While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Aug 10

Jim Mattis told Pyongyang it should stop any actions that would lead to the “end of its regime and the destruction of its people.” PHOTO: REUTERS

US Defence Secretary issues stark warning to North Korea

US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis issued a stark warning to North Korea, telling Pyongyang that it should stop any actions that would lead to the "end of its regime and the destruction of its people."

Mattis' words, some of the strongest he has issued on North Korea, followed incendiary comments from President Donald Trump who said on Tuesday that threats to the United States from Pyongyang would be met with "fire and fury."

Trump's unexpected remarks prompted North Korea to respond by saying it was considering plans for a missile strike on the US Pacific territory of Guam.

Mattis said in a statement that the United States and its allies would win any arms race or conflict with North Korea.

"The DPRK must choose to stop isolating itself and stand down its pursuit of nuclear weapons," Mattis said, using the acronym for North Korea's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. "The DPRK should cease any consideration of actions that would lead to the end of its regime and the destruction of its people."

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FBI raids former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort's home in Russia probe

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A July FBI raid on the Virginia home of President Donald Trump's former campaign manager - confirmed on Wednesday - showed that a federal investigation of possible ties between Trump's campaign and Russian meddling in the 2016 US election was intensifying.

Federal Bureau of Investigation agents executed a search warrant at one of Paul Manafort's homes, his spokesman Jason Maloni said.

A source familiar with the work of Robert Mueller, the special counsel named by the Justice Department in May to investigate the Russia matter, said the raid was part of the first stage of his probe, focused on seeking evidence of financial crimes.

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Gang convicted of sex offences against vulnerable girls in England

A gang of 18 people has been found guilty of trafficking and sexually abusing vulnerable teenage girls and young women for several years in northern England, prosecutors said on Wednesday, in the latest shocking case of its kind in Britain.

The men raped or assaulted the victims after drugging them or threatening them with violence at specially-convened "parties" - often referred to as "sessions" - where they were supplied with drugs and alcohol. Some were so inebriated, they were abused while unconscious.

The offenders were predominantly Asian and aged in their 30s and 40s, raising echoes of a number of similar cases in Britain which led to accusations the authorities had feared to get involved in case they were accused of racism.

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Smugglers push migrants into sea off Yemen, killing 29

Smugglers forced more than 120 Somali and Ethiopian migrants into rough seas off Yemen on Wednesday, leaving 29 dead and 22 missing, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said.

The IOM said it had found the shallow graves of 29 migrants on a beach in the southern province of Shabwa after they had been buried by survivors.

"The smugglers deliberately pushed the migrants into the waters since they feared that they would be arrested by the authorities once they reach the shore," an IOM emergency officer in Aden told AFP. Then they "simply went back to where they came from to pick more migrants and try to smuggle them into Yemen, again".

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Athletics: Francis takes shock 400m gold as Miller-Uibo collapses

American Phyllis Francis won the World Championships 400 metres final as Olympic champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo stumbled when seemingly certain of victory and dropped to fifth place.

Francis looked out of it with 80 metres to go but maintained her form amid the carnage to post a personal best time of 49.92 seconds and take a shock gold medal.

Bahrain's Salwa Eid Naser, 19, claimed a brilliant silver in 50.06 as defending champion Allyson Felix of the United States faded to get bronze in 50.08.

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