THE NEWS: Microsoft urges regulation of face-recognizing tech

Microsoft urges regulation of face-recognizing tech
source: AFP

AFP/File / SAM YEH Microsoft and other tech companies have used facial recognition technology for years for tasks such as organizing digital photographs

Microsoft's chief legal officer on Friday called for regulation of facial recognition technology due to the risk to privacy and human rights.

Brad Smith made a case for a government initiative to lay out rules for proper use of facial recognition technology, with input from a bipartisan and expert commission.

Facial recognition technology raises significant human rights and privacy concerns, Smith said in a blog post.

"Imagine a government tracking everywhere you walked over the past month without your permission or knowledge," he said.

"Imagine a database of everyone who attended a political rally that constitutes the very essence of free speech."

It could become possible for businesses to track visitors or customers, using what they see for decisions regarding credit scores, lending decisions, or employment opportunities without telling people.

He said scenarios portrayed in fictional films such as "Minority Report," "Enemy of the State," and even the George Orwell dystopian classic "1984" are "on the verge of becoming possible."

"These issues heighten responsibility for tech companies that create these products," Smith said.

"In our view, they also call for thoughtful government regulation and for the development of norms around acceptable uses."

Microsoft and other tech companies have used facial recognition technology for years for tasks such as organizing digital photographs.

But the ability of computers to recognize people's faces is improving rapidly, along with the ubiquity of cameras and the power of computing hosted in the internet cloud to figure out identities in real time.

While the technology can be used for good, perhaps finding missing children or known terrorists, it can also be abused.

"It may seem unusual for a company to ask for government regulation of its products, but there are many markets where thoughtful regulation contributes to a healthier dynamic for consumers and producers alike," Smith said.

"It seems especially important to pursue thoughtful government regulation of facial recognition technology, given its broad societal ramifications and potential for abuse."

Concerns about misuse prompted Microsoft to "move deliberately" with facial recognition consulting or contracting, according to Smith.

"This has led us to turn down some customer requests for deployments of this service where we've concluded that there are greater human rights risks," Smith said.

THE NEWS: Many civilians among 54 dead in anti-IS strike in Syria: monitor

Many civilians among 54 dead in anti-IS strike in Syria: monitor
source: AFP

AFP/File / STRINGER A vehicle drives past a billboard bearing the logo of the Islamic State group in Syria's Deir Ezzor province on September 24, 2017

An air strike on one of the last holdouts of the Islamic State group in Syria has killed 54 people, more than half of them civilians, a war monitor said on Friday.

The US-led coalition fighting the jihadists said it or its allies may have carried out air raids in the area, and it was investigating the alleged civilian deaths.

The raid late Thursday on an ice factory near the village of Al-Soussa close to the Iraqi border killed 28 civilians and 26 IS jihadists, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

It was not immediately clear if the raid on the eastern Deir Ezzor province was carried out by an Iraqi plane or the coalition, according to the monitor, which relies on a network of sources inside Syria.

In a written statement, the US-led alliance said: "The coalition or our partner forces may have conducted strikes in the vicinity of Al-Soussa and Baghour Fukhani" on Thursday.


AFP / Valentina Breschi Al-Soussa


"We are forwarding the report to our Civilian Casualty Cell for further assessment on this allegation," it said.

Iraqi warplanes have recently carried out strikes against IS in eastern Syria, while coalition aircraft have been supporting Kurdish-led fighters battling the jihadists.

The IS fighters were Syrians and Iraqis, the Observatory said.

Syrian state news agency SANA reported the strike late Thursday, saying more than 30 civilians were killed and accusing the coalition of carrying it out.

The foreign ministry in Damascus decried the coalition for "only succeeding in killing innocent Syrians and destroying Syrian infrastructure", in a statement carried by the outlet.

- IS holdouts -

IS fighters swept across Syria and Iraq in 2014, declaring a cross-border "caliphate" in areas they controlled.

They have since lost most of that territory to various offensives, but still retain pockets of land in Syria including in the country's vast Badiya desert and in Deir Ezzor.

IS fighters have faced two separate offensives in Deir Ezzor on either side of the Euphrates River that cuts through the province.

Russia-supported regime forces have pushed back the jihadists on the western side of the Euphrates, while the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces have battled them to its east.

Al-Soussa lies to the east of the Euphrates River, in a pocket of territory still held by the jihadists.

IS fighters have been expelled from most urban centres in Syria, but analysts say they have retained their ability to pounce from the desert.

Last month, an IS incursion into the town of Albu Kamal on the west of the Euphrates left dozens of pro-regime fighters dead.

Attacks spiked after the jihadists were evacuated from their last bastion near Damascus in May, many heading to the Badiya desert, the Observatory said.

IS also has a presence in the northwestern province of Idlib, as well as in the southwestern province of Daraa where it has been battling opposition fighters in recent days.

The government and rebels last week announced a ceasefire agreement as the regime moves to retake control of the whole of the province, but IS is excluded from that deal.

The jihadists hold a corner of territory in Daraa on the border with Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Overnight Wednesday-Thursday, they seized the nearby village of Heet from rebels who had agreed to hand over their heavy weapons to the regime after deadly clashes.

THE NEWS: Pakistan ex-PM Sharif arrested as he arrives home ahead of polls

Pakistan ex-PM Sharif arrested as he arrives home ahead of polls
source: AFP

AFP / AAMIR QURESHI Former Pakistan premier Nawaz Sharif was arrested after being sentenced to 10 years in prison for corruption

Former Pakistan premier Nawaz Sharif was arrested on his return to the country Friday, where he faces 10 years in prison for corruption, ahead of already tense elections his party claims are being rigged.

Sharif and his daughter Maryam "have been arrested" by corruption authorities "with immediate effect and till further orders", according to a statement from the Islamabad city administration. They landed in Lahore and were then taken to the capital, the statement said.

An anti-corruption official confirmed the arrests to AFP on condition of anonymity.

Sharif, who claims he is being targeted by the country's powerful security establishment, is fighting for his political life as his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party limps into the final weeks of campaigning ahead of nationwide polls on July 25.

Some 15,000 singing and dancing supporters lined the Mall, Lahore's main thoroughfare, ahead of Sharif's return from London, an AFP reporter there said.

Lahore is the capital of Punjab province, Pakistan's most populous and a PML-N stronghold.

