Icetruck

Syria war: 'Final assault' launched to recapture Raqqa

US-backed forces have launched their final assault on the remaining Islamic State (IS) militants in Raqqa.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) says it began the offensive on Sunday, after a convoy of IS fighters and their families left the city, along with hundreds of civilians.

No foreign fighters were allowed to join them, and now make up most of the remaining 200 to 300 militants, SDF spokesman Talal Selo said.

Raqqa was IS's de facto capital.

It was one of the first large cities the group took over in 2014, and had held control there for three years.

But the SDF, an alliance of Kurdish and Arab militias, has been besieging the city for nearly four months.

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• IS wives: Why I joined the 'caliphate' in Raqqa

In a statement released as the battle began, the group said they would not stop "until the whole city is clean of the terrorists who refused to surrender, including the foreign fighters".

The battle is still anticipated to take some time, with Colonel Ryan Dillon, spokesman for the US-led coalition, saying they "still expect there to be difficult fighting".

The SDF's decision to allow some of the militants to leave the city, leaving only a hardcore group of fighters behind, was designed to shorten the fight.

The coalition said "275 local mercenaries and their families" had left Raqqa. Omar Alloush, an official in the Raqqa Civil Council, said about 400 civilians also joined them.

Mostafa Bali, an SDF spokesman, told Reuters they were human shields who the militants refused to release until their own safety was guaranteed.

Mr Selo said the convoy was still in SDF territory on Sunday afternoon.

But the evacuation did not have the full support of their western backers.

Col Dillon said: "We may not always fully agree with our partners at times. But we have to respect their solutions."

The loss of Raqqa will be seen as another blow for IS, which has been steadily losing ground in both Syria and Iraq over the last two years.

IS, which attracted fighters from across the globe with its extreme interpretation of Islamic law, used beheadings, crucifixions and torture to terrorise residents who opposed its rule.

Source – bbc.com

Kyrgyzstan votes for new president in historic election

Kyrgyzstan has held a presidential election that is unusual for Central Asia because it is unpredictable.

One of the frontrunners, Sooronbai Jeenbekov, is backed by outgoing leader Almazbek Atambayev, who has reached the end of a six-year term.

He and the other favourite, Omurbek Babanov, are former prime ministers.

Western diplomats regard the vote as broadly free and fair, analysts say – although there have been reports of violations by some candidates.

• A historic vote, but is it fair?
• Kyrgyzstan profile
• President's daughter in breastfeeding row

Kyrgyzstan, a former Soviet republic, has remained a close ally of Moscow since independence in 1991, and hosts a Russian military base.

Its first two post-Soviet presidents were swept from power by popular discontent. The two main contenders in Sunday's poll favour continued links with Russia.

If no candidate wins outright with more than 50% of the vote, a run-off will be held.

The election been overshadowed by a row over allegations of interference from neighbouring Kazakhstan.

The current Kyrgyz president, Almazbek Atambayev, angered the Kazakh authorities by saying Mr Babanov, a businessman who made his money there, was their choice for the new president. He has denied that he is backed by them.

In response Kazakhstan tightened customs checks at the border, leading to long queues.

Kyrgyz presidents are restricted to a single six-year term under a constitution that has been in force since 2010.

Source – bbc.com

Former world number one Maria Sharapova wins her first title since May 2015, beating Aryna Sabalenka 7-5 7-6 (10-8) in the Tianjin Open.
Source – bbc.com

Afghanistan police 'stop Kabul truck bomber'

Police in the Afghan capital Kabul say they have arrested a would-be suicide truck bomber, averting a major attack on the city.

The truck was carrying nearly three tonnes of explosives and two bombs which had been hidden under boxes of tomatoes, a senior official said.

When police acting on a tip-off tried to stop the driver at a checkpoint, he drove on and was shot and injured.

A truck bomb killed more than 150 people in Kabul in May.

The police officers' timely action on Saturday, a police official said, had saved the city from a great tragedy.

Thirty yellow and orange plastic containers filled with explosive material and two bombs each weighing 100kg (220lb) were found in the truck, AFP news agency reports, quoting the interior ministry.

A Western security source told the agency that each container contained ammonium nitrate, which is also used to make fertiliser.

