Miss Turkey's tweet costs her the crown

ISTANBUL • The winner of Turkey's national beauty pageant was forced to hand back her crown hours after winning because of a tweet relating to the failed coup that was deemed offensive.

Ms Itir Esen, 18, won Miss Turkey 2017 during a ceremony on Thursday night.

But organisers later discovered an "unacceptable" tweet Ms Esen sent around the first anniversary of the July 15, 2016 coup attempt aimed at ousting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"I am having my period this morning to celebrate the July 15 martyrs' day. I am celebrating the day by bleeding on behalf of our martyrs' blood," she had written, referring to the 249 people who lost their lives during the failed coup .

She apologised but said her post was not politically motivated.

Her title was handed to first runner-up Asli Sumen.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

McCain opposes healthcare Bill again

WASHINGTON • US Senator John McCain has announced his opposition to the latest Republican attempt to replace former president Barack Obama's signature healthcare law.

It was the second time in two months he had defied his party and President Donald Trump over efforts to replace the Affordable Care Act, or "Obamacare".

With both Mr McCain and the conservative Rand Paul opposed to it, it would take just one more Republican defector to prevent the Bill's passage before a deadline of Sept 30, the end of the fiscal year.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

Bollywood producer arrested for rape

NEW DELHI • A Bollywood film producer has been arrested for rape, police in India said yesterday.

Karim Morani, producer of the Chennai Express movie, is accused of raping an aspiring actress several times and taking nude photos of her in 2015, Xinhua news agency reported.