A smaller contingent of around two dozen supporters waited on the road to Adiala prison in Rawalpindi, the garrison city neighbouring Islamabad, where Sharif was expected to be taken before going to a guest house on the outskirts of the capital which authorities said had been declared a "sub-jail".


AFP / AAMIR QURESHI Nawaz Sharif was arrested after he landed in Lahore, where thousands had gathered in a show of support for the ex-premier


Roughly 100 police officers had blocked the road to the jail with freight containers, an AFP reporter said.

Analysts have said Sharif's return -- one week after he was sentenced in absentia to 10 years in prison by a corruption court over the purchase of high-end properties in London -- could help lift his party's fortunes ahead of the vote.

"I know that... I will be directly taken to jail," Sharif, who was ousted for corruption by the Supreme Court last year and later also banned from politics for life, said in a video released by his party earlier Friday.

He asked Pakistanis to "walk with me, join hands with me and change the destination of the country".

On Thursday, Sharif's brother Shahbaz, who is leading the PML-N's election campaign, said hundreds of the party's workers and supporters had been arrested in what he described as "naked" pre-poll rigging.

- Security fears -

As the political drama unfolded, fears of violence also surged ahead of the polls after a suicide bomber targeting a political rally in southwestern Balochistan province killed 128 people in one of the deadliest attacks in Pakistan's history.


 AFP / AAMIR QURESHI Nawaz Sharif's party has accused Pakistan's caretaker government of arresting hundreds of its supporters

The blast -- claimed by the Islamic State group -- ripped through a crowd in the town of Mastung.

Earlier, four people were killed by a bomb targeting another politician's convoy in the country's northwest. There has been no claim of responsibility.

On Tuesday, a bomb attack claimed by the Pakistani Taliban targeted a political rally in the city of Peshawar, killing 22 people.

The string of attacks underscored the fragility of Pakistan's security, which has improved dramatically in recent years, though analysts warn that politicians and the security establishment have not yet tackled the root causes of extremism.

The military has already warned of security threats and said it will deploy more than 370,000 soldiers on polling day.

Pakistan's military remains its most powerful institution, and has faced blistering allegations that it is pressuring the media and politicians in a bid to manipulate the polls against the PML-N.

It denies the accusations.


AFP / AAMIR QURESHI Nawaz Sharif is the 15th prime minister in Pakistan's history to be removed before completing a full term


The election will pit the PML-N against its main rival, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, a party led by cricket star-turned-politician Imran Khan.

Since Sharif returned to London last month, where his wife is being treated for cancer, the PML-N has fallen into disarray and failed to mount an organised campaign to rally the base ahead of the polls.

Recent polling showed the PTI's popularity steadily rising and closing the gap with the PML-N.

Analyst Zahid Hussain said the ex-leader was "fighting back for his political life".

"Certainly it would have been worse for the party's prospects had he not come," Hussain added.

Sharif was the 15th prime minister in Pakistan's 70-year history -- roughly half of it under military rule -- to be removed before completing a full term.


AFP / AAMIR QURESHI The upcoming election in Pakistan will pit Sharif's PML-N against Imran Khan's PTI

He has faced -- and fought off -- similar challenges in the past.

In 1993, he was sacked from his first term as premier for corruption. His second term was ended by a coup in 1999, and he was imprisoned by the military regime while he faced trial for multiple charges, including corruption.

"In Pakistan, leaders have to go to jail, that's important for their profile," said Pakistani journalist Rahimullah Yusufzai.

Sharif was later allowed by the military regime to go into exile in Saudi Arabia, returning in 2007 before becoming prime minister for a third time in 2013.

THE NEWS: Trump hails ties with UK despite Brexit criticism

Trump hails ties with UK despite Brexit criticism
source: AFP

POOL/Getty Images / Jack Taylor Donald Trump told The Sun Theresa May's plan for post-Brexit ties with the EU would "probably kill" the prospects for a trade deal with the US

US President Donald Trump on Friday played down his extraordinary attack on Britain's plans for Brexit, praising Prime Minister Theresa May and insisting bilateral relations "have never been stronger", even as tens of thousands protested in London against his visit.

Trump's first official trip to Britain was overshadowed by his warning that May's plans for close ties with the European Union would "kill" a future US trade deal, echoing concerns among eurosceptics in her Conservative party.

Meanwhile, in Washington, DC, a US grand jury on Friday indicted 12 Russian intelligence officers for interfering in the November 2016 presidential election, following charges from Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

The indictments came just three days before Trump is scheduled to meet with Russia's Vladimir Putin in Helsinki.

As Trump arrived in Scotland later Friday, however, the White House confirmed that the Helsinki meeting would go ahead.

"It's on," White House spokesperson Sarah Sanders said.

Trump later travelled to one of his Scottish golf courses, Turnberry.

Following talks at May's country retreat of Chequers, Trump suggested he might have been hasty in his comments over her negotiating strategy for leaving the EU.

"Whatever you do is okay with us, just make sure we can trade together, that's all that matters," he told May at a press conference in the grounds of the 16th-century manor house, miles away from the colourful crowds denouncing his own domestic policies.

"The United States looks forward to finalising a great bilateral trade deal," he said, and repeatedly praised May's leadership, saying she was a "terrific woman".

- Trump endorses May rival -


AFP / Tolga AKMEN Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of London in protest of Donald Trump's first official visit to Britain


Just hours earlier, The Sun tabloid published a bombshell interview with the president in which he suggested the prime minister's Brexit proposal was not what voters wanted.

He said he had advised her to take another path, adding that Boris Johnson, who quit as foreign minister this week in protest at the plan, would make "a great prime minister".

Trump denied that he had criticised May, suggesting there was an element of "fake news" in the report -- even though The Sun released audio recordings of his remarks.

His interview drew outrage among British politicians, who accused him of being "determined to insult" May after 18 months of testy relations between the pair.

It also fired up demonstrations in London, where organisers estimated upwards of 250,000 people took to the streets.

Chanting "No Trump, no KKK, no fascist USA!", they flew a huge balloon of the president depicted as a crying baby outside the Houses of Parliament.

Even Londoners who did not join the protest, only stopping to take in the mass of people, placards and sloganeering, seemed supportive of the demonstrations.

"He brings it on himself -- it's like having a juvenile in charge of a superpower," said construction worker Dan Kelly, 47.

- 'Kill' trade plans -

Britain voted to leave the EU in a referendum in June 2016, but after years of fighting within the government, only on Thursday published a detailed plan for future relations.


