Milan - Both Genoa clubs had requested that their opening games of the season be pushed back with Sampdoria due to host Fiorentina and Genoa playing at AC Milan on Sunday.

Detroit - Aretha Franklin, the music icon and legendary singer known as the "Queen of Soul" during a five-decade career died at home in Detroit on Thursday, her longtime publicist announced. She was 76.

Marrakech - Madonna on Thursday took on the mantle of a "berber queen" to celebrate her 60th birthday, touring Morocco's former imperial city of Marrakech under the radar of the paparazzi.

Orlando - World tennis chiefs on Thursday approved a radical Davis Cup revamp that will overhaul the 118-year-old competition, condensing the annual worldwide showpiece into an 18-team, week-long event.The shake-up for the men's team tournament received 71.

Apo - Venezuela's opposition-run supreme court in exile has sentenced President Nicolas Maduro to 18 years in prison over the infamous Odebrecht corruption scandal, a move dismissed by the regime.

Kochi - The official death toll from major floods in India's tourist hotspot of Kerala hit 86 on Thursday with media reporting even higher numbers amid warnings of more torrential rainfall.

Kiev - Ukraine's Prosecutor General's office on Thursday said had it demanded a 15-year prison sentence for ousted ex-president Viktor Yanukovych, accused by Kiev of "betraying his nation" to Russia.

New Delhi - Three-time Indian prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee died Thursday, sparking tributes from across the political spectrum as current leader Narendra Modi mourned the "irreplaceable loss" of the respected statesman.

Apo - The European Union pushed back Thursday against Italy's populist government over the deadly collapse of a bridge in Genoa, saying that it had given Rome billions of euros to fix infrastructure.

Harare - Zimbabwe's Constitutional Court will hear the opposition's legal challenge to the election of President Emmerson Mnangagwa on August 22, the ruling party said on Thursday.

Kuala Lumpur - Malaysia's parliament repealed a controversial law on Thursday that punished spreading "fake news" with up to six years in jail and which critics said was aimed at stifling dissent.

London - Spaniard Carlos Sainz will drive for McLaren in next season's Formula One championship, filling the vacuum left by the retirement of Fernando Alonso, the team announced on Thursday.

New Delhi - Three-time Indian prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has died, current leader Narendra Modi said Thursday of the ailing 93-year-old who had been hospitalised.

Saint-mars-la-r - Visitors to a theme park in western France this week have a new attraction to enjoy: six crows that have been specially trained to pick up cigarette ends and rubbish.

Warsaw - Polish President Andrzej Duda on Thursday vetoed a controversial change to European Parliament election rules that would have kept all small parties in Poland out of the running.

Kochi - Hundreds of troops led a desperate operation to rescue families trapped by mounting floods in India's Kerala state Thursday as the death toll reached 86 with dozens more feared perished.

Bamako - Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita has been re-elected for a five-year term after winning a landslide in a runoff ballot, according to official figures Thursday.

Istanbul - Turkey sought Thursday to reassure investors rattled by the crash of the Turkish lira, insisting the country would emerge stronger and has no need of an IMF bailout.

Nam Dinh - Doan Van Thanh proudly displays diplomas and photos of his daughter at his home in rural Vietnam, hopeful she'll be freed from a jail in Malaysia where she's on trial for the murder of the North Korean leader's half-brother.

Cleveland - New research has found a few facts about fake news, and why it’s believed. It’s a scary bit of information, but very important fundamental research. There might even be ways to finally defeat fake news.