Bashar al Assad: Donald Trump could be a 'natural ally'

Syrian President Bashar al Assad has said Donald Trump could be a "natural ally" if he fulfils his pledge to fight "terrorists".

Speaking for the first time on Mr Trump's unexpected election victory, Mr Assad said he was unsure the US President-elect would be able to keep his word and step up the fight against jihadists.

"If ... he is going to fight the terrorists, of course we are going to be ally, natural ally in that regard with the Russian, with the Iranian, with many other countries," Mr Assad told Portugal's RTP state television.

On Friday, Mr Trump indicated that he will focus on fighting Islamic State in Syria rather than attempting to oust Mr Assad's regime.

He told the Wall Street Journal he had "an opposite view of many people regarding Syria", adding: "We're backing rebels against Syria and we have no idea who these people are."

Asked about Mr Trump's pledge to crack down on IS, Mr Assad said: "I would say this is promising, but can he deliver?

"Can he go in that regard? What about the countervailing forces within the administration, the mainstream media that were against him? How can he deal with it?

"That's why for us it's still dubious whether he can do or live up to his promises or not. That's why we are very cautious in judging him, especially as he wasn't in a political position before."

Mr Assad added that the US "think that they are the police of the world".

He said: "They think they are the judge of the world. They're not."

His comments come after a television conversation between Mr Trump and Vladimir Putin, during which the pair reportedly agreed to work together to tackle international terrorism and extremism.

Meanwhile, Russia has launched a major air offensive in Syria as part of a joint operation with Mr Assad's regime.

Targets in Idlib and Homs were hit by jets which took off from the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier, while the Syrian military attacked rebel groups inside east Aleppo.

Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu said the main targets included IS and al Nusra ammunition depots, as well as weapons factories.

Half of Black Friday deals 'not all they're cracked up to be'

Think you're getting the cheapest deals by shopping on Black Friday? You may be mistaken, according to new research.

Which? claims major retailers such as Amazon, Argos and Currys may have sold some of last year's most desirable gadgets and appliances at lower prices in the weeks before and after Black Friday.

When Black Friday fell on 27 November last year, 12% of the deals were more expensive than they had been in the three months leading up to the event - and in the two months that followed, 38% could have been found at a lower price.

That means eager shoppers who have camped outside stores through the night could have saved themselves a lot of effort.

Which? tracked 178 deals on 20 types of products - and also alleges it found "numerous" examples of AO and Currys breaking Government guidelines by inflating the "was" price on products to make deals look more attractive.

Image Caption:The Black Friday craze started in the US

Pete Moorey, Which? head of campaigns, said: "Shoppers might be surprised to learn that only half of Black Friday deals are actually cheapest on Black Friday.

"If you're thinking about starting your Christmas shopping around Black Friday, do your research as some 'deals' may not be all they are cracked up to be."

Both AO and Currys have denied breaking advertising rules by inaccurately displaying discounts.

A Currys spokesman said: "We are proud to offer our customers fantastic deals all year round, with prices that are truly transparent and backed by our price promise.

"We fundamentally disagree with the approach taken by Which? in this report and comply fully with the Government's Pricing Practices Guidance, displaying a clear date from when the 'was' price was taken, allowing customers to make a fully informed decision." 

Amazon said six of the eight products reviewed by the watchdog on its website had the lowest price on Black Friday - and explained it often spreads out deals over several days.

Argos explained that it did not intend to mislead customers in any way, and said it updates its prices frequently to ensure customers are getting the best bargains.

Black Friday falls on 25 November this year, and Which? is urging consumers to shop at retailers with price promises, as it means they could get a refund if their product drops in value in the weeks after a purchase.

Other tips include comparing prices in the days leading up to the day of discounts, and holding off for better prices if they are not convinced by the deals on offer.

Pupil dies after falling ill in detention at Tower Hamlets school

Police are investigating the death of a 14-year-old boy, who was taken to hospital after falling ill at his school during detention.

Nasar Ahmed was reported ill last Thursday at Bow School in Tower Hamlets, east London, and died in hospital on Monday.