 POOL/AFP / Matt Dunham Trump and his wife Melania (L) also met Britain's Queen Elizabeth II on Friday

The offer to follow EU rules in trade in goods sparked outrage among eurosceptics who want a clean break, with Trump appearing to back them.

His negative comments about a UK-US trade deal -- viewed as one of the main benefits of leaving the EU by Brexit supporters -- saw the pound fall, although it later recovered its losses.

They also fuelled talk of rebellion in May's Conservative party following the resignations of Johnson and Brexit secretary David Davis over the plan.

But Trump said Friday that after speaking with May's officials and trade experts a UK-US trade deal "will be possible".

May confirmed they had agreed to seek an "ambitious" free trade agreement, adding: "I'm clear our plan delivers on what the British people voted for."


AFP / Gillian HANDYSIDE Map of Britian detailing Donald Trump's visit


Even without opposition from Trump, the prime minister still faces a major challenge to get agreement at home and the plan agreed with the EU.

Talks are due to resume in Brussels next week.

- 'Tough on Russia' -

The two leaders also emphasised their continued cooperation on defence and security, after earlier watching a display of special forces from both countries at the military academy at Sandhurst.

Trump thanked May for her support at a testy NATO summit this week in Brussels, where he subjected America's other allies to a roasting over their defence spending.

The president followed his Chequers meeting by having tea with Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle alongside First Lady Melania Trump.

May said they had agreed to engage with Russia with "strength and unity", and Trump said he has been "tougher on Russia than anybody".

The president's mother was born on the Scottish Isle of Lewis, and May gave him an illustrated ancestral chart of his Scottish heritage as a gift.

She gave Melania, who met military veterans and schoolchildren in London on Friday with May's husband Philip, a bespoke perfume.

THE NEWS: Turkey to lift state of emergency next week

Turkey to lift state of emergency next week
source: AFP

AFP/File / ADEM ALTAN "The current state of emergency is coming to an end on the night of July 18. Mr President has the will... not to extend it," a spokesperson said after the first cabinet meeting since President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's outright election victory in June

Turkey will next week lift the state of emergency introduced after a failed 2016 coup and which granted President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government greater powers to detain suspects, his spokesman said on Friday.

The announcement comes after Erdogan chaired the first cabinet meeting since he won elections last month endowing him with sweeping new powers, and pressing economic challenges topping the agenda.

"The current state of emergency is coming to an end on the night of July 18. Mr President has the will... not to extend it," presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin told reporters after the meeting in Ankara.

Under emergency rule, renewed seven times since the abortive coup against Erdogan's elected government, over 110,000 public sector employees have been removed from their jobs while tens of thousands more have been suspended in a crackdown criticised by Ankara's Western allies.

Amnesty International in April said freedom of expression and the right to a fair trial had been "decimated" under the state of emergency introduced five days after the attempted putsch on July 15, 2016.

More than 1,300 associations and foundations have been shut down under the measures.

However the government says the purges are needed to rid the state of the "virus" of Muslim preacher Fethullah Gulen blamed by the authorities for masterminding the coup bid.

Gulen, who is based in the US, has denied any role and insists his movement promotes peace.

- Economy tops cabinet talks -

Kalin added that the lifting of emergency rule would not slow down Turkey's fight against terror, and that the fight would continue "in a determined fashion" under counter-terrorism laws.

But he said that if Turkey faces another "extraordinary threat, the state of emergency might be reintroduced".

In his election campaign, Erdogan promised not to prolong the emergency rule.

The strongman was sworn in for a second presidential term on Monday under the new system that grants the head of state executive powers while abolishing the post of prime minister.

Erdogan vowed to "work tirelessly to build a Turkey that can look to the future with confidence", at a ceremony in the former parliament shortly before the cabinet meeting at his vast presidential palace.

He hailed the transition as a "new beginning" in the country's history but opponents denounced it as a drift toward one-man rule.

Erdogan this week unveiled the new cabinet, giving his son-in-law Berat Albayrak, 40, the crucial post of finance minister.

Albayrak's rapid promotion from the energy ministry took traders by surprise as market-friendly faces like outgoing deputy premier Mehmet Simsek were not present in the new cabinet.

In an apparent sign that the economy is an urgent issue for the government, Albayrak said: "We have determined some steps to be taken in line with macro-economic objectives," in a message on Twitter.

Albayrak said his economic policy would be guided by "budget discipline, a single digit inflation rate and structural reforms."

Financial markets are sceptical about Albayrak's appointment which prompted a new battering for the Turkish currency and assets.

Kalin said a medium term economic programme would be presented to Erdogan in the coming weeks.

THE NEWS: When fake news sparks violence: India grapples with online rumours

When fake news sparks violence: India grapples with online rumours
source: AFP

AFP/File / Prakash SINGH India is fertile ground for fake news to take hold and spread

India has been shaken by a spate of mob killings sparked by a hoax about child kidnappers spread on WhatsApp.

In just two months, 20 people have been murdered in such attacks. Officials and social media platforms have so far been powerless to stop the violence.

But who is to blame? And why is a rumour turning people to violence?

- A rumour is born -

An online hoax emerged more than a year ago in eastern India claiming strangers were sedating and abducting children. Six men falsely accused of snatching kids off the streets were killed by mobs in Jharkhand state, police said.

In February this year, the rumours resurfaced nearly a thousand miles away in western India. By May, it had reached the country's southern states, often accompanied by a grainy video purporting to show men on motorbikes stealing kids.

This falsehood spread like wildfire via WhatsApp, which boasts 200 million users in India who send a billion messages a day.

Later, a grisly video claiming to show Indian children killed by organ-harvesting gangs went viral. The macabre images were Syrian infants killed in a gas attack five years ago.

Translated into regional languages, the rumour triggered violence across India, particularly in rural areas where distrust of outsiders is entrenched and digital literacy is poor.

By early July, at least twenty people had been killed in the previous two months. Among the victims were homeless people, two picnic goers and an elderly woman handing out chocolates to children.

- Police powerless -

India's police rounded up suspects and formed patrols, driving village to village to quash the rumours. In some areas, travelling musicians sung about the scourge of fake news.

Authorities in some states shut down internet access in a desperate bid to stop the hoax from spreading.

But the awareness campaigns had limited effect. In one instance, an official "rumour buster" was himself beaten to death.

Anger turned to WhatsApp, blamed by authorities for spreading "irresponsible and explosive messages".

- Seeking penance -

WhatsApp said it was "horrified" by the violence and assured Indian authorities it was taking action.

