MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) -Manchester City made light work of thrashing a hapless 10-man Arsenal 5-0 in the Premier League on Saturday, a result that means the Gunners have lost their opening three league games of a season for the first time since 1954-55. Rodri added a fourth early in the second half, before Torres scored his second late on to complete a miserable afternoon for Arteta and his side. "I know his awareness as a manager and as a leader, the moment everyone is back he will do an excellent job. I know this because I know him, I know the job he can do. Since the start of the 2016-17 season, no player has been sent off more often in the Premier League than the Swiss midfielder.

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi arrived in Iraq on Saturday to participate in the Baghdad Cooperation and Partnership conference. The Egyptian presidential spokesperson Bassam Rady said that Sisi’s participation in the conference is an extension of Egypt’s desire to support Iraq’s role in actively maintaining balance in the region, while ensuring its own security and stability. The conference seeks to discuss ways to enhance constructive dialogue with the aim of establishing partnerships, cooperation and economic integration between Iraq and all neighboring and friendly countries, he added. The state-owned Al-Ahram newspaper said that Baghdad conference is attended by Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Jordan, Qatar, the UAE, France, Turkey, and Iran, as well as the Arab League, the Gulf Cooperation Council, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. The conference is set to discuss ways to resolve the region’s problems and aim to create better circumstances for establishing economic partnership and cooperation between Iraq and neighboring countries.

Director Mohamed Abdalla made his 12-year dream to produce Egypt’s first silent theatrical show a reality on Friday with the premiere of ‘Halawes’ (Hallucinations), a silent adaptation of William Shakespeare’s ‘The Merchant of Venice’, at the al-Hanager Theater. Some of the cast had not been in mime theater before. We merge different aspects of theater schools to present a rich theater experience,” Abdalla said. Among the crew are assistant director Marwa Hassan, executive director Ahmed Reda with decorations designed by Amr Abdullah and lighting by Abu Bakr al-Sharif. I am hoping I could deliver my message to all mime theater artists in Egypt, telling them to continue the road without despair,” the director concluded.

The massive U.S.-led airlift is winding down, with many Western nations having completed their own evacuation efforts ahead of Tuesday’s deadline. Afghanistan is heavily dependent on international aid, which covered around 75% of the Western-backed government’s budget. The Taliban have encouraged Afghans to stay in the country, pledging amnesty even to those who fought against them. When the Taliban last governed Afghanistan, from 1996 until the U.S.-led invasion in 2001, they imposed a harsh interpretation of Islamic law. This time, the Taliban say women will be allowed to attend school and work outside the home.

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — A 12-year-old Palestinian boy who was shot in the head by Israeli fire during a violent demonstration at the Gaza-Israeli border last week died of his wounds Saturday, Gaza health officials said. Violence erupted when Palestinian protesters began throwing rocks and explosives at Israeli troops near the fortified border. Another Palestinian man, later identified as a member of Hamas’ military wing, died from his wounds Wednesday. Hundreds of Palestinian protesters demonstrated Wednesday near the Gaza-Israeli border, again calling for the easing of the blockade. Egypt, which had closed its border crossing with Gaza to put pressure on Hamas, also partially reopened the crossing to allow a light flow of traffic to enter Gaza from Egypt.

Egypt’s Ministry of Health and Population on Friday reported 234 new coronavirus cases, five deaths, and 329 recoveries. A total of 287,393 cases have been reported in Egypt, alongside 16,706 deaths and 237,385 recoveries. Health Minister Hala Zayed announced on Monday that Egypt’s first case of the fast-spreading delta variant was detected in mid-July. The committee, headed by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, agreed that restaurants, cafes, shops, and malls may return to summer working hours. The Health Ministry is currently working to issue QR-coded vaccination certificates for Egyptians and foreigners that receive their doses in the country.

Biden said earlier he had ordered the Pentagon to plan how to strike ISIS-K, the Islamic State affiliate that claimed responsibility for Thursday’s bombing. Afghanistan’s Islamic State affiliate, known as Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K) after an old name for the region, appeared in eastern Afghanistan in 2014 and later made inroads into other areas, particularly the north. BLASTS IN JALALABADA US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the drone strike was against an Islamic State militant planning attacks. A reaper drone, which took off from the Middle East, struck the militant who was in a car with an Islamic State associate. Biden has defended his decisions, saying the United States long ago achieved its rationale for invading the country in 2001.

