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A teenager in Liberia who has become a national hero after finding $50,000 and returning it to its rightful owner said he will meet the country’s president next week. Emmanuel Tuloe told The Associated Press Friday that he has been invited to meet President George Weah on Monday.
 

At least 62 people were killed and 70 others injured in a suicide bomb attack that hit a packed Shiite mosque in southern Afghanistan, according to Kabul-based news agency Bakhtar. The Imam Barga mosque in Kandahar was full of worshippers attending weekly Friday prayers.

Source: dailysabah.com

Pep Guardiola has expressed surprise at Raheem Sterling’s admission that he is open to leaving Manchester City to seek more game time and said the forward can move if he wants.

Source: theguardian.com

Japan and South Korea will seek to deepen diplomatic ties in the face of regional security threats, officials have said, despite badly strained bilateral relations. Japan’s new prime minister, Fumio Kishida, spoke with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Friday for 35 minutes on phone, the Japanese foreign ministry said in a statement. The two leaders have stated their commitment to set aside their disputes in the face of common concerns over threats posed by China and North Korea.

Source: aljazeera.com

Conservative MP Sir David Amess has died after being stabbed at his constituency surgery in Essex. Police said a 25-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder after the attack at a church in Leigh-on-Sea. They said they recovered a knife and were not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said "our hearts are full of shock and sadness" at the loss of "one of the kindest" people in politics. Sir David, 69, had been an MP since 1983 and was married with five children.

Source: bbc.com

Pupils in schools across France on Friday paid tribute to Samuel Paty, a year after the teacher was beheaded by an extremist for showing his class cartoons of the Muslim Prophet Mohammed. The 47-year-old was killed after leaving the middle school where he taught history and geography in the tranquil Paris suburb of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine on the evening of October 16, 2020.

Source: france24.com

Iran is not ready to return to talks with world powers over its nuclear programme yet and its new negotiating team wants to discuss the texts that will be put forward when it meets with the EU in Brussels in the next few weeks, a senior EU official said on Friday. EU political director Enrique Mora, the chief coordinator for the talks, was in Tehran on Thursday to meet members of Iran's nuclear negotiating team, four months after discussions broke off between Iran and world powers.

Source: reuters.com

Dockers at the Italian port of Trieste have gone on strike in protest at the requirement for all workers to show a Covid pass. The Green Pass shows whether you have had the Covid vaccine, recovered from it or had a negative test. It became mandatory for all Italian workplaces on Friday. About 2,000 workers have gathered at the entrance to Trieste port, a maritime gateway for northern Italy, Germany, Austria and central Europe.

Source: bbc.com

Children who were more connected to nature in lockdown had better behavior. Green space may protect young children against effects of missing school. Researchers suggest gardening projects in schools could help to protect children's mental health during difficult times.

Source: dailymail.co.uk

Firefighters in Myanmar pulled the body of a construction worker from a collapsed building site in the city of Yangon on Friday and were searching for seven other workers after rescuing three of their colleagues. Local fire department chief Thein Tun Oo said the rescue mission was at a critical stage, with the chances of finding the remaining workers alive getting slimmer by the hour. "I cannot hear any sounds," he said by phone. "There is less chance of survival for the rest."

Source: reuters.com

Tune into any television show in China and it's likely that you'll be met with a picture-perfect celebrity. But musical act Produce Pandas, said to be the country's first ever "plus-size" boyband, are part of a new wave of celebrities viewed by audiences as more relatable. It comes as celebrities in China are being criticised for being "image-obsessed", and the government has announced a crackdown on effeminate male stars. The Produce Pandas, who debuted in July last year, sing upbeat songs about being confident and true to oneself.

Source: bbc.com

Cher has sued the widow of her former musical partner and ex-husband Sonny Bono over royalties for Sonny and Cher songs including “I Got You Babe” and “The Beat Goes On.” In a federal lawsuit filed in Los Angeles on Wednesday, Cher alleges that former Rep. Mary Bono and other defendants have attempted to terminate provisions of business agreements Cher and Sonny Bono reached when they divorced in 1975 that entitled each to 50% of songwriting and recording royalties.

Source: apnews.com

Love is in the Bin was what remained of the artist's live destruction of his piece Girl with Balloon, which sold for £1m in 2018. It went under the hammer at Sotheby's in London on Thursday, selling for £16m - vastly over its £4-6m guide price. Including a buyer's premium, the purchaser paid £18.5m in total. The sale, which saw nine bidders battle for around 10 minutes, beats the previous record of £16.8m set for Banksy in March.

Source: bbc.com

The classical music superstar Andrea Bocelli has struck a global deal with Universal Music to cash-in on three decades of hit music, new albums and opportunities including live streamed concerts. The Italian tenor, who has sold more than 90m albums and generated more than 5bn streams, is the latest global star to sign a major deal to maximise the commercial potential of their music in the streaming era.

Source: theguardian.com

Migrants, many fleeing the Taliban regime, claim they are being beaten, harassed and turned back by Turkish border forces.

Source: theguardian.com

Coldplay's next tour will partly be powered by a dancefloor that generates electricity when fans jump up and down, and pedal power at the venues. It's part of a 12-point plan to cut their carbon footprint, two years after the band pledged not to tour until they could do so in a more sustainable way.

Source: bbc.com

‘Fierce’ blaze in the 13-floor building in Yancheng district broke out early morning, with witnesses reporting hearing an explosion.

Source: aljazeera.com

China will send three astronauts to its new space station this week, officials confirmed Thursday, in what will be Beijing's longest crewed mission to date. The three will blast off at 12:23 a.m. on Saturday from the launch centre in northwestern China's Gobi desert, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) said at a press conference Thursday. They will spend six months at the Tiangong space station's core module, Tianhe.

Source: france24.com