The Facebook-owned company said it was working with Indian researchers to better understand the problem and had introduced changes which it said would reduce the spread of such messages.

But some pointed out that WhatsApp as a medium was not to blame, and urged the authorities to tackle the violence.

- Mob rule -

India is no stranger to mob violence, with well-documented cases of crowds turning on victims for every manner of transgression, real or imagined.

In recent years, for example, there has been a sharp escalation in "cow vigilantism" -- Hindu extremists murdering Muslims and thrashing low-caste Dalits accused of killing cows or eating beef.

Many of the victims in other vigilante killings, such as those over child kidnapping rumours, are targeted because they are outsiders.

- Facts vs. Fiction -

India is fertile ground for fake news to take hold and spread.

It has a billion-plus mobile phone users -- more than any other country on earth -- and close to half a billion people with internet access, most via their smartphones.

Cheap handsets and data plans are bringing more Indians online but many are first-time internet users unskilled in discerning fact from fiction.

Indian police say there is no substance to the child kidnapping rumours, but the viral videos may not appear outlandish to some.

More than 120,000 children were abducted or went missing in 2016, according to the most recent Indian government figures. There is no data available on the number of children who were found.

THE NEWS: Shoots for the stars: Briton grows microgreens for top French chefs

Shoots for the stars: Briton grows microgreens for top French chefs
source: AFP

AFP / Thierry Zoccolan Kilner has nurtured his "microgreens" on a farm in Saint-Jean-en-Val, a village only a couple of hours from France's gastronomic capital Lyon, since 2016

Fuchsia-coloured lights glow over a miniature garden where tiny plants pack a wealth of flavour and nutrients headed for the tables of Michelin-starred French chefs.

British producer Chris Kilner nurtures his "microgreens" on a farm in Saint-Jean-en-Val, a village only a couple of hours from France's gastronomic capital Lyon.

"Our clients determine what we grow," says the soft-spoken Kilner, 47. "They're very demanding."

Unlike sprouts that are grown in water and eaten whole, Kilner's come up in soil and are snipped just at the right time for maximum impact on the palate.

They don't hang around for long. Some are only a week old when they are harvested, and none grow for more than two months.

Kilner plucks a tiny leaf to check on progress, like a vintner fussing over ripening grapes.

"Everyone knows what rocket tastes like, but around day 11 its taste is suddenly more precise," Kilner says as he bites into the heart-shaped, lilliputian green. "You recognise it clearly when you taste it. It's perfect, with no bitterness."


AFP / Thierry Zoccolan Microgreens can exude the most startling flavours -- mustard, wasabi, pepper, citrus, capers and even oysters -- and in such high concentrations that they substitute easily for their counterparts on the spice or condiment rack


The practised chef can conjure licorice from agastache microgreens; shiso is redolent of anise or cumin, depending on the variety; the big blue star-shaped flowers of the borage plant give off the fresh, crunchy quality of the cucumber.

Microgreens, the young seedlings of edible vegetables and herbs, can exude the most startling flavours -- mustard, wasabi, pepper, citrus, capers and even oysters -- and in such high concentrations that they substitute easily for their counterparts on the spice or condiment rack.

One thing is certain: the microgreen is not for decoration.

"It's an ingredient unto itself; you can't do without it," said Dorian Van Bronkhorst, head chef at the Michelin-starred Atelier Yssoirien restaurant in the town of Issoire, in the Auvergne region near Kilner's farm. "It's a flavour enhancer that adds finesse and colour, as well as acidity or sweetness."

The self-taught entrepreneur is a former robotics engineer who helped develop the humanoid robots Nao and Pepper for Aldebaran Robotics.

Once they went into mass production, Kilner was ready leave the high-tech world to spend more time with his wife Virginie Vial, a 46-year-old development economist, at the family farmhouse.

It was in 2016 that Kilner went microgreen, partly inspired by his wife's fondness for growing her own soybean sprouts and others.


AFP / Thierry Zoccolan "It's an ingredient unto itself; you can't do without it," says French chef Dorian Van Bronkhorst

Kilner's company Radix -- from the Latin for "roots" -- supplies Van Bronkhorst and dozens of other chefs in the region, including many boasting Michelin stars, with a turnover of around 50,000 euros ($58,000) last year.

With such tiny crops -- around 50 microgreen varieties sprout under special lamps or in miniature greenhouses -- Kilner operates in a space of some 500 square metres (5,000 square feet).

But thanks to growing demand -- "most big chefs use microgreens," he says -- Kilner may move to a bigger space in the autumn.

- 'I'm not a magician' -

The key to his success? The only inputs are water and a keen attention to detail.

"I'm not a magician," Kilner says. "You have to keep tasting all the time, and it's your taste buds that guide you."

Before Kilner set up shop here, French chefs have relied on the Dutch company Koppert Cress, which has enjoyed a near-monopoly in France.

The difference with Kilner is that he delivers his microgreens in the soil they sprouted in.

"You're sure of getting the product in season, ultra-fresh, and you cut it only as you are putting it on the plate," said Cyrille Zen, who runs the Michelin-starred La Bergerie de Sarpoil in Saint-Jean-en-Val.

While chefs began coveting microgreens about a decade ago, they are also prized for their nutritional value.

According to a study published in 2012 by the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, microgreens contain four to 40 times the vitamins and antioxidants of their mature counterparts.

THE NEWS: China detains suspects after blast at chemical plant

China detains suspects after blast at chemical plant
source: AFP

AFP / STR The Ministry of Emergency Management has sent a team to further investigate the cause of the explosion

Authorities have detained "several" suspects in wake of an explosion at a chemical plant in southwest China that left 19 dead and injured 12 others, state media said.

The blast occurred at 6:30 pm (1030 GMT) Thursday at an industrial park in Sichuan province's Yibin city, according to a statement on the website of the local work safety administration.

Photos on a local news website showed what appeared to be the burned out shell of a building surrounded by rubble.

The building was owned by chemical manufacturer Hengda, which was "conducting illegal construction at the plant which had not passed safety and fire control checks", the official Xinhua news agency said late Friday, citing local authorities.

The Ministry of Emergency Management has sent a team to further investigate the cause of the explosion, the agency added.

China has been rocked by several industrial accidents in recent years.

A septic tank explosion last November destroyed a wide swathe of a light industrial area in Ningbo, just south of Shanghai.

In 2015, giant chemical blasts in a container storage facility killed at least 165 people in the northern port city of Tianjin.

