone to get a little bit closer to Manchester City" while also praising the team's excellence.
Scudamore is no longer running the league. Guardiola wonders if the competition bosses are fine with a lead so commanding that Liverpool is in line to seal the title in March with two months of the season remaining.
"An owner from the Premier League said that cannot happen again, so it's not good for the Premier League (that) City win the title in that way with 100 points," Guardiola said, without naming Scudamore.
"So now it's Liverpool you have to be concerned, the owner of the Premier League."
It is City's six losses in 25 league games this season that ...

Guardiola wonders if league's OK with Liverpool's huge lead

Actor Joaquin Phoenix targeted the British Academy of Film and Television for overlooking "people of colour" in its nominations and urged the industry to dismantle a "system of oppression" in his Bafta acceptance speech.
The actor, who won the best actor Bafta for his portrayal in the title role in "Joker",  said he felt "conflicted" receiving the award as so many of his deserving fellow actors didn't have that same privilege.
"I think that we send a very clear message to people of colour that you're not welcome here. I think that's the message that we're sending to people that have contributed so much to our medium and our industry, and in ways that we benefit from," he said onstage at the Royal Albert Hall.
Both British Academy of Film and Television and Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences were heavily criticised for the lack of representation and diversity after the nominations were announced.
The acting categories had shut out people of colour while no women directors ...

Joaquin Phoenix calls out film industry's 'systemic racism'

Anti-government demonstrators have rejected Iraq's new prime minister-designate following his nomination by rival government factions, compounding the challenges he'll have to surmount in order to resolve months of civil unrest.
Meanwhile, new divisions emerged among protesters and supporters of a maverick and often inscrutable Shiite cleric, who initially threw his weight behind the uprising but now is re-positioning himself toward the political establishment, after elites selected a candidate for prime minister that he endorsed.
On Sunday, Muqtada al-Sadr told his followers camped out among protesters in the capital and in the country's south to unblock roads and restore normalcy, angering protesters who felt al-Sadr had betrayed them and the reformist aims of their movement for political gain.
Saturday's selection of former Communications Minister Mohammed Allawi, 66, to replace outgoing Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi was the product of months of back-room talks between rival ...

Iraqi protesters reject PM-designate picked by ruling elites

Suspected jihadists have killed 18 civilians in an attack in northern Burkina Faso, the governor of Sahel region said.
"The defence and security forces brought back the body of the nurse to give it to her family in Yalgo and secure the area to allow the burial of other victims," Colonel Salfo Kabore said on Sunday.
Several similar attacks were carried out a week ago in the country's north, with one on January 25 leaving 39 civilians dead in the neighbouring province of Soum, northwest of Seno.
A security source told AFP that during the massacre, which took place in Lamdamol village in Seno province Saturday, "the attackers, heavily armed and on motorbikes, literally executed the local inhabitants".
A local health official, speaking from the town of Dori in the north, said the chief nurse at the nearby village of Lamdamol was among the victims.
"There is panic in the village and the surrounding area," the official added, saying local people were fleeing the area towards the ...

'Jihadists' kill 18 civilians in Burkina Faso

A group of Brazilians stuck in the Chinese city at the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak has sent President Jair Bolsonaro a video pleading for help to return home.
Reading from a letter dated January 30 in the sprawling eastern city of Wuhan, they told him they were willing to be quarantined when they get back.
"As we write this letter, there are no confirmed cases of coronavirus or symptoms of infection," one of the group said in the video aired on Sunday.
There is no official figure as to how many Brazilians are in Wuhan. It was estimated to be about 70, although some of those citizens came home before the city was effectively shut off.
The government in Brasilia later said it would bring home the Brazilians still in Wuhan.
"We will bring back all those Brazilians who are located in that region and express a wish to return to Brazil," a statement released by the Defense and Foreign Ministries said.
It did not say how many Brazilians were in the region, or when the operation ...

