While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Feb 4 edition

A screenshot of video footage online said to show Jordanian pilot Maaz al-Kassasbeh, who was captured by Islamic State militants in December. -- PHOTO: YOUTUBE

ISIS claims to have burned Jordanian pilot alive: Video

The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group released a video Tuesday purportedly showing a captive Jordanian fighter pilot being burned alive, in the militants' most brutal execution yet of a foreign hostage.

The highly produced 22-minute video released online showed images of a man purported to be First Lieutenant Maaz al-Kassasbeh, who was captured in December, engulfed in flames inside a metal cage.

Amman confirmed the death of the 26-year-old, while the video's authenticity has still not been verified, and vowed an "earth-shattering" response.

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Three French soldiers attacked outside Jewish centre by man just expelled from Turkey

Three soldiers on patrol outside a Jewish community centre on the French Riviera were attacked on Tuesday by a man who was only last week expelled from Turkey, a security source said.

The knife-wielding assailant left two of the soldiers lightly injured and was immediately arrested, a police source said.

The attack took place in broad daylight in Nice as the troops were guarding the centre under reinforced security measures introduced after last month's deadly extremist attacks in Paris.

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Britain authorises 'three-parent' babies

Britain has become the first country in the world to allow the creation of babies with DNA from three people after MPs voted for the controversial procedure.

Lawmakers at the House Commons voted by 382 to 128 in favour of allowing the creation of in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) babies with DNA from three people, a move aimed at preventing serious inherited diseases being passed on from mother to child.

Under the change to the laws on IVF, as well as receiving the usual "nuclear" DNA from its mother and father, the embryo would also include a small amount of healthy so-called mDNA from a woman donor.

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Football: Redknapp resigns as QPR manager

Harry Redknapp has resigned as manager of English Premier League team Queens Park Rangers, the club said on Tuesday.

The 67-year-old spent just over two years in charge of the London side, gaining promotion to the top flight last season.

Redknapp said ill-health had been a factor in his decision.

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Mockingbird author Harper Lee to publish second novel

American author Harper Lee is to publish a second novel, 55 years after the release of her US classic To Kill A Mockingbird, HarperCollins announced Tuesday.

The novel - Go Set A Watchman - was written in the mid-1950s and recently rediscovered.

It is to be released in July, the publishing house said.

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