The explosions caused more than $1 billion in damage and sparked widespread anger at a perceived lack of transparency over the accident's causes and its environmental impact.

A government inquiry eventually recommended 123 people be punished. Tianjin's mayor at the time of the accident was sentenced to 12 years in prison for graft in September.

THE NEWS: Media curbs in DR Congo raise fears ahead of presidential vote

Media curbs in DR Congo raise fears ahead of presidential vote
source: AFP

 AFP/File / PAPY MULONGO The top three news websites, out of 20 in the country, say they reach 1.7 million, 2.7 million and three million single visitors a month

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is clamping down on online media in a declared campaign against fake news, hate speech and cyber-crime, a move that has stoked alarm as crucial elections loom.

Watchdogs say the crackdown breaches media freedom and stifles political debate, adding to volatility in what is already a powder-keg country.

On June 14, the ministry of communications issued a decree giving online media outlets a month to comply with new regulations, or else face potential fines and prison sentences.

"The law is intended to protect the public," Communications Minister Lambert Mende said in an interview with AFP.

"It's not just fake news -- there's also incitement to violence, hate-speech, and in our country, we know where that can lead."


 AFP/File / John WESSELS President Joseph Kabila, who under the constitution should have stepped down at the end of 2016, is still in office ahead of elections due in December, sparking street protests that have been heavily repressed


The rules include registering with the authorities, complying with a 1996 law on freedom of the press and having ads approved by relevant authorities.

The punishments are the same as those detailed in the 1996 law, which include a fine and a 15-day prison term that can be longer if the crime warrants a higher sentence.

Watchdogs for media freedom and human rights say they are worried.

"If the decree is applied in its current form, it will muzzle online media and restrain freedom of expression," said Tshivis Tshivuadi, head of an advocacy group called Journalists in Danger.

"There are real concerns that these new requirements will soon be used as an excuse to crack down on Congo's vibrant online media outlets," said Ida Sawyer of Human Rights Watch.


 AFP / FEDERICO SCOPPA Rights groups and media watchdogs are concerned the new rules governing online media will censor political criticism

Amnesty International warned about text prohibiting "any illustration, story, information or insertion infringing the right to the image and the right to privacy" -- a provision that, it said, has been used in the past to censor political criticism.

- Unstable -

Sprawling, mineral-rich and dirt-poor, the DRC has been gripped by wars and instability ever since it gained independence from Belgium in 1960.

It is careering towards presidential elections on December 23 in a fog of uncertainty. President Joseph Kabila, who under the constitution should have stepped down at the end of 2016, has stayed in office, sparking street protests that have been heavily repressed.

In 2016 and in 2017, the authorities cut internet access ahead of anti-government demonstrations, depriving the public of access to online news and social media.

Independent news websites have become popular in the DRC, where the traditional press is mostly owned by politicians.

The top three news websites, out of 20 in the country, say they reach 1.7 million, 2.7 million and three million single visitors a month -- an achievement for a young industry in a country where only a minority of the estimated 80 million people have regular internet access.

Online media outlets are defined broadly in the decree as "all services of online public communication" by a "moral or physical person with editorial control" producing "original content of public interest, updated regularly, made of information with a link to the news".

But, says Amnesty International, such vagueness is dangerous -- it could open the door to "abusive interpretations" by police and the courts.

"We currently have to declare websites with relevant authorities but registering 'beforehand' with the ministry doesn't make sense," said Patient Ligodi, editor of a news website and president of MILDRC, the country's first online media non-profit.

"This means they will have the possibility to authorize or deny websites from existing."

The international press freedom group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) questioned the timing of the decree in the runup to the presidential ballot, asking why online media regulation could not wait until after the election.

Kasonga Tshilunde, the president of the Congolese National Press Union (UNPC), noted that parliament is currently examining an overhaul of the 1996 law.

"We were surprised that the ministry issued this (decree) before the voting on a new law," he said. "It made us wonder: Is there a reason for rushing?"

- 'Protect the public' -

Mende said online outlets should abide by the same legal framework as print and broadcast media.

"If they want to continue violating the law, the rules that regulate the industry, this is something that I oppose, although we can talk about a moratorium if needed."

After a meeting at Facebook headquarters in San Franciso, Mende last month also called for "legislation and regulation" of social media to "protect the public."

"They (Facebook) control this instrument that can be used to commit crimes, and so we have agreed on a certain number of rules and collaborations,” Mende told AFP after his trip.

Human Rights Watch said the notion of "protection" could be used as another means of repression.

"Far from 'protecting the public,' any new regulations for social media access could be used by the government to attempt to monitor and control the spread of information and target government critics," said Sawyer.

Istr/ri/ach/klm/rma

THE NEWS: EU takes anti-Trump trade show to China and Japan

EU takes anti-Trump trade show to China and Japan
source: AFP

 POOL/AFP / Dimitar DILKOFF EU Council President Donald Tusk (R) and Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker (L) will have plenty of Trump-related grievances to discuss in Asia

The European Union's top officials will meet the leaders of China and Japan next week to boost ties in the face of fears that US President Donald Trump will spark an all-out global trade war.

The trip by EU Council President Donald Tusk and Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker includes the signing of a free trade deal with Japan, which was moved from Brussels last week because Japanese premier Shinzo Abe was dealing with deadly floods at home.

Their Asian tour comes as the EU -- which, with 28 countries and 500 million people is the world's biggest single market -- tries to forge alliances in the face of the protectionism of Trump's "America First" administration.

European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said the "landmark" Japan deal was "the biggest ever negotiated by the European Union".

"This agreement will create an open trade zone covering nearly a third of the world's GDP," Schinas added.

In China on Monday, the two leaders will meet with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang to discuss their shared tensions with Washington, having both recently announced new tariffs on US goods in retaliation for measures imposed by Trump.

They are expected to reaffirm their support for the rules-based international order, including the World Trade Organization, which faces unprecedented criticism from Trump's administration.

The leaders will also discuss climate change -- another area on which the EU is in disagreement with Trump after he pulled out of the Paris climate deal -- and nuclear issues in North Korea and Iran, Schinas said.

- 'Signal to the world' -

But the EU and China will have to smooth over existing differences over Beijing's own restrictive market practices including the "dumping" of cheap Chinese imports, especially steel.

Some of those concerns are shared by Washington.