Brazilians in Wuhan ask help leaving ground zero of virus drama

Novak Djokovic put Roger Federer on notice as he won his 17th Grand Slam title at the Australian Open and warned he was going all-out for the Swiss's record of 20 -- and his mark for weeks as world number one.
Djokovic, who came through a mid-match slump to win his eighth title in Melbourne, is relentlessly totting up the victories that could soon end the debate over who's the greatest in history.
The five-set victory over Dominic Thiem was his eighth in eight finals in Melbourne, putting him alongside Federer and Nadal as the only men to win the same Slam eight times.
It makes Djokovic, 32, the first man in the Open era, and only the second in history, to win Grand Slam titles in three different decades -- and as a not-insignificant bonus, returns him to world number one.
In an ominous sign for his rivals, the Serb has started the year unbeaten with Wimbledon, the French Open, the Tokyo Olympics and the US Open all lying in front of him as tantalising opportunities.
He is ...

'The greatest' - Djokovic takes aim at Federer's Slams, ranking record

Top cyclist Jakob Fuglsang is the subject of an investigation over links with Michele Ferrari, the disgraced Italian doctor who was banned for life for his role in the Lance Armstrong doping scandal, Denmark's Politiken newspaper claimed.
"Information from the Cycling Anti-Doping Foundation (CADF) indicates that (Astana rider) Jakob Fuglsang is part of the program of Michele Ferrari, and that his teammate Alexey Lutsenko was present during at least one meeting between them in Nice/Monaco," said an excerpt from a "secret" CADF report published by Politiken.
CADF is the body which deals with doping controls for the International Cycling Union (UCI).
"CADF has obtained information suggesting that Michele Ferrari continues to be involved in the Astana team, and that he went to Monaco (where Fuglsang is based) and other places to meet the riders," claimed the report.
Fuglsang, 34, who won the 2019 Criterium du Dauphine and Liege-Bastogne-Liege, recently extended his contract with ...

Fuglsang links with banned doctor Ferrari probed - reports

Ansu Fati became the youngest player ever to score a brace in La Liga by capitalising on two brilliant Lionel Messi assists to give Barcelona a 2-1 victory over Levante.
Fati, at 17 years and 94 days old, broke the previous record held by Juanmi Jimenez, who scored twice for Malaga against Real Zaragoza at 17 years and 115 days old in 2010.
Messi teed up Fati's quick-fire double with a defence-splitting pass on Sunday and then a trademark weaving run before Ruben Rochina scored Levante's goal in the 92nd minute, which really should have come sooner.
Barca reduce the gap at the top to three points behind Real Madrid and begin to regain some rhythm under new coach Quique Setien after Thursday's 5-0 thumping of Leganes in the Copa del Rey.
"We could have won 8-2 or 8-3," said Setien.
"We lost a little control in the second half and conceded too much but it was a good job from the team."
Yet Levante should have converted more of a handful of excellent chances in the second half, that ...

Fati and Messi connection sees Barca hold on against Levante

Cristiano Ronaldo stretched his scoring streak to nine consecutive league games with a penalty double as Serie A leaders Juventus bounced back from their defeat to Napoli with a 3-0 win over Fiorentina whose owner said Sunday's result left him feeling "disgusted".
Lazio moved second, five points behind the reigning champions after Serie A top scorer Ciro Immobile and Felipe Caicedo both scored a brace in a 5-1 win over rock bottom SPAL.
Inter Milan, one point behind the Romans in third place, travel to Udinese later on Sunday looking to reclaim second spot.
Ronaldo slotted in his goals in either half in Turin with Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt heading in a third in injury time.
Juventus had fallen to just their second defeat of the season last weekend at coach Maurizio Sarri's former club Napoli.
"Cristiano Ronaldo continues to score repeatedly and for him it's important psychologically," said Sarri of the player who turns 35 next Wednesday.
"Physically he's good and making a ...

