Peter Strzok, FBI agent who criticised Trump in texts, is fired
Peter Strzok, the FBI senior counterintelligence agent who disparaged President Donald Trump in inflammatory text messages and helped oversee the Hillary Clinton e-mail and Russia investigations, was fired for violating bureau policies, Strzok's lawyer said Monday (Aug 13).
Trump and his allies seized on the text messages - exchanged during the 2016 campaign with a former FBI lawyer, Lisa Page - in assailing the Russia investigation as an illegitimate "witch hunt."
Strzok, who rose over 20 years at the FBI to become one of its most experienced counterintelligence agents, was a key figure in the early months of the inquiry.
Trump says kept Omarosa because she 'said great things about me'
US President Donald Trump on Monday (Aug 13) said he kept former White House aide Omarosa Manigault Newman on staff because she praised him even as she failed to do her job, the latest insult in the two former reality television stars' public battle.
Trump said the former The Apprentice contestant had begged for a job in the White House but was hated by others, missed work and was "nasty." Still, he said he directed his chief of staff, John Kelly, to try to smooth things over with her.
"When Gen. Kelly came on board he told me she was a loser & nothing but problems. I told him to try working it out, if possible, because she only said GREAT things about me - until she got fired!" he wrote in a series of posts on Twitter.
Antiquities museum reopens in Syria's rebel-held Idlib
An antiquities museum in Syria's rebel-held province of Idlib said to house one of the world's oldest dictionaries reopened on Monday (Aug 13) after five years, an AFP correspondent said.
Dozens of visitors trickled into the museum in Idlib city to see what an official said represented just a fraction of the building's collection.
Ayman al-Nabu, head of antiquities for the city controlled by an alliance of rebels and extremists, said the museum had been damaged by air strikes and looting during Syria's nearly seven-year conflict.
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In Paris, eco-friendly cubist urinals spark sniggers and seething
Paris's penchant for urban urinals has taken a new ecological turn with trialling of a new dry and allegedly odourless version known as the "uritrottoir".
But the red-topped receptacle appears to have mainly provoked ribbing and ridicule and, among some local residents, even rage.
"It's a little weird... but if you need to go it's better than going on the street," admits Jonathan, a tourist from New York who examined the rectangular facility with plants growing on top, which offers little or no privacy to those looking for roadside relief.
Tennis: Murray falls to Pouille in Cincinnati first round
Andy Murray's comeback was sidetracked on Monday (Aug 13) as the three-time Grand Slam champion lost 6-1, 1-6, 6-4 to Lucas Pouille in his opening match at the Cincinnati Masters.
Murray, returning from January hip surgery, was unable to get past the French 16th seed, hampering his preparations for the US Open starting on Aug 27.
Murray last played 11 days ago in a Washington third-round match which took him three hours to win and ended at 3am.