The EU recently pushed through measures targeting China that were intended to offset the consequences of granting China so-called market economy status at the WTO, which will make it more difficult to prove and punish illegal trade practices by Beijing.

In Tokyo, talks will also focus on presenting a united front against the United States over its tariffs, with the Japanese government having slammed them as "extremely deplorable".

The EU-Japan deal was hailed recently as a "strong signal to the world" against US protectionism by EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom, who is travelling with Juncker and Tusk to Asia.

Abe was originally due to come to Brussels to sign the deal last week, but he called off the trip after flooding and landslides in Japan that killed more than 200 people.

Tusk had said that after the "tragic circumstances" they would move the summit to Tokyo.

Schinas confirmed that Juncker would stick to his "very demanding agenda" and go on the trip to China and Japan, despite suffering from a painful medical condition that made him stumble repeatedly at a NATO summit in Brussels this week.

The EU spokesman denied "insulting" suggestions that Juncker was drunk.

THE NEWS: Pakistanis mourn after election rally bombing kills 128

Pakistanis mourn after election rally bombing kills 128
source: AFP
AFP/File / BANARAS KHAN The attack was the deadliest since a Taliban assault on a school in the northwestern city of Peshawar in 2014 that killed over 150 people

Mourners gathered Saturday to bury their dead in southwest Pakistan after a blast killed 128 people at a political rally in one of the country’s deadliest attacks, underscoring ongoing security challenges following years of dramatic improvements.

The Islamic State-claimed suicide attack in the town of Mastung, near the Balochistan provincial capital Quetta, was the latest in a series of bombings targeting campaign events in the last week, sparking fears of more violence ahead of nationwide polls on July 25.

Hospitals in the area have been placed under "emergency" management after being overwhelmed yesterday, with around 150 also injured in the blast -- many of them still in critical condition after suffering head trauma.

"We have imposed emergency in the hospitals and cancelled the vacations of the doctors and paramedics," Balochistan home minister Agha Umar Bungalzai told AFP.

The provincial home secretary Haider Shako added that extra security forces had been deployed in "sensitive areas" and warned politicians to remain "vigilant".


 AFP/File / BANARAS KHAN The Islamic State-claimed suicide attack was the latest in a series of bombings targeting campaign events, sparking fears of more violence ahead of nationwide polls on July 25


Among the dead was Siraj Raisani, who was running for a provincial seat with the newly-formed local Balochistan Awami Party (BAP).

The BAP suspended campaign-related events on Saturday and has called for its supporters to observe three days of mourning.

The attack was the deadliest since Taliban militants assaulted a school in the northwestern city of Peshawar in 2014, killing over 150 people, mostly children, and one of the deadliest in Pakistan's long struggle with militancy.

The explosion in Mastung came hours after four people were killed and 39 injured when a bomb hidden inside a motorcycle detonated close to another politician's convoy in Bannu, near the border with Afghanistan.

The politician -- Akram Khan Durrani, a candidate of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) party -- survived.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for that attack.

And on Tuesday, a bomb claimed by the Pakistani Taliban targeted a rally by the Awami National Party (ANP) in the city of Peshawar. Local ANP leader Haroon Bilour was among the 22 killed.

Following the attacks, analysts called for the country’s armed forces to focus on security challenges rather than politics, in the wake of myriad allegations that the military was meddling in the country’s upcoming polls.

"It has never been more true that Pakistan’s security establishment needs to focus on security, not politics," tweeted analyst Mosharraf Zaidi.

In an editorial in the English daily Dawn, the newspaper called for authorities to "not only beef up security but also mobilise the entire intelligence apparatus to do the job they are actually meant to, ie preventing attacks".

The bombings come at a moment of increasing political turmoil in Pakistan as former prime minister Nawaz Sharif was arrested after arriving in the eastern city of Lahore late Friday, as he aims to energise his embattled party's base -- injecting fresh uncertainty into the country days ahead of the polls.

bur-mak-ga-ds/rma

THE NEWS: Trump in Scotland on next leg of contentious UK trip

Trump in Scotland on next leg of contentious UK trip
source: AFP

AFP / Andy BUCHANAN Donald and Melania Trump landed in Scotland on Friday evening

US President Donald Trump wraps up a four-day visit to Britain, dominated by his blasting of Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit strategy, by spending the weekend in Scotland.

Trump is staying at one of his luxury golf resorts in Turnberry, southwest of Glasgow, in a private part of the trip before heading for a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, a fierce critic of Trump, has refused to meet him and he was instead met at Glasgow airport by a British government representative.

A major anti-Trump rally is planned in Edinburgh on Saturday after a mass protest in London Friday that organisers said drew more than 250,000 people.

A pro-Trump demonstration is also due to be held in London by alt-right campaigners, as well as a counter, anti-fascism protest.

In an extraordinary interview with Friday's edition of The Sun tabloid, Britain's most widely read newspaper, Trump said May's plan for post-Brexit ties with the EU would "probably kill" prospects for a UK-US trade deal.

He also said former foreign minister Boris Johnson, who resigned over the plan earlier this week and is a potential challenger to May, would make "a great prime minister".

Trump said he had advised May to take a different strategy on Brexit, telling the paper: "I would have done it much differently. I actually told Theresa May how to do it but she didn't agree, she didn't listen to me".


AFP / Niklas HALLEN A major anti-Trump rally is planned in Edinburgh on Saturday after a mass protest in London Friday that organisers said drew more than 250,000 people


The unprecedented criticism comes at a particularly sensitive time for May, who is facing a rebellion by Brexit hardliners against her proposals to retain strong trading ties with the EU even after Britain leaves the bloc.

After meeting May at her Chequers country retreat outside London on Friday, Trump sounded more conciliatory, saying that bilateral relations "have never been stronger".

"Whatever you do is okay with us, just make sure we can trade together, that's all that matters," he told May.

"The United States looks forward to finalising a great bilateral trade deal," he said, and repeatedly praised May's leadership, saying she was a "terrific woman".

- 'Global Scot' -

Trump is staying at the Turnberry golf resort -- the same course he inaugurated on June 24, 2016, a day after the referendum in which Britain voted to leave the EU.

Discord over his other golf course in Scotland dating back over a decade means there is little love lost between Trump and the pro-independence government in Scotland.

In 2006, the billionaire real estate tycoon bought 1,400 acres (567 hectares) of land near Aberdeen and promised to build "the world's best golf course".


 AFP/File / OLI SCARFF Donald Trump is staying at his Turnberry golf resort

The proposal was welcomed by the government at the time and Trump was named a "Global Scot" business ambassador.

