Islamic State claims it killed two Chinese in Pakistan

The so-called Islamic State says it has killed two Chinese nationals who were abducted from south-west Pakistan by armed men in late May.

The IS-linked Amaq news agency made the claim in an Arabic statement on the Telegram messaging app.

China's foreign ministry said it was "gravely concerned" and working to verify the information.

The pair are said to have been studying Urdu at a language centre in the city of Quetta when they were abducted.

According to local media reports at the time of the abduction, armed men took the couple as they left the centre. Another Chinese woman just managed to escape during the confrontation.

At the time, neither IS nor any other militant group said they had kidnapped the pair. Balochistan has seen kidnappings of foreign nationals in recent years by armed Islamist or separatist groups, sometimes for a ransom.

Islamic State controls some territory in Afghanistan and has been seeking to strengthen its hold in Pakistan since 2015 when it carried out its first attack in the country.

China is one of Pakistan's major allies, investing heavily in infrastructure projects including nuclear power plants, roads and dams.

Under China's One Belt One Road initiative which will see the construction of an economic corridor, Pakistanis likely to see massively increased investment as ever closer links are forged between the countries. Balochistan is the heart of the proposed infrastructure investment.

A recent report from the Pentagon also predicts that China will expand its military reach and suggests that it could construct military bases in Pakistan. 

BBC NEWS

Election results 2017: Pictures of the election counts

BBC NEWS

Juncker: EU needs stronger defence arm

EU nations must step up their military co-operation as they cannot simply rely on the US to defend them, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker says.

"Our deference to Nato can no longer be used as a convenient alibi to argue against greater European efforts.

"We have no other choice than to defend our own interests in the Middle East, in climate change, in our trade agreements," he said in Prague.

US President Donald Trump has urged Nato allies to boost defence spending.

Last month German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Europe could no longer "completely depend" on the US and UK, following the election of President Trump and the triggering of Brexit.

The UK and France are by far the strongest military powers in the EU, so UK withdrawal potentially weakens Europe's collective military muscle.

BBC NEWS

Melbourne siege: Police raid homes over gunman's weapons

More than 150 Australian police officers have raided three homes after this week's deadly siege in Melbourne.

On Monday, gunman Yacqub Khayre was shot dead at an apartment building after he killed a man, took a woman hostage and wounded three policemen.

A 32-year-old man was arrested on Friday, but police said he was not "of national security interest".

The raids related to how Khayre had obtained weapons before the suspected terrorism incident, authorities said.

Police have said Khayre, 29, made comments referencing so-called Islamic State and al-Qaeda during the siege.

• Victim of Melbourne 'terror' siege named
• Muslim 'safe space' plan sparks row in Australia

Two adult men, a father and son, were also questioned on Friday.

"I want to make perfectly clear, we have not yet uncovered anybody with links to terrorism who are associated with the offender," said Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Shane Patton.

"They are not persons of national security interest, but they are persons who are known to us through their criminal history."

Mr Patton said authorities were investigating how Khayre obtained a shotgun and a sawn-off shotgun.

Police also seized an imitation firearm on Friday.

The siege victim, 36-year-old Kai Hao, was remembered this week as a loving son who was married only weeks ago.

BBC NEWS

Softbank buys robot-maker Boston Dynamics from Alphabet

Shares of Japan's Softbank have surged to their highest in nearly two decades after the firm bought robot-maker Boston Dynamics from Google's Alphabet.

Boston Dynamics, known for its robots such as Atlas and BigDog, has struggled to commercialise its inventions and was put up for sale more than a year ago.

Softbank also announced it is buying robotics group Schaft.

The terms of the deals were not disclosed. Softbank shares rose by more than 7% in Tokyo.

Softbank began as a Japanese telecoms company but moved into robotics and developed the human-like Pepper in 2014.

Founder Masayoshi Son has since built the Japanese firm into a massive technology conglomerate through some big deals.

BBC NEWS

General election 2017: Why did Theresa May call an election?

When Theresa May announced on 18 April that she planned to call a "snap" general election, it surprised almost everyone.

It had been only two years since the last UK-wide poll, won by Mrs May's predecessor, David Cameron. And under the relatively recent Fixed-Term Parliaments Act, another general election had not been due until 2020.

On top of that, when she had been asked whether she was tempted to capitalise on her healthy poll ratings and go to the country, Mrs May had given an emphatic "no".

"I think the next election will be in 2020... I'm not going to be calling a snap election" she told the BBC's Andrew Marr in September 2016 .

But that all seemed to change over the course of the Easter break.

As Britain went back to work on the day after Easter Monday, Mrs May stood on the steps of Downing Street to deliver her surprise call for an election.

Her stated reason was to strengthen her hand in Brexit negotiations. With official Brexit talks with the EU due to start in mid-June, Mrs May claimed Labour, the SNP and the Lib Dems would try to destabilise and frustrate the process in Parliament.

• Full UK results breakdown
• Latest updates on our live coverage page
•  
•  
  "If we do not hold a general election now, their political game-playing will continue," Mrs May said in her address to the country, "and the negotiations with the European Union will reach their most difficult stage in the run-up to the next scheduled election."
  The timing was important in Mrs May's mind. Unless all sides agree to extend Brexit talks, the UK is due to leave the European Union on 29 March, 2019.
  As things stood, that would have given the government little more than a year to show the deal it had achieved was working before the next scheduled general election.
  By gaining a fresh five-year term in 2017, Mrs May could look forward to a longer bedding-in period for the fruits of her negotiations. The extra time could be used to negotiate free trade agreements that are seen as critical to the UK's post-Brexit future.
  But while navigating Brexit was her declared reason, many political commentators believed Mrs May couldn't resist the opportunity presented by the opinion polls. A flurry of polls around the middle of April showed the Conservatives about 20 points ahead of Labour.

  A poor decision?

  And if her poll ratings were to be believed, she could have expected to be returned as prime minister with a greatly strengthened majority in the House of Commons. There was even talk of a Tory landslide victory when some polls early in the campaign showed a 20-percentage point gap between the Conservatives and Labour.
  A beefed-up majority would have made her less vulnerable to the whims and demands of her own backbenchers if they didn't like the way the government's negotiations were shaping up.
  Such division in Parliament would "risk our ability to make a success of Brexit and it will cause damaging uncertainty and instability to the country", she said.
  "Every vote for the Conservatives means we can stick to our plan for a stronger Britain and take the right long-term decisions for a more secure future."
  However, that hope looks to have been dashed. A BBC forecast of election results says the Conservatives are at risk of losing their overall majority, while remaining the largest party in Westminster. If that were to happen, Mrs May's gamble on a snap election will be seen as a very poor decision.
  
  
  BBC NEWS

These ancient underground dwellings provide shelter for villagers – and their livestock – during Maymand’s biting winters.

An ancient cave village

Iran's ancient village of Maymand, located around 900km south of the capital Tehran, is littered with troglodytic dwellings ‒ cavernous, underground homes carved out of soft rock. Stone engravings found at the site are estimated to be more than 10,000 years old.

A Unesco World Heritage Site, Maymand is said to have been inhabited continuously for more than 2,000 years, which makes it one of Iran's oldest surviving villages. (Credit: Rodolfo 

Contreras)

Seasonal housing

Tucked away in a valley within the arid mountains of central Iran, Maymand experiences extremely hot summers and severely cold winters. To adapt to these harsh conditions, villagers switch homes according to the season.

In the summer and early autumn, they live in homes with grass thatch roofs which help protect them from the oppressive heat. When temperatures plummet and bone-chilling winds sweep the valley, Maymand residents move underground. (Credit: Rodolfo Contreras)

Modern living

Residents have updated the caves to suit their lifestyle: they have electricity, which allows for refrigeration, and even televisions. However, there is no running water, and ventilation is minimal. The dark film that covers some of the walls is a result of the soot from the fires used to cook or heat the rooms. (Credit: Rodolfo Contreras)