The storm is expected to make landfall on the exact date Hurricane Katrina devastated a large swath of the Gulf Coast 16 years earlier. “This will be a life-altering storm for those who aren’t prepared,” National Weather Service meteorologist Benjamin Schott said during a Friday news conference with Louisiana Gov. Ida intensified rapidly Friday from a tropical storm to a hurricane with top winds of 80 mph (128 kph) as it crossed western Cuba. In New Orleans, city officials said residents need to be prepared for prolonged power outages, and asked elderly residents to consider evacuating. Katrina is blamed for an estimated 1,800 deaths from the central Louisiana coast to around the Mississippi-Alabama state line.

In the metropolis of Hong Kong, glamping and staycations have replaced trips abroad for at least some of its 7.4 million residents. BANGKOK’S BUSTLE GOES QUIETErawan Shrine in the center of Bangkok once bustled with foreign tourists and locals making offerings day and night. Previously, the 60-year-old restaurant would be filled with locals and foreign tourists, bringing in about $2,000 a day. GLAMPING IN HONG KONGThe difficulty of traveling abroad has made glamping — or glamourous camping — popular in Hong Kong. “It’s actually a good opportunity for us to really, to try to explore Hong Kong a bit more,” Tam said.

WASHINGTON (AP) — US intelligence agencies remain divided on the origins of the coronavirus but believe China’s leaders did not know about the virus before the start of the global pandemic, according to results released Friday of a review ordered by President Joe Biden. According to an unclassified summary, four members of the US intelligence community say with low confidence that the virus was initially transmitted from an animal to a human. “The report by the intelligence community is based on presumption of guilt on the part of China, and it is only for scapegoating China,” the embassy said. In conducting the review, intelligence agencies consulted with allied nations and experts outside of government. An epidemiologist was brought into the National Intelligence Council, a group of senior experts that consults the head of the intelligence community.

Aug 27 (Reuters) - Coach Roberto Mancini has recalled all but the injured Leonardo Spinazzola from Italy's triumphant Euro 2020 squad for their World Cup qualifiers. Mancini has called up 34 players for qualifiers against Bulgaria, Switzerland and Lithuania, with 25 of the 26 who were present in Italy's European Championship success last month involved in the latest group. They have so far won all three of their qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Italy will play Bulgaria on Sept. 2 at the Stadio Artemio Franchi in Florence. They then visit Switzerland in Basel on Sept. 5, before hosting Lithuania on Sept. 8 at the Mapei Stadium in Reggio-Emilia.

Like many Native Hawaiians, she was not vaccinated against COVID-19. Native Hawaiians make up about 21% of the state’s population, and from the start of the pandemic until July 10, 2021, they accounted for 21% of cases as well. Honolulu Emergency Services Department Director Jim Ireland said that on a recent morning, there were four COVID-19 patient 911 calls in a row for Nanakuli, a community that’s home to many Native Hawaiians. He noted that vaccination rates are lower on the west side of Oahu. Keaweʻaimoku Kaholokula, chair of the Department of Native Hawaiian Health at the University of Hawaii’s medical school, said he didn’t expect some Hawaiians to shun the vaccine.

CAIRO - 28 August 2020: Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry phoned on Friday his Algerian and Moroccan counterparts Ramtane Lamamra and Nasser Bourita respectively to discuss the latest developments related to the two countries' ties. Spokesman for the Foreign Ministry Ahmed Hafez said that during the phone calls, the two sides discussed means of resolving the crisis between Algeria and Morroco. They also stressed the necessity of resorting to diplomatic solutions and engaging in direct dialogue to settle pending matters between the two countries, the spokesman added. On Tuesday, Algeria decided to cut diplomatic relations with Morocco.

The 36-year-old has forced a return to the Premier League from Juventus as one last shot at a sixth Ballon d'Or and Champions League title. Ronaldo arrived at United as a skinny 18-year-old from Sporting Lisbon in 2003 with a bag of tricks. In six years under the tutelage of Alex Ferguson his physique and end product were transformed to lead United to three Premier League titles and Ferguson's final Champions League in 2008. After ending Real's long-wait for "La Decima", the club's 10th European Cup, he spearheaded a run of three consecutive Champions League wins between 2016 and 2018. However, United' season and Solskjaer's time in charge will now likely come down to whether Ronaldo fires or fails second time around at Old Trafford.

“Honestly speaking, I don’t know, and I don’t know if anybody knows,” said Christophe Xerri, head of an International Atomic Energy Agency team reviewing progress in the plant’s cleanup. He urged Japan to speed up studies of the reactors to achieve a better long-term understanding of the decommissioning process. The cleanup plan depends on how the melted fuel needs to be handled for long-term storage and management, he said. Only Xerri and another team member visited the plant this week before compiling and submitting a report to Japan’s government on Friday. The team encouraged Japan to allocate sufficient resources to prepare for measures beyond the next decade through the end of the decommissioning.