But local councillors rejected the plan amid fierce opposition from conservationists and neighbouring residents.

The SNP government overturned the councillors' decision shortly after golf-loving nationalist Alex Salmond took control, kicking off a short and tempestuous bromance with Trump who called Salmond "an amazing man".

However, the relationship cooled when Trump's promise to create 6,000 jobs and invest £1 billion failed to materialise, and Trump began interfering with the SNP's flagship plan to make Scotland a renewable energy powerhouse.

The Trump Organisation has spent around £100 million on the course, known as Trump International Golf Links, and employed around 650 temporary and permanent staff -- but the company insists the resort remains a work in progress.

- 'I am the evidence' -

Three years later Trump visited the Scottish Parliament to complain about plans to build 11 "ugly" offshore wind turbines near his newly minted Aberdeenshire resort, insisting the development would do "terrible damage" to Scottish tourism.

Trump declared "I am the evidence" when Scottish lawmakers asked him to back up his assertion that the wind farm would "destroy the financial wellbeing of Scotland".

Sturgeon, who rescinded Trump's "Global Scot" title after he pledged to cut Muslim immigration into the United States, switched on the first wind turbine last week.

"A famous golf course owner from America who, I think, has now turned his hand to politics, decided to take the Scottish government to court to try to block these wind turbines," she told reporters.

"The Scottish government beat that American golf course owner in court... and these amazing wind turbines generated their first electricity," she said.

THE NEWS: Rescued Thai cave boys to leave hospital Thursday

Rescued Thai cave boys to leave hospital Thursday
source: AFP

Thai government public relations department (PRD)/AFP/File / Handout All 12 boys and their coach are in good health and will leave hospital on Thursday

Twelve young footballers and their coach rescued from a Thai cave will be released from hospital on Thursday, health officals said, offering pychological support and urging the group to avoid media interviews despite huge interest in their against-the-odds survival story.

The group, called the "Wild Boars" after their football academy, went into the Tham Luang cave in northern Thailand on June 23 to celebrate a birthday, but became trapped as floodwaters poured in.

They were all extracted on July 10, ending an ordeal that had the world holding its breath for their safe return.

"All 13 Wild Boars are in good physical health... all are in good spirits," public health minister Piyasakol Sakolsattayatorn told reporters on Saturday.

"They will be discharged altogether, initially on Thursday."

The children -- and their parents -- have been advised to spend time with friends and family and not to give media interviews as that could "trigger post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms," the minister added.

The disappearance of the young footballers and their protracted, daring rescue captivated the world.

Hollywood producers are already jockeying to make the film of a saga whose twists and turns are ready made for drama.

A nail-biting three-day mission to rescue the boys in groups ended successfully on July 10.

In a meticulously planned extraction, the boys put on wetsuits and diving gear before being sedated, put on stretchers and pulled or carried out through submerged passageways and up steep slopes inside the mountain.

The unprecedented rescue involved scores of Thai and foriegn expert cave divers, many of whom have expressed delight and surprise at the success of the mission.

Mental health experts have warned of the long-term effects of being trapped in the dark with no food, especially in the first nine days before they were found by a pair of British divers.

One of the divers Richard Stanton on Friday told reporters that the mission was "an order of difficulty much higher than anything that's been accomplished anywhere around the world by any other cave diving team."

Thai authorities have only released partial information about the bold operation to free the team, heavily restricting access to the boys and their families.

burs-apj/mtp

THE NEWS: US indicts Russian intel officers ahead of Trump-Putin summit

US indicts Russian intel officers ahead of Trump-Putin summit
source: AFP

 GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP / CHIP SOMODEVILLA US Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein told reporters 12 Russian military officers were accused of "conspiring to interfere with the 2016 presidential election"

Twelve Russian intelligence officers have been charged with hacking Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign and the Democratic Party in a stunning indictment just days before President Donald Trump meets with Vladimir Putin.

The charges were drawn up by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, the former FBI director who is looking into Russian interference in the November 2016 vote and whether any members of Trump's campaign team colluded with Moscow.

Democratic leaders immediately called for Trump to cancel Monday's scheduled meeting with the Russian president in Helsinki, but the White House said the summit would go ahead.

The 29-page indictment issued Friday accuses members of the Russian military intelligence agency known as the GRU of carrying out "large-scale cyber operations" to steal Clinton campaign and Democratic Party documents and emails.

"There's no allegation in this indictment that any American citizen committed a crime," Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said in announcing the charges at a press conference in Washington.

He added that although "conspirators corresponded with several Americans during the course of the conspiracy through the internet," the indictment did not allege that Americans knew they were in contact with Russian intelligence officers.

Rosenstein said he briefed Trump about the indictment before Friday's announcement and that the timing was determined by "the facts, the evidence, and the law."

Trump on Saturday responded by blaming the administration of former president Barack Obama for failing to act.

"Why didn't they do something about it, especially when it was reported that President Obama was informed by the FBI in September, before the Election?" he tweeted.

- Calls to cancel Putin meeting -

Senator Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate minority leader, urged Trump to cancel the Putin talks.


 POOL/AFP / Ben STANSALL The indictments of 12 Russian military intelligence officers were announced as President Donald Trump met with Queen Elizabeth II


"President Trump should cancel his meeting with Vladimir Putin until Russia takes demonstrable and transparent steps to prove that they won't interfere in future elections," Schumer said in a statement.

Republican Senator John McCain said the summit should be called off if Trump is not ready to warn Putin there is a "serious price to pay for his ongoing aggression towards the United States and democracies around the world."

Speaking in Britain before the indictments were unveiled, Trump said he would ask Putin about the allegations of election meddling.

"I will absolutely, firmly ask the question, and hopefully we'll have a good relationship with Russia," he told a press conference with British Prime Minister Theresa May.

But he simultaneously denounced the Mueller investigation as a "rigged witch hunt," and said he has been "tougher on Russia than anybody."

Russia has denied any involvement in the attack and rejected accusations that it interfered in the US presidential election in a bid to help Trump win.

- No 'knowing involvement' by Team Trump -

In a statement, the White House highlighted Rosenstein's remarks that no Americans had been charged.


AFP/File / Saul LOEB The indictment of 12 Russian military intelligence officers for interfering in the 2016 presidential election was brought by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, the former FBI director

"Today's charges include no allegations of knowing involvement by anyone on the campaign and no allegations that the alleged hacking affected the election result," it said. "This is consistent with what we have been saying all along."

