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  Riyadh / AP Saudi Arabia announced an easing of its 18-month air blockade of rebel-held areas of neighbouring Yemen on Wednesday to allow the evacuation of hundreds of wounded from a deadly weekend air strike. More than 140 people were killed in Saturday’s raid on the wake for the father of a rebel leader in the Yemeni capital Sanaa …

  ColombO / AFP Sri Lanka’s president on Wednesday accused top anti-corruption officials of launching politically motivated prosecutions against former military leaders, putting himself on a collision course with his own unity government. Maithripala Sirisena took the unusual step of publicly condemning criminal charges brought last month against three retired admirals and the former defence secretary, the brother of his …

  Mazar-i-Sharif / AP At least 14 Shiites were killed on Wednesday in a bombing at a mosque in northern Afghanistan, the second deadly attack on the minority in as many days during the major festival of Ashura. “The explosion happened at the gate of the Shiite mosque in the centre of Balkh district (in Balkh province),” said provincial governor’s …

  Karbala / AFP Huge crowds of black-clad Shiite Muslim pilgrims thronged the Iraqi shrine city of Karbala on Wednesday, weeping and beating their chests in mourning for the seventh-century killing of the prophet’s grandson. Shiites around the world mark Ashura, but attacks on those commemorating bloodshed 1,300 years ago often result in more mourning and loss, including in Afghanistan, …

  Bloomberg Britain announced an agreement to double the number of flights allowed to operate between UK cities and China as Prime Minister Theresa May’s government seeks to boost inter-continental transport links following June’s vote to quit the European Union. Passenger services can now increase from the current maximum of 40 a week for carriers from each nation to as …

  Bloomberg American Airlines Group Inc. trimmed expansion plans in an effort to bolster fares and placate investors by keeping capacity in line with demand. The carrier also joined United Airlines in providing preliminary third-quarter results of a key financial measure that were better than their forecasts, indicating that U.S. carriers are moving closer to increasing sales from each seat …

  London / AFP British airline Monarch on Wednesday won a cash injection from its owner, allowing the carrier to continue flying holidaymakers amid Brexit-fuelled industry turbulence. Investment firm Greybull Capital has pumped another £165 million ($203 million, 184 million euros) into Monarch, enabling the airline to retain its licence to carry on selling package holidays, it said in a …

  Bloomberg MTN Group Ltd., the South African wireless carrier with $1 billion stuck in Iran, agreed to make an investment of 20 million euros ($22 million) that will support Snapp.ir, the Islamic Republic’s first cab-hailing smartphone application. The funds “will allow us to quickly expand to other cities” than Tehran, Snapp Chief Executive Officer Shahram Shahkar said by e-mail …

  Bloomberg Yum! Brands Inc, the US fast-food giant that’s spinning off its China unit, plans to add more outlets with the likelihood of tripling its presence to about 22,000 stores in Asia’s biggest economy. Yum China already has 7,300 restaurants in the country – five per million people – and has the potential to triple that in the long …

  Bloomberg Australia’s government sold its biggest-ever bond, raising A$7.6 billion ($5.8 billion) in a debut offering of 30-year securities. Yields on benchmark 10-year debt jumped to the highest since June. “The eventual size was slightly larger than we expected, but does show good demand,” said Roger Bridges, chief global strategist for rates and currencies at Nikko Asset Management’s Australia …