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| - Duty Editor: James Hossack Tel: +852 2829 6211 -- TOP STORIES -- + US virus death toll hits 250,000 + Australian troops 'unlawfully killed' 39 Afghans + Five Eyes accuse Beijing of violating Hong Kong deal + Timberwolves pick Edwards in NBA virtual draft + Gabon footballers held at Gambia airport to 'weaken' them Health-virus,WRAP NEW YORK US coronavirus deaths pass a quarter of a million people as New York announces it will close schools to battle a rise in infections and anti-restriction protests in Europe turn violent. 800 words moved by Peter Hutchison with AFP Bureaus. Picture. Video. Graphic Australia-Afghanistan-conflict-justice-crime,WRAP CANBERRA Australia's top general reveals credible evidence his special forces unlawfully killed 39 civilians and prisoners during the Afghanistan war, referring the matter to a special war crimes prosecutor. 600 words 0600 GMT by Max Blenkin. Picture. Video HongKong-China-politics-US-Britain,WRAP WASHINGTON The United States, Britain, Australia, Canada and New Zealand jointly accuse China of violating its commitments by ousting pro-democracy lawmakers from Hong Kong's legislature. 500 words 0630 GMT Basket-NBA-draft LOS ANGELES The Minnesota Timberwolves made University of Georgia standout Anthony Edwards the first overall selection in the pandemic-delayed 2020 NBA draft. 750 words moved Fbl-Afr-2021-GAM-GAB-pandemic-health-virus LIBREVILLE The Gabonese Football Federation accuses Gambia of detaining its players for eight hours at an airport in an attempt to "weaken" them ahead of a crucial qualification match for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations. 300 words moved -- CORONAVIRUS -- Health-virus-Pfizer-vaccine WASHINGTON Pfizer and BioNTech say a completed analysis of their experimental Covid-19 vaccine found it protected 95 percent of people against the disease and announce they are applying for US emergency approval "within days." 700 words moved by Issam Ahmed. File picture. Graphic Moved: Health-virus-vaccines,FACTS Health-virus-WHO Health-virus-vaccines-trials,Q&A -- ASIA -- APEC-summit KUALA LUMPUR President Xi Jinping pegs China as the pivot point for global free trade, vowing to keep his "super-sized" economy open and warning against protectionism in a global economy eviscerated by the Covid-19 pandemic. 550 words 0630 GMT AFghanistan-conflict-US-Taliban,FOCUS KABUL Donald Trump's plan to slash US troop numbers in Afghanistan could unleash a fresh wave of violence by an emboldened Taliban, analysts say, but a more measured approach to America's longest war under Joe Biden might take the sting out of the insurgent group's bid to capture power. 600 words 0830 GMT. File Picture -- AMERICAS -- US-aviation-Boeing,WRAP NEW YORK US regulators clear the Boeing 737 MAX to return to the skies, ending its 20-month grounding after two fatal crashes that plunged the company into crisis. 750 words moved by John Biers Also moved: US-aviation-Boeing-families,FOCUS US-aviation-Boeing,DATES US-aviation-Boeing,Q&A Weather-hurricane-Centram,WRAP SAN SALVADOR The death toll from Storm Iota rises to 25 after leaving a trail of landslides, floods and smashed infrastructure across Central America, revisiting areas devastated by Hurricane Eta just two weeks ago, authorities said. 650 words moved by AFP bureaus. Picture. Video. Graphic US-vote-Biden,FOCUS WASHINGTON Joe Biden, the oldest person ever to win the US presidency, will celebrate his 78th birthday on Friday. If he were to run and be reelected in 2024, he would be 86 at the end of a second term in 2029. Washington insiders are already asking: will he be a one-term president? 750 words moved by Jerome Cartillier. Picture Mexico-US-drugs-justice,FOCUS MEXICO CITY Mexico has vowed "no impunity" for its former defense minister accused of drug trafficking, but experts say political interests and the military's power put the chances of a trial in doubt. 650 words moved by Sofia Miselem -- EUROPE -- Britain-literature-award-Booker LONDON Britain's Booker Prize this year pits four debut novelists against a pair of established writers for one of the world's most prestigious literary awards. 500 words moved by Joe Jackson. File picture Germany-finance-fraud-politics-Wirecard FRANKFURT Markus Braun, the former chief executive of disgraced payments giant Wirecard, faces a public grilling by German lawmakers over the massive accounting fraud that brought down his firm. 700 words moved by Michelle Fitzpatrick. File picture EU-summit BRUSSELS Hungary and Poland force their opposition to Brussels' oversight of the rule of law to the top of the EU summit agenda, sidelining efforts to tackle the coronavirus epidemic. 600 words moved by Julien Girault -- MIDDLE EAST & NORTH AFRICA -- Iran-nuclear-policy-US,WRAP TEHRAN Iran says it will "automatically" return to its nuclear commitments if US President-elect Joe Biden lifts sanctions, as the outgoing administration doubles down with more pressure. 650 words moved by Amir Havasi with Shaun Tandon in Washington Israel-US-Bahrain-diplomacy-Palestinians-conflict,WRAP JERUSALEM Bahrain's foreign minister calls for fresh Israeli-Palestinian peace talks during a landmark meeting in Israel with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. 800 words moved by Ben Simon. Picture. Video Also moved: Israel-conflict-Syria-Iran,WRAP Israel-Palestinians-conflict-US,FACTS Iraq-Yazidi-minority-religion LALISH, Iraq Yazidis crowned a new spiritual leader at their holiest site of Lalish in northern Iraq, nearly two months after the death of the minority's top cleric. 400 words moved. Picture. Video -- AFRICA -- Ethiopia-unrest-Tigray,WRAP ADDIS ABABA Both sides in Ethiopia's raging internal conflict claim military successes, creating a muddied picture of fighting even as the government promised it would soon be over. 800 words moved by Robbie Corey-Boulet. Picture. Video. Graphics. DRCongo-health-epidemic-Ebola,WRAP KINSHASA DR Congo declares the end of its latest Ebola epidemic, closing the file on an outbreak in the northwestern province of Equateur that claimed 55 lives in nearly six months. 700 words moved by Samir Tounsi -- SPORT -- RugbyU-Tri-2020-AUS-ARG,PREVIEW SYDNEY Former Wallabies coach Michael Cheika could come back to haunt his old team as he tries to help Argentina pull off their second straight upset after last week's stunning win over New Zealand. 650 words moved by Martin Parry Cricket-ENG-PAK-tour-Pakistan,FOCUS ISLAMABAD England's announcement of a cricket tour of Pakistan next year, their first since the deadly 2009 attack on Sri Lanka's team, is a vote of confidence in the country's improved security - but challenges remain, analysts say. 550 words 0830 GMT by Zain Janjua. Picture. Cricket-HKG-PHI-HongKong-Philippines,FOCUS HONG KONG After a long week cooking and cleaning in the cramped households of Hong Kong, a group of Filipino domestic helpers are using their Sunday off for an unlikely hobby: cricket. And they're proving rather good at it. 750 words moved by Talek Harris. Picture. Video afp
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