Trump's lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, said on Twitter that the indictments were "good news for all Americans."

"The Russians are nailed. No Americans are involved. Time for Mueller to end this pursuit of the President and say President Trump is completely innocent," he said.

The indictment alleges that beginning in March 2016, the GRU agents began targeting over 300 employees and volunteers of the Clinton campaign, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) and the DNC.

"The conspirators covertly monitored the computers of dozens of DCCC and DNC employees, implanted hundreds of files containing malicious computer code, and stole emails and other documents," it said.

Around June 2016, they began releasing tens of thousands of the stolen emails and documents using "fictitious online personas, including 'DCLeaks' and 'Guccifer 2.0,'" the indictment said.

Trump advisor Roger Stone told CNN Friday evening he believed he may be the person referred to in the indictment as having been in touch with the Guccifer 2.0 persona, but said his exchange over Twitter direct messages was "benign" and "innocuous".

Some of the documents and emails were released through a website identified in the indictment only as "Organization 1" -- believed to be Julian Assange's WikiLeaks.

Other documents and emails were made public through a website and Twitter account known as DCLeaks, which the GRU falsely attributed to a group of "American hacktivists".

Mueller previously indicted 13 Russians and three companies for allegedly interfering in the presidential vote.

Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort has been charged with money laundering and other crimes, while former national security adviser Michael Flynn has admitted lying to the FBI.

THE NEWS: Frank Sinatra's first wife, Nancy, dies at 101

Frank Sinatra's first wife, Nancy, dies at 101
source: AFP

AFP/File / Gabriel BOUYS Born Nancy Barbato, she met her future husband when she was 17 while they were holidaying with their families on the Jersey Shore

Nancy Sinatra Sr, the teenage sweetheart and first wife of legendary singer Frank Sinatra, has died. She was 101.

The announcement was made by Nancy Sinatra Jr who wrote on her website that her mother had died at 6:02 pm on Friday but did not say where.

"She fought hard to remain on this earth but time got the better of her," she wrote, adding that her mother passed "peacefully."

"Godspeed, Momma and thank you for everything."

Frank and Nancy Sinatra had three children together.

Born Nancy Barbato on March 25, 1917 in Jersey City, she met her future husband in the summer of 1934, while they were holidaying with their families on the Jersey Shore.

At the time, she was 17 and he was 19.

"Nancy was giving herself a manicure on the front porch when Frank came over with his ukulele and began to serenade her," according to an account on Sinatra's website.

"One thing led to another, and they started going together."

They wed in 1939 at the Our Lady of the Sorrows church in Jersey, then moved into a modest New York apartment while Nancy worked as a secretary.

In 1950, humiliated by reports in the press of Frank's affair with screen siren Ava Gardner, Nancy filed for separation and their divorce was finalized in 1951.

Notorious for his romantic conquests, Frank would go on to marry Gardner (1951-57), then Mia Farrow (1966-68), and eventually model Barbara Marx in 1976.

But he remained close with Nancy until his death in 1998, according to the New York Times.

The oldest of their three children is Nancy Sinatra Jr, who went on to have a successful singing career with hits such as "These Boots Are Made for Walkin" and "Something Stupid", a duet she sang with her father.

Their second child Frank Jr, who died in 2016, also had a career in music, while the youngest is Tina Sinatra.

THE NEWS: Israeli air strikes hit Gaza after bloody border protests

Israeli air strikes hit Gaza after bloody border protests
source: AFP

AFP / MAHMUD HAMS The Gaza Strip health ministry said one teenager was killed and a further 220 other Palestinians were wounded as protests along the frontier spilt over into clashes

Israel's military said it had launched air strikes targeting Hamas in the Gaza Strip early Saturday, following border clashes in which two Palestinians including a teenager were killed and many injured.

The Israeli bombardment came as rockets and mortars were lobbed into southern Israel from the blockaded Palestinian enclave.

The health ministry in the Hamas-run Strip said that a 15-year-old Palestinian was shot dead in Friday's protests on the Gaza border and a 20-year-old died Saturday of gunshot wounds.

It said 220 Palestinians were injured.

The Israeli military said one of its soldiers was injured by a grenade.

Israeli fighter jets struck two "Hamas terror tunnels" one in southern Gaza and one in the north as well as other infrastructure across the coastal territory, the military said in statements posted on Twitter.

It said targets included "complexes used to prepare arson terror attacks and a Hamas terror training facility".

According to witnesses in Gaza, there were no casualties from the air strikes, which damaged Hamas military infrastructure.

The military said the strikes were conducted "in response to the terror acts instigated during the violent riots that took place along the security fence" on Friday.


AFP / MAHMUD HAMS Balloons loaded with incendiaries have been flown towards Israel during confrontations between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli troops east of Gaza City


It also cited "continuous arson attacks damaging Israeli territory on a daily basis with the launching of arson balloons from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory".

During the strikes, militants in Gaza fired a total of 31 mortar rounds at Israel, the military said, adding that six were intercepted by its Iron Dome air defence system.

Israeli media reports said no one was injured in those attacks.

Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said the group was responsible for the mortar fire on Israel and that they were carried out "in response to the Israeli air strikes".

"The protection and the defence of our people is a national duty and a strategic choice," Barhoum said.

- Grenades and flaming tyres -


AFP / MAHMUD HAMS Palestinians in Gaza have for months been demonstrating against Israel's decade-long blockade of the territory and in support of their right to return to lands they fled or were driven from during the war surrounding the creation of Israel in 1948

Palestinians in Gaza have for months been demonstrating against Israel's decade-long blockade of the territory and in support of their right to return to lands they fled or were driven from during the war surrounding the creation of Israel in 1948.

Since the protests and clashes broke out along the border on March 30, at least 141 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire.

The majority were involved in protests and clashes but others were seeking to breach or damage the border fence.

No Israelis have been killed.

Israel's army said grenades, Molotov cocktails, flaming tyres and stones have been hurled in the direction of its soldiers.

Israel says its use of live fire is necessary to defend its borders and stop infiltrations.

It accuses Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas of seeking to use the protests as cover for attacks against Israel.

Hamas has run Gaza since seizing it from the Palestinian Authority amid deadly clashes in 2007.

Since then, Israel has maintained a crippling blockade on Gaza which it argues is necessary to isolate Hamas.

Israel and Hamas have fought three wars since 2008.