It is understood he was in an exclusion group with three other students, doing school work under a teacher's supervision, when he started having breathing problems and 999 was called.

The boy was severely asthmatic, the BBC reported.

Bow School is a mixed secondary school with around 500 students aged 11 to 18.

In a statement the school's executive headteacher, Cath Smith, said: "I am very sad to confirm that one of our Year 9 pupils, who was taken ill at school last Thursday, has passed away in hospital.

"The whole school community sends our thoughts and prayers to him, and to his family.

"We will continue to offer support to the family, his fellow pupils and teachers at this difficult time.

"We will, of course, co-operate fully with investigations into the circumstances of this tragic incident and will also carry out a thorough review of what happened ourselves."

A Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said: "We were informed on Sunday November 13 that a child was being treated in an east London hospital after being taken unwell at a school in Tower Hamlets on Thursday November 10.

"On Monday November 14 the 14-year-old boy died. His next of kin have been informed.

"The death is being treated as unexplained at this time."

She added that a post-mortem examination would be carried out.

The school was given a "Good" rating in its last Ofsted inspection in 2013.

It changed its name from the Bow School of Maths and Computing to Bow School in February 2013 and moved to its current site in Twelvetrees Close in 2014.

Germany bans DWR Islamic group after dawn 190 raids across the country

German police have raided 190 mosques, offices and apartments linked to an Islamic group it accuses of radicalising youngsters.

In an operation involving hundreds of officers in 60 cities on Tuesday, police seized documents and files as security authorities issued an official ban on the DWR (True Religion) group.

Security officials say more than 140 youths had travelled to Syria and Iraq to join Islamic State (IS) fighters after taking part in the group's campaigns in Germany.

They also distributed German language copies of the Koran across the country.

No arrests were made during the raids, but German interior minister Thomas de Maiziere said: "The translations of the Koran are being distributed along with messages of hatred and unconstitutional ideologies.

"Teenagers are being radicalised with conspiracy theories."

Image Caption:Police in Bonn take away crates of documents from an apartment

The ban on DWR comes a week after authorities arrested five men who allegedly helped IS in Germany by recruiting members and providing financial and logistical help.

The recent operations suggest that the German government is trying to clamp down on radical Islamists.

The German interior minister stressed the ban does not restrict the freedom of religion in Germany or the peaceful practice of Islam.

But he said the group had glorified terrorism in the fight against the German constitution in videos and meetings.

"We don't want terrorism in Germany and we don't want to export terrorism," Mr de Maiziere said.

Chancellor Angela Merkel has been under pressure to harden her line on security after a string of attacks claimed by IS across Europe and criticism of her decision to let in about 900,000 migrants last year.

The government has also banned five other organisations accused of having Islamist-jihadist aspirations since 2012.

Van Gogh's secret sketchbook discovered with unknown drawings

Sixty-five previously unknown ink-drawings by Vincent Van Gogh have been discovered in France.

The Dutch artist is thought to have made the ink drawings in the accounts book of a hotel he was staying at in the southern French city of Arles.

At a Paris press conference on Tuesday, French publishers Le Seuil announced the discovery, but did not show the original drawings.

Instead, a book reproducing the drawings - titled Vincent Van Gogh, the fog of Arles: The rediscovered sketchbook - will be published simultaneous Thursday in France, the US, Japan, Britain, Germany and the Netherlands.

Van Gogh created seven out of the 30 most expensive paintings ever sold.

These forgotten works were created at the end of his life between 1888 and 1890.

They include portraits of his friends the artist Paul Gauguin and Pierre and Marie Ginoux, who owned the famous Cafe de la Gare where he stayed.

Marie Ginoux was immortalised by the painter in one of his most famous works L'Arlesienne.

Le Seuil described the sketches as "a very impressive ensemble" and insisted that "their authenticity is well established".

Nigel Farage calls No 10 Trump rebuff 'astonishing'

Nigel Farage has said the way Number 10 has rejected his offer to act as a Trump administration go-between is "astonishing".

Fresh from his trip to US to meet President-elect Donald Trump, the UKIP leader told Sky's All Out Politics that it was not the way businesses and people in the "real world" expected things to work.

And he called for Britain's ambassador in Washington, Sir Kim Darroch, to resign because he is a "fanatical Europhile and part of the old regime" whose views would be "diametrically opposed to Trump's".

:: Farage will not be 'third person' in Trump relationship

Video:Are you going to rejoin the Tories , Nigel?

Mr Farage said: "Can you imagine if we were a business here, looking at Trump in America as somebody that we thought it was very important to form a close relationship with. What would you do? You would find somebody who had connections.

"I do have connections with Trump, more particularly with Trump's team, many of whom I have known for years, and yet the Government don't want in any way to talk to me informally.

"It says a lot actually about the way we are governed in this country. We are run by people that have never worked in the real world."

Mr Farage, who appeared on the stump with Mr Trump during his election campaign, was the first British politician to meet the billionaire since his victory.

Image Caption:Donald Trump meets Nigel Farage in New York. Pic @nigel_farage

Theresa May was 10th in line for a telephone call, which came more than 48 hours after the election result last week.

Mr Farage said that Mr Trump was "instinctively" an anglophile and this was a great opportunity for the Government.

He said Sir Kim was not the right person to be attempting to build a relationship with the Trump administration.

"His world view and the world view of the Trump team are going to be diametrically opposed," Mr Farage told Sky's Adam Boulton.

Image Caption:Mrs May was 11th on Mr Trump's leaders to call list - behind Ireland's Enda Kenny

"I would have thought it would be more sensible to put someone there who was likely to get on with Team Trump."

A memo, written by Sir Kim shortly after Mr Trump's election victory framed the man who will be the 45th US President as an "outsider" who was "open to outside influence if pitched right".

He urged Mrs May to build on the "special relationship" and said his team had "built better relationships with his (Trump's) team than the rest of the diplomatic corps."

Image Caption:Nigel Farage arrives in New York at the weekend to meet 'key people'

The UKIP leader also ruled himself out of any ambassadorial job, saying that "diplomacy" was not one of his chief skills.

The Government has insisted there will be "no third person" in the relationship with Mr Trump and that there were "well-established" channels of communication with his team.

Mrs May and Mr Trump enjoyed a long telephone conversation in which he told her the UK is a "very, very special place for me".

Thousands of Tube staff vote for strike action in separate disputes

London Underground staff have voted to strike in separate disputes over staffing, safety and industrial relations.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) said 85% of station and platform staff who have voted backed walkouts over staffing and safety.

A similar number of union members working as drivers on the Tube's Piccadilly Line supported industrial action over a "wholesale breakdown" in industrial relations.

The two disputes involve about 3,400 workers.

Meanwhile, a separate union, the Transport Salaried Staffs Association, will ballot hundreds of its Tube members for strikes over the closure of ticket offices.

It is thought the two unions could co-ordinate action in the run up to Christmas.

RMT general secretary Mick Cash said: "Members on the London Underground stations see day in and day out the toxic impact of the job cuts programme and they are reporting back that it is horrific.

"With the constant overcrowding on stations and platforms it is only a matter of time before there is a major tragedy if we don't act decisively."

The TSSA claimed its members had been subjected to increasing amounts of threats and abuse since the transport network started closing ticket offices.

A closure programme called Fit for the Future was introduced by former London mayor Boris Johnson. His successor Sadiq Khan has ordered a review of the ticket office closures.

TSSA leader Manuel Cortes said: "My members ... are overstretched by the rosters, stressed by how unsafe the Tube has become, and fed up with the spikes in abuse, both verbal and physical, from passengers."

Transport for London's chief operating officer for London Underground, Steve Griffiths, said: "Our staff work hard to serve the millions of customers that pass through the Tube and rail network every day.

"Everyone has the right to go about their work without fear or intimidation and we do not tolerate any form of verbal or physical assault on our staff."