SYDNEY (Reuters) – Sydney, Australia’s most populous city, braced for more rain on Sunday after being drenched by heavy downpours over the past week, as the death toll from flooding across the eastern part of the country reached 17. A wild weather system that dumped more than a year’s worth of rainfall over a week in southern Queensland and northern New South Wales (NSW) brought widespread destruction, leaving thousands of people in the states displaced and sweeping away property, livestock and roads. Seventeen people have been killed since the deluge began, including a Queensland woman, whose body was found on Saturday, according to police. The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) of NSW said a new weather system could bring another round of heavy rains, raising the risks of flooding. “The focus of the heaviest rainfall, and rivers at greatest risk, are those extending from greater Sydney to the Hunter and Manning Rivers, where moderate to major flooding is possible,” the BoM’s flood watch said in a statement. In Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, and surrounding areas the clean-up continued over the weekend after days of torrential rains that flooded several thousand properties.

 

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TUNIS (Middle East Eye) – A Tunisian court sentenced 16 people to death in the first judgments against militants involved in 2016 attacks near the Libyan border that left scores dead, media reported. A total of 96 people were accused in the trial relating to the March 2016 events that saw the town of Ben Guerdane become the stage of a bloody battle as members of Daesh’s Libya branch staged a series of deadly attacks. The court, which is specialized in terrorism offences, handed 16 of the defendants Tunisia’s toughest sentence, though the country has imposed a moratorium on capital punishment since 1991. Other defendants were handed sentences ranging from four years to life in prison, while a small but unspecified number of defendants were acquitted, the reports said. The prosecution said it would appeal, AFP reported. Following the attacks in Ben Guerdane, the Tunisian authorities said they had thwarted an attempt by Daesh to establish a foothold within the country. The attacks killed 13 members of the security forces and seven civilians. In addition, 55 attackers were killed.  Following the 2011 revolution that toppled longtime president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, Tunisia saw a surge in attacks across the country.

 

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LOS ANGELES (Xinhua) – The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in Los Angeles County rose 9.5 U.S. cents Saturday to 5.247 dollars, one day after recording its largest single-day increase since July 2015 of 13.8 cents. According to figures from the American Automobile Association and Oil Price Information Service in Los Angeles County, the most populous county of the United States, the average price of premium gasoline reached 5.511 dollars and diesel rose to 5.495 dollars. On Saturday, at one gas station, a gallon of regular gasoline was 6.95 dollars, and a gallon of premium gasoline was 7.55 dollars. Los Angeles isn’t alone. Pump prices across the country have reached record highs as the price of a barrel of Brent crude for May delivery on the Intercontinental Exchange rose Friday to its highest level since February 2013 to 118.11 dollars. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, crude oil costs account for slightly more than half of what consumers pay at the pump. “Increasing oil prices continue to play a leading role in pushing prices higher. Pump prices will likely continue to rise as crude prices continue to climb,” the American Automobile Association predicted. The rest of the price includes the other components of gasoline, production costs, distribution costs, overhead costs for all involved in production, distribution and sales, taxes and carbon offset fees in California paid by the refineries. 

 

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ISLAMABAD (Xinhua) – Six people were killed and 15 others injured in a road accident in Pakistan’s east Punjab province on Sunday, local media reported. The accident happened when a passenger van crashed into a car in Layyah area, the reports said. Six people in the car including three kids and two women were killed in the accident, said the reports. Fifteen people including the driver in the van sustained injuries and have been shifted to a nearby hospital. The death toll is feared to rise as several of the injured are said to be in critical condition. Road accidents frequently happen in Pakistan due to poorly maintained roads, violation of road safety rules, and reckless driving.

 

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UNITED NATIONS (Anadolu) – United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres has expressed deep concern over political polarization and differences in conflict-ridden Libya. Guterres spoke over the phone with Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh to discuss “the latest developments in Libya,” his spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement. “The Secretary General stressed the need for all actors to preserve calm, while reiterating the UN’s firm rejection of the use of violence, intimidation and hate speech,” he said. Guterres called for dialogue among Libyan rivals and reiterated his “full support to mediation efforts as carried out by his Special Adviser on Libya, Ms. Stephanie Williams.” On Friday, Williams called on the Libyan House of Representatives (parliament) and High Council of State to nominate delegates for “a joint committee dedicated to developing a consensual basis.” The UN proposal came amid a deep political rift in Libya where the Tobruk-based parliament on Thursday gave confidence to a new government headed by former Interior Minister Fathi Bashagha while Dbeibeh insists on continuing with his post and duties as Prime Minister.