Ronaldo scores for ninth game in row as penalty double lifts Juve

Webb Simpson birdied the last two holes of regulation, then birdied the first playoff hole to deny Tony Finau and claim his sixth US PGA Tour title at the Phoenix Open on Sunday.
Simpson nabbed his first title since the 2018 Players Championship, firing a two-under par final round of 69 on the TPC Scottsdale Stadium Course for a 17-under total of 267.
Trailing Finau by one to start the day, Simpson was two down through 16 but two-putted from 52 feet for a birdie at the par-five 17th and calmly rolled in a 17-footer for birdie at the 72nd hole.
Finau still had an eight-foot birdie look at the last hole of regulation that would have won it, but he couldn't get it to drop and the tournament went to a playoff for the fourth time in five years.
Once again, Simpson put his tee shot in the fairway on the way to another birdie.  Finau, who was in a bunker off the tee, was left searching for an elusive second PGA Tour title to go with his Puerto Rico Open victory in 2016.
Finau had bounced ...

Simpson rallies for Phoenix Open playoff win over Finau

Tom Hanks attracted attention on social media after the Aston Villa supporter posted a tweet appearing to celebrate the English side's League Cup triumph -- a month before the final.
The two-time Oscar-winning actor has long said he is a fan of the Birmingham club.  "Aston Villa took the Carabao Cup! Up the Villa! Hanx," the 63-year-old wrote, referencing the sponsors name for the tournament.
Aston Villa beat Leicester on Tuesday to reach the final, where they will face holders and red-hot favourites Manchester City at Wembley on March 1.
"Premature speculation?," tweeted former England striker Gary Lineker in response.
Hanks will turn his focus back to films next weekend, when he will be hoping to win a third Academy Award after being nominated for best supporting actor for his role as Fred Rogers in "A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood".

Villa fan Tom Hanks celebrates 'win', four weeks before match

Steven Bergwijn's debut goal helped Tottenham to a remarkable 2-0 win over 10-man Manchester City to breathe new life into their challenge for a top-four finish in the Premier League.
Jose Mourinho's men had been completely outplayed for the first hour on Sunday, but were kept in the game by City's profligacy and Hugo Lloris's first-half penalty save from Ilkay Gundogan.
However, Oleksandr Zinchenko's sending off changed the course of the game as Spurs scored with their first two shots on goal through Bergwijn and Son Heung-min.  Victory lifts Spurs up to fifth, just four points off fourth-placed Chelsea.
A sixth league defeat of the season for City sees Liverpool remain 22 points clear at the top and within touching distance of their first league title for 30 years.
"Liverpool are unstoppable. We dropped a lot of points in many games where we played quite similar as today," said City boss Pep Guardiola.
"This business is how many goals you score and how few you concede. We tried to ..

Tottenham weather Man City storm to snatch win

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday during a visit to Kazakhstan that he carried a "perfect message" of global press freedom, following a bitter feud with US media.
A key ally of President Donald Trump, Pompeo has often echoed the president's disdain for the media.
More than a week ago he reportedly lost his temper with a National Public Radio (NPR) journalist who asked him whether he owed an apology to the former US ambassador to Kiev, Marie Yovanovitch.
The ambassador's abrupt removal was a focus of Trump's impeachment for abuse of power, and also led to criticism of Pompeo for failing to stand up for her.
The feud followed Pompeo to Nur-Sultan near the end of a tour to Europe -- including Ukraine -- and Central Asia.
While speaking to a journalist on the Kazakh team for Radio Free Europe, Pompeo talked about the "good work the State Department does to train journalists in press freedoms." The journalist then asked Pompeo what message his own attitude sent to countries -- .

Pompeo says carries 'perfect message' of press freedom in Kazakhstan

Daniel Maldini made his Serie A debut with Italian giants AC Milan to follow in the footsteps of his father, club legend Paolo, and grandfather Cesare.
The 18-year-old Maldini had already taken part in pre-season friendlies, but had to wait for his first senior appearance for the seven-time European champions.
It finally came in the 93rd minute of a 1-1 draw against Hellas Verona at the San Siro.
"My debut was a dream, shame about the result," said Maldini.
"We could have done more, but there was still a lot of emotion.
"Verona are a tough team, we deserved the three points but we brought home a draw. We hope to win the next one."
Midfielder Maldini made his debut 35 years after his father Paolo and 66 after his grandfather Cesare.
"This debut was a goal that I had set myself, now we hope to go on like this. I felt a strong emotion but my father reassures me," he added.
His grandfather Cesare, who died in 2016, played for 12 seasons with the club, winning four league titles and the ...

Daniel Maldini continues family dynasty at AC Milan

Hundreds of Hong Kong medical workers walked off their jobs on Monday, demanding the city close its border with China to reduce the coronavirus spreading -- with frontline staff threatening to follow in the coming days.
The financial hub has 15 confirmed cases of the disease, many of them brought over from the Chinese mainland where the epidemic began and has so far killed more than 360 people.
The action by non-essential medical staff comes as the city's pro-Beijing leadership resists completely sealing the border.
Authorities have argued that doing so would be discriminatory, economically damaging and go against advice from the World Health Organisation.
Instead, the city government has closed down some crossings and says arrivals from the mainland have dropped significantly.
But there is growing public anger in a city that maintains a deep historical mistrust of the mainland after the 2003 SARS outbreak -- which was initially covered up by Beijing -- killed nearly 300 Hong ...

Hong Kong medics strike for China border closure over virus fears

A 5.1-magnitude earthquake shook southwest China's Qingbaijiang district in Sichuan province on Monday, prompting the authorities to initiate emergency measures.
According to the China Earthquake Networks Centre (CENC), the epicentre was monitored at 30.74 degrees north latitude and 104.46 degrees east longitude, with a depth of 21 km.
A total of 150 rescuers and 34 vehicles have been dispatched to the quake-hit area.
So far, no casualties or damage to the property was reported, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
"The quake lasted for more than 10 seconds and my bed was shaking," Zhang Xun, a resident in Jintang County told Xinhua.
Strong tremors were also felt in urban areas of Chengdu, the provincial capital, some 38 km away from the epicentre.
"I shook all over when the quake hit. My first reaction was to pick up my baby," a Jintang resident surnamed Yi said.
Many people stayed outside after the quake, wearing protective masks. Some took their quilts to spend the night in their 

5.1-magnitude earthquake jolts China's Sichuan province

Dozens of koalas have been euthanized and some 80 more are being treated for injuries and starvation after their habitat was logged, prompting an Australian government investigation Monday.
Victoria's environment department said the state's conservation regulator was investigating a "very distressing incident" at a bluegum plantation near the coastal town of Portland that resulted in the deaths of dozens of koalas.
"If this is found to be due to deliberate human action, we expect the conservation regulator to act swiftly against those responsible," the department said.
Those responsible could face steep fines under laws designed to protect Australia's native wildlife.
The environment department said approximately 80 koalas had been removed from the plantation site over the weekend for medical treatment, while others had to be put down.
"Wildlife welfare assessment and triage will continue with qualified carers and vets," the department said in a statement.
"Plans are being made to ...

Dozens of koalas dead after logging at Australian plantation

Chinese stocks crashed on Monday with some major shares quickly falling by the maximum daily limit as the country's investors got their first chance in more than a week to react to the spiralling coronavirus outbreak.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dived 8.73 percent, or 259.83 points, to open at 2,716.70.
The Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on China's second exchange, sank 8.99 percent, or 158.02 points, to 1,598.80.
The scale of the plunge was remarkable even by the standards of China's notoriously volatile share markets, indicating deep concern over the viral outbreak's economic impact.
The yuan also weakened by nearly 1.5 percent to around 7.00 to the dollar.
But in Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng Index edged up 0.17 percent, or 43.59 points, to 26,356.22 in the first few minutes.
Markets in the world's second-biggest economy had closed on January 24 for the annual Lunar New Year holiday, but since then the viral epidemic that started in Wuhan has spread ..

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