While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Nov 20

A White House official testified in the impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump on Tuesday that the president's request that Ukraine investigate a domestic political rival was an improper "demand," as he fended off Republican efforts to cast doubt on his competence and loyalty to the United States.

Army Lieutenant-Colonel Alexander Vindman, the White House National Security Council's top Ukraine expert and a decorated Iraq war veteran, testified at the third public impeachment hearing before the US House of Representatives Intelligence Committee, wearing his blue dress military uniform and medals.

Both Vindman and a second witness - Jennifer Williams, an aide to US Vice-President Mike Pence - both raised concerns about requests made by Trump in a July 25 telephone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy that is at the heart of the impeachment investigation threatening Trump's presidency.

During the call, Trump asked Zelenskiy to carry out two investigations that would benefit him politically including one targeting Democratic political rival Joe Biden. The other involved a debunked conspiracy theory embraced by some Trump allies that Ukraine, not Russia, interfered in the 2016 US election.

A Swedish prosecutor dropped an investigation into an allegation of rape against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, ending the near decade-old case that had sent the anti-secrecy campaigner into hiding in London's Ecuadorian embassy to avoid extradition.

Although the prosecutor's decision can be appealed, it probably closes the case, which was launched in 2010.

The accuser's lawyer said she was studying whether to appeal it.

A scheme for entrepreneurs founded by Prince Andrew has taken down the logos of its corporate sponsors from its website, as firms and charities distance themselves from the British royal over a sex scandal.

Andrew, Queen Elizabeth's second son, denies an allegation that he had sex with a 17-year-old girl procured for him by his friend Jeffrey Epstein, who killed himself in a US prison in August while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

The scandal has escalated since Andrew's rambling denials and explanations in a disastrous TV interview aired on Saturday left many viewers incredulous, and his apparent lack of compassion for Epstein's victims drew widespread condemnation.

For sale: Disney Plus account, barely used.

Within hours of the streaming service's bumpy rollout last week, hackers commandeered user accounts: locking out owners, changing login credentials and, in many cases, selling them for as little as US$3 (S$4) apiece, a ZDNet investigation revealed.

Disney+ servers crashed early in the Nov 12 debut, which the company attributed to extraordinary demand for its library of Disney television shows and movies, including the Marvel and Star Wars franchises and Pixar favorites such the Toy Story films; the service racked up more than 10 million customers in the first 24 hours. Now, scores of users are complaining online that they have lost access to their accounts.

Tottenham Hotspur sacked manager Mauricio Pochettino on Tuesday, six months after he led the club to the Champions League final and after five years in charge, saying that it was a move made reluctantly after a disappointing start to the season.

The Argentine, appointed by the north London club in 2014, had turned perennial under-achievers Tottenham, who had been through a series of managers, into a force in the Premier League, with finishes of fifth, third, second - their best for more than 50 years - third and fourth.

They also reached the League Cup final in his first season.