• Life in Afghanistan under the militants
• The new 'Great Game' in Afghanistan
• Grief and anger at Kabul bomb devastation

Photos suggest the containers were connected by electric cables.

A man in shackles with bandages on his head and left hand was paraded for the media in front of the truck.

On 31 May a bomb packed inside a sewage truck exploded in the city's diplomatic quarter, killing about 150 people and wounding some 400, most of them civilians.

It was the deadliest bomb attack by insurgents in Afghanistan since the Taliban were driven from power by US-led forces in 2001.

No group claimed that attack but the US-backed Afghan government accused a Taliban affiliate, the Haqqani group.

Sunni Muslim militant group Islamic State has also been active in Afghanistan, claiming a bomb attack on Shia Muslims in Kabul on 23 July 2016 which killed 80 people and wounded 230.

Source – bbc.com

Somalia: At least 85 dead in Mogadishu blasts

A massive bomb attack in a busy area of the Somali capital Mogadishu has killed at least 85 people, officials say.

Dozens more were wounded when a lorry packed with explosives detonated near the entrance of a hotel.

Police say two people were killed in a second bomb attack in the Madina district of the city.

It is not clear who staged the attacks. Mogadishu is a regular target for the al-Qaeda linked al-Shabab group, which is battling the government.

President Mohamed Abdullahi "Farmajo" Mohamed has declared three days of mourning for the victims of the blast.

Local media reported families were gathering in the area on Sunday morning, looking for missing loved ones amidst the ruins of one of the largest bombs ever to strike the city.

After the first blast, police captain Mohamed Hussein told Reuters news agency: "It was a truck bomb. There are casualties but we do not know the exact amount as the scene is still burning."

Witnesses told the BBC they believed dozens of people were dead.

Skip Twitter post by @FarahBashirs

Huge blast errupted near safari hotel @HassanIstiila @HussienM12 pic.twitter.com/PtIcUqgpuO

— Farah Bashir (@FarahBashirs) October 14, 2017

Report

End of Twitter post by @FarahBashirs

Skip Twitter post by @HassanIstiila

The director of @AaminAmbulance services said they had carried an unknown number of dead and injured. #Somalia pic.twitter.com/1UM9bKvu0p

— Somalia Live Update (@HassanIstiila) October 14, 2017

Report

End of Twitter post by @HassanIstiila

A BBC Somali reporter at the scene said the Safari Hotel had collapsed, with people thought to be trapped under the rubble.

Mogadishu resident Muhidin Ali told news agency AFP it was "the biggest blast I have ever witnessed, it destroyed the whole area".

Source – bbc.com

Harvey Weinstein: Woody Allen 'sad' for producer over sexual assault allegations

Woody Allen has said he is "sad" for Harvey Weinstein as the producer faces numerous allegations of sexual assault.

The filmmaker said he had heard rumours but not "these horror stories" after a number of women came forward to accuse Weinstein of assault.

Weinstein was voted off the board behind the Oscars on Saturday as a result of the allegations.

Allen faced his own sex claims; accused of molesting his adopted daughter – a claim he has always strongly denied.

Weinstein has been credited with reviving Allen's career after Allen was accused of abusing Dylan Farrow, his daughter with actress Mia Farrow.

The allegation emerged in the early 1990s following Allen's separation from Farrow.

The actress left Allen after discovering he was having an affair with her adopted daughter, Soon-Yi Previn.

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But despite working with Weinstein on a number of films – including the Oscar-winning Mighty Aphrodite – Allen said he had never heard any of allegations of rape and sexual assault.

"No one ever came to me or told me horror stories with any real seriousness," Allen told the BBC. "And they wouldn't, because you are not interested in it. You are interested in making your movie.

"But you do hear a million fanciful rumours all the time. And some turn out to be true and some – many – are just stories about this actress, or that actor."

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"The whole Harvey Weinstein thing is very sad for everybody involved," he added. "Tragic for the poor women that were involved, sad for Harvey that [his] life is so messed up.

"There's no winners in that, it's just very, very sad and tragic for those poor women that had to go through that."

