Bloomberg UK retail sales stagnated for a second month in September as soaring prices and warm weather hit demand for clothing. The figures, from the Office for National Statistics Thursday, also showed that sales excluding auto fuel were unchanged from August. Small increases on both measures had been expected by economists. Clothing and footwear sales fell 2.8 percent after …

  Aleppo / AFP A “humanitarian pause” began on Thursday in the Syrian army’s Russian-backed assault on rebel-held areas of Aleppo but clashes continued and there were no signs residents were heeding calls to leave. The unilateral ceasefire took effect at 8:00 am 0500 GMT) and was to last at least 11 hours, with the aim of allowing civilians and fighters …

  Kabul / AFP The UN on Thursday warned anew of a deteriorating crisis of displacement in Afghanistan as the conflict escalates, imploring the government and international donors to step up support especially for a “lost generation” of children. More than 323,000 Afghans were internally displaced across the country in the first 10 months of this year, according to UN …