Allen said he hoped the revelations, which emerged after an investigation by the New York Times, would lead to "some amelioration", but said: "You also don't want it to lead to a witch hunt atmosphere, a Salem atmosphere, where every guy in an office who winks at a woman is suddenly having to call a lawyer to defend himself. That's not right either.

"But sure, you hope that something like this could be transformed into a benefit for people rather than just a sad or tragic situation."

Among those who investigated Weinstein were Allen's own son, Ronan Farrow, who spoke to 13 women who said the producer had sexually harassed or assaulted them.

Weinstein, 65, insists any sexual contacts he had were consensual. His spokeswoman Sallie Hofmeister said earlier this week: "Any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied by Mr Weinstein."

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Source – bbc.com

Austria holds watershed election marked by migrant crisis

Austrians are voting in a general election in which the frontrunner, conservative People's Party (ÖVP) leader Sebastian Kurz, is just 31.

The far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) and Social Democrats are competing for second place, opinion polls suggest.

The Social Democrats led the outgoing coalition with the ÖVP.

Immigration has been a dominant issue in the campaign and the FPÖ is thought to have its best chance in years of returning to government.

The party narrowly missed out on the presidency in December when Norbert Hofer was defeated by Alexander Van der Bellen, head of the Greens, who won with about 53% of the votes.

The election comes amid anxiety in Europe over the huge influx of undocumented migrants and refugees in 2015, which fuelled an electoral breakthrough by the far right in neighbouring Germany last month.

• Parties clash in final TV debate
• Austrian ban on veil comes into force
• Austria country profile

Party reinvented

If the polls are correct, a political shake-up could be on the cards in Austria, the BBC's Bethany Bell reports from Vienna.

Republic of Austria

Capital: Vienna

• Population 8.7 million

• Area 83,871 sq km (32,383 sq miles)

• Major language German

• Major religion Christianity

• Life expectancy 80 years (men), 84 years (women)

• Currency euro

UN, World Bank Getty Images

After more than a decade in which the Social Democrats have led a coalition with the conservatives, the mood in Austria seems to be moving to the right, our correspondent says.

Mr Kurz, the outgoing foreign minister, reinvented the ÖVP after becoming leader in May, moving it rightward with promises to:

• Shut down migrant routes to Europe

• Cap benefit payments to refugees at a low level

• Bar other foreigners from receiving benefits until they have lived in Austria for five years

Mr Kurz forced the snap election when he refused to continue in coalition with the Social Democrats, led by incumbent Chancellor Christian Kern.

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The FPÖ accuse Mr Kurz of stealing their policies. Their candidate, Heinz-Christian Strache, has called him an "imposter".

If his party wins, as polls suggest it will, Mr Kurz would become the youngest leader in Europe, and analysts say his party is likely to go form a coalition with the FPÖ.

Opposition disarray

Mr Kern warned on Saturday that the country "was at the most important crossroads in decades".

His own party has been struggling after several scandals including an online smear campaign against Mr Kurz.

The party's campaign focused on economic growth, jobs and social justice.

After a tumultuous year with internal rifts, the pro-refugee Greens are among several smaller parties uncertain of reaching the 4% vote threshold required to enter parliament.

• Austria's far right choose a flower with an ugly past

Traditionally, the winning party is tasked with forming the next government which, since the 1980s, has been a coalition with one of the other parties.

Under the late Jörg Haider, the Freedom Party was the junior party in two coalitions with the ÖVP, between 2000 and 2007.

A note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.

Source – bbc.com

Austria election: 31-year-old Sebastian Kurz tipped as next leader

Austrians are voting in a general election in which the frontrunner, conservative party leader and current foreign minister Sebastian Kurz, is just 31 years old.

According to opinion polls, the far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) and the Social Democrats are competing for second place.

The FPÖ is thought to have its best chance in years of joining the next coalition government and immigration has been a dominant issue in the campaign.

The party narrowly missed out on the presidency last year.

Norbert Hofer was defeated in December 2016 when Alexander Van der Bellen, the head of the Greens, won with about 53% of the votes.

Mr Hofer had campaigned on an anti-immigration platform, amid anxiety in Europe following a huge influx of migrants and refugees in 2015.

• Parties clash in final TV debate
• Austria's far-right choose a flower with an ugly past

Mr Kurz has reinvented the conservative People's Party (ÖVP) since becoming leader in May, moving it rightward with promises to shut down migrant routes to Europe and cap benefit payments to refugees at a low level.

He also vowed to bar other foreigners from receiving benefits until they have lived in Austria for five years.

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He forced the snap election when he refused to continue in coalition with the Social Democrats, led by incumbent Chancellor Christian Kern.

The FPÖ accuse Mr Kurz of stealing their policies. Their candidate, Heinz-Christian Strache, has called him an "imposter".

If his party wins, as polls suggest it will, Mr Kurz could become the youngest government leader in the world, and analysts say his party is likely to go form a coalition with the FPÖ.

Austrian ban on veil comes into force

Mr Kern warned on Saturday that the country "was at the most important crossroads in decades".

After a tumultuous year with internal rifts the pro-refugee Greens are among several smaller parties uncertain of reaching the 4% vote threshold required to enter government.

Source – bbc.com

California wildfires: Death toll rises as blazes continue

Forty people have died and hundreds are still missing in California after six days of wildfires that have devastated swathes of countryside and destroyed thousands of homes.

California's governor said it was "one of the greatest tragedies" the state had ever faced.

More than 10,000 firefighters are battling 16 remaining blazes.

Winds of up to 70 km/h (45mph) brought them to new towns, forcing many more people to evacuate.

One of the worst-affected areas is the city of Santa Rosa, in the Sonoma wine region, where 3,000 people were evacuated on Saturday.

"The devastation is just unbelievable," Governor Jerry Brown said on a visit to the city.

"It is a horror that no one could have imagined."

It is the most lethal outbreak of wildfires in the state's history. More than 100,000 people have been displaced. and whole neighbourhoods have been reduced to ash.

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Firefighters had made some headway on Friday, clearing dry vegetation and other combustible fuel around populated areas on the fires' southern flank.

But the return of strong winds combined with high temperatures and dry air spread the fires further.

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The huge fires have sent smoke and ash over San Francisco, about 50 miles away, and over some towns and cities even further south.

At least 13 Napa Valley wineries have been destroyed, a trade group said, and the owner of a winery in Santa Rosa told the BBC that the fires had destroyed millions of dollars worth of wine.

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Source – bbc.com

Iraq conflict: Peshmerga 'deadline to leave Kirkuk' passes

A deadline allegedly set by Iraq's central government for Kurdish fighters to withdraw from key sites in the disputed city of Kirkuk has passed.

Kurdish security officials said the deadline had been set for early on Sunday but Iraqi authorities denied it.

Some reports now suggest the deadline has been extended by 24 hours.

Both sides have sent troops to Kirkuk and brief clashes have already erupted between Kurds and Shia militia backing the government.

Peshmerga fighters say they are preparing to defend positions in the city against possible attack by Iraqi forces.

Tensions have been on the rise since Kurds held a referendum on independence last month, which Iraq called illegal.

• Iraqi Kurds decisively back independence
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The Iraqi parliament asked Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to send troops to Kirkuk and other disputed areas after the official referendum results – which overwhelmingly backed independence – were proclaimed.

The referendum was held in three autonomous provinces of Iraqi Kurdistan, but also in nearby Kurdish-held areas including Kirkuk.

The province, which bears the same name as the city, is thought to have a Kurdish majority, but Kirkuk has large Arab and Turkmen populations.

On Saturday, there was a brief outbreak of fighting near Kirkuk, with each side blaming the other, reports the BBC's Orla Guerin in Iraq.

Mr Abadi said last week he would accept disputed areas being governed by a "joint administration" and that he did not want an armed confrontation.

On Thursday, the prime minister and the Iraqi military reiterated that they had no plans for a military operation in Kirkuk and were focused on recapturing the last IS foothold in Iraq near the border with Syria.

But since then there has been a major build up of Iraqi forces around the city and Kurdish officials say the Peshmerga have been ordered to defend their positions "at any cost".

The oil-rich Kirkuk province is claimed by both the Kurds and Baghdad, though the two sides were recently united in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group.

Kurdish Peshmerga forces took control of much of the province in 2014, when IS militants swept across northern Iraq and the army collapsed